Goodbye mermaid wall decal

I am very slowly working on some household projects, one of which involves trading rooms with The Cupcake sometime before winter. The rooms are about the same size but will work better switched for a few (not extremely interesting) reasons, plus it will be a fun change, so I'm making a tiny bit of progress while I wait to win the lottery afford the necessary accoutrements. A few free things I was able to start with included taking down the mermaid wall decal that was over TC's crib: 

 

 

It was really cute for TC, but not really what we had in mind for our bedroom, so I took a deep breath and started peeling. It came up pretty easily, though there was no way to "save" it unless you were willing to spend hours - it stuck to itself and tore easily coming off. It also apparently took off some paint, as you can see all the tiny dots of teal on the final product below:

 

 

The particles of missing paint weren't even noticeable on the wall, except for one small area (under 2" square) that came off pretty significantly:

So it definitely wasn't at all reusable, but it was mostly removable. We're planning to repaint anyways, so no big deal. All in all, it went up and came down better than I thought it would. I would definitely do a decal again in the future.

Frightful Weather = Delightful Nesting Time

You may have heard about the "Snowmageddon/Snowpocalypse/Tsnownami" that hit Minnesota this weekend, dumping 17+" of snow on my house, then blowing it into stiff meringue like peaks well over 3' high. I'm not all that bothered that the Metrodome collapsed, but the video is pretty cool, and major gold star to my poor hubby who had to dig us out all alone this year, as my "fragile condition" doesn't allow for much shovelling.

Instead, I found other ways to support our family unit, like working on the nursery and online shopping.

I didn't upload my "real" pictures yet, but I managed to get a whole gob of work done when everything else was cancelled (thank goodness) and that included pretty much finishing up the decor in Cupcake's room. Here are some not great camera phone photos:



The black frames with gold accents are holding these mermaid alphabet cards, they frame the top of the room on 2 sides. The gold frames underneath hold two Paulina Stuckey Cassidy prints of mermaids that I've been saving for YEARS and never hung, and I decided to order this print for the third.

I also nabbed up this reading mermaid I've been eyeing on Etsy for months, I'm hoping I can put it in the gold frame I picked up for the voodoo room at Halloween (it had a creepy puzzle in it then). Hubby is stuck in a book most of the day, we're both English majors so reading is quite important to us and we hope it is to the Cupcake as well. Reading mermaids set a good example :)



Blackbeard there (orange beard?) is guarding a pile of newborn diapers. The curtain rods are hung, and the valances that are part of the bedding set we picked out for the twin bed, and I did decide to pair them with purple blackout curtains (not shown) but Target only had 2 panels in stock, so I need to find another set before that project is finished. I also broke down and bought a mattress pad and sheet for the crib, despite trying to wait and use my registry coupons I just HAD to get that part checked off my list, it was driving me insane :)

My final art purchase, also on Etsy, was a set of prints from this seller - she also made the thank you notes I sent out for shower gifts:



They're going in simple gold dollar store frames, with a big gold pirate ship medallion from Goodwill, and that should fill the wall above the twin bed. I hope to have everything hung and finished in the next two weeks. Fingers crossed! Maybe I should move on to Christmas shopping now...

NOLA Costume Ideas: BP Oil Spill

This will no doubt be a huge costume craze this Halloween, but it is particularly fitting for our 2010 theme as the latest disaster to ravage New Orleans. Basically you can take any number of costumes up a level with some black paint, vinyl, or even sequins (please don't use actual oil...if you think I'll let you in my house and on my furniture). Political costumes, regardless of which side of the issue you are really on, are always attention grabbers.

The Coney Island Mermaid Parade, as predicted, had quite a few anti-BP and oil-spill-related entries, such as:


(my photo...see more of this group here)


Paint for oil - might still rub off (not on my couch please!) but at least it's dry...


These marchers used REAL oil - no wonder she looks so sad. That has to feel NASTY. Also, you'd have to party on my front porch, because that crap doesn't come out of rugs, upholstery, or carpet.

To be much safer, how about a less transferable form of "oil?" I'm thinking some shiny black vinyl would be great (I'm more into the idea than realism...I know it looks brown, but that's less identifiable. Remember that Halloween is more about the caricature than the actual character). You can buy it in most fabric stores, especially around Halloween - think of what you'd make a Cat Woman costume out of:



One caveat: I can tell you from experience, vinyl gets hot. And don't forget what you learned from Ross' leather pants. You've been warned.

So to recap - tons of possibilities to take a mermaid, sailor, beachcomber, sea turtle, shrimp, lobster, crab, or other gulf resident and dip them in oil (not the tasty frying kind).

You could also just "be" the oil spill en masse - how about starting with a flouncy vinyl dress:

(source), then add a couple of these "seaweed" boas:

(source)

Tie on a few oil-spattered plastic fish and birds, and you're good to go. Maybe throw in some mardi gras beads, "beach closed" signs, shrimp trollers, and BP logos in the swirling muck.

Here's a homemade commentary on the Exxon Valdez oil spill you could easily update:

(found it here)

Consider replacing the ship "hat" with an oil derrick "hat" and you can still slap some dying sea life all over your shirt and call it a costume. Plus for some reason I think Oil Derricks are kind of cool looking, like a redneck Eiffel tower. And the possibilities for the "eruption" at the top with lots of beads or something else signifying droplets falling are way fun.

Even the commercial costume shops are jumping on the bandwagon, here's the "Bad Planning" costume from AnytimeCostumes:



Additional BP Twists: BP Businessman (or woman) in a suit with BP logo, with blood on his hands, or money coming out of his ears, or devil horns & tail...Sarah Palin (DRILL BABY DRILL!) with a strategically placed oil derrick...clean up worker in a haz-mat suit and respirator...

(source) Don't forget about taking the iconic Uncle Sam or Lady Liberty and smearing them in oil or strangling them with gas pumps.

Happy Haunting

Mermaid Parade 2010

Oh Hello Internets, how have you been? I've been quite busy...avoiding you! But now that the proverbial cat is out of the bag, I can finally post some photos of our NYC adventure without raising quite so many eyebrows (is she supposed to be a mermaid or a WHALE?), and PERHAPS, if the nausea and exhaustion ever do subside, get back to a little crafting...

But first things first, NYC! While it was far from the most opportune time to travel, it was EXCELLENT to catch up with my BFFs again, share some laughs and some really great meals, and of course make some costumes. My original plan to make a fancy gown fell by the wayside due to budget cuts and a time crunch, and good thing since I ended up busting out of all my clothing the week before the trip. This, however, also meant I couldn't wear either the sundress or last year's costume as an alternative, quite the conundrum. In a fit of self pity as I wandered the aisles of our new Jo-Ann's store, a gorgeous embroidered Sari fabric caught my eye...and it was on sale! I scooped up 4 yards for about $20, and Burda pattern 8327 for an asymmetrical trumpet skirt (also 40% off):



I threw that all in my suitcase and presented it to Ryan, who turned it into a GORGEOUS skirt in about two hours:



Seriously, is that fabric not to die for? It's called "pistachio" and has gorgeous gold threads, I <3 it fully. And Ryan, the perfectionist, serged, pressed and sewed each seam so that I could actually wear this to a wedding or dinner with the queen, not just to a costume parade. I finished the look with two giant sequin appliques from the garment district that I basted on to a nude lace tank top (I sewed that part myself!) The combination of giant dinners + incubating the tadpole did threaten to bust the zipper by the end of the week, so please be kind...but the final product:



Wee haa! I wasn't quite brave enough to go bare under the lace tank, so I layered it on top of a nude tank top, borrowed the fabulous wig from Ryan's shop, and recycled the crown from The Queen of Hearts costume, which was PERFECT.



This skirt was MUCH easier to walk in than some of my previous mermaid attempts (especially a worry when dealing with subways, stairs, and crazed pedestrians), and I think it still definitely gave off the "mermaid" vibe without being completely literal (aka - hard to move in). The wig, eyelashes, and crown were a perfect balance of whimsy and glamour, I had a really fun time getting dressed up. How cute did we look?

TGIF

I am terribly behind in the mermaid parade planning department, despite having bought my pattern and roughed out my idea MONTHS ago, I've yet to get any further. For some reason my JoAnns coupons have stopped coming (and I refuse to pay full price), so that + a shrinking budget have forced me to put off buying fabric until now we're a mere month away - YIKES! I definitely need to come up with some sort of a plan (or plan to wear one of the TWO mermaid outfits I already have, I guess...), so that's one of the many things on my agenda for this weekend.

Excellent Events, coming soon!

This marks the first Saturday in months that I've been free, and I'd love to promise all sorts of cleaning and crafting, but it's much more likely that I'll stumble across some bad tv marathon and spend most of the day in my pj's. It's a recurring theme on my Sundays so far. And I won't be too terribly sad if that's how today goes, though I'd hope to a few things organized around the house.

And I do have a couple fun adventures planned, yay spring!

First off, this evening we're rounding out our derby tour by taking in the MEN'S bout @ Cheapskate:



This poster has no time (uh...duh?) but the website says it starts round 7, let's hope that's right. I'm quite interested to see how the men match up to the two women's leagues we've seen so far.

Then, a bit farther down the road, I'm looking forward to Krista's Goth Dinner Party. How awesome does that sound?!?!? There are far too few theme parties these days, or at least I never seem to get invited to any, so this is EPICALLY exciting in my book. I've also been a secret goth admirer, though much too perky to ever pull it off, so I'm very curious to finally try out a goth look, and already have a few ideas in mind. I'm terrible with makeup, but found this handy dandy little "map"



What do you think, can I pull something like that off? :)

Speaking of costumes, I also have to get moving on the 2nd (annual?) Coney Island Mermaid Parade ensemble for 2010! This time hubby is coming along, though I wouldn't expect a costume out of him, it'll definitely be easier to get photos with him there to snap them. I've got an idea (TBA) and a pattern, now I need to actually hit the fabric store (and then probably just ship all the pieces off to Ryan :) It would be awesome to get it started this weekend.

"Clothes make the man. Naked people have little or no influence on society."
~Mark Twain

Happy Birthday (not so) Little Mermaid

I still haven't named her. She still feels new. But it was one year ago today that I first woke up with a face on my back:



Session one was just her outline from the waist up, and the beginning of the black and brown shading in the hair. The first session was actually tolerable, if only in retrospect. While the black outlining was ridiculously painful, it was nothing compared to all of the tail work that came later, since that sucker wraps itself up and down my spine like an "S." NOT RECOMMENDED!

I should have worn a halter top in honor, but even our "heat wave" (it's 39 degrees today) doesn't really permit that, so I'll give this little cyber salute instead.

And Mom, since I know you still cringe every time you see this - look on the bright side: it makes my body that much more identifiable if I get murdered, or lost at sea, or stricken with amnesia. That's got to be helpful, right? :) I also think the med students who end up with me (assuming I donate my body to science) are going to be amused. Especially if I'm 95 years old and they have to decipher what it is.

The Next Mermaid:

OF COURSE I'm already thinking about it. And OF COURSE I have to go back! Last year's Coney Island Mermaid Parade was amazing even with the monsoon, and I think I'm hooked. I've yet to book my plane ticket, but I have already purchased a pattern!

It's Vogue 8190, a strapless ruched ballgown that is the epitome of mermaid-y-ness. It's well beyond my sewing capabilities, but luckily I have RYAN on my side!

As soon as I can figure out how to read the fabric requirements (I think they're in Greek) I just might send the whole thing off to him :) SURPRISE!

I'm visualizing something dripping in glitter, since that is basically my dream outfit, and when else can you drape yourself in glitter? My day-to-day life is sadly lacking in sparkles. Last year I went with blue, which was fine and mostly decided by the last minute available fabric selection, but this year I think I'll head back towards the traditional green. (I'm hoping Jana will do a matching one in purple!). I'm aiming for the long one, of course :) Probably not the lace overlay, assuming I find an appropriately fun fabric, but I'm not ruling it out yet. I do have a knack for choosing the most difficult fabrics to sew, so we'll see if I can keep that trend alive and keep Ryan "challenged."

Less than 6 months until King Neptune opens the beaches again! See you there, NYC :)

Bouquet Charms = LOVE!

I am anxiously awaiting Alison's wedding photos, but in the meantime here is one of the few I snapped on my own - my bridesmaid's bouquet!

These were GORGEOUS - again, the prominent flowers were these amazing and intricate dahlias with a little greenery and some kind of lilies. They had satin ribbon wrapped stems and do you notice the one additional accessory?

Bouquet charms!

Alison custom ordered these off everyone's favorite site, Etsy. They're scrabble tile pendants with the initial of each maid's name on one side (a little trivia: in scrabble, H is worth 4 points!) and a different personalized design on the other - how adorable is my tiny mermaid?!?!?!

I thought this was a wonderful little gesture, and I can't wait to string mine on a chain and wear it as a necklace too. That is one part of the bridesmaid ensemble it's not cheesy to say I really WILL wear again! (Let's face it - everyone says that about the dresses, and nobody ever does). It's a great and special keepsake of the day, and I'm really so thankful that she took the time to pick an image just for me.

They also ended up being very useful as I kept setting my bouquet down in various places and losing track of it :) This way, we always knew which one belonged to whom!

Mermaid Costume Fail

This has to be one of the worst I've seen - found it at Grandin Road, who is responsible for the big insert in my Martha magazine (previous post). $49. Ouch.

How can you be a mermaid with 3' of leg showing?

Mermaids don't have legs, that's sort of a huge part of their identity!

So are you only 1/2 mermaid at that point? Hi, Happy Halloween, I'm a half mermaid? That's half-@$$ed if you ask me. I could even buy if this were some sort of FISH costume (like "Hi, I'm a crappie") but as a mermaid it's a total no-go.

Please don't wear this to my party, I'll be forced to gut you and roll you in bread crumbs.

Custom Mermaid Inspired Sundress

Here is yet another bucket list item I crossed off recently:
#43 Have a garment custom made

When I wrote this list I was thinking the "garment" in question would be a suit or ball gown or something decadent, but as fate would have it, I stumbled into a situation and ended up custom ordering an adorable sundress on Etsy!

If you don't know about Etsy, I'm sorry to fill you in - because you will probably become addicted and spend both hours and fortunes lost in all the treasures. Etsy is an online marketplace for crafters and artisans, where anyone can set up their own shop and sell their handmade, vintage, or craft supplies. It's sort of like Ebay but with set prices instead of auctions, and instead of used crap it's all either new or vintage. So far there's a lot less fraud and crap to get in the way, so it feels much more secure, though I suppose it only takes a few bad apples...

I love etsy.

They also have a special section called "alchemy" where you can essentially post a "want ad" and anyone with a shop can respond to your request with a bid to complete the project. I originally posted an ad looking for a mermaid COSTUME (back way before the Coney Island Mermaid Parade), then in talking with one of the shop owners who responded, came up with the idea of doing a less literal adaptation in sun dress form.

Custom made just for me!

I accepted NancyNeedlesandPens bid, because she had an established shop with a good history, and her clothes looked high quality and cute. She had mostly done kids stuff, but I figured that worked in my favor as far as durability :) It was actually a child's sundress that inspired my design, I liked the tiered ruffles idea. We emailed and I sent her my measurements, design, and fabrics.

I did a drawing of what I was hoping for - tiered skirt, halter top, appliques on the bust, and a low back to show off my tattoo. She found a pattern that accomplished most of that, and we agreed on changes to the back & skirt (less wide). She was fantastic and I LOVE the final product! We made a few adjustments as the process unfolded, and I was very pleased with the final product - the photo above is what she sent me to approve just before she sent it across the country to me (I believe she's in Oregon or Washington - looks like maybe on the water!).

I didn't end up wearing it to the Mermaid Parade, the pull of spectacle and sequins was too great and I decided to go much bigger for the actual festival (and then scrapped that and went in a 3rd direction once I actually got to New York), but I do think this dress is fantastic and I will make good summer use of it. It definitely suits my personality :) and it's all cotton, so completely washable and easy to care for!

A few more mermaids

Now that I've got this handy-dandy external drive, I'm just a posting fool. I see I'm still getting some traffic from the Coney Island Mermaid Parade boards, so I thought I'd throw up a few more pics - too see them all, click on the "mermaid" label at the bottom of this post and you'll get all of my posts related to mermaids.

More Mer-people

They're manta rays or sting rays! Cute! And, MOM, very not-naked :)

Rocky Horror FISHER show, English Majors: Who loves the puns? :) Also, their "Rocky" totally brought it in tiny gold spandex shorts.

One of the few actual "floats" - I'd consider going this route, but I'm not sure I could fit it on the subway...and I'm convinced I'd be savagely murdered if I tried to drive in New York.

This band was all dressed like psychadellic Gorton's fishermen.

I took somewhere around 200 photos, so forgive me for coming back to this over and over - it's just such a great array of creativity and inspiration! If you're coming here from the Coney Island message boards and want to see all the pics I've posted so far, click on the "mermaids" tag in the lower right menu and you should get all my mermaid parade posts (and a lot of other mermaid-related ones you can skip through - oddly enough, mermaids keep coming up in my life & blog :)

Mermaid Bodice

I promise I will get back up to speed in posting my creations, I got a bit sidetracked with my excellent NYC trip, and while I still have more mermaid parade photos to post, I'll do so sporadically and interspersed with my own creations.

I thought it might be nice to highlight how my mermaid ensemble was created - though not exactly by me :) My excellent old friend, Ryan j Moller (the lower case j is intentional - look for his website coming soon!) is a costume and wig designer living in Brooklyn, and he whipped my whole look together in just hours.

The bodice was from this pattern - Simplicity 4401, a very mermaid-ish formal gown. He made view "A" but without the overlay (the overlay would be great too in a contrasting color to look like a seashell bra, but I found the beaded appliques I fell in love with). For fabric I had brought a peachy satin (it was the closest my untrained eye could find to flesh toned) and he had the brilliant idea to use the reverse side which looked so much better. It was matte, which blended much better, and also held up to the rainy conditions a lot better than a satin side would have.

He altered the shape of the back to scoop it down lower and show off more of my tattoo, but otherwise it's pretty much following the pattern. The boning made me feel supported and sucked in, not to mention kept the strapless top up really well. The appliques were just stitched on top, and voila! A very classy, non-naked, comfortable mermaid top for women of all sizes.

If you're not a fan of strapless, you could always add a pearl or jeweled tie behind the neck (view B) for more support.

A flesh-toned corset could be the base for all sorts of costumes if you prefer the illusion of a bare top without actually showing that much skin - some that spring to mind are Eve, Lady Godiva, a Vegas Show Girl, plastic surgery patient, streaker, Britney Spears, etc.

Non-naked mermaids for my mother...

Apparently my mother was quite concerned with the lack of clothing at the mermaid parade so in honor of her midwest sensibilities,
here are a few of the more "clothed" characters we saw...which, I will point out, includes me :)

and....still mermaids