parttimeliontamer

My costuming was featured on CNN.com. Check out the link! (I'm Gretchen).

Just so you know, I'm kind of obsessed with rewriting and updating my profile so be sure to read it even if we've swapped before! (last update 4/17/14)

Life is very topsy-turvy. Some very good, some pretty bad. I haven't been swapping much because of it. Easing back in. We shall see....

I'm a fan of the arcane arts of sewing, millinery, knitting, crochet, handwriting, cursive.

I sew lots, mostly victorian clothing ala steampunk, make jewelry & hats, sometimes embroider and try not to cover my dining table with glue. I also knit and crochet but not as much as I used to when I lived in a colder climate.

I am the Editrix de Mode for the website Steampunk Chronicle. I write fashion articles and other related things. I take a broad view of what is steampunk (it's not all brown). Come and visit me there if you desire. My nom de plume is Wilhelmina Frame. You can also find me on Pinterest and at my blog Part Time Lion Tamer.

I collect salt and pepper shakers from the 40s-60s and made in Japan. I'm very particular about my collecting so if you don't know whether or not they fit that description it's best to get me something else (but if you do know oh I do love to expand the collection!) Photos of the collection in progress are below. It's a little larger right about now.

I love my black and white dachshund mix Uno, hot baths, an insert of foul language at the right time for the right zing. My husband is pretty awesome too.

I love international travel. In 2010 I went to India and it was fabulous. I visited the Taj Mahal which was a dream of mine ever since my Nana went there when I was small. My husband often goes abroad to Asia and Europe for business. Sometimes I am able to join him, When I don't get to go he often brings me wonderful things.

I'm not a chef and really not a baker either but I try the baking sometimes. My husband is a fabulous chef, really a gourmand.

Guess I'm kind of a hipster and back in the day a part-time goth. I'm all about easy wearing skirts and dresses these days. I'm also getting a bit into Lolita -- more classic and gothic. Lolita reminds me a lot of retro styles which is a lot of the appeal. It helps I'm friends with a couple of designers too.

I love stationary and the smell of the pages of a new book.

I consider myself very lucky. I try to remember what I have versus what I don't or what is lost -- even though that can be hard!

I would love to receive items that I can use in my sewing and hatmaking - thread, bias tape, piping, buttons, trim, fabric, feathers, E6000, liquid stitch, etc.

Did I mention BUTTONS? I've been using large and XL flat buttons to make rings so I can always use those in any color, especially black.

I've been having fun with rubber stamps. I prefer vintage or letterpress looking ones. I'm building up my stamp pad collection too.

I like vintage jewelry, accessories and hats. Also earrings. Lots of earrings! I'm a huge fan of the plus size fishnets from welovecolors.com. I've started wearing stockings again, knee and OTK socks. I really like crazy patterned ones - stripes, argyle, lace but they have to be very stretchy and without the threads in the inside as I have large calves. Groovy Hair clips, alice bands & fascinators are good too. My hair is in a shorter bob so giant barrettes made for thick hair won't work for me. I'm wearing wig falls in most of my costume photos so don't be mislead ;)

Knit or crochet patterns to make vintage style accessories would be fun. I'm good on yarn. I have way too much! Or if you would be willing to make me an amigururi stuffie that would super rad!

I really like soft t-shirts either really vintage or vintagesque with odd, kitschy stuff on them or older band shirts or older pop culture references. I also like t-shirts from places like Qwertee. Size ladies XL or XXL if it's slim fit or Mens M.

I really like the muppets too especially cookie monster, grover, animal and king prawn.

I like steampunk, squirrels (flying or otherwise), tigers, vintage, lions, mushrooms, stripes, dark colors, polar bears, bold colors, taxidermy, odd things, retro, foxes, stars, handbags, old fashioned, orange, victorian, modern art, risqué, Lolita, polka dots, goth, otters, thrift shop chic, dachshunds, low art, black & white, art nouveau, badgers, art deco, plaid, classic modern design, yetis, gnomes, kitschy foreign stuff, groovy, the union jack.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!SPECIFIC TO CHRISTMAS!!!!!!!!! I prefer victorian, old-world or 40-60s vintage christmas stuff / looking stuff. I love handmade ornaments like crocheted snowflakes or the ones made with pins and sequins that came in kits. I have a small collection of Gurley Christmas candles that were my grandparents and would love more if you could find them cheap. Generally I do not like religious items but specifically for Christmas angel or nativity items would be just fine. The Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer Christmas special is another favorite. I do not like anything "country christmas" and most plastic ornaments. I love unusual and kitchy shaped glass ornaments. We have things like ice cream cones, polar bears, beer keg, pickle, etc. The old glass beads are super awesome also.

Items that are mostly pastel, washed out florals, smell like cinnamon apples. You know those stinky candle stores you find in tourist towns? If it would be at home in that shop, I'd rather you rethought!

I generally don't like themed / character merchandise.

No Disney or religious items please.

No food of any kind. I've lost a good bit of weight and I'd like to keep it that way.

JG Ballard, William T Vollman, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Harry Potter, William Gibson, Black Dagger Brotherhood, Jasper Fforde, Anna Karenina, Shantaram, Hunger Games Trilogy, Guy Gaviel Kay, Empire of the Sun, Jane Austen, Dresden Files

Duran Duran, These New Puritans, Morphine, Belle & Sebastian, Stereolab, Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass, Gary Numan, Gang of Four, David Bowie, New Order, Adam Ant, Blockhead, Led Zeppelin, The Pixies, Arctic Monkeys, ABC, 60s Euro Soundtracks, Wire, Franz Ferdinand, British Sea Power, Wolfmother, The Smiths, dubstep, drum & bass, Air, Django Django, Matthew Dear, Beastie Boys, Rage Against the Machine, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and stuff like that.

Excalibur, Velvet Goldmine, Blazing Saddles, Young Frankenstein, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Crash (Cronenburg), My Neighbor Totoro, The Hunger, In the Mood for Love, The Killer, Last Year at Marienbad, This is Spinal Tap, Marie Antoinette, Bringing Up Baby, The Five Obstructions, Monty Python & The Holy Grail, Blade Runner, Victor/Victoria, art films, foreign films, costume movies, Sam Fuller, Star Wars, Hiroshima Mon Amour, French New Wave, Lars Von Trier, Fantasia, Moonrise Kingdom, Ghost in the Shell

Honestly, I don't watch that much TV and when I do I tend to watch an entire season at a time but here are some shows I like(d): Mad Men, Castle, Grimm, Torchwood, The Prisoner (original), Max Headroom, The Tudors, Iron Chef (original), Archer, Firefly, True Blood, The Muppet Show, Doctor Who, Miami Vice, The Colbert Report, Downton Abbey, Lost Girl, Game of Thrones, Ripper Street, True Detective

Sewing (especially costumes), Knitting, Crochet, Jewelrymaking, Embroidery, Card Making, Millinery.

Ivan Albright, Frida Kahlo, El Greco, Dali (later Works), Yves Tanguy, Gerhard Richter, Mark Ryden, Margritte, Hans Belmer, Egon Schiele, Whistler, Brancussi, Bernini, Botticelli, H. Bosch, Seurat. I'm sure I'm forgetting someone.

@meliamellon did a wonderful job angelling Zombie Survival Letter #2. Flaked on by @Char13s

Flaked on A Necklace for My Bloody Valentine by @dillandavillain angelled by @tiaragoth

Great angelling by @rainbowfrogs77 also!

And I finally cleared my old 1. Hooray!