Tuesday, February 14, 2012

20 RenDresses

The word is out, I am no longer employed. It is a relief to be able to say it, the last few months have not been good for anyone involved. I am hopeful that whatever comes next will be even better than what has come before, though the economy being what it is, I’ll take what I can get.

This post is slightly related to my employment status. When a friend found out I was looking for work she offered me a great opportunity: help her sew up some dresses for her business that she could not complete, and she would pay me to do it. My friend (I’ll call her “P”) was preparing for a big show and had a ton to do in a limited time. She bought all the fabric, cut out the dresses, all she needed me to do was sew them together. She drove to my house to drop off the first batch, ten dresses, and explain the construction, then a while later we met up again and she gave me ten more.

What I am leaving out here is Christmas and New Year’s, Alysa learning to drive, my work troubles, and an unexpected trip to Israel. I did not give my full attention over to the dresses. Usually I could only squeeze in a few hours a day, and those were on the days when we were not travelling. I am not as fast at sewing as P is, she does this for a living, I do it when I want a new historical outfit. With one thing and another, I did not get done nearly as many as I wanted, nor as many as P had hoped. I know folks say you should not work for your friends since it might ruin the friendship, but we all do each other favors sometimes, and us Medieval and Renaissance enthousiasts exist in such a small community that it is tough not to become friends with the folks doing the same stuff we love to do. All I can hope is that P is not as disappointed in me as I am in myself.

There were some good things I got out of the project, I got to see more of P, I got to help out a friend, even if only a little. I got to learn a great deal more about pleating and about ironing inside corners. And I’ve got this photo to show you of my attempt at 20 Renaissance Dresses.

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