Update

Jon’s hat is done and he is very pleased to have a new hat which makes me happy :D .

I have started to make naalbinded mittens for Ulf (and last weekend I realized that Jon needs mittens also). I haven’t tried to make thumbs for my mittens yet but I hope that Suski will help me with the thumbs next weekend.

The thing I want to do right now as fast as possible is to find good fabric for our wedding dressess. I want to start looking for the fabric now... but I need to do some coordinating and reporting things today (and tomorrow I have a hardanger class and day after that I will have water gymnastics and not so much time for anything else after work). I want more time.

I have to find my tablet weaving things for next weekend.

But after I find perfect fabric for our wedding dressess everything will be a lot easier.

Hardanger 1.0

I think that I am sometimes brave (if I want to). Yesterday I went to the first hardanger embroidery class (at local folk high school). I had two goals: firstly to get to know another style of embroidery and secondly to get to know local people. I was afraid that there will be only elderly people who doesn’t want me there (that they would give me “the evil eye look” when I walk to the class room). Ok almost everyone was much older than me… except a girl who I knew but who didn’t now me. We have lived here in this small town almost four years now and we only know the people from our working circles. Yes, because I have internet and all handicrafts and too little time after work I have forgotten to get to know people. But anyway I didn’t get any evil eye from anybody and hardager was fun.

So I don’t know much about history of hardanger embroidery, there are so little information available. Or does somebody know where to find information about history of hardanger embroidery? Anyway the embroidery (table cloth) that we are making is very modern. But I think that it will still be very useful experience to me not to mention that I can get to know some people during that class….

Tomorrow we are leaving to Midwinter Feast event. I need to pack and fix the socks. Jon’s hat is almost done :) .

13.1.

We went again to friends' wedding last weekend. This time the wedding was at Porvoo medieval church, which is interesting because in 29^th May 2006 the church was attacked by an arsonist. The church was damaged badly. Because this all the ceremonies in the church was cancelled until recently. The wedding itself was modern and beautiful.

During last weekend I also did some weaving at Tofa’s (Viking Finn apron). I still have a lot weaving to do before it is finished. And it would be better to have the whole day to do weaving than just couple of hours. It will take couple of hours always to remember how to do it and after that it will be a lot easier. We are planning to go to Summer Coronation http://coronation.nordmark.org/main.php and the main theme of the event is Viking so it would be nice to have Viking clothes for the event. Although I think that Viking clothes are good for winter times… I have bought wool for them but I may have to make a linen underdress in case the weather will be very hot.

But now I am waiting for next weekend and Midwinter feast. I have to go to do something to my socks now (I have a hole in one of them). And I’ll try to make a naalbinded hat for Jon who is Ulf’s SCA brother.

Playing with colours

I should be doing some more important things right now… but I am sometimes very good at wasting my time with something else :D. Today I tried to dye some wool with the washing machine for the first time. It took a lot time… I used some blue and some violet colours… and I don’t know where the blue colour disappeared. The fabric was light brownish when I put it in the machine and now… it’s like this…

Planning

Couple months ago I wrote a list about things I would want to do this year. But after that the whole list changed because we decided that after these 11 years it is finally time to start planning our own wedding. And I know that making weddingdressess will take a lot time. The wedding is not going to be during this year but propably at spring 2010. I haven’t yet decided what kind of weddingdressess to make for us, but it will be something renaissance. I would like a Tudor dress but it might be too hard to do and too expensive. And I now have a very good alternative choise which I am not yet going to reveal.

Also I am trying to learn and do this during the year 2009:

- more socks

- Viking Finn outfit for me

- new wollen tunic, pants (Viking) etc. for Ulf

- finish naalbinded mittens

- naalbinded socks

- practise tablet weaving (haven’t done that for about 5 years)

- food food foood... do more medieval/renaissance food at home (simply because it is fun)

- maybe practise smocking and lace making?

- continue Assisi table cloth project

- a Flemish jacket? and lot of other things. I know that I might need more clothes for next Cudgel War maybe another kirtle and another smock.

And also I am going to take a class of hardanger embroidery during this winter http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardanger_embroidery. I am hoping that the class will help me understand how to make reticella embroidery.

Flemish working woman's dress

The Gown is done and all I need is a headdress to have a complete outfit. And I think I don't need to point out that sewing is handmade. Sewing thread is silk, smock, kirtle and white partlet are linnen, black partlet and the gown are woollen. The gown is turnable, so I can have dark blue or light greyish blue gown depending on my mood. It was my long time dream to achieve this point and I finally made it. (more fotos in Flickr)

23.12.

We are finally here at Mikkeli at my dad’s. The atmosphere is very beautiful and peaceful. We have plenty of snow and it is not very cold outside. I have a picture about my dad’s house which I am going to put here after the Christmas. My dad just put some non salted pork fat outside and after that he counted that he saw about ten different bird species at the feeding place. I think that bullfinches are most beautiful birds in the world. But anyway others are making Christmas food at the kitchen so I have to hurry to help them.. it is a tradition here that we all do our parts with the Christmas food.

Last weekend we went to Tofa’s. I was planning to do some weaving (that Viking Finn apron), but I still have an inflammation in my shoulder so I have to do weaving next time. At Sunday there was St Thomas party at Tofa’s. This time there were about 30 quests and it was nice again to meet some friends before Christmas holidays. There was of course once again a change to go to the smoke sauna ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoke_sauna ). And I have to mention that Tofa had once again decorated her house very beautifully. There was a real Christmas atmosphere also. Yesterday we went to Lahti to have a lunch with Sahra. During her lunch break we went to buy some fabric. And we managed to found different kind of wool fabric and both of the wool are good for Viking Finn clothing. During our journey to Mikkeli we stopped at Heinola to buy things for Christmas at “near food centre”. They sell different kinds of products from small country producers. We had heard that the meat products are especially good there. And we were very surprised with the large number of different kind of organic products at the market. We are definitely going to go there (http://www.heilan.fi/ ) again.

Merry Christmas to all!

15.12.

No miracles for me this time. I have had problems with my shoulder again (somekind of inflammation) and I have tried to stay away from my unfinished gown. And writing is not doing any good for my shoulder either. But I am trying to stay in positive mood.

Sahra’s and Knut’s wedding last weekend was a very beautiful event (sad that I don’t have any photos about them but there are some pictures at Sahra’s blog: http://hibernaatio.blogspot.com/ ) . I hope that she will put some close ups about the wedding gowns for her blog. 

I am at sick leave from work until Thursday. So I have some time to slowly clean our house for the Christmas and bake things for next weekend’s party. 

And one more photo... aboutUlf’s Christmas present (one f them) the naalbinded hat which is done :). 

8.12.

Last weekend we went to Lahti as was planned to help Sahra and Knut. Sahra made her sideless surcote which turned out something astonishing beautiful! And I helped her with the embroidery for the wedding purse. I hope that I would have time to write more about the weekend… but I am extremely busy this week (I am going to bake things for St Thomas day party which is weekend after this, and my gown is not finished and I have very hectic time at my mundane job as well). 

Felix wanted to help us with decide the pattern, silk threads and glass beads for the purse....

And here is the embroidery I made last weekend... Sahra is going to fill the leaves and other things.. :D

Clay idols and not so much progress with the gown

Looks like I might need a miracle soon if I want to have my Flemish open-fronted gown ready for Sahra's and Knut's wedding (I have ten days left..). The bodice is ready, but I haven't cut the skirt and the lining for it yet. Hmm.. I will have to do some cutting today. Next weekend we are going to Lahti to help Sahra and Knut so as soon as I have done the cutting part I can start sewing and I can sew as long as my hands let me :D. But I have made some progress with my first naalbinded mittens (yeppee!), but I will not continue doing those and other things (except Ulf's hat) before the wedding. Anyway I want also to do some onion jam today :) The recipe is not period... I have promised to me to have time to make some onion jam and fig jam (this is not medieval either) for Christmas.

Last weekend we (Ulf&I) went to Kotka (our old hometown) to visit our relatives. At Sunday was also my mom's birthday so I spend most of the Saturday with her (not because it is my "duty" but because I really don't remember the last time I have been at Kotka at my mom's birthday). After some shopping we went to the Maritime Centre Vellamo <http://www.merikeskusvellamo.fi> . The Main Exhibition of Museum of Kymenlaakso is at the same building as well. The museums are interesting but I think that there isn't much to see for the person who is mostly interested in Viking/medieval/renaissance things. And as usually happen… there was too little information available about the items.

Mysterious clay idols from Comb Ceramic period (more photos in Flickr)