we can sleep when we are dead, right?

[kareina]

I already mentioned that I was up late at the SCA event on the weekend because I was having so much fun. Well, that pattern has continued into the week, too--I haven't made it to bed before 01:00 all week, but am still getting up early enough to do the 45 minute walk to work in the morning. Mind you, I am not arriving at the office at 07:00 or 07:15 as I often do, but instead more like 07:30 or 07:45, but I am still the first one in my corridor. However, I have still be going home at 11:00 or 12:00 when lord_kjar goes home for lunch, so I may want to work a few hours on Friday to make up for it.

So far this work week has been spent researching travel and accommodation for the conference in Australia in February, reading my student's thesis drafts, and compiling information as to what standards are available, from where, and for how much, so that we can decide which ones to get now, to have ready when the Laser Ablation-ICP-MS arrives, and which ones we will wait on till the lab is generating a bit of income from fees paid by the users. (It is farily obvious that if the department doesn't have the budget to cover a full time salary for me, they don't have a huge budget for buying standards, either. (not that it is broke or anything, just that, like at most unis, the cash available in the department is mostly tied to specific research grants, and can't be used for things not directly related to those projects)).

At home I have been focusing on projects. I want a new bliaut--my first one is getting worn out. We have some lovely dark blue silk that I want to use, and have been wondering if I want to do it with or without the tummy gathers that was fashionable in the 12th century. I haven't been all that happy with the gathers on brown wool bliaut, but that has more to do with the fact that they don't always sit right, and often need adjusting. Somehow I don't think I would have that problem with the lighter weight silk. However, another issue with the brown is that the skirt is heavy enough that even though when I first lace the dress the hem is all one length and up off the ground, over the course of the day it droops on the sides and people start to step on it while I am dancing, which isn't an issue with the older blue bliaut, since it is only just long enough for me, even unlaced (the brown is longer than I am tall when it is unlaced).

But what has really and truly decided me on skipping the gathering this time around was the hours I have spent doing two different cutting diagrams--one if I make it extra long and gather it up, and the other if I don't. The latter option lets me get another set of skirt gores out of the fabric, transforming the skirt from just under 3/4 circle to just about a full circle skirt. Can you say "dancing skirt"? I apologize to people who care about 12 Century fashion and think that this style is better with the tummy gathers--I am going to go for the fuller skirt instead...