Forward, Into the Past ~ Back to Halloween

Do y'all remember I had a "something new has been added" photo (copied here), referencing how I dressed to wander (a bit) and hand out candy (none) on Halloween?

The cleavage was something of a cheat.

I did my "minimal Meg" and wore a different Renaissance dress. I wanted to wear my new bodice.  I

also wanted to avoid damage to my expensive forms so I wore less expensive, more solid forms.  They are shaped chunks of silicone, which means the weight is right but they don't give like the filled forms do.  Still, that's what I felt I needed.

They also are only slightly concave in the back and they stick more firmly to my chest.  Mostly.  If my bra wants to shift they won't let it but I certainly can't go braless and expect them to stay in place.

I laced myself in the bodice as tightly as I could and then reached inside and pulled my skin (and forms) in to the center of my chest and up.  The bra moved with everything and the bodice held them in place.

Cleavage!  It's a perfect-storm kind of cleavage.  I couldn't do it without the bodice which isn't normal street wear, nor with my silicone-bag forms, nor with a different bra.

But wait until you see me at the next Renaissance Festival!

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Forward, Into the Past ~ Wardrobe and "The Ladies"

Welcome to 2015.  I have a kind of long post for all of you hung over readers, but I think it's worth it.

I would like to build a little Renfest wardrobe for future visits.  My problems with this are (a) the clothes take a lot of closet space for a once-a-year excursion, (b) they're expensive, (c) I'd only have an outfit or two and I don't want to keep wearing the same thing every year, and (d) did you see the prices?

The basic women's outfit is skirt, underskirt, chemise, and bodice (or corset).  Shoes or boots are required.

I probably have skirts I can use for a regular skirt and underskirt.

The typical chemise has a wide elastic (clearly not authentic) collar which can be pulled down to expose shoulders and cleavage.  They come in a wide variety of colours, but unless you buy a basic colour you'll limit your choice of skirt(s).  White is very popular.

Meg and Charity at the faire

I did not buy a chemise.

 The bodice is like a corset but not strapless ~ it laces front and back (usually), sides (sometimes), and on shoulders (top or front and back, again, optional).  It is boned, and it pushes up your breasts to display copious amounts of cleavage, if it's worn right.

The first shoppe where I looked at bodices they were $65 and $95.  I made a note of where it was and thought I might drop by on my way out.  I did not.

The next shoppe had bodices from about $90 to $130, depending on style and material.  So they were a bit pricier, but they were also reversible.  That meant, potentially, I'm adding two bodice choices to my wardrobe for minimal closet space and expense.  I liked that.

I found one I liked and we started talking to a salesgirl.

She gave no hint that I was anything other than I appeared, which was perfect.

She spoke about the virtue of one style which she showed her parents and her mother said "you have boobs!" (In what she was wearing she looked either very flat or very squished.)

That's not something a woman would talk about with a strange man ~ even one who she was trying to sell something to.  I think.

She suggested I try on a couple of different styles and I agreed.  Then she said what I thought was a deal-breaker:

"You'll have to go into the dressing area and take off your bra."

I was trying to figure out a diplomatic way to say "the boobs go with the bra" or, more likely, to decline because I'd rather enjoy the Faire than take off the dress and put it back on, when Charity asked "why?"  She said the wires in the bra are a problem and we assured her the bra had none.

We agreed on a style and she started adjusting the laces so I could try it on.  She wrapped it around me and loosened the back a bit so it would fit better and started lacing up the front.

Then she told me to cross my arms and put my right hand on my left boob and left hand on my right boob (under my dress) so I could support "the ladies" (her term).

I tried not to laugh as I did this.  I mean, this may or may not be something that women do and I didn't want it to seem like this was a completely new experience.  Also, holding on to the ladies while she was lacing meant I could keep them in place.

I pulled up "the ladies" as directed and she laced me in.  I asked Charity to get a picture of me in that awkward position but the saleslady said they had a deal with the photo place next door to not allow pictures.  It occurred to me later that I should have said "I'm going to buy one so it's a picture of me in my chemise" and I probably could have gotten that photo.

My dress, as you can see, is not at all revealing which saved some embarrassment since the forms stayed more-or-less in place and definitely hidden from view.

I tried on two in different styles and went through the same routine each time.

I picked a third in the same size to purchase.  She asked if I wanted her to lace me in so I could wear it for the rest of the day but I declined.  I was a bit worried about "the ladies" getting squished or, worse, broken.  The forms I normally wear out are basically bags of liquid and definitely breakable. Damage would have been weird, embarrassing, and expensive.

She still gave no indication that she knew the ladies were, in fact, adopted.

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I found a bunch of New Years cartoons. Unfortunately, most weren't even remotely funny. Ah well. Here's a couple of the best anyway.

Forward, Into the Past ~ Changes

I should have asked for a tour of Star's "costume closet."  She pulled out what turned out to be the standard RenFest girl costume: a white chemise (short/long/three-quarter sleeve, worn off-the-shoulder, very cool snake bracelet that coiled up her arm.

Note bracelet, fan, head piece, shoulders,
and copious boobage

a long skirt, and a lace-up bodice.  Charity was awarded a chain-mail headpiece that Star made for her (Star's) first wedding and a

A couple of under-details:  I had to switch to a strapless bra, something I had not worn before.  I suppose I could have kept my regular bra, since the straps would have been under the bodice (remember, the chemise was off-the-shoulders) but I think the strapless was a better idea, and something new to me.  I was also glad that the last thing I did before leaving the house was to touch up my shoulders and underarms with a quick shave.  I probably should have adjusted the position a bit as my forms were kinda crushed under the bodice and I lost most of my shape (such as it is), but if they were too high the bra would show.  Look at my picture to understand what I mean.

Also, I was able to jettison the cinch (because the bodice was tied pretty tightly) and the padded panty (it WAS unnecessary under those skirts).  Some discomfort was removed in favour of some other discomfort, I suppose.

I wasn't sure what shoes to wear.  In preparation for the faire, I had bought inexpensive flip-flop-type shoes but the bit between my big toe and the adjacent one was very uncomfortable, at least on my left foot.  I tried putting a band-aid over the toe-crotch.  I think that might have worked, but I had already irritated that spot and I had to drop that idea.  I wore Mary Janes, which felt odd: skirts and flats were a strange combination for me.  I brought my regular leather sandals that I wear when I'm wearing sandals in drab.  They're women's, but don't look very femme.  I do know they're pretty comfortable, and that's what I wore to the faire.  Considering we walked pretty much non-stop for seven or more hours, it was a good choice, and had a fine RenFest look.  And my pedicure got another airing.  The nails are kind of growing out now so this might be their last horrah.

The other part of the typical female costume was something I did not have and could not add: copious and obvious cleavage.  It was everywhere.

Note fan, shoulders, total lack of boobage

My skirt was one that came from a yard sale and it was definitely see-through.  Star said "no problem" and explained that underskirts were longer than skirts and made to show.  Noblewomen wore nice skirts as underskirts; other women used their worn skirts as underskirts.  She gave me a floor-length black skirt that looked pretty frayed on the bottom but looked great under my other skirt.  It was long enough that I had to quickly learn to gather up the skirts before ascending/descending steps.  And it was pretty crowded in the car driver seat, with me and all that fabric.

Star added belts under our bodices.  I had a pouch hanging from mine, which had my car fob so I could put my purse in the trunk and the car would still work.  We tied fans to the belts as well.  The fans came in handy, especially when watching the jousts.

Friday: We Arrive in the 17th Century.  Or so