Fashioning My Cyber Microcosm: To The Bat Cave! (Road Trip Essay)

Less than a week ago my neighbor came to me and invited me to go on a road trip on rather short notice.
To be fair, we had been hoping to all year long... but we never accomplished any real planning for it.
Then opportunity opened its doors, and she was quick to greet it.

It was really rather impulsive of me to say yes when she came to me with the proposition, but the excitement overtook me and suddenly it was happening. We were going to Carlsbad Cavern.

My husband wasn't very pleased by my eagerness to accept, considering our trip to Canada was a mere two weeks away, but he empathized with my desperation for mental stimulation, and didn't argue.
Not surprisingly enough, this was also the very first road trip I had taken without either my husband or my mother... so the cards were stacking high in my favor; a chance to experience something at my own pace.

With my husband, road trips mean very little deviation from the allotted plan... but not with my neighbor-- she was quite eager and enthusiastic with all our whims. It took us a while to arrive to Carlsbad and meet up with her friends, but the thrill of adventure, and memories it brought along was completely worth it.

Carlsbad Cavern is located 750 ft underground, which you can take a very quick elevator down to; alternately, you could take the natural entrance, but it closes rather early because the main attractions reside there. The cavern paths are completely paved, and speaking normally is discouraged because your voice will carry roughly a mile-- whispering is encouraged; it's surprising how loud your whispers can be in a cave... I could hear a whispered conversation from a few feet behind me. I can't imagine how talking normally would be like... though I was very tempted to try...

The cavern is HUGE; to roughly quote Fight Club, it's big like you imagine god as big.

It became clear how completely humbled I was when I realized how sore my jaw was from all the gawking and gaping. Unfortunately, being new to my camera still, many of my own photos didn't quite turn out till I was near the end of its battery life-- I did manage to grab some really great shots, however.

The stalagmites in the Hall of Giants are roughly 60ft tall... but somehow in the photos they seem a mere few feet tall...

I wasn't able to capture the essence of the next photo on my own camera since it was near the beginning when I was still tweaking the settings. Thankfully my neighbor allowed me to use her photo, as it is one of my favorite looking stalagmites.

Aptly called the Puppet Show, or as I like to call them: Scherenschnitte!

During our guided tour of the King's Palace, they sat us down in part of the cave... and shut off all the lights.

Never in my life have I experienced such a profound darkness... the feeling was a little like being sea sick at first; in your mind there is nothing around you, you feel the floor yet your mind tells you it's not there; you can hear the sounds, but it's as though you're in a great abyss and the sound is everywhere and nowhere... a feeling that can only be described as an excitable panic begins creeping its way into your gut. 

As the time elapses, another feeling begins washing over you as you come to terms with the darkness-- like being cradled in the arms of something both warm and cold. My neighbor said that her boyfriend describes such a feeling as "being hugged by the earth". It could not be more closer to the truth.

Then very suddenly, the ranger flicks on a lighter. You feel frightened but elated like someone ripping you from your solace, but promising life; you see the cave as it was discovered those many many years ago.

It was one experience I won't quickly forget.

After hours of walking through what felt like miles upon miles of cavern... it came time for the part we were most looking forward to...

 I know it doesn't show... but really, I am excited!!

It was the moment of truth, and as you can easily guess, it was the flight of bats! Cute Mexican fox tailed bats! Where upon hundreds and hundreds fly out of their cavern and go to hunt for the night. It was a magnificent sight to see so many flooding out of the cave... it could've been a much better experience had it not been for the tiny tots that were loud and rather obnoxious; the bats didn't come out in clouds as I expected-- that might've been because it was too loud for them all to come out at once.

I'm one of those types that strongly believes there are certain events not suitable for small children; you need to be very quiet and very still for hours... and I just don't think many young children can be-- and it was apparent that many in the crowd could not be. Parents were told by the rangers to leave if their child began fidgeting, and advised to stay away entirely if the child could not calm down... alas, hardly any one of those parents listened, and dampened the experience for the childless.

Anyways, I digress.

After such a fantastic day... there was nary a thought in my mind that believed it could get any better the next day heading home...

Was I glad to be so utterly wrong.

My neighbor suggested it might be a great idea to pit stop at Roswell and experience the UFO Museum.

The place was kitsch.

But it was thoroughly enjoyable because it was so kitsch. The main attraction was a display of aliens and their ship that every half hour began blowing smoke and making sounds.

Cover of 'Alien Vogue'

The rest was posters of information and images of abductions, and the history behind the crash landing in Roswell.

My absolute favorite part about pit stopping in Roswell was this little hole in the wall place that charged 3 dollars to take as many photos as you like in an area they set up with scenes; I can't recall the name of the place, and I also can't remember the last time I goofed around so much...

In the very back of this area was one of the most astounding feats of sci fi creativity that I have ever been privy to see...

I had just enough juice in my camera to take a couple shots of my own.

Taking pictures of the entire display proved difficult, and somewhat futile; it had little ships in the sky, and quite a magnificent mural painted on the walls (which you can vaguely see)... but these images alone ignite the imagination.

It was extraordinary experiencing this with my friend and neighbor, and I was somewhat glad my husband didn't go... but on the same token, it would've been nice if I could share it with him also... I wish with all my heart that this won't be the last time I visit all these places.

From Carlsbad & Roswell, with love...

P.S. This is off topic, but I notice that a few comments some of you are making are not publishing properly, they show up in my inbox, but aren't displayed on the actual post. I assure you, I'm not deleting them (it would show as deleted by owner, if that was the case), so if you want to make your comment public, make sure it shows up! Otherwise know I appreciate it, and wish I could reply!

Mortem's Tricks or Treats: Sweetening The Deal

Hum.

It's only 7 more days till my giveaway is over, and I have to be honest-- I'm a little disappointed by the lack of further interest in it. Thank you to those whom are currently participants and commenters-- you make my heart glow with warmth. On the brightside, I guess this means there's a bigger chance to win *wink wink*.

I thought I had a zipper to make the make up bag... but it turns out I didn't. What this means for the winner is that I'll be adding a few more things to the pile before the deadline.

Today inspiration struck me, and I thought it'd be really neat to create a mug cozy to add into giveaway.

Here it is all finished up! I made one for myself, since I am a huge tea drinker (hot and cold), I figured I'd get far more use out of it. I hope the winner is the same, hehe! This will be the one I put into the giveaway.

It's funny because that tiny little black applique on the skull is what sparked it. I used two others in the creation of the jewelry piece I promised to make for the giveaway.

But anyway, enough talk... here are some progression shots of the mug cozy as it is being made.

I was going to add in two, but I lost the inspiration for the one above it... and I don't I liked how I cut it, anyway-- the bias tape would've covered the skeleton's head.
The inner lining is felt, which makes a perfect insulator for those hot and cold drinks. The lining is a heavy weight canvas material to prevent any sweaty drinks from bleeding to the front of the cozy.

Here it is in action:

Speaking of cute, I'm also quite proud of the necklace I made for the giveaway. I was bummed I couldn't tat it, but I figured that would be the case... I'm just starting to learn how to needle tat, which is a lot different than shuttle tatting.

I had some leftover applique trim that I cut into individual sections; I sewn them together to create a nice little center piece.
I tried my hand at a bit of knot tying-- like for hemp jewelry-- for the strand. I slipped in a few black seed beads throughout the length for added pretty.

A few minutes of digging around and I found some plastic pearl beads, purple ribbon rosettes, a charm, and a little length of chain-- perfect!

Next thing you know, I created a piece of jewelry from nothing but the scraps and things I had lying around, hehe.

I love it so much, I am going to use this same train of thought and creation to revamp an old necklace I made some time ago; I still have several applique pieces, lots of seed beads and string to make one more.

Mortem's Tricks or Treats: A Brief Interlude

I'm afraid this isn't a post about one of the patterns I hoped to deliver unto you, my readers...

But, it is something I promised at one point in my blog.

I had went to a thrift shop once upon a time in this little town of mine-- obviously I didn't come out with much of note, otherwise I would've posted about it earlier.

I guess I should revise that statement, considering I'm about to let you all know about a top I did catch for 25 cents.

Anyway, in its original state it was/is nothing to write about; just a plain, baggy lace top. It was made for a larger woman, but lace for 25 cents? I couldn't pass it up.

And here it is... you can see that Frankie Stein-- meaning myself-- drown in the shirt. It was mainly used as a lounge-about shirt.

I should say that since my last posts, I haven't even thought about crafting, much less did anything; I was gaming all this time; playing SWTOR.

So yesterday, after struggling to find a nice outfit to post something so my blog didn't go dormant, I suddenly got the itch to sew. I didn't feel like doing anything as elaborate as crating something from scratch, so the next best (and quickest) was to revamp something. This top made it onto the cutting table...

Then onto Frankie Stein for some tweaking...

Slightly fuzzy action shot!

Then finally onto me for some modeling. All in the same day.

I don't know how long I had the white lace collar appliques... all I know is that it'd been in my sewing supplies almost as long as I've had my overlock. My mother sent them along in one of my care-packages, and they remained collecting dust until yesterday. Now I feel it was like destiny-- the two went together so well!

So, I turned a very baggy lace top into a peplum top. Not too shabby for 20 mins worth of crafting. I took in the upper bodice portion, and inserted an elastic onto the bottom half that remained otherwise unaltered, since it was big enough to create the poof I needed for the peplum.

Styled it with a belt, a pencil skirt, and some jewelry, then bam! Done.

Speaking of old treasures, my mother also sent me one of the first pieces of jewelry I ever made; they were a little tarnished, but with a bit of polish they're almost as good as new! They required me to reopen my only piercings... which was surprisingly easy considering the length of time it has been since I last wore earrings.

Not a particularly original design these days, but it was once upon a time; I used to get compliments left and right; now they're like everything else on Etsy lol... ah well, they're still pretty!

Skeleton Closet: Tentatively Barefoot

One thing I love about other blogs' outfit posts is that they're almost always different from the next.

Back in Canada, I probably could've done the same-- I had mountains of clothes and footwear to choose from.
These days, I am finding it harder and harder to formulate an outfit for Skeleton Closet... quite frankly, it's bare bones in my current closet (badum-tss!). My shoe rack is especially sparse... I think I've worn all the shoes I have more than twice already in my current posts.

Without becoming redundant, and also because it's different-- I went barefoot this time.
I know... blasphemy.

I also noticed two exciting things:
1. I am currently 5 readers away from 100
2. July 22 marks an entire year of blogging

so you know what this means...

Whichever one I get to first, it means a giveaway! And boy this one will be a good one, I promise.

This time it'll be more goodies over candy-- my first was mostly candy because it was for Hallowe'en, and you can't do a giveaway on Hallowe'en without candy... it just doesn't work like that, in my book.

Let's just say I have a few favorites I would like to share with the winner...

What I am Wearing:

• Skirt: Self-made
• Top: Thrifted
• Corset: Louise Black
• Necklace: Self-made
• Barefeet!

Fashioning My Cyber Microcosm: Polka-Polka, Polkadots

It's time for the Professor's Homework Assignment!

This month she asked us to base a post around polkadots; one of my favorite fabric patterns... perhaps my only other favorite aside damask. Polkadots isn't limited to just fabric, for example many have already posted polkadot nail art,

But for the sake of doing what I do best, I will stick with fashion... with a twist of the past.

Once upon a time, a young Mortem (pre-highschool) took it upon herself to draft her very first pattern! And it just so happens I still have the result of such an endeavor. The article in question is:

This skirt.

It's not just the dots that are relevant, but the fact it is about to be a little over a decade old; made by the hands of 14 year old me. I must admit I'm surprised how well it held up, considering I was no more than a novice then.

The real question is whether or not it still fit... 11 years is a long time, much has definitely changed. So, it occurred to me that this should also be a BatFit sort of test, to see how much I have changed in that time.

*drumroll*

Not much at all.
To my shock and awe, I didn't have to do any squeezing or sucking-in to put it on. Since I have so very few pictures of myself when I was young (it really means none), I decided I would dress and do my hair (more or less) how I used to in the latter part of my babybat years.

The ensemble would've included purple fishnet or stripped stockings, that I currently don't own anymore. Also my hair wasn't quite as long back then, and I usually wore pigtails... yeah, I know. 

I honestly can't get a grip on what style I once was-- it wasn't fully goth, though I adorned myself often with skulls and bats. I wore an extensive amount of color in the past, and made a transition to purely black, lace, satins and velvet over the years as I grew.

Perhaps one day I will stumble upon an old photo of me wearing this exact skirt those many years ago...

And what would a polkadot assignment be without polka music?

Skeleton Closet: Marking The Occassion

With our 1st year wedding anniversary not more than a few days behind us, and my birthday coming up full steam; my hubby, in all his sweetness, ignored the throbbing of his tired feet and legs, and took me out for a day full of fun the following day after his return home.
I have this stinging inclination to boast about how much he went through, only to go through some more on my account... but I'll just leave it with, I'm a very lucky gal! My actions are not without gratitude, of course...

Edited to add:

My birthday isn't that soon! But I thank you for the early wishes nevertheless. It's still in June, but since the month is flying by it'll be right in front of us more than quickly, heh. He combined the two occasions because I don't think there will be a chance to go out like this when my birthday does come around.

Anyway, as promised, I shall reveal the outfit I was to wear for our celebration of one year of wedded bliss that I spent it planning and sewing during my week alone:
The fact it is very lolita was nearly unintentional. I guess I imagined it more "cute halloween addict", than "halloween lolita"... which if you really think about it, there's not much of a distinction between those two ideas...

The neck bow tie is not originally drafted into the pattern, but with an itty bitty teeny weeny bit of savvy, I added it in there. The skirt itself was drafted by me from the memory of one I once saw; it's a tad wrinkly... it was a long drive home!

This was also a chance to bust out my knee high pumpkin socks which have barely seen the light of day because I don't didn't have an outfit that suited them well enough.

What I am wearing:

• Blouse: self-made
• Skirt: self-made
• Socks: dollar store
• Shoes: local flea market

Mortem's Tricks or Treats: Hurly Burly

My hubby left on Friday, and since then I've kept my mind and hands busy in order to prevent any negative thought from emerging.

Alas, I crafted my hands into a coma...

Yesterday I spent the night nurturing a crippling episode of carpel tunnel, but thankfully it happened only minutes after I finished my intended projects. 

Today isn't so bad, as you can tell from my typing this post, but I'll be taking it easy.

Sunday was my 1st wedding anniversary; it was spent celebrating as well as one could do on her own: sewing, of course.

Finishing the final "piece"

I made an entire outfit to commemorate this somewhat joyous occasion, but its final showcase will have to wait until I can put it on and celebrate my hubby coming home. For now, let me whet your appetite with the reveal of the mock up of the above pictured piece.

I saw this skirt... somewhere. Being unable to locate the original, coupled with having zero money to purchase it, even if I did... I thought it would be a nice piece to recreate from the vague memory I have of the skirt.

The ties are long enough to come forward or stay backwards. The final product will have a lot more lace, and of course it will be black. I might add some white lace to this mock up... then who knows what will happen to it, heh.

I made yet another blouse from the same view I've been using in pattern 6078, but I added a little extra touch to it so it'll match up with the skirt. I know, I keep making these blouses! I'm currently obsessed with them-- this is the last one... I think. Probably not... but hopefully the last one you'll read about.

Anyway, aside from all that, I took a look at my most recent candy find and realized I could upcycle the tin instead of just having it jingle around just for the pleasure of how it looks.

I bought a mini sewing tin from China town during my visit in Vancouver a year a go. I purchased it because it was the only sewing kit I've ever found with a tiny pair of scissors with black handles. I had this sugar skull left over tin of mints that I bought at a place called It's Sugar during my visit to Phoenix last month for my brother-in-law's graduation.

I pulled a switcharo on the tins so that my travel kit now suits my tastes. I added in a couple extras; a tiny wood spool of black thread, a spool of purple thread, and a stitch-remover.

These tins also come in a white skull, or pink-- which I completely intend on buying before too long.

P.S. if you haven't seen Frankie's tattoos, have a closer look in the older post about her here.