The Singing Costumer

Over Memorial Day 2018, I locked myself in my room and had a sewing weekend. It was glorious. Several pieces of costumes were finished that 3-day weekend. One of these, I planned to wear this year at the Norman, Oklahoma Medieval Fair. We all know the state of the world right now. So that didn't happen sadly. I have been to the Medieval Fair many, many times. As a guest, and also many times as a performer. I have had to step down from performing, but I still love attending. Allow me to introduce Rosalind Nia Blomme, or Rose N. Blomme, as her friends call her. In the tradition of Tinker Bell and her friends, Rosalind is a Flower Talent Fairy from the South of England. She, like all fairies, loves nothing more to dance and sing and play with her friends. Also, she loves exploring and discovering new flowers and trees. Basically, my goal for this costume was to use up some miscellaneous pieces from my stash. I had a small stack of fabrics that looked so stunning t...

 Slave for sale! She looks like a witch with that hat on her head. A hopeful princess kisses the frog. The First Medieval Fair Dress or The almost-Buttercup-from-Princess-Bride dress Once upon a time, there was a girl who liked to go to the Medieval Fair at OU in Norman, Oklahoma. She loved seeing the sights, eating the fair food, and watching the shows. But she had a secret; she desperately wanted to be the fair princess. Many years later, she went to college. She auditioned for a production of Romeo and Juliet, and got a part. She met the King of the Medieval Fair, who happened to be playing Father Laurence. He asked if she wanted to be part of the cast, and of course she said yes! I have had such a good time in my past 6 years of being in the cast of Med Fair. Wonderful memories were made and best friends were met. Now, as to construction. Our Queen graciously cut and sewed most of it. So, I don't know where she got the pattern. I do need ...

In 2010, our King of Medieval Fair informed the cast he was no longer able to participate as he was moving to New Mexico. So, the next fall when auditions came up and rehearsals started, I met our new King. And with this new King came a new time period which was roughly 250 years later. We were now the court of King Edward III. I was now Princess Mary Plantagenet. A princess can NOT be so out of fashion, so clearly a new dress had to be made. A home décor fabric, oddly enough, was my fabric of choice. No Sound of Music or Gone With The Wind curtain dress jokes please.  But yes, more then likely, someone somewhere has a couch covered in my fabric. It was the color I wanted, with some embroidery on it. The fabric softened after many cycles in both the washer and the dryer. The top-most layer was planned and the pattern pieces cut out. However, I couldn't decide what color to make the underdress or the kirtle....

This is review of RH017, 14th Century Kirtle or  Cotehardie. (Link to buy this patten at the end) I ordered it to make a new dress for the 2015 Medieval Fair of Norman. I had been playing a princess for many years, but decided on changing it up this year. I wanted to be a Bard, a poet/singer/general performer. Naturally, I could not wear the Princess gowns of years past.  It came in a timely fashion. I knew it had a booklet of historical notes, I didn't know it was going to come with a textbook! Seriously, this booklet is 15 pages long (including historical notes, bibliography, actual construction, and a section on period stiches) and is in an easy to digest format. The pattern is on regular paper, not the usual tissue paper, which I appreciated. I had trouble with setting the sleeves, but it was my own fault. I made it oversized purposefully to adjust down to my exact size, and didn't quite adjust the sleeves to match correctly the first time. My own fault. I will pos...

Now for the Almost-Buttercup part of the story. One year, a young college student went to a Halloween concert at UCO's Jazz Lab, at which patrons were encouraged to wear costumes (including a costume contest at intermission). At the last minute, she decided to enter the contest. Not wanting to be just any generic princess, she decided her dress was close enough to pass as Buttercup's riding dress. She furiously tried to think of some way to get that across. When the announcer called her name, she stood up, curtsied, and very quietly said "As you wish". Approximately one person understood the reference. Fast forward several years. She is going to attend her first official comic convention, Dallas Fan Expo. And who was listed among the celebrity guests but Westley himself, Cary Elwes! She and her roommate and a friend immediately decided to book a photo op with Elwes. Of course, costumes are a must. The roommate choose to be Inigo Montoya, the friend w...