Maura's Illuminated Manuscript

Last week, the Wendling brought me some fabric from his mother, a lovely Christmas snowflake print that I'm sure once belonged to Ex's stepmother. I'd made a mask for each of the three of us using my stash of black cotton, so I assumed (Foreshadowing!) that she wanted me to make more with her fabric since she has no sewing machine.

The trouble is, I haven't had enough elastic in ages, and the batch of three used up all my tape. I needed to use much of Ex's fabric to make ties, which is a labor-intensive process, boy howdy. I made ten masks in about as many hours. Except for my morning ride, I didn't take advantage of the gorgeous weather yesterday*. When I called up and asked how many I get to keep, she said, "As many as you want."

Le sigh. I'm keeping four because I busted my butt on them, dammit. More masks is definitely more because you're supposed to wash them and dry them in a dryer.

I have to say, though, that I've tried both an N-95 and one of my homemade masks for biking, and I felt like I was going to suffocate. It's just too hard to get enough air through them per minute if you're breathing hard. The nice thing about riding in the street, as I started doing over the weekend, is that I'm not too close to anybody. Skipping the mask is, I hope, not too bad.



*An awful lot of people in my neighborhood were gathering outdoors in threes, fours, and fives, though. Not. Cool.

For the first time in my life, I did some sewing for work. StartupCo hosts a marketing conference every year. This year's MC caught his jacket pocket on something and tore about 10 cm of seam. E, one of the women in charge, knows I can sew. A few minutes later, I'm scrambling for a sewing kit. (I ended up hitting the convenience store across the street, and putting the kit in the box of emergency supplies for next time.) It wasn't my best work, but it was under considerable time pressure and it did the job. Nice jacket, though.

But what really happened at the marketing conference happened at the big, crazy party afterwards. I met a woman, who I will here call Grenade after the tattoo on her back, with a strong physical resemblance to someone I have... strong feelings for. I asked E to hit me, and she considered it seriously. Grenade's cute. She's personable. She's local. She's a techie, more or less. She's a Burner. She's genderqueer. (Yes, I checked the pronouns.) She has a boyfriend, which may be a problem or two, but one never knows, especially around here. Is she any older than Much Younger Woman? That question just occurred to me, and I don't know the answer. Anyway, she's exciting, she's in Zuckerberg's data mine, and I certainly hope to see her around.

I've finished all of the machine work on my Halloween costume this year, including my use of the serger that dianala up and gave me (!) years ago, a White Superlock 2000. I'd been putting off learning how to use it because the innards of a serger look like Rube Goldberg meets Edward Scissorhands. Indeed, the first time I threaded it took an hour because I missed one of the thirty-plus places to stick the thread.

Once I got going, though, I waxed rapturous over never needing to sew French seams again. Rolled hems are also a snap.

My blind hems, well, they can still see patches of light & dark: the stitches are all in the right place, but the little stitches through the right side pulled in a fold. I think that means the tension was wrong for my fabric, but I'm not sure which kind of wrong. It's good enough for a petticoat, anyway.

In short, A++ will serge again!

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And on an only slightly related note, Ms. Zappy texted me while I was driving to her office to tell me she'd gotten a late start. Once I got there and killed some time, she called me to tell me she was having a migraine with attendant dizziness. I told her I'd prefer that she didn't work on me with sharp instruments in that state. So more sewing time this afternoon for me.

Poor woman. She seemed keen to reschedule before our existing appointments next month, but Halloween. And Seacompression. Ah well, my hair isn't going anywhere.

• Project Girlfriend is progressing. More news next month.


• I'm done with my mending and alterations, which had been sitting on top of my dresser and nagging me for months.


• I'm ahead of schedule with the work I'm doing for the July release.


• Speaking of summer, Pride is June 26th. I've been to Pride marches before, but this will be the first time I'll be in one. I figure I've earned it. I'll be with MyCo's GLBT association, natch, and the planning meeting is on my calendar.


• Managed to notice that Cherry, the lesbian night at Re-bar, is on Saturday night. I'm not going to miss it this time.

There. I feel better now.

I'm making a white costume that I have no shoes for. Yeah, I could buy some, but I have nothing else to go with them. I don't suppose that one of you ladies who share my shoe size (US women's 11, UK 8, EU 42) would let me borrow a dressy pair of white shoes for Friday night? I'm not terribly picky about which shade of white or the style.

It occurs to me that I've bummed somebody's bathroom for the last time. As much as I liked chatting with those whose bathrooms I bummed, that's kinda awesome.

I've been so slack on LJ & PTA because I've been sewing like a madwoman. The bodice is together. I have two nights left. Shortcuts will happen. I'm wondering how I'm going to fit laundry in. I haven't been fitting sleep in too well.

Oh yeah: Dr. Shrink filled out the form I need to get an F on my driver's license! Woohoo!

I have an excuse to wait until summer to start the next costume: I expect that clothes might fit a little differently this time next year, Bob willing.

Meanwhile, time for the Naughty Nurse from 1913 to offer my co-workers a SQL injection.

Machine sewing* is done on the Halloween costume. It (just barely) fits. Considering the nature of the fabric, that's no mean feat, if I say so myself.

This one sets a record for cumulative length of seams sewn. I've munched through two large spools. I also need to get the reverse on my machine fixed again, which is absolutely necessary for corsets, and new 60mm rotary cutters.

Oh: my boy wants to be the grim reaper. I have just the pattern, and I picked up the fabric the other day. For the first time ever, I'm going to make a costume for my son! Happiness.



*Yeah, there's always hand work, but this outfit has much less than usual.

Am no longer panicked about my sewing project. There's always a short cut.

Wondering what to do with m'boy this weekend. The Museum of Flight, maybe? He'd dig it in a very large way; he's become a fiend for all things military lately. Neither Nibs nor I want to do fireworks. We didn't even think Kirkland was having them this year until two days ago, and in the meantime I made plans. (Yes, the Seattle displays are a lot better, but with no Myrtle Edwards fireworks this year, Nibs was terrified of the potential crowd at the Gas Works display.) I figure he's got something good coming from us.

Friday: house at OSeaO aka Electric Tea Garden.
Saturday: Club V & maybe Merc.
Yeah, I know there's Beerfest at the Seattle Center, but when to fit it in?

I finished cutting the fabric for my Halloween costume. The first time.