inch inch inch

Shockingly, I actually got something done on my Venetian dress, or rather, the accessories for it. Anita can attest that I actually finished the stupid pouch thing. It's quite ordinary, but it'll serve.


 

Happily, Anita was there to assure me that, no, I shouldn't add more embellishment. She was possibly hoping that I'd actually pull out some knitting and join her if I quit messing with the purse. That's pretty funny, huh? Anyway, I then proceeded to go home and kick the flag fan's butt. Oh yes. I've been putting off this little project because (1) I hate to paint and (2) I knew I'd have to dig out the drill. Actually though, this was a really fun little evening thing. Lots of glue, lots of mess, both still all over the kitchen table. The body of the flag itself is just matte photo paper, since I never found a fabric I liked. Sandwiched between the outer paper layers are two pieces of stiffer paper (unused Christmas cards actually), and glued between these two layers are the wire supports, which splay out into curlicues in the hopes that they'll stay put. I set a 10-pound weight on top of the paper layers for a bit to flatten and dry (and the dress engineer said I'd never use those weights....silly man!). I then basted some lace around the edge and stitched a ribbon over the edges on both sides. It ended up being quite sturdy, although I actually bent my poor needle trying to go through the layers. Kinda pretty, isn't it?


 

Oh and Julie, I learned something obvious about drilling. Putting biggish holes in smallish beads is kind of exciting. I had them clamped in a vise and periodically one would just crack in half. I found that if you used a series of drill bits gradually increasing in size it resulted in a lot less casualties. Just a thought, since your wood bits don't look like they came in a pack of 100 like mine. That or get your dad to do it, eh? He undoubtedly already knows this....I discovered it by dint of much swearing.