Social butterfly? Not I. Awkward moth? A cut from my same cloth! 

Costumes, and could not for the life of me concoct a clever cinematic story, much less meet a human to model. Made do, a messy music mashup of perturbing posing, 83 minutes of recording, swapping, screenshotting, and chopping into a 52 second video, then shrinking back to the studio. 

My mom: “It’s too fast, my eyes!”

*Contemplates incinerating more seconds off*. 

 

What's all this? It started with a sweatergift from my mom, the greatest gift ever given unto me for a birthday. Dreaming I ate three giant, gorgeous donuts and rode a bike was a close second. [Reality: 18 months of what would starve any creature with a metabolism, but instead currently uncontrollably gaining weight + an arthritic ambulatory wheelchair user. ] 

I will gladly goof over donut dreams.

And If you dress as a donut, do not doubt, I will support the decision.

 

♫ They can say, they can say it all sounds crazy

They can say, they can say we've lost our minds

I don't care, I don't care if they call us crazy

Runaway to a world that we design

Every night I lie in bed

The brightest colours fill my head

A million dreams are keeping me awake ♫

 

Back to the sweaterstory!

 "What colors would you like? " 

Me: *grabs 11 skeins from glorious grandmayarn box* 

Her: 

 

https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/childs-knit-crew-neck-pullover Pattern used, combining sizes to accommodate my disproportionately long yet useful arms, designed crop length. Tis her first sweater, and it does contain tears. Even made The Child a matching one! At some point, it struck me that one does indeed need mothwings to wear with confetti sweaters, a set of two would be even better. Rummaged just enough of the right colors from the preexisting hoard, wire was the only thing left to be acquired.  

My moth model: 

 

Baking wing beginnings 88hrs for big wings, 25 for the minis. 

 

 

 

Gingham reinforced cotton strips, sewn at center. Machine basted once ironed in half as a tube, then hand basted with Tex 70 slick thread for neat gathers. I initially sewed my casing tragically slim and completely removed and resewed each piece after sandwiching and spacing. 

Turned right side out & pressed. 

Used grandmabasement ribbons for the wing venation. Initially planned to paint them, but this seemed less of a mess. Tracing wheel and vanishing marker for seam guides.  RIP ribbon rations, so not accurate. Spontaneously strewn stripe seams, sort of "quilted" on. 

Since the ribbon ran dry, tacked in soft yellow yarn down each side of the Child's wingset, then machine "quilted" it.

 

Eyespots from ribbons, brown cotton, lace and leftover leather seed scales from my pinecone quiver. Handsewn onto each side with blanket stitches, waxed embroidery floss and beads. Wing edge endpoint trimmed with 3/4" sherpa strips cut and stretched on the bias, machine sewn. Multisize bubble beads, each tied on with tan Tex 70 thread, sewing through both sides simultaneously. RIP fingertips. 

Wire time! Was a tad wide for the casing, crammed in over a few hours.Wrapped the exposed wirewads in 1" strips of PUL fabric and brown knit, anchoring each layer with Fabri-Tac. Tied slender strips of sherpa around the side wire areas, used 1/2 elastic for straps. Extra sherpa tassels to shield the adjustable elastic connectors (AKA safety pins.. *fancy*) 

 

Video for a feel of structure. 

 Almost forgotten antennae! 2 hrs here. From felt leaf placemats and elastic enveloped in knit tubes. 

 Baby's Mothstume, 9.5 hrs. Fully lined, white opaque lace overlaid with the mesh floral. Four little leg faux sleeves, lined tubes filled with fabric scraps. Handsewn goldthread sherpa neckline trimmed with knit strips.

 

 

A newold backdrop holder has made things easier, a reject from a closing store. I was running string between closet doors before this, haha.

 

Guest starring a fine friend whose origin was in a GIF, one here. 

Brother, browsing blogs: "Look at this thing!”

*Points to the rainbow assembly of grinning gallopers in GIF bliss*

Young mush, literally screaming:  "IT'S A HORRIBLE RAINBOW CREEP MONSTER!!!"

*lifelong bond*

Sewing, a sock, paint and felt:

*???*

Wired up a rainb(orr)ow of circle circular knitting needles (stolen from mom) +secured some skein skypillows. Foamy 'flies still not shy.

My mom found a clearanced skirt which bore uncanny resemblance to a confetti sweater.

Her: “Does it actually match?"

Me :"Probably not, nope! "

*new favorite outfit*

Cloudy with a chance of …falling dolls.? 

B u  b   b    l     e      s 

Do you ever just look at chewing gum and think "an admirable anchor for props!" ?

Hope not...

*guilt*

 

No human size mothstume, white one from years ago shall do. Leather quiver and headband from an eternity ago, last spring. For it feels wasteful, tools that sit idle. Hope one day an able bodied soul will use the archery thing.

Sunrise, 8 am, impending equinox, ~45 degrees, barefoot, duckdock. Dear neighbors, my sanity isn’t wholly lost, please don’t call the cops! 

 

 

"Some day you will be old enough to start reading fairy tales again."

~C.S. Lewis

 

.:Medical mystery mishaps:.

Wheelchair waltzing at 3 am is surprisingly wonderful while wondering if bones are internally shattering.

It’s been ten years, two severe with searching, blame, and begging. I research restlessly and print papers to pass to them. Wield the med message system as I find myself so often mute, memorize my own medical notes now. I’ve learned some will lie if you allow it. A recent appointment ignited a new interest in my case. Primary care explained that the specialists were stumped and medically at a dead end. I debated, I begged. Everyone cried. Got referrals. Success stings sometimes. 

That diagnostic procedure/surgery I had in February (SB enteroscopy) is getting repeated in a couple months by my own GI doctor. Because the surgeon imaging reports disagreed, they were out of ideas, and I sent Labcorp guides about what to do when Celiac blood work and biopsies conflict. They actually read it, which I never expected! The January surgeon saw intestinal damage, bleeding + an ulcer but duodenal biopsies were unremarkable. This February one missed the ulcer/lesion, saw no villous damage or the bleeding, and did not take the ordered repeat biopsies.Tattooed my GI tract.That was a bewildering car ride discovery from the photo pamphlet while coming out of anesthesia. I have a TATTOO? Took me over twice as long as expected to wake up from it, nearly wasn’t released due to low blood pressure. The next one will be the 5th diagnostic procedure/surgery in under a year. Endless ultrasounds, ER visits of which I’ve lost count, 3 edible nuclear stuff scans, 3 CTs, 1 PET scan. Bouncing between endocrinology, gastroenterology, neurology, rheumatology, It's dizzying. Consistently “strong positive tTG iga” discovered one year ago this week + other bad bloodwork + systemic wreck + unlikely Celiac genetic test with double negative biopsies = uncharted territory + no one knows if Alpha Gal allergy medically effects people after remission, it’s been exactly 7 years since I was bitten. THE HOSPITAL SOCK HERD IS HEIGHTENING.

I learned that GI and Rheumatology are actively arguing about which specialist should see me. Outpatient orphan? GI swears it’s autoimmune, Rheumatology thinks it’s intestinal. Meanwhile they keep running Multiple Myeloma tests without telling me, I don’t know why I find this secrecy funny. I suppose I’ve no healthy fear at this point.  Doctors at this hospital are so baffled that they’re sending me to their rival university’s GI hospital people and are pushing genetic referrals, but…For the first time a treatment's being tried!. I’d put aside hoping as a form of coping. And my, how exciting life is when one doesn’t expect a thing!

It fits the theme of weirdness, wings, and bugs, for I am now on Malaria drugs (Hydroxychloroquine).

 

“It's not what the world holds for you, it's what you bring to it.”

~ L.M. Montgomery

 Grand wishes, goodbye, must fly!