ok so maybe i'm not cloudy with a chance of meatballs ok

October is in the air, and I'm having a Halloween crisis.

I'm knee deep in my 2SPOOKY2013 outfit, but then I watch the season opener of SNL and remember that  Drunk Uncle exists???????

I don't know what my plans will be for the day, but I will probably work. And I will probably be working at the job I'm assuming has a stick up it's ass and doesn't allow dressing up. Theoretically, I could get away with wearing my 1920s outfit (mostly) to that job and stay within dress code. I could also change out of that costume and into Drunk Uncle after working there (if I open). That's what I did last year with Grumpy Cat and Vince Noir...

2SPOOKY2COSTUMES2013: IT'S HAPPENING.

Day Three of Guaranteed Seven Day Cold/Bird Flu/Rubella

    Yesterday I started on a 2SPOOKY2013 update but got sidetracked due to the amount of nyquil I had taken and raged about how awful my job is instead.   I called in sick to the bookstore (I was going to be a real american and soldier through, but after making it through only an hour and a half of the second job before hiding in the back room wheezing from what I'm assuming is SARS or the final remains of swine flu, I wussed out and called in. Isn't working while contagious the best??!?), and should have called in to the second job too, but I didn't want to deal with the drama-laden hassle.

    Anyway, I will post what I had originally intended to post yesterday right now.

    I've had a few hang ups when it comes to the fabric, as usual, every damn time. I had originally wanted the main dress to be dark blue or navy with red accents. I was worried it might look sailor-y but it looked pretty solid in my head. I went to Joann's three different times and was unable to make a decision on fabric. I finally ended up deciding on a dark blue polyester peachskin that had an ok drape and was a nice color. It was more per yard than I wanted to spend, since I'm winging it and need to buy more than I really need, that kind of put a ding in my plan.

     

   I had a coupon, but since it was already on sale for a smaller percentage off, I couldn’t use it, and since it wasn’t really what I had in mind,  I ended up not getting it and going to Fabric Depot just to see what they had. Fabric Depot, while more expensive, has everything. EVERYTHING.  Everything, except a dark blue fashion fabric. None. The one blue they had was a bright royal blue, which screeched bad packaged “Miss High Seas Hottie” costume. My next choice was black, which could work with my theme,  but I was afraid the black/red combo would end up being something I would have been really into in junior high, which is a time in my life I wish to not revisit.  The only other fabrics they had in a weight I could work with were a medium grey and a hot pink. 

    By this point, I’d been in the store waffling between the Ho of the Sea blue and My Chemical Romance approved black for an hour and a half (though a good portion of that was also spent poring over every other piece of fabric looking for an apparently mythical black on white windowpane check. IT DOES NOT EXIST).  After a hour bus ride to get there, plus the knowledge that there was a Burgerville across the street and that it was sweet potato fry season, I gave up and just got the grey.

     It’s not my original first choice, but I think it’ll be fine. I’ve had to give up on my idea of the windowpane check inset, because as previously mentioned, it is a figment of my imagination and apparently does not actually exist in reality.  However, I did manage to get some free sample drapery fabrics from my second job in some interesting deco-ish patterns on similar grey backgrounds, so I’m going to mess around with those and see if I can incorporate any of them into it to jazz it up a bit.  There is enough that I may end up making the skirt out of the pattern and leave the bodice the plain grey.  Still no idea what to do with the inset.

   

 A few days ago, I made up the beginning of my pattern, and it came together pretty fast. October is just around the corner, so I really need to get my ass in gear and get going on this thing.

bleh

I was originally going to post a halloween update, but I'm sick and grouchy, so allow me to bitch and moan about how, due to the ridiculous scheduling practices of my second job that completely ignore the needs of it's employees, if I can't give away some of my hours (which is not looking likely), I will be working at least a month without getting a day off.

I know everyone is saying, you wanted a second job, you should be happy to be getting any hours at all.

Well, fuck that shit.

I need a damn day off. One day out of thirty. One day.

Meanwhile, there are other people at that store, in my department, who are parents, who only have one job, ect, ect, who are only receiving the bare minimum hours (if they get any at all). I need hours. But I don't need ALL the hours. I have two jobs, I do not want to be having to work 60 hours a week, because I do not need 60 hours a week. Other people NEED those hours to survive. It makes me so angry. It is so unfair to everyone involved. I'm thankful for the hours I need, but having too many is grinding me into the ground. If that makes me ungrateful, or whiney, then I guess that's how I am.

I've applied to a couple other places, but am so tired when I get home, I have no energy. Looking for a job is in itself a full time job.  I really need to get on it though, because I do not want to be at the second place through the end of november, as it is required that every employee work a ten hour shift on black friday. I'd rather be hit by a truck than be in that level of hell for ten hours (my shift would probably be 6 AM-4PM, and I'd have to take a cab to get there, since my bus doesn't run that early) THEN go to the bookstore to close.

 I applied for a position at the bookstore that will give me four more hours a week there (that was originally rumored to be a full time position, but that turned out to be just that). THAT'S the job I want to work full time for! Not the shithole that is the other store! Argh!

I will be updating with more 2SPOOKY2013 things in the near future, but I just needed to vent about this for a while. I've had a rough few weeks, and it seems as though it will stay there for an unspecified amount of time. 

2Spooky: 1903 Edition

Me at all times

I've been scrounging around pinterest, and have found quite a few historical halloween or fancy dress costumes I thought I'd share.  I love how abstract they could be, like "electricity" and " sewing". It lends to more open ended creativity, and I wish this idea were more popular now! I also love Victorian costumes that were just a normal dress, but with imagery of the thing they were supposed to be, like "bats" or whatever. 

Champagne bottle fancy dress, 1902 From the Fashion Museum, Bath via the Huffington Post

Electric Light

This website has a wealth of information on different period Fancy Dress costumes.

Le Dirigeable

As does this blog.

Arabian Nights

The peacock is great!

Sewing

American Duchess giveaway!

American Duchess, one of my favorite historical costume bloggers, and manufacturer of AMAZING repro shoes is doing a giveaway to welcome the pre-order of the 1930s Claremont oxfords! I love them! I've got a pair of their Georgianas, and they're great, but I could get away with wearing these everyday! (I'm also crazy about the '20s 23Skidoos, and wish I could get them for halloween, and beyond! haha)

Go check them out!

caw

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THERE'LL BE MUCH FAKE STUFFED CROWS-ING

AND NERDS WILL BE SEWING WHEN HALLOWEEN NEARS

IT'S THE MOST WONDERFUL TIIIIIME OF THE YEAR

As previously mentioned, I'm in full Halloween plan mode. I went to Joann's today to casually look for a pattern, or at least several patterns to graft together, but as per usual, zip. If I wanted to go as a crushed panne-clad, slightly meth-y looking Khaleesi, or the girl from that Brave movie whose name I do not know,  we're in business, but a basic drop-waist dress is out of the question.

So, I'm back in the business of creating my own pattern. I think it'll be fairly simple, and did some pinterest trolling to get ideas from extant outfits!

Since I will probably have to wear it in a dress coded environment, it can't be too outrageous. I know I want sleeves, and that it will probably be navy blue (this goes with my secret theme, which I cannot reveal). One detail I'm 100% on is the deep-v neckline with the inset. The inset will be a patterned white fabric, which sounds awful, but will make sense when combined with the theme.

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Love the V-neckline with the inset framing details!

(photographersdirect.com, clearly)

The black one has the v-insert, plus the sleeves I'm looking for. I'm not sold on the bell-shape, but have seen plenty slimmer cuts that I like, along with contrast cuffs (!?!?!?!?!).

The blue-aqua colored one bottom right has that Holy Grail insert (I really need to look up the actual name of that) plus great details AND a pleated skirt I want but probably won't have the patience to do. (couldn't find a source on this one, it's from pinterest)

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WANT ALL OF THESE FOR EVERYDAY LIFE. 

love the detailing on the skirt on the dark blue in the forefront, crazy about the neckline on the three piece suit in the bottom right. Again, would wear 365 if I could. 

Although Joann's yielded nothing in the pattern department, I did kinda sorta find a fabric that might work. I've got a load of coupons that start in a few weeks, so I've got a while to do some more research. I should try and make it out to Fabric Depot and have a look-see, but alas, I've been getting next to no time off to do such things.

(I had a tough time finding actual sources for these photos, since for some reason flickr seems to be down. All are from pinterest, ect)

Old as Balls

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Well, gentle reader(s), it's that time of year again. The time when the weather darkens, the foliage changes, Pumpkin Spice returns at Starbucks and my 3pm commutes become hell as high school kids flood the after school buses. It's the time when Goodwill becomes 'HALLOWEEN CENTRAL' and I am finally able to buy all the rubber rats I want without looking like a crazy person who might have a secret room in my basement that they'll find later and suddenly it will all be clear. In other words, Halloween is on the near horizon.

As you may or may not know, fall is my absolute favorite time, and in no small part because it contains Halloween. I Halloween hard-core. I take it way more seriously than I should. In my years of having multiple costumes that make no sense to anyone other than me, I've learned that I am one of a small minority who share this notion of Halloween. Most people don't put much thought into what costume they wear, if any. Most people don't agonize, plan, storyboard, spend lots of money they don't have. And most people certainly don't start this process in June.

Starting in 2006, I've had an historical costume every year, whether due to personal choice, or because I was working on the local Grave Matters living history event we totally didn't steal from Lone Fir Cemetery's event in Portland (which may not be happening again this year??? Am I never going to get to go?????). Last year, I took a break and went as Vince Noir from The Mighty Boosh and Grumpy Cat (at work), but this year I'm looking to get back to a historical costume.

Grumpy Cat- the cheapest,  most relevent costume of my entire life

Ever since The Great Gatsby suddenly regained popularity thanks to the movie, which I STILL haven't seen arrrrgh, I've seen a lot of the internet having Gatsby parties and talking about Gatsby themed costumes. And, as usual, while some of the Gatsby picnics and other get-together costumes are AMAZING,  my expectations fizzle out when I see how some end up. Guys, really with the low rent Chicago-style skank fringe dresses? Really? Is there an actual documented fringe dress out there from anytime in that decade, because we need to go back in time and stop it from existing.

Anyway, I've also enjoyed the general wank surrounding the film, book, what have you. People seemed to either love it or hate it (the book and the movie), and I'm still laughing at the people who went on and on about the themes of the book and how "you're not a real fan if you haven't  blah blah blah". Apparently it's 2006 and I'm still involved with the pop-punk scene , judging by the middle school bitchiness flying around the depths of the internet.

Despite not seeing the movie, and being in idiot English classes and not reading the book until after I was out of school, I wanted to ride the Brooks Brother-ed tails of this Gatsby craze to get some easy access to one of my favorite historical fashion eras for Halloween. I toyed seriously with going as one of the main themes in the book, General Disillusionment with the Jazz Age, which lead me to the idea I finally settled on. I'm keeping it a secret until the day of, but I'll be that ass who hints around and say, I've always really loved the Victorian Fancy Dress way of doing costumes, focusing on the personification of an idea, like "nighttime", versus being a thing, like a zombie or whatever.

PLUSSSSSSSSSSSSS, since I don't know what the hell my work schedule will look like, or if my mall job will even allow dressing up (highly doubting it), by making something that's more a straight-forward outfit that just represents something, I can totally sneak by any dress code issues and still wear a costume. THIS IS WHAT LOOPHOLES WERE MADE FOR.


Consider this an ongoing post, you have been warned.

Labor Day! (Exactly Two Months To Halloween)

While you're enjoying your day off this Labor Day, take a sec to think about the Labor Movement that allowed it to happen!

Like your weekends? Thank your Union!

Like having sick time? Thank your Union! 

Like not having to work 14 hour days? Thank your Union!

 As a retail worker for both unionized and non-union companies, I have come to appreciate the union even more than I thought I did, having been brought up to have a somewhat romantic, Pete Seeger-fueled notions of the Labor Movement.  The contrasts between my union and non-union jobs are stark, and the union job is infinitely better, with no small thanks to the fact that it is organized. 

I know that it will probably never happen, due to the way our economy is set up, but I hope to one day see all retail workers be able to organize.  Despite what non-retail workers seem to think, retail jobs are difficult- they are extremely physical, they deal with the worst of society, and are always paid the least.  And, nowadays, they are the only jobs a huge majority of the population can get.  Some people seem to take the idea that people who work these meager jobs are stupid, lazy, and less-than in many other ways, despite the fact that it's been proven time and time again that a huge chunk of retail workers are adults with degrees. Retail is not just for teenagers any more. This is how people are forced to make their living, and they should be kept safe and protected from exploitation while they're doing so.

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