Nanowrimo 2021 Day One (Rough Draft)
This is the first day of Nanowrimo 2021and I'm struggling with an epic case of insomnia.
This is the third time I've gotten out of bed and it is only 5:30 AM.
Since I'm suddenly quite obsessed with Fairy Grunge Ivr decided that will be the topic of my first essay.
How aesthetics gained momentum because of Tumblr and tick tock and show and tell culture.
My wardrobe class in the 80's covered various fashion looks such as Futuristic, the Frontier look and the Romantic and the Prairie look. That was the roots of Boho and Cottage Core.
I started collecting books that showed different aesthetics way back when. One look was called 'Artie/Offbeat' which was where I felt comfortable.
But it wasn't until social media platforms took off that the world turned into a giant show and tell stage.
This was further given momentum by the lockdown situation where getting all dressed up with nowhere to go became a huge thing.
So it was while studying the whole aesthetic thing on YouTube that I came across Fairy Grunge. It made inroads to my brain. Being Pagan I had seen this look before but I didn't realize it had a name and was a thing.
I confess I haven't bought many clothes since I became a caregiver two and a half years ago. I had planned to sew all my clothes. But taking care of an invalid leaves precious little time. But i put off sewing or buying clothing for so long that I was in danger of becoming a streaker.
I am an avid thrifter but finding clothing I like in my size is nearly impossible.
Then a crazy thing happened yesterday. It was Halloween. I was at Dollar Tree trying to piece together a fairy grunge look for the day. Specifically I was looking for make-up and an Autumn leave garland to make a hair circlet and some fishnet gloves. But not only had they gotten rid of all their Halloween stuff (which I expected), they also got rid of all their Autumn and Thanksgiving decorations.
I tried on the sweater in front of one of the aisle mirrors and it looked terrible on me. But then the light bulb had gone on inside my head. I went and found the section that carried my size and looked specifically for things I could modify for fairy grunge core. It is rare these days in California to find a sweater or a top for less than $20 and everything I bought was between $10 and $15. I called home first to make sure the budget could handle it and he said go for it so I did. The only thing they didn't have was skirts but I was going to order those from Holy Clothing anyway. That was before I went to their sight on line last night and found their prices had doubled or tripled. I couldn't make the leap from paying $15 for a sweater to $100 for a skirt. But that's a problem for another day.
The other problem is I'm no longer 22 with a 22" waist. So I will have to modify the look to fit into my life and most likely won't be making cute little fashion tiktoks and open myself up to being slammed for being told I'm too old and/or too fat. My goal is living my best life, not getting the approval of others.
So I got a duster in moss green, a Halloween print hoodie which feels as soft as a kitten, a to and bottom set printed with stars, _____,_____,
I'll try to add photos of some of the clothes in a bit.
But right in the middle of shopping I needed a restroom and theirs was closed too the public.
The line was short so I paid for everything in my cart and raced next door to find a restroom.
Well, next door happened to be Ross and the restroom was at the back of the store, which meant I had to walk by the clothing racks. I spotted a gold sweater and I do need a sweater so I made a note to come back for it.
Some of the symbolism of Fairy Grunge are nature themes like mushrooms, butterflies, leaves, and insects. Also celestial themes like the moon and stars. I managed to get a jogging set with stars and a top with butterflies. When I find the green sweatshirt from last year I plan to paint wings on the back.
I'm interested in the DIY element so I need to keep an eye out for chains and safety pins and metal components. I'm sure I can get a messenger bag at the thrift store.
And I just bought a ton of scarves at a huge rummage sale. I can't wait to style all these outfits.
After I went a bought most of my fall and winter wardrobe at Ross I went back to the Dollar tree for inexpensive make-up.
I recently crocheted a mushroom hat too.
I think I'm so attracted to this aesthetic because my happy place to live is where the forest meets the ocean or a river, but I live in the desert so I feel starved for all things cool, green and shady.
Disclaimer that this is all my own opinion. You do you. If I was young and had a tiny waist I'd be all about the corsets and tiered mini skirts. If you can pull that off that's fantastic. I'll cheer you on.
The other thing I like about Fairy Grunge is it embraces knitting, crocheting, tatting, and weaving. And I love to do all those things. I can make shawls and headbands and ear muffs and leg warmers and socks and sweaters and vests and fingerless gloves and mittens. All the yumminess. Of course I live in a desert with summer temps of 105F so I can only do the layered look in autumn and winter which greatly annoys me.
I’ve posted below on Tumblr the clothing I bought yesterday so you can see the types of fabric I’m dealing with here. I’ll post better photos once I style some outfits. For right now, I had to take some quick photos before the cats got any ideas. As it was, my chicken ran out in the street while I was trying to do the photos. I lured her back by tossing a handful of peanuts at her but then I had to go shut the gate before she got anymore feather brained ideas.
While gather laundry I also found a leopard print top with maroon sleeves that I thrifted a while back but haven’t worn yet because it is still too warm. I’ve never seen animal prints mentioned in the fairy grunge aesthetic but animals live in nature so why not? I’ll have to think on that some more.
Everything I got for this project surprisingly also makes a decent capsule wardrobe. So now I can start doing the outfit of the day thing.
I ended up going back to Holy Clothing and ordering the two skirts I wanted. After I'd paid a pop up came up and said if I kept shopping for the next 2 hours I could get 15% off. So I got the dress I wanted after all and saw some other styles I didn't see the night before and picked out another one that was more affordable. Usually their shipping is five days but everything is mucked up right now so shipping is four to five weeks. So it's a good thing I bought clothes yesterday.
So all I need now is some pants to keep me warm in the winter and some leggings to wear under the dresses and skirts. Anything else I could want I can sew myself from my fabric and pattern stash. I'm very satisfied.
I'd like to have a pinafore (jumper). Remember in the USA a jumper is a sleeveless dress that you wear over another dress. A jumper in Europe is a sweater. Confusing I know. I'd also like a pinafore with pockets to keep things like scissors and tools in.
And I still want to make something out of corduroy and a frock coat. But I've had that goal for over a decade and I don't have a sewing area set up right now.
I just remembered that I made this very cool fairy mushroom ring for the fair one year. It is still sitting in my art gallery. As I trace over the years I've begun to realize that this mushroom goblin gremlin fairy thing runs deep in my veins. Even more surprising because I've never played Dungeons and Dragons. I was in the S CA though and worked at Renaissance Faires so it's no wonder that it influenced me. I feel like I've barely begun to explore things I can knit and crochet for this aesthetic. I crocheted some butterflies recently and can't wait to put them on headbands. But right now I need to take a break and eat some dinner. I skipped lunch somehow. I really need to start taking snacks with me if I'm going to be out and about drawing and writing.
I’m home again. I spent most of my library time watching even more Fairy Grunge videos. I have so many more ideas bouncing around in my head, like crocheting mushrooms to hook earrings to for safe keeping. I’m just about to make a whole bunch of earrings. I just have to find some free time (whatever that is).
If you are reading this in it’s rough draft stages and know anything about Nanowrimo, you’ll know that November is the time for writing. It’s a sprint so there isn’t time to edit too. I am trying to keep the typos to a minimum but as far as rearranging paragraphs and things that will have to wait either until I’ve written 50000 words or November runs out of days.
I’m in the middle of knitting two striped scarves and neither of them are in the right colors for Fairy Grunge. Alas. I don’t want to start anything new until I finish some things. I have a sweater that needs a lot of work. It’s my local mountains and highway, so even though I wasn’t making it with Fairy Grunge in mind, I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. But I’m a long way around and I’m going to need a bazillion stitches to finish it. Well, anyway, goals. Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither is my wardrobe.
I need to put my nose piercing back in after a long absence because it’s the only interesting piercing I have for this aesthetic. My ears are pierced still I think but that’s kind of ho-hum.
I also want to grow some real life mushrooms from mushroom kits. This thing has so many spin off projects for gardening, adventuring and home dec. I can’t wait to get more done, if the real world would stop raining on my parade.
If I make my 2000 word goal today and I’m still able to focus my eyes maybe I can get some knitting or crochet done. I have a feeling I’m going to have to choose Nanowrimo over fiber arts. There are only so many hours in a day and some of it has to be spent eating, sleeping, exercising and taking care of my boyfriend. So until I know how to clone myself, I’ll have to burn the candle at both ends. I’m horribly sleep deprived even without Nanowrimo. I hope I can find some buddies because I really need some moral support to keep going. Right now I have the adrenaline rush of beginning a new projects, but check me out in 2 weeks when the initial enthusiasm has petered out.
You may comment below if you like. I’d be surprised if anyone made it this far.
