Whew! Has anyone else noticed that July just flew by? It’s
not quite gone yet, but it’s basically gone for me (for reasons I will explain
later) and I’m left with my head spinning. Where has the time gone?
Part of the reason why the time has gone so very quickly was
all the fun events I was able to do. So I’m going to do a quick recap for you, because
it was an extraordinarily fun two months!
First: In mid-June, some of my friends and I went to Old
World Wisconsin to take part in a film shoot for the Kenosha Civil War Museum.
They needed extras and were paying, so we all scurried down there. The film
shoot was a whole lot of hurry-up-and-wait, but it was cool to take part in and
the production crew treated us amazingly well. Well, except for the camera guy
who was trying to give me my motivation for looking sad and told me my 19 year
old son had just died. Note: I am nowhere near old enough to have a 19 year old
son.
 |
| Time between shots = opportunities for frolicking |
We also got to stay in a very, very cool reproduction
stagecoach inn with good friends. And we made lots of new friends too. So much
laughter and fun and happy memories.
Second: The end of June meant my
semi-annual get together with college friends for Crafting Weekend. These
ladies are some of the smartest, funniest, most talented women I know, and I
have the privilege to call them my friends. How lucky am I? It was three days
of giggling, eating, drinking, and of course, lots of crafting. Two of my friends are/were pregnant (one gave birth on the same day as the Duchess of Cambridge, and the other is still waiting for her little stranger) so it was an extra special time to be with them. My projects
were recovering my parasol , finishing my Swiss waist, and finishing my dotted
swiss undersleeves.
 |
| Do you even recognize me in modern clothes? Fact: I have a side part in my hair! |
Third: Gettysburg. I did not
actually make it to Gettysburg – camping with tens of thousands of people in
hot, muggy Pennsylvania where there are bugs and ticks is my version of hell.
So I commemorated the sesquicentennial in Minnesota at several special events put on by
the Minnesota Historical Society. One of them had me gussied up in my ballgown,
and once again discovering that the Empress Gown has Marilyn Monroe tendencies
when caught in a breeze…
Fourth: Remember those amazing,
talented friends? One of them is Anne. Anne is an amazing photographer – she
has her own business, Anne Victoria Photography. She and I collaboratively
schemed to set up a photoshoot at the historic LeDuc House in Hastings,
Minnesota. This would give her the opportunity to add some really unique photos
to her portfolio, and I got some shots of myself that weren’t taken in a
dimly-lit mirror. The photos are still being edited, and I will put up the highlights when they are done, but this is just a sneak
peek of the amazing work that she did:
 |
| Photo by Anne Victoria Photography |
So, that’s it in a nutshell! There
were other things, of course, and I wish I had properly documented them, but c’est
la vie, non? Next week, I will be out of town at The Lake, which those in the
upper Midwest know is a mystical land where time ceases to exist and everyone
is happy. It is truly paradise. I already have a bin full of projects to work
on – some millinery, some embroidery, some knitting. Look for results when I
get back!
What are you working on lately?
Has the summer been busy or slow for you?
