Thursday, July 01, 2010

All according to (another) plan

I do have one more Twilight entry I want to do, but I've been doing a whole host of other things and haven't had time to get to it.

I'm the type of person who functions best when interested in a variety of somethings all at once. Maybe even mildly obsessed by those things. This is why I do so badly on vacation, and why my solo trips tend to involve a breakneck pace, like three major museums or hotspots in a day. It's not that I can't be quiet, but that my mind prefers to be seriously engaged while I am quiet, even if that isn't very restful. Finally, FINALLY, I got there in the last couple of days. So much so, though, that my well laid-out yesterday did not go at all like I thought it would.

I meant to go to Kroger, Goodwill, home, Ben Franklin, the post office, the library, the farmer's market, possibly Video Spectrum, and home yesterday. I ended up spending more time at Goodwill than I meant to. Then, my trip to Ben Franklin (where I went to buy a length of ribbon and an envelope) ended up in an hour's cavalcade, where I also bought eight skeins of yarn, knitting patterns, and more ribbon. By this time I was considerably laden down, so after my stop at the post office, I went to the farmer's market and the video store, had to go home to drop stuff off, and didn't get to the library until 6. It was a happy mess.

I had to laugh at myself because I'd arranged my carry bags to suit the order of the day, and ended up carrying heavy things I didn't need all day. Oh, well. What mattered more was that I was enjoying the day and keeping busy with good tasks. So what if I bought an apron and a cookie at the market instead of vegetables? So what if I walked out of the library with five books instead of the two I went in for? So what if I didn't actually watch the dvd I rented as I was finishing up my new dress, instead taking in some of my regular TV shows? It was a good day.

The dress I finished, as pictured, is one I'll really enjoy if I can find places to wear it. It is not as shiny as pictured, and neither am I. I had to take, like, 24 pictures with the timer to even come up with this one. I don't photograph well at midnight in my little apartment. My sister is much better at getting good fashion shots of herself.


I wish I could show you what the yarn I got looks like; it's sort of a peachy pink color, very delicate, and I think I found a sweater pattern that will work. I'm not convinced I understand the pattern, and there's part of it I want to change, but I have been planning this project for a while and was awaiting the right yarn and pattern. I'm a slow and unskilled knitter, but I do love yarn much the way I love fabric. If I like it, I'll buy it, regardless of any planned purpose.

I'm also doing quite a bit of research for a few other projects, and so things have been a little frenetic. Just the way I like 'em. Even so, I think I might devote much of this weekend to reading books in my sky chair, if it's not too hot. I'm a little overboard on books, so it seems like I should catch up a bit. I finally started Son of a Witch, for instance, the sequel to Wicked. I've had it since it came out...when I saw that there was a third part at the bookstore, I bought it and realized how far behind I am on Gregory Maguire. I also have a Dick Francis, a Miss Marple, the most recent David Sedaris, the herbal PDR, and three books on writing mysteries. And a Charlaine Harris belonging to my mother. And lots of other books I want to read. If you need me, I'll be with a cup of tea in some nook.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gorgeous dress, and you look lovely and summery in it!
EAC

Anonymous said...

That dress looks wonderful! Get thee to meadow or park in the morning or late afternoon and photograph yourself in tender natural light. Or stand by your best sunny window.

That's my hard rule: natural light, indoors or out, avoid flash.

You can get basic tripods for pretty cheap at Target or Wal-mart, or, you know, set the camera on your car, a picnic table, the the crux of tree branch and trunk, whatever.

Before you set the focus on your camera, it also helps to set up your dressmaker's dummy, a chair, or *something* where you will be standing. If there's only empty space there while you're setting up the shot, the camera might set its focus on your background and you will be blurry. This has saved me a lot of test shots.

Still, believe me, I take a lot of shots just to get a few I want to show to the world. I'm working on getting more comfortable in my body and learning what angles are better in hopes of making the process quicker. Weight on the back leg. A face-tilt to the right conceals an unattractive incisor if I want to smile open-mouthed. Etc.

So glad you're getting back in the groove of making pretty projects!

-SECP

Abs said...

Thanks, friends.
I admit that trying to photograph myself in my tiny living apartment is well-nigh impossible. There really isn't the space or lighting. I just wanted to capture it quickly and move on.
I have been considering getting a tripod of some kind. When I was in Ludington, I took pictures of myself pretty well, but there was always a railing or a tree or some such about. This is not the case in my apartment.
Plus, I really do not photograph well at the best of times. You'd think a dancer would be more aware of her body, but not in 2-D!

hadjare said...

LOVE the dress. I could think of lots of places to wear it. I think the key is you just need to do with absolute confidence.