Author Archives: Cynthia

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About Cynthia

I am a textile artist, embroiderer, wood burner, costumer, painter, and weaver who sees magic and change in the chain stitch and a well done Palestrina knot. I wish I had more control over the ways of the human world but alas, all I can control are my actions and my attitude in life and the consistency of my stitches. And sometimes even that doesn’t pan out as hoped and I must rip rip rip.

What I Did On My Christmas Vacation

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oy vey.  holy smokes.  not again.  *sigh*

It was not much fun.  Lessee, the highlights, then I’ll post something good…

  • My brother, who does NOT handle stress well, has been in shock over the change in our aging parents.  Instead of being tolerant of this or having any compassion, he feels the best thing to do is confront them to change with angry tones and yells at them every chance he gets and then storms out of the house swearing never to return.  *sigh*
  • My parents who are stressed beyond belief by this, well, they are worse (I could give details but I prefer to leave them their private dignity).  I feel for them.
  • My sweetie decided on Saturday that he loves me too much to leave but really needs a break so has decided to take a 2-3 retreat away from me, no phone, no visits.  Once again abandoning me over the holidays and I could really have used a shoulder this week let me tell you.  At least I’m not crying over HIM right now.
  • I got the stomach flu and spent two days between my bed and my bathroom, a repeat to a lesser degree to my bout two years ago when I was in France visiting them.  I seriously considered that my family makes me sick.
  • Jean, my sister in law’s father who is also visiting wasn’t feeling well for a few days and we thought perhaps it was the stomach bug.  But it worsened and they took him to emergency Saturday night. After hours and hours of tests and MRI’s and x-rays and bloodwork, it has been determined that he has severe lung cancer with a large tumor plus several lesions, some of which are impacting his spine and are part of his  constant back pain.  It has metastasized to his bones.  We wait for biopsy results today to find out if there is any hope but I suspect they take him home to die in his own bed.  *sigh*
  • My dad collapsed twice this past week. When we check on him we get brutal anger.  He thinks he’s fine.  He has had at least a dozen near death experiences due to his diabetes, high blood pressure, and his denial about his situation.  He’s just a shit to my mother most times.  I’ve been having some serious, Now Look Here Dad talks with him.  *sigh*
  • The good news is that I will never hear from my brother how France has a better medical system than the U.S. again.  It would have taken weeks for them to do what Seattle’s medical community did in 36 hours.

I am exhausted, in my own physical and emotional pain.  I know that what M.B. has done is truly necessary and it was precipitated by a very powerful experience for him while walking alone by the lake the other day.  I am really truly very happy for him.  But I’m just numb.  While I shouldn’t put any weight to gift exchanges, he gave me an unfinished art piece, 3 used books, and 2 used videos.  That is it.  I have to say that the lack of thought and the inability to prioritize the art piece really hurt my feelings.  A lot.  But then I remember how much thought and effort he put into the statue for Orlando and that makes it a bit better.  To have to go through all this alone has been almost more than I can bear.  I’m this close to saying don’t call me when your 2 weeks are up, I’m done.

But I know he hasn’t been himself.  I know he needs to find his center. I know that he hasn’t been the man I fell in love with.  Part of me is just sick of the drama and part of me longs to be with the man I love.  So I wait to see who emerges in a few weeks.  Why?  Because we do love each other.  We’ll see if it’s enough to get us through the next month.  But I swear to Hekate this is the last Yule I spend this way.  Three in a row, 2 because of family, 2 because of M.B.  I’m done.  No more vacations ruined by either.  If things aren’t improved significantly, I will be single before my next vacation. (Just so you don’t think I’m a callous bitch, it isn’t the health problems that ruined the vacation but the bad attitudes that made it so very horrible)

My house is clean, solstice decorations are put away, I spend dinner tonight with my family.  I spend tonight bringing in the new year with my sober friends sans My Beloved.  Which makes me sad.

So glad I can be busy here at work today.  We close early and then tomorrow off.  Don’t know what it looks like.

Update:  I’ve conferred with my boss and am taking the rest of the week off, except for Thursday morning when a project has to go out.  This gives me more time to step in and help and to recuperate myself.

Festivus for the Rest of us

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I will be away from my computer, my office, the internet, and on vacation beginning today around 2:30 – 3:00 and returning Monday, January 31st.

May your holidays be fabulous, whether you celebrate the return of the sun with a full moon, or any of the other spiritual celebrations, or none at all.

Romano British Women’s Clothing

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Last night I devoured the new book to the best of my abilities. The time period is a little late for what I’m interested in but it does have a few things from the second century so extrapolation is fun. I read until I couldn’t read any more. Yeah. Now that’s a great evening. I learned some interesting things and must own this book so that I can devour it 4-5 times. I always learn more on every re-read. And yes, for those of you who don’t know, I read archaeological findings books. If they are about clothing. GEEK. That’s me. And a lot of my friends too.

What I have learned so far that I didn’t already know:

  • Cotton sewing thread was found in Germany in the 5th century
  • You can get away with things like silk fabrics and embroideries if you reproduce items from the Roman occupation of Britain but as soon as the Romans left, no more imported stuff. Suddenly silks, and perhaps cottons, disappear for several centuries. But COTTON sewing thread in Germany? Why not Britain? And I’m using silk floss so there.
  • The experts still come to some conclusions that I think are just silly. For instance on page 148 figure 5.7. They seem to think that because of this carving that women wore a peplos (see this post) but that the sleeves are not part of an undergarment but she says “Some of the Germanic women on the column of Marcus Aurelius have no gown under the peplos, but unattached sleeves running from the upper arm to cuff, as do the men?” I think she is taking a fold in the fabric to be the top end of a sleeve. I find this very interesting and am very skeptical.
  • Author keeps referring to long gowns needing belts. WTF? why does the length of a gown mean it always needs a belt? Only if the gown is too long does it need a belt to hitch it up. But if you hem it shorter you are not required to use a belt. She has made this assumption based on two peplos that exist that are 1.68m long and 1.37m long. Which to me translates to 65 inches long and 53 inches long. One of the peplos’, the Huldremose peplos, shows that obviously a large portion of the length is taken up in the “bib.” What makes a belt necessary to this garment? Strange conclusion IMO.
  • Linen for both under and over gowns and peplos? Quite popular, especially with the very wealthy. Which in some ways validates my questioning about linen in other ages being for the poor. This piece of information, tied to information from The Four Seasons of the House of Cerruti from the 15th century which recommends linen or a blend of linen and silk for hot weather garments leads me to think that perhaps linen for garments in between these time periods might not be all that preposterous. Especially when you match it with information from Fashion in the Age of the Black Prince which has several references to linen as an outer garment including cloaks.
  • Needleworked button loops, with a foundation of a few threads back and forth covered with buttonhole stitches. A very early form of detached buttonhole stitching. For buttons and pins not decoration. YES
  • Very cool diagram showing how they might create a weaving warp with a tablet woven selvedge, very clever

Obviously techniques ebbed and flowed. The Romans brought in very sophisticated techniques and materials (including for the first time, fine WHITE wool sheep) and when they left, it appears that if they didn’t take it with them it wasn’t used for some reason. That cool central heating and household running water died off for centuries. There must have been no money to build such fancy-ness after they left. I wonder it there was also a feeling of “Damn Romans, we’re not using their stuff any more. Feh.” *laugh*

I’ve mostly completed one embroidered motif on the navy wool peplos I am making. Once I get other motifs down, I will concentrate on what goes between the motifs. I have five on the front bib section and will have 5 on the back. Plus one each at the hem corners front and back (sides are slit from knee down)

The first photo below most accurately reflects the colors although the navy is a tidge lighter than this black. But the motif colors are right on.  I’ve used blanket stitch (aka buttonhole stitch, only difference is the density of the stitches and the use) and stem stitch.  Some folkes think that stem stitch and outline stitch are the same.  They are not.  In stem stitch the needle comes out of the fabric ABOVE the embroidery thread.  With the outline stitch the needle comes out BELOW the embroidery thread. Completed stem stitch appears ropey.  You can see the thread.  Rough, textured.  Outline stitch appears satiny without the threads showing clearing.  Very smooth, very little texture.  I like them both and use them for different effects.  What many folks do is have the needle come out above or below in the same run of stitches creating neither ropey or smooth but a mixture of the two.  And so it isn’t obvious the difference and that they are distinctly different if you use the rules.  Above or Below.  Not both.

The embroidred tryskele shows very well how ropey stem stitch is.

The motif applique is a fine red twill wool.  The stuff I dyed a bit over a month ago.  The threads are combination of perl cotton and a wool/silk blend.  White bone disks and gold horn disks.  The motif is 3″ at it’s widest points. 

Showing second motif begun by tacking down to wool garment with blanket stitches

This is the back of the embroidery.  You can see my fussy mitered corner hem (my modern addition).  With the exception of the long stitches to attach the gold horn disks, this embroidery is almost as pretty as the front.  I kind of like this too.  And might do something like this on the right side between motifs or some such thing.

The new book is here! The new book is here!

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It’s not a phone book so I can get very excited.

I’ve been waiting for the university library to receive this book:

Cloth and Clothing in Early Anglo-Saxon England: AD 450-700 by Penelope Walton Rogers. And it finally came. They did purchase it, it is a fairly new publication but it appears it took them ages to get it into the system.

I’m bouncing pretty happily at the moment. Total Geek Moment.  Archaeological texts.  yummmy.

Does this mean I’m Aragorn?

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I Am A: Neutral Good Human Ranger (7th Level)

Alignment:
Neutral Good A neutral good character does the best that a good person can do. He is devoted to helping others. He works with kings and magistrates but does not feel beholden to them. Neutral good is the best alignment you can be because it means doing what is good without bias for or against order. However, neutral good can be a dangerous alignment because because it advances mediocrity by limiting the actions of the truly capable.

Race:
Humans are the most adaptable of the common races. Short generations and a penchant for migration and conquest have made them physically diverse as well. Humans are often unorthodox in their dress, sporting unusual hairstyles, fanciful clothes, tattoos, and the like.

Class:
Rangers are skilled stalkers and hunters who make their home in the woods. Their martial skill is nearly the equal of the fighter, but they lack the latter’s dedication to the craft of fighting. Instead, the ranger focuses his skills and training on a specific enemy a type of creature he bears a vengeful grudge against and hunts above all others. Rangers often accept the role of protector, aiding those who live in or travel through the woods. His skills allow him to move quietly and stick to the shadows, especially in natural settings, and he also has special knowledge of certain types of creatures. Finally, an experienced ranger has such a tie to nature that he can actually draw on natural power to cast divine spells, much as a druid does, and like a druid he is often accompanied by animal companions. A ranger’s Wisdom score should be high, as this determines the maximum spell level that he can cast.

Find out What Kind of Dungeons and Dragons Character Would You Be?, courtesy of Easydamus (e-mail)