I envy the people who have an entire room which they can call their sewing room. I look through magazines like Threads and Quilter and see the wonderful ads and articles showcasing entire rooms devoted to people’s sewing hobbies and businesses and sometimes feel like crying.
I have no real sewing room. I have a nook. A small sewing table with my machine, sitting flush against a wall, flanked on either side by bookcases. The futon couch that provides seating for the television downstairs is pushed over pretty close to the sewing table, so there’s not much room for my (not at all ergonomic) chair. There’s a small sidetable nestled between the sewing table and the arm of the futon couch, upon which rests a basket with two cups of pencils and scissors and a few sewing tools. The rest of the basket it currently filled to the brim with bits and bobs (It needs a serious reorganizing). Mom replaced the old “table” with the current one. I’m really glad she did, too…the old one was actually an old wooden peach crate, turned on its side. A couple of bins are currently taking up residence in this section of the basement, but they will soon be moved.
A bulletin board hangs on the wall above the sewing machine. It’s in serious need of de-cluttering, too, but that takes less time to do than the basket. I’ve got a couple of different things hanging from the board at the moment – a line drawing of a floofy dress that Maggie saw and admired in an old Threads magazine of mine, a sketch of a video game character’s costume that I want to do, a pair of horns made out of Sculpey clay, a template for an origami crane quilt square (filled in with color pencil), and a finished example of the same origami crane quilt square. Oh, and a list.
The list, to be exact.
The list of what, you ask? Simple. A “to be made” list for costuming. Printed on the back of a used index card (reduce, reuse, recycle and all that), it is a checklist of specific costumes that are on my personal to-do list. This list is different from the costume reference binder that I’ve made. That binder has sections in it with sketches of costumes and styles I have seen and like, but not everything in that binder will necessarily make the transition into an actual costume. Some are destined to simply live out their life as a sketch or a photo tucked in with the rest of the ideas.
The list, however, functions more as a contract – a covenant with myself, if you will. These are costumes that I am committed to making. Not for any event or convention in particular, but because they have jumped out from their respective movies, tv shows and video games and demanded that they be made. New costumes are occassionally added to this list, but no costume can be removed. They can only be checked off as “completed.”
I’ve decided to share my “to be made” list with you, just because I have a blog and you are, apparently, reading it. I’ve listed all of the pieces on the list, along with a note on which ones have been finished to date. I think that the costumes someone feels drawn to make – whether they will be seen outside of the costumer’s sewing room or not – reveals just as much about that individual as their cosplay choices at conventions. Draw what you will from my list:
- Firefly – Kaylee – Shindig “layer cake” dress
- Firefly – Kaylee – jumpsuit (Completed and worn to Polaris 22)
- HP (Chamber of Secrets) – Molly Weasley – rainbow sweater outfit (Completed and worn to Polaris 22)
- HP (Chamber of Secrets) – Molly Weasley – “floo powder” scene
- Super Mario Bros. – Toad (Completed and worn for Halloween 2007)
- Night Watch – Light Company uniform
- Doctor Who, S1 Ep 2 – Jabe
- Doctor Who, S2 Ep 7 – Rose – 1950s poodle skirt outfit
- Jedi (Completed and worn to Polaris 22)
- Potter Puppet Pals – Harry (Completed and worn for masquerade at Polaris 22)
- HP – Hogwarts uniform
- The Dark Crystal – Landstriders
- Original design – Steampunk – Tesla Wheelwright (currently under construction)
- Disney’s Sleeping Beauty – Merriweather
And, just to prove that my steampunk costume does in fact exist – at least in part – I’ve finally managed to upload a picture of Peace, my repainted foam missile bazooka (I want to call it a Nerf gun, but this one isn’t made by them).
I apologize for the size and darkness of the picture (although the lighting certainly makes it look like I’ve got gaslights downstairs). I took it with my camera phone. I’ve also taken a couple of pictures with the digital camera, but it’s going to be a little while longer before I can upload those.
Nerf Guns and Bobbins 