Vintage Dreams: January 2015

Dear readers,

I hope you have had a wonderful New Year so far. I have been busy with quite a few things lined up on my plate already. First off let me tell you about the delightful party the Bonnie Blue Gals hosted the first Saturday of the New Year. We had all worked very hard on getting the details just right and I must say, all our hard work paid off beautifully. Most of everyone from our invite list was able to attend so we were not lacking in company. I really felt like we were back in the 1860’s during Christmas. It was such a wonderful feeling! We played parlor games, listened to some history about the home, had tea and goodies, and had such a wonderful time with friends.

My second reenactment of the year was set in 1812 during the battle of New Orleans. This took place at the Hermitage, home of former President Andrew Jackson, where we were able to participate in a fashion show. My good friend Elise and I were even able to have a mini photo shoot after the show! Thanks to another one of my friends, Sarah, we were able to take some lovely pictures (down below). I swear it wasn’t much warmer than 30 degrees but we enjoyed running around in a historical place with our regency clothing. It was very Jane Austin of us. That is all the reenacting I’ve done so far this year. It is off season here since its cold and honestly, who wants to camp in the cold? I don’t blame them.

I do however have some very exciting news! I hope you all liked my Elsa costume because it finally snowed here! So naturally I had to take pictures in it before it warmed up. Now that I’ve had the basic outfit down I’m planning on practically re-doing the whole thing. (So much for having an “ok” costume. I am now terribly nit-picky about the whole thing.) The idea behind restyling the dress came to me when I found some leftover fabric from my grandmother’s collection! (Praise the Lord I don’t have to spend a fortune on more fabric!) It is the perfect shade of light blue which is a lot better than the darker sea green/blue it is now. I also have some great ideas on how to cheaply restyle the corset like bodice. I have also been working on a Tinkerbell costume for the 2015 MTAC convention! I haven’t officially bought my tickets yet but I am hoping I can do that soon! The plan is to have a ballerina costume inspired by Tinkerbell! I think it’s the neatest thing. I’ll have a tutu and possibly some pointe shoes dyed to match the costume. Haven’t started on the bodice but I have the material ready to start! (I finally have a sewing machine that works now! I ended up going through two others before the one I have now.) Before I sign off, I have also began progress on my sister’s Anna outfit again. I’ve got a new corset vest ordered that I’ll embroider whenever it decides to get here. Oh, and I came up with a great idea for the cape! I am using a very soft fuzzy blanket that I picked up from my local store. It Is the perfect color, however, I underestimated how fuzzy it is and how easily it sheds. Oops. Well you live and you learn.

Yours truly,

Shayla P.

P.S. Please enjoy the many photos!