The Six Year Vest

Oh, it only took a couple of hours to cut it out and put it together back in the fall of 2002...but I've been carrying it around in a zip-lok bag ever since, sewing on beads while waiting at the dentist, the doctor, play practice, drama competitions...anywhere I had to sit and wait and wait and wait...

Of course, sometimes I sewed buttons on costumes or hemmed pants or some other such urgent task while waiting instead of sewing on the beads, so perhaps that explains why it took six years.

It's upholstery fabric, and there were little colored dashes in each of the scalloped motifs. I bought little beads in colors as close to those little dashes as I could, and proceeded to just cover the dash with the appropriate color bead.

I skipped a closure...how could I sew buttons and buttonholes on? I thought I *might* do some hook and eyes, but, ya know, I think I'll just leave it open.

Now...wherever shall I wear it... LOL

Drama Competition:Trumbauer 2007

Today was the Alabama District 1 Trumbauer Theater Festival competition; this was the first time I'd been since DD's senior year four years ago. The rules have changed a bit... I think I understand why, but I'm a little disappointed all the same. They dropped the oral adjudication after each performance; I really missed that. I learned so much in years past about theater and performing just from watching the plays and listening to the judges!

Another rule change had to do with how many plays advance from each district. The one-act play DS's drama class did ended up scoring an overall superior rating, but they did not advance to the state level; only the top three plays go now, instead of all the 'superiors'. That was disappointing, but the plain truth is that the drama program at the magnet school fell apart after the founding director retired two years ago, and this year is the first year they've hired a serious director to replace him and begin the rebuilding process. They started from scratch on August 8, and kind of took a break from work on the one-act to support a community theater group's week-long run of the musical production 'Through the Year with Frog and Toad', which was staged during the school day so elementary students came from all over the area to be inspired by the familiar early-reader characters. Consequently, the work on their competition one-act, 'The Asylum' didn't really get to the front burner until three weeks ago. Not really enough time to polish it up to the level of the advancing plays.

So the fact that they did as well as they did is commendable, I think. They'll eventually get back to the level where they were...or at least they will if they really get 'magnet-school' level support from the school board.

But school board support is a threatening rant so I'm not going there.

DS did a monologue as an Individual Event, though, and he did qualify to go to the State level with it, so we'll be heading to Troy State University at the end of the month for that competition.

I toted along my Ongoing Portable Project, though, and did some work on it. I started it, um, 6 years ago and worked on it mostly at Trumbauer festivals; I've got 17 little motifs yet to bead and then it will be *gasp* done. I think I may very well finish it at this year's State competition...there's a lot of waiting time there.

The Ongoing Portable Project

While I was waiting for Number 1 Son to get a tooth filled yesterday, I looked at what was in my hands and realized I was looking at today's blog post. ;)

I made this vest from an OOP McCall's pattern in the fall of 2002. It's cotton blend upholstery fabric, with a jacquard pattern. I'd had an idea about wanting a beaded vest...I purchased beads in colors as close to the colors used on the design as I could find, and commenced sewing beads over the colored threads. Since then, it has lived in a large Zip-lok bag in my car and when I'm waiting someplace...like a dentist's office...I pull it out and sew on a few more beads. I'll guess I'm about 2/3 done.

It's started some interesting conversations and at least gives me a sense of accomplishment when I'm just sitting around. It even accompanied me on a couple of high school drama competions I chaperoned and changed my attitude on the 'sit and wait' that is such an integral part of the whole overnight competion experience.

I still haven't decided what -- if any -- closures I'm going to put on it. I thought I'd wait till I had all the beading done and then see how it looks.

And I've no idea what I'll do to fill my time in waiting rooms when it's done. But I'll think of something.