Captain of the Anarquendor - Pictures from the event
When I finished the dress diary for the Captain of the Anarquendor costume, people asked me to post pictures of me at the event, so here I am. Two weeks ago we were still in Germany, the game had just started, we were already pushing people's buttons and having oodles of fun in the process.
By now, most of the bags have been unpacked and I'm back at the office trying to scrounge the pictures together.
When I finished off the last bits and bobs of costume it was raining pretty heavily in the Netherlands. As you may recall, the reason I made the sleeveless linen coat is because the gambeson would probably be too warm. But now it was raining!
In the final weeks before Drachenfest I frantically sewed some six tablecloths, two pairs of brown linen pants, and a bell-sleeved wrap-thingummy to go underneath the sleeveless coat just in case of midly warm weather. A seamstress' work is never done!
I rather fancied the idea of having a diplomatic / morning / relaxing costume (the coat with leaves, spiced up with the bell-sleeved wrap-top) and a costume to go and beat Germans over the head (the gambeson, chain-mail & overcoat). I also brought leather armour, lots of arrows and several kinds of weapons to finish off the outfit. It's a whole different kind of accessoiry than sunglasses and a tote, I can tell you!
I also had some fake dreads braided into my hair. Several others from the group chose this style as well. It's a perfect excuse for the obligatory kitty pikshur. Also, I finally finished off the scalemail sleevelets for my armour and attached those in the last weekend before we drove to Germany.
We arrived on the terrain on Monday afternoon and only got into costume on Wednesday morning, the morning when play would officially start. After breakfast, the whole group assembled on the hill outside our camp for some (Chi Gong & Tai Chi) practice:
Lots of different styles, but all elves.
During the SL intro talk. (I had a bug on my finger. It was interesting.)
Final day portrait, with war paint (for the Endslacht)
So that pretty much wraps it up for the linen outfit. Of course, when you wear a costume, you find out pretty much all the things that are wrong with it:
For next year, I might make a new "morning" outfit that is much wider below the waist but still has enough splits for easy movement.
As for the gambeson & chainmail outfit, here's the best portrait I have found so far.
Image thanks to DocInge. Please do not redistribute.
Comments on this outfit:
By now, most of the bags have been unpacked and I'm back at the office trying to scrounge the pictures together.
When I finished off the last bits and bobs of costume it was raining pretty heavily in the Netherlands. As you may recall, the reason I made the sleeveless linen coat is because the gambeson would probably be too warm. But now it was raining!
In the final weeks before Drachenfest I frantically sewed some six tablecloths, two pairs of brown linen pants, and a bell-sleeved wrap-thingummy to go underneath the sleeveless coat just in case of midly warm weather. A seamstress' work is never done!
I rather fancied the idea of having a diplomatic / morning / relaxing costume (the coat with leaves, spiced up with the bell-sleeved wrap-top) and a costume to go and beat Germans over the head (the gambeson, chain-mail & overcoat). I also brought leather armour, lots of arrows and several kinds of weapons to finish off the outfit. It's a whole different kind of accessoiry than sunglasses and a tote, I can tell you!
I also had some fake dreads braided into my hair. Several others from the group chose this style as well. It's a perfect excuse for the obligatory kitty pikshur. Also, I finally finished off the scalemail sleevelets for my armour and attached those in the last weekend before we drove to Germany.
We arrived on the terrain on Monday afternoon and only got into costume on Wednesday morning, the morning when play would officially start. After breakfast, the whole group assembled on the hill outside our camp for some (Chi Gong & Tai Chi) practice:
Lots of different styles, but all elves.
During the SL intro talk. (I had a bug on my finger. It was interesting.)
Final day portrait, with war paint (for the Endslacht)
So that pretty much wraps it up for the linen outfit. Of course, when you wear a costume, you find out pretty much all the things that are wrong with it:
- The collar flips over after some wear. Four layers of linen are not sturdy enough.
- My big hair nearly doesn't fit through the neck opening
- The front split started to tear because it doesn't go up high enough or because the coat isn't wide enough at this point.
- Poly suede wrap-top is pretty darn warm but the sleeves are awesome
For next year, I might make a new "morning" outfit that is much wider below the waist but still has enough splits for easy movement.
As for the gambeson & chainmail outfit, here's the best portrait I have found so far.
Image thanks to DocInge. Please do not redistribute.
Comments on this outfit:
- I didn't wear it very often, as it's very warm and pretty heavy to wear. However, when the tough gets going and the Anarquendor come running, it's nice to stand out in the blingy gold chain and have 8 hp overall (especially when you get a Dwarven throwing hammer to the forehead, I can tell you)
- I had washed the gambeson after our sweaty rugby match on the picnick. Apparantly the wool and linen have continued to shrink even though I did it on a wool cycle and it didn't even get to look at the dryer.
My gambeson now has sleeves that need 5 cm to reach my wrists -- story of my life, really, this is the case for all store-bought longsleeves as well, but it's a bit sad when it happens to stuff I make myself!
I'm looking into buying a green gambeson instead of making a new one. - It's pretty hard to get into. The gambeson fits well enough and the chainmail doesn't have much ease to go around. I'm told this is a good thing and it certainly hangs nicer that way. However, I need at least one person to pull the chain over my head while I'm kneeling next to them to get into it.
- The chainmail, despite being aluminium, held up to the abuse pretty well. I know I unpicked a green ring that had opened up. As far as I can tell, I lost no more than ten rings, all at the bottom of the armscye. Considering the tight fit and it being aluminium that can bend and open easily, I'm very pleased!
- With all the belts and quiver straps criss-crossing my body, everything gets pulled weirdly. It looks like the outfit doesn't reach down as far as I thought it would, maybe because of all the belts. In any case, I still have some rings left, so I could lengthen it some more.
- For next year, I want to at least have a green kidney belt to go over the chain and perhaps even a leather torso armour as well. It will cover up most of the rings, but armour stacks nicely (extra hp) and it will keep everything tight and under control. No more bulging bits thanks to belts crossing.
When we marched to war in the Endslacht
For next year, there are plans for more outfits, different outfits, uniform coats, lots of leather and fur, a new leather armour for nightly missions and of course green leather stuff to match the chainmail.
Maybe... it'll be a new dressdiary.
Until then, I bid you all a good day. It's been a great event.
Image thanks to DocInge. Please do not redistribute.
Cross-posted to my journal.