Tagged, Tagged, and Tagged

I've been tagged by MrsDragon, Izile, AND MyFairyBabies!! I'm a bit behind on my blog lovin', so lets see if I can catch up on all of this insane tagging. . . Luckily, all three have the same rules.

The rules of tagging are:
1. Link to the person that tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

Okay, six things. . .
1. I love museums. I love learning about art, history, and culture. Even if I don't necessarily understand or 'like' a piece, I can still appreciate it. I love soaking it all in. When I was a child and I would visit a museum, I was inevitably drawn to the ancient Greek and Roman sections as well as the arms and armor. Little did I know that I'd eventually take up making armour.

2. I am an only child, so I grew up in the company of adults as well as entertaining myself for hours. I still have no problem hanging out by myself, in fact I am very much a home body. That said, it's also kind of difficult for me to make friends because I'm so used to being by myself.

3. The beach is my solace. I was feeling a bit overwhelmed lately and went to the beach over the weekend. Despite getting a bit of a burn (first time out this season, it was inevitable), it felt wonderful being there. I even got a forty minute nap in while I was there.

4. I never in a million years thought I'd have a cat. I've been a 'dog person' my whole life and then Jack showed up. I love my little kitty cat.

5. I really want to get my tragus pierced! The tragus is the small area of cartilage that juts out in front of your ear canal. I think I would love a tattoo, too, but I have absolutely no idea what I would get or where.

6. I hammered my thumb yesterday. It's got a teeny, tiny little bruise under the nail. I really need to get a bigger anvil. . .

Okay, so now I have to tag six people:
Kirsten Skiles with the Etsy shop knitsteel
Cat at Darkling Woods Studio with the Etsy shop of the same name
Up From the Ashes with the Etsy shop of the same name
Joey and Aleethea with the Etsy shop of the same name
Kristin at the fantastical ramblings of aquariann with the Etsy shop aquariann
Helen at Visiting the Muse with the Etsy shop krummenacker

Cat and Coif

Not cat in coif (although I've seen that before), but updates on the cat and the coif.

Okay, the coif first. I keep forgetting to post these pictures. While Scott and I were still in the apartment, his sister and her kids (who live overseas) were in town visiting. They all so sweetly made a fuss about my coif and we managed to get pic's of two out of three of the kids wearing it and holding Scott's Gandalf sword from The Lord of the Rings Collection. Check 'em out. Don't they look awesome?

Okay, now the cat. After much stress of deciding what to do with her, I finally decided to go with my instinct of getting her inside. With no claws, it's just not right for her to be outside: no way of getting food, no way of defending herself, even no way for escape by climbing up a tree. So, I stopped by PetSmart on the way home intending to pick up only the very basics, just in case "Lost Cat" signs get posted over the weekend. I came home and I saw her across the street. I made the "psst, psst, psst" sound that attracts her attention and, I kid you not, she galloped across the street to me. I took out one of the toys (I had to get her her something fun, not just kitty litter) and played with her for a little bit. I opened the door, went in and left the door open and let her decide what she wanted to do. I didn't try to entice her or anything and she came in. I let her check out things for a little bit and when she didn't make any move to head back for the door, I closed it. I gave her some food and she just scarfed it down. Looking at me and meowing, I kind of got the hint that she was still hungry so gave her some more. It was a fairly uneventful night with the exception of when I got up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom. I guess she thought I was up and it was time to play, because she followed me back to bed and started purring and nudging my hand. She's also a fairly good wake up call. The second my alarm went off this morning, she meowed from down the hall and came running in and started purring and nudging me again. She had another whole bowl of food for breakfast and successfully used the litter box during the night. I think she's still a little confused about where she is, but she seems content.

The Coif is Complete

In attempting to actually accomplish the goals I set out for myself, I'm finally giving an update on my coif (which I just listed at Etsy, by the way). I first started working on this coif way back in May and blogged about it here in the beginning of June when I had only the beanie portion of it done.

After the beanie was complete, the neck covering of the hood was added to make it into a standard coif (head and neck protection). Unfortunately, it had to be put on the back burner while I waited to receive more rings. I decided not to coil and cut my own rings for this project because I knew there would be so many and I had much rather spend my time actually weaving this time. I actually love the look of the standard coif: it reminds me of the kind of bob-like haircut you may see fashioned on Cleopatra. I plan on getting some enameled or anodized rings in maybe magenta to make it into a wig style for club wear. =)


Last, I added the mantle which adds protection for the throat and upper chest. The mantle, like the beanie portion is more expanding rows of Euro 4-1. It was so much fun to do this project. I loved making fabric out of metal, it felt so cool in my hands. It's also such an amazing dichotomy for metal to feel so fluid.


Historical methods of weaving were used in the creation of this coif, including expanding Euro 4-1. This piece represents countless hours of work with approximately 6000 bright aluminum rings all hand woven by me with seamless closures. Because it was made using bright aluminum (which is 1/3 the weight of steel), it weighs just shy of 2 lbs. Bright aluminum rings, 16 gauge, 1/4" ID: These rings are a good strength for use in combat grade armour and will work for SCA armour. Maille will protect against an edge of a weapon, however padding should be worn underneath for additional protection and a helmet is also commonly worn.

Working on the Coif!

I keep telling everyone that the opening of my second Etsy shop is contingent upon the completion of a fairly sizable maille project. It's my first ever coif. Here's the first pic from the work in progress:



This is the beanie or skullcap portion. All of the expansions in order to get it to the right size to fit around my head are in this section. It was a bit time consuming because I was figuring out expansions for the first time and, well, there's nearly 1,000 rings in this section alone. It's still got a long way to go: neck covering, throat closure, mantle. . .

With the exception of making some juggling balls, all of my maille projects to this point have been jewelry, so it's been a blast to be making something so big. I can't believe that I'm constructing a fabric made out of metal mesh. I'm making armour. So cool.