@Fredatron@wandering.shop
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Fredatron

@Fredatron@wandering.shop

Writer, crafter, costumier, patchworker, hermit. Historical textile obsessive. I enjoy bad robots, Yog-Sothoth, and all flavours of undead, and am very much older than 21. Content will include profanity. She/they.

I write queer-normative SFF/horror and other cross genre fiction, plus non-fiction too. Got a doctorate in History of Art and am learning German.

Profile pic is a quilt I made. Banner image is Byland Abbey in Yorkshire.

https://ko-fi.com/fredatron

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

Fredatron, to food
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This year for Lent I'm going to try to vastly reduce my sugar consumption. I'm not daft enough to think I can give up free sugars altogether, they're in far too many things, plus I'll rebel. But I want to get my consumption down to under the WHO recommended level.

Thoughts and prayers very much appreciated on this one, because this is gonna be hard.

Fredatron, to random
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380 words today and am very sleepy.

Had to reformat my USB drive before it could handle the current size of the Ubuntu drivers, and now Etcher won't open. Tis a day. Partner's laptop might need to wait until tomorrow.

(Still not looking for advice, just venting)

Fredatron,
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OK, I really hope I'm right on this... I think I can just use Startup Disc Creator. Which I already have, and have used many times before. Annoyed at the Ubuntu tutorial saying to use balenaEtcher, which doesn't work with the version of Ubuntu I have.

I'm not the only person to have this problem. Which is always a relief.

Fredatron,
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OK, that seems to have worked...

Fredatron,
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Fuckin wish it was easier to buy laptops without an OS installed. Windows can be a pain in the arse to get rid of.

Fredatron, to random
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The self-propelled rechargeable cat ball I bought for Barney just before his visit, but which he did not care for, is going down a storm with his main human's other cats. Bob and Chip both find it fascinating, especially with the feather attached. £5 well spent.

Fredatron,
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Bob just carried the ball onto the bed so it couldn't roll away 😂

Fredatron,
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And here he is, the adorable floof himself, Bob 💜

Fredatron, to random
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  1. Would you ever co-write a book? Why or why not?

Yep, done that. It was awesome fun, and with the right person I'd definitely do it again.

Fredatron, to random
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  1. Out of all your writing, what was the hardest scene for you to write? Why?

Many have been hard for various reasons.

I'm currently having a bastard of a time getting Plucky Protag and Sexy Bad Guy #3 to a Very Important party. I think it's because something else needs to happen in the meantime to make the emotional beats work properly. Good job this story has multiple POV characters and I can work on Innocenzo's disaster of a life in the meantime.

MsHearthWitch, to FiberArts
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friends, could you help me find a pattern?

The key features I like:

  • pleats across the bodice
  • empire waist (and the skirt gathers there)
  • square/lower neckline

Will need to fit a 58" bust

I saw it in an ad for a "Jane Austen dress" and it defo has those vibes. But not in my size :(

Tagging a few folks who are into sewing/costuming I can remember, sorry.
@sinituulia
@elfkin
@kamikat
@Fredatron

Fredatron,
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@MsHearthWitch

I'll keep an eye out. I've got a ton of vintage patterns on my desk at work (that we want to get rid of), and there might be something similar there - I'll send myself an email reminder to look next week.

They'll be in straight sizes, but a pattern like that won't be hell on earth to enlarge.

Also, Youtuber Stephanie Canada buys and sells patterns, and has plus size too. Might be worth seeing what she's got: https://www.etsy.com/people/backroomfinds

Fredatron,
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@MsHearthWitch That's an excellent policy XD

Fredatron,
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@MsHearthWitch I've had a look through everything on my desk and sadly there's nothing that would work. Sorry! I hope you've found a pattern that works for you already though.

Fredatron,
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@MsHearthWitch @elfkin that sounds really exciting!

Fredatron, to random
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  1. Is there a story you’d like to write but aren’t sure you can?

Sexy Bad Guy #1's redemption arc. He'll realise far too late that he has appalling taste in husbands, and there will be consequences. I really want to write this one, but there's a lot of other stuff I need to write first. My concern is time.

Fredatron, to random
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Finally got my act together, cleaned out my old Portal Bookshop work bag, and it's in the washing machine right now with a black Dylon pod. That bag was grubby as fuck, and no washing helped. It teaches me a valuable lesson about not buying white things.

The logo may or may not end up black, that's a risk I'm willing to take. My School of Historical Dress tote is falling apart (one of the straps shredded yesterday) so I need this bag for tomorrow.

Fredatron,
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Happily, the Portal bag already has really sturdy black straps and a black base, it's just the sides that are (grubby and inconsistent off-)white.

I'm planning to add a colourful lining with pockets, but that won't happen today. Got doggos to walk and cats to sit for, and wanna do some writing later.

But the bag will be usable without a lining for now.

Fredatron,
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Have put away the dry laundry, done the regular chores, vacuummed, and unfucked the books I got for free at work this week.

Colleagues were clearing out the old Learning store, and were giving away the books free to staff. I ended up with A Dictionary of English Costume (Cunningtons & Beard), A Dictionary of Dyes and Dyeing, some quilt books, and a reprint of Mrs Beeton's Book of Needlework. Plus a C17th cookbook. Excellent haul.

Fredatron,
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Picked up Vols 1 and 2 of Patterns of Fashion for a friend who's wanted them for a while, and took her all the books on lace, and took another friend a ton of social history stuff and a bit of costume history, because she reads at a pace most of us can only dream of, and there are never enough books.

My colleague who's doing this clearout is extremely happy.

(We already took everything we wanted for the curatorial library months ago).

Fredatron,
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So far, in A Dictionary of English Costume, I have learnt that, in the C16th, goose-turd was an acceptable colour name.

It's a yellowish green, which probably goes without saying.

Fredatron, to random
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  1. What convictions or values guide your characters’ decisions?

Leuca became a priest to be in a better position to a) help people, and b) spy on Team Bad Guys, and he became a spy to free his country from a hostile takeover by the undead. At his core, he wants to relieve suffering, and he sees it as both a structural and an individual issue. Once Team Bad Guys are dealt with, he has a vague notion that he'll take on the Church.

MsHearthWitch, to food
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Made yakinikudon last night for dinner. Lovely low spoon high reward meal.

Fredatron,
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@MsHearthWitch That looks thoroughly delicious.

Fredatron,
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@MsHearthWitch That sounds like a great plan. I'm adding this to my list of things to try.

Fredatron, to random
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Got drawn into clearing out my google cloud storage this morning, cause I've been meaning to do it for ages. Gdrive is now basically empty, gmail is vastly reduced, and photos are getting there.

I am not allowed multiples of the same view of the same cat doing the same thing. Likewise, videos of friendly cats I met once out walking.

Fredatron, to FiberArts
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And here's the final piece of seasonal sewing, a quilt to welcome our friends' new baby into the world.

The front took way longer than anticipated. Thank goodness bargello patchwork comes together so quickly. I really like the result though, and I'm tempted to try some other kinds of knotwork patterns in the future.

#patchwork #quilting #sewing

The back of the same quilt, which is worked in squares that form diagonal stripes of each colour. Its bound in white.

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