The blog has been idle, but I have not...

A lot has happened since last we met. I lost my father to cancer, which set me back quite a bit and threw just about everything into a cocked hat. Add to the fact that about nine months before he passed away, I was in a car accident and you get a bad year all the way around.

Nevertheless, I've found my bearings and come through. I hope you stuck with me through the long silence.

These are the things I've been up to recently...

I've been learning to mold and sculpt with leather. Allowing me to make some leather masks for dear friends and loved-ones for to conceal their identities mid-foolery:







Which is known far and wide as "The Bubble Mask" (bubbleblowing mechanism designed by my fair ladyfool, pictured). You can see Daf's Bubble Mask in action in the parade video at the bottom of this post.

They're getting more elaborate as I go along and experiment with the extremes of the leathern medium. I'm planning to play with the forms quite a bit. The forms will be historically inspired as any leather mask must be, but as you can see, I have my own take on things. The red and green masks, for instance, are quite goblinish. I'll post more as I make them.

I also made a snazzy new hats. When I'm feeling down I often start making hats. This hat is a pattern entirely my own and is quasi-period inspired. There's a "cockscomb" of bells down the centerline and the "ass's ears" are unabashedly curlicue (they're wired so I can move them around and they'll stay where I put them).

It isn't necessarily meant to be 100% accurate so much as draw attention when I'm promoting the faire at parades and the like.

I completed the suit of clothes I've been talking about and will post details on that soon. I hope to revive this blog in the near term with details and updates as I document that suit of duds and begin construction on my very period suit of noble silks.

I've also written another novel, painted my house, performed a wedding and started another blog specifically dealing with the things that occur to me about and while writing that updates at least three times a week if not more often.

This is our renfaire's participation in the annual Gig Harbor Maritime Festival parade... "Pirates of the Peninsula" was the theme of the event. You can see my new hat and Daf's bubble mask in action throughout the video.