Finished key necklace!

The brass tone chain I ordered came and I could put together my key necklace!

The chain matches the metal of the key perfectly, the length allows it to fall exactly where I hoped it would, and despite my concerns the gauge is just heavy enough to not feel cheap. I am very pleased with it. It has kind of a Victorian feel, so it would be great with a costume, but I will also enjoy wearing it with regular clothes.

Idea for a key necklace

Ideas to do and make things pop into my little head on a fairly regular basis, as you've likely gleaned by now. Ideas involving furniture or audio drama or fish dishes that tend to end up here on the blog in excruciating detail. Now I've taken it into my head that I want a key necklace, and since I couldn't find one that matched my typically exacting mental image of a simple piece with a big, elegant but not too ornate brass key on a long matching chain, I have decided to make my own.

To that end, I have made two inexpensive eBay purchases to attain the key-necklace-satisfaction I desire. The first arrived the other day in a padded mailer, the aforementioned big, elegant but not too ornate brass key.

It's about four inches long and heavy for its size, advertised as belonging once to the lock on a chest of drawers. I am very pleased with it. I have also purchased a chain of twenty-four inches to loop through it. I want one of those old-fashioned necklaces that dangles very low on the bosom, but that may be a little too long. I can always shorten if it I desire, though, so better too much chain than too little. When it arrives I'll put them together and wear it with some whimsical ensemble which you will be most assuredly privileged to see in photographs here. :-)

Asymmetric acessorizing

Normally my opinions on how to dress stylishly are very classic. I would describe my personal style tastes as a blend of classic chic and modern sexy, as in shoots for timelessness with a little more skin than is traditional. I tend to not like anything all that trendy or edgy. But one avant-garde idea I'm interested in and would like to try a little bit more is asymmetric accessorizing. At least in theory, I like the idea of, when considering accessories that tend to be in matched sets, choosing two unmatched that are different from each other in some complimentary way.

Shoes in two different colors. Might be a little tricky to mismatch workably; they would have to be the same height and angle to make walking comfortable. I think I would like this best if the shoes were identical in every way except color, but I could see if you chose carefully enough coordinately differently styled shoes if they complimented each other. Shoes can be great accents, especially in a neutral outfit, so I like the idea of giving them even more pop.

One style of earring in one ear and a different style on the other. Maybe one stud and one dangling made of the same materials. Maybe the same style but in different colors of stone or metal. With the hair worn up to draw attention to the pointed asymmetry.

Eyeshadow that is done one way on the left eye and another way on the right. I don't wear makeup or know much about it, so I'm not sure how you could accomplish this in a way that didn't look exaggerated or even clownish-- might never work for an elegant or everyday look --but I think it could be interesting and remarkable.

I think you'd have to do any of these things carefully and thoughtfully to keep them from looking silly. But I think it could be done in such a way as to look edgy without being too out there.

Simple hairstyling of which I am childishly proud

I like what I did with my hair this morning. It's nothing fancy, but it's more than I usually do and I am pleased with it. The old mane was an absolute horror when I woke up today, so there was nothing for it but to brush the hell out of it and confine it to a ponytail. My bangs were driving me nuts, so I wanted them out of the way. Normally I'm a wash-and-wear kind of girl and don't go in much for styling, but since today it looked painfully clear that the "wash" part of that equation wasn't really evident, I tried sweeping the bangs back, but not so far that they laid flat. Rather, they kind of puff up in front and give a little definition to the shape of my hair. This I affixed with a barrette and and a few spritzes of hair spray. Lo and behold, it has actually managed to hold its shape and I managed somewhat downplay the effects of my greasy Italian genetics. I wanted to show you what it looks like, but since in about eight thousand pictures I did not manage to take one that was either flattering or represents how I actually look with my hair this way, I will settle for an image that at least kind of shows what I did.

Bah. You can't really see the shape in front, which is the part I like about it, but none of the head-on shots really captured it either. At least I don't look like Grease Thing. Also, note my pretty new earrings, which consist of three pearls dangling on lines of silver, one white, one black, one pink. They were a gift from Jared's parents from their recent trip to Vietnam, and I like them very much. They didn't even know pearls are my favorite. :-) Cut out of the shot is the matching necklace, which I am also wearing today.

Actually looking nice today

Lately getting going in the morning has been a lot harder than usual; again I blame the not sleeping well. But that has meant that getting dressed has taken a lot more effort, so I haven't been doing as good a job of it. My very conscious efforts to dress as stylishly as possible have been a bit too much for me, so things like experimenting and even accessorizing just haven't been happening. But today I actually managed to assemble something that looks really sharp. I'm wearing one of my favorite shirts, the fitted pink-striped one with the silver appliqued design on it, khakhi slacks, black leather belt, my anniversary necklace, matching silver earrings, and, as a fun and unusal touch, my silver dress heels. I feel like I look really good today, and that makes me feel good. Maybe I should spend the precious extra spoons in the mornings and go back dressing carefully; it might help me feel a little better about myself. Could use that lately.

Had the first read through for Love's Labor's Lost last night. It went well, if perhaps a little less professionally than I like, and I think i will enjoy working with this cast. I've had heavier rehearsal schedules than I'll have for this show, but even though rehearsals happen every other night I'll still need to be at pretty much all of them. I will be playing Longaville, one of the king's men who swears off women in order to pursue scholarship for a year, but ends up breaking his vow when he falls in love with Maria, one of the ladies attending the princess of France. Yet again I am cross-cast. :-) No matter, I enjoy the challenge, and it's a fairly decent-sized role. I'm still trying to get a handle on what I think I'll do with him, but I've got plenty of time to figure it out. There will be three weekends of performances, 7/24-25, 7/31-8/1, and 8/7-8.

Long weekend coming up. I don't have to work on Monday due to Memorial Day, but even with the extra day it will be busy. These will be my last couple of days with Jared before he goes home for the summer; Monday he'll be flying home. Also I'll be taking Bernie to the airport so he can go to a work conference in California. I don't want either of them to go; it's going to be a lonely few days. But on Sunday blendedchaitea* will be moving into Elsinore for the summer, and I'm very excited about that. I look forward to helping her get settled, and then having her for company. So I'll be trying to keep busy, which helps keep my spirits up.

Bids accepted, whee!

Suddenly remembered I had a silver polishing cloth that I got with that bird brooch, and decided to see if it could do any good to my slightly tarnished silver pieces. I was shocked at how much tarnish came off into the cloth on some of them, like my infinity earrings which didn't even look very dull. I had no idea coming into contact with me could cause such corruption. ;-) The piece that really needs it is my silver-set amber necklace, though as much is coming off into the cloth the metal didn't seem to get much shinier. Maybe it just needs a lot more work than I had time to do before needing to leave this morning. Perhaps I'll give it a shot this afternoon.

In pleasing news, our wonderful bid chair (possibly all of bid comm?) bleemoo* just informed me that Alice and Oz have been accepted and will be running this April at Festival of the Larps. Now I may commence bullying everyone I know who hasn't played into signing up. Though there are certainly more than a few experienced larpers I've yet to wrangle into my worlds, my first thoughts are April, nennivian*, and blendedchaitea*, all of whom have expressed at least mild interest. I know katiescarlett29* has reservations about trying larping, but she is of course welcome and encouraged as well.

Now that bids are getting approved, I am now intensely curious as to what else is going to be running. We're probably a ways away from a schedule being put together yet, but I'm still very interested at what the list currently looks like. I remember captainecchi* and electric_d_monk* telling me they were rerunning the awesome League of Extraordinary Hogwarts Students (with some additions that sound absolutely fantastic) and lightgamer* was looking in the gamebank for something to bid. If anyone else threw something out there, I'd love to know what it is.

No more holes, and BSO

So I've thought about it, and I don't think I will be getting any additional ear piercings any time soon. I talked to Jared about it and he wasn't crazy about the idea. He made a good point that I'm endeavoring to cultivate a classic look, and multiple ear holes looks cool but it can easily slip into tacky and juvenile. blendedchaitea* walks that line well and I still think hers are stylish, but I'm not sure sure I would be able to wear them as well. And it probably isn't a good idea to put permanent holes in my body if I'm not even sure I want them. So for now, I'll stick with what I have. I can't really undo them once they're done, but I can always get them later if I'm ever more certain about wanting them.

Going to the Boston Symphony Orchestra tonight. Not sure what to expect. I must confess, music is the one significant gap in my cultural awareness. Other than listening to songs I like on my iPod, I'm not all that interested in it, and I'm certainly not educated about anything classical. But Steph and Walter have been wanting to go, and Bernie asked me to come with him, so I figured I'd give it a try. Honestly I'm a little afraid of falling asleep during the performance and embarrassing my companions with my boorishness. I wonder which is worse-- passing out, or keeping from passing out by spending the entire evening playing on one's iPhone? ;-) I'm a Philistine, I know. Feel free to shun me for it.

Additional ear piercings?

I am generating a lot of content today. My brain is going in lots of directions at once right now, and I suppose it needs an outlet. Writing in Livejournal is one that pleases me. I noticed that today I broke one thousand entries. This pleases me as well.

I'm considering getting another set of piercing in my ears. I'm not sure what made me think of this. But I've always admired the way blendedchaitea*'s look, with the three little studs marching along each of her earlobes. Hers are subtle and never too loud, though; I am concerned of more than one pair looking too busy, and I don't currently own the kind of earrings that would "layer" well together. I suppose I do have the gold studs that were my trainers when I got the first piercings done; they're probably subtle and elegant enough to go with another pair. And, duh, of course the diamond solitaires. I could also maybe do a cartilege piercing rather than more in the lobe, but again I fear tackiness. I'm not a fan of body piercing otherwise, like in the nose or eyebrow. The only kind other than ears I've ever considered is bellybutton, which I'm sure surprises exactly no one, but God knows I draw enough attention to that area as it is; I'm not sure I need to go asking for more. I'll have to ask Jared and see what he thinks. I'm not even sure I really want it; after all, it took me nineteen years to get the first set done. But for some reason the notion has come into my head.

Shadow Over Babylon costuming

The elegant, delicate, and amazingly low-priced sterling silver Star of David necklace I ordered to wear for The Last Seder came in today. It is very pretty, if a little smaller than I pictured, and it inspires me to get cracking on my remaining Intercon costuming. I'm now working on figuring out my costume for Shadow Over Babylon. It's turning out to be tougher than I thought.

Right now I'm leaning towards cool government agent in the black suit with the crisp white shirt. I don't exactly have a black suit, but I can approximate. Let's start with the same black dress skirt I will be wearing for Last Seder. Off-white button-up blouse? It's not as crisp as I would like. Maybe I could get away with the short-sleeved white mandarin collar button-up if I wear a jacket over it. Trouble is, I don't have a black suit jacket or blazer. Have the red blazer, but it's not as severe as I want. And I'm thinking I want to get that tailored for better fit anyway. Maybe ask Mom to send my charchoal gray one up? Would that be severe enough? Could be. I also have the black velour mandarin collar jacket-- would the different texture go with the black skirt? Again, would it look too soft? Wish I had dark sunglasses; the only prescription ones I've got are brown. They might work in a pinch, though they're not ideal. Wish I had plain black pumps; my only black dress shoes are a little too sexy. Could my tall boots work, or are they too stylish? Could always hit the thrift store, I guess, but I really do not wish to spend any money.

Anniversary earrings!

Got Jared safely back to Brandeis yesterday. He gave me my anniversary present, a beautiful pair of earrings consisting of two triangular drops of blue stone set in silver. I'm going to guess that they're lapis. He found them in Ecuador when he was visiting the Galapagos. I really love them, and I'm wearing them today. Expect to see them frequently in the near future. :-) I haven't had a chance to give him his present, I left it in my room and we haven't been back to my place yet, but I hope he enjoys it too.

New chain

Yesterday the chain on my anniversary necklace broke. I was upset, but I comforted myself by saying that maybe now was an opportunity to make it shorter, which I'd come to believe would make it appear to better advantage. So today I took it in to the jeweler who repaired the broken pin in Jared's watch. He took one look at the chain and told me it was completely shot, the links stressed and compromised to the point where it was no wonder that it broke. He said that the chain was probably about eighteen inches when I first got it, but a year and a half's worth of near-constant wear had stretched it to what was to me an astounding twenty-one inches. I was kind of horrified; I couldn't get over thinking, what if it hadn't broken at home in my room, but rather somewhere where I could have been in danger of losing the pendant? I'm not really the kind of person who gets attached to physical things, but this necklace was a gift from Jared and it's probably more precious to me than anything else I own. The jeweler said he could repair it pretty easily but that it was so stressed it would probably break again. So I ended up buying a new chain, a heavier-gauge one, very pretty and of fourteen carat instead of ten carat white gold, that I actually like better, not to mention the fact that it's not as long or as easily tangled. I probably shouldn't have spent the money, but I love this necklace so much and I wear it almost constantly that it really is worth it to me to have on a truly nice chain so I can continue to wear it. Jared is out of the country so I haven't told him yet, but we once talked about putting it on a different chain because of its length and its fragility, so he probably won't be surprised.

Workout, walks, and Oz

Found out recently from Zachariah that I have not been doing the Crossfit.com workout exactly right. I misunderstood the indication of how many sets of each exercise one is supposed to do. I am a bit grouchy to hear this; it makes me feel like I wasted that time. I guess it wasn't a complete waste, as I was at least getting SOME exercise, but if I'd done it right I'd be more than a week farther than I am right now. It turns out that the correct way is pretty damn hard, and takes a fair bit more time than I'd hoped it would.

After my workout this morning I walked into town to get Jared's watch repaired. The pin holding the face to the band had bent again, and he left it here instead of taking it home, so I got it fixed for him. The jeweler who did the work was adorably Jewish older man who complimented me on my anniversary necklace and suggested it might appear more advantageously on a shorter chain. I've actually thought about that myself, as the current one tends to make the pendant fall just inside the neckline of a lower-cut shirt, but I kind of don't want to part with the original, which is not only delicate and lovely but was part of the gift from Jared. I enjoyed the walk in town very much overall.

I've been doing work on editing Oz, and I'm pleased with some of the changes I've made. There's a good bit left to do, but I'd like to be able to get a second run happening this summer when Jared comes to visit. For those of you interested in playing who did not get to during Festival, information will be forthcoming. The only thing I'm not sure about is how to go about is finding a space for it. I don't suppose it's possible to engage Brandeis space during the summer, is it? What do people normally do when they run larps during the summer months? Any suggestions would be very welcome.

Necklace clasp?

Over break I bought myself two strands of freshwater pearls with holes bored in them for stringing on wire, and I made myself a necklace. I'm quite pleased with it, it's close-fitting and made of gray and white irregular pearls in the pattern of two pearls of one color, then one of the other, then two more of the first, alternated with the same pattern with the colors reversed. I'm not sure what to do about a clasp, however. I just strung them on a bit of wire and made loose knots at either end to keep them on the strand, but I'm not sure what to do about opening and closing it on my neck. I haven't worn it much yet, but so far I've just been tucking the long end of the wire into the knot on the other end and bending it, but it's not terribly elegant, and I'm worried it isn't secure enough. I should probably just try to get a clasp from an art store or something and see if I can attach it. I'd like to be able to start wearing it without worrying it's going to come apart.

Miskatonic costume

I think I've figured out my costume for Miskatonic Class Reunion 2000. I want to wear all black, and look kind of somber but elegant. I've decided I'm going to wear this little black dress I have, but it doesn't have a back, and I don't want it to look that sexy, so I'm going to wrap my black pashmina around my shoulders. A delicate little necklace that belonged to my grandmother finishes the look, and perhaps diamond stud earrings. If I can get it to look how I want, I plan to wear my hair up. It's a little on the formal side-- by contrast, for Gloria Preston, my MCR character, I wore khaki dress slacks and a silky button-up blouse --but I really like the way it looks and even if I'm a bit overdressed by comparison to other players I think it'll be okay. It's also important to me that I look appreciably different from how I did as Gloria, since I'm playing a different character in a similar situation.