Sometimes Good Things Fall Apart...

Last weekend, my beloved friend Josie Smith flew me to Texas to spend the weekend with her.  Huuuuuuzaaaah!!!!  I was thrilled!!  There were plans galore to dress up, have pictures taken, attend the Dallas Fort Worth Costumers Guild's annual Georgian Picnic, partake of fabulous Georgian picnic-y foods, meet new people, visit with those newly met and generally immerse ourselves in costume glory for the afternoon.  I planned on wearing the Autumn in Cranford ensemble as I had just made it, it was still supposedly fall, and it still fell under the category of Georgian...barely.  But as Josie would say and did, the universe plotted against us.  The forecast called for cold, not chilly...cold temps and rain.  That and there was the 8 hour round trip drive.  The decision was made to not attend the Picnic.

While I did miss out on meeting new costuming friends and seeing those I had just recently met, (I am pretty confident that I will meet them at some time in the future!) my weekend was one of the best and most fun one I have had with a friend in a very long time.  Josie found the following sign that ended up being the anthem for the weekend.  

Marilyn Monroe

The weekend was so wonderful and laid back.  I got to "be" where Josie and her family live.  Their place is fabulous and now when she talks about it, I can see it, which is what I was very excited about!  This makes me so happy!  I got to see the chickens (and "pick" their eggs), goats, bees, pond, ducks, goose, dogs, sewing studio.  I got to paw through her fabric and lace stash, stitch a bit of the hem of a skirt, look through costuming books, see a demonstration on how a Victorian pleater works and peruse the "Closet of Complete Costumes".  We spent hours on Pinterest looking at color ideas for her kitchen cabinets, future dress ideas, decorating inspiration, and Christmas cookie recipes.  We went antiques shopping, fabric shopping (laaaaaaaaaaaa), and ate at a quaint little cafe where she was introduced to cheeseburger soup...one of my favorite fall go-tos...and raised our eyebrows at the snitty waitress.  I got to just hang and relax with her wonderful family and had dinner with other lovely friends that I haven't seen in over 5 years, Scott and Cindy Love.  It was glorious and fun, silly and wonderful, calm and crazy.  We had lazy mornings chatting over tea and on Sunday we made the fabulous cheeseburger soup for her family.  I was made most welcome and a part of the family for the weekend.  

Some photos of the weekend.

I sent this picture to my husband after he sent me a picture of our place with 6" of snow that had fallen over night.  We were in a very mocking state at the time....bwahahahahahaha!

I was introduced to the Texas Mum.  I had never seen anything like this before in my life.  I thought they were some odd things that were given to sweet little old ladies in Care Centers for Mother's Day...but noooooooo.  These are worn by high school girls during Home Coming.  I am still in shock and awe at the whole thing.  The look on Josie's face tells exactly how I felt.

Inside of a super fabulous store we went to.  Of course I cannot remember the name.  It was HUGE and the decor was so fun!!  A cross between shabby chic, antique and Texas Western.

This crown was epic!!  I have a funny look on my face cause I didn't want it to fall off my head.  It wasn't cheap and I didn't want to pay for it!

This was a GIGANTIC antiques store!  It was so fabulous.  It's a good thing I was flying and that I didn't have pockets full of money, because there were way too many things I lusted after.

The only time my new bonnet was worn was when Josie tried it on. This was so hilarious!!  Her head fit totally inside the bonnet.  Her nose was the only thing keeping it from engulfing her whole head!!  Yes....my head in enormous!!!

We played with Victorian dresses!!  One Josie is working on and one that is an extant example that I totally drooled over.  Sorry for the drool marks Josie!!  I can't wait to see the one she is working on completed!  It is going to be fabulous!!!

Two besties taking a selfie!!!  Aren't we cute?

Shockingly, I came away from Texas with only three things.  Steel for a new 1840s corset that I purchased from Josie's steel stash, an ivory tassle for my 1830s Archery dress if the blue one above doesn't work out.  I need to dye it to better match the silk I got for the bodice.  I am thinking of using a pink dye...we'll see if that works.

See the tassle?  I am hoping it works!

Like Marilyn said, "Sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."  This weekend proved that.  Our friendship isn't just about costuming.  It is about kids and husbands and homeschooling and cooking and Jesus and life.  Thank you my friend for a fabulous weekend!  I love you!!

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