LoudTwitter RIP

You've probably noticed that LoudTwitter has died and, as it was making a loss, is almost certainly not coming back. Interestingly this has actually been quite liberating as I've started using Twitter far more socially than I was before without worrying about all my replies making sense out of context or being potentially of interest to third parties - now I can assume that anyone who sees my replies is also following the person I'm replying to and so has context. So Twitter's become more fun, but isn't getting archived anywhere...

So this also means that I need to start keeping note of what I've been doing on my journal... and also that there's no difference between my DreamWidth and my LJ now, as at least before one included Twitter archives and the other didn't. I suppose I could do day to day updates on LJ and reserve DreamWidth for only articles on a particular subject? For the last month I was actually writing a paragraph of summary on every LJ LoudTwitter post that I already wasn't mirroring on DreamWidth...

Any opinions DreamWidth-only people, would you like to see a full mirror of LJ or would you like this to keep being only art posts and articles?

Crime And Punishment Ball Costume Day 1: Materials

As in 2006 and 2007, I'm making a costume for the BiCon Ball again this year.

The theme this year is Crime And Punishment and, as before, I have a (secret) idea involving me going as an appropriate inanimate object.

The construction of this year's costume is quite similar to 2006's IRN-BRU can, but a little more complicated. I can exclusively reveal that, as well as a top structure and bottom structure with fabric hanging between, this costume involves both foam and velcro!

This isn't actually technically day 1 as it's the third day in which I've been gathering costume materials, but it's the first day I've had all my materials together, so I'm declaring it the starting point! I haven't actually performed any construction today other than laying all the materials out and working out proportions, hopefully tomorrow will be the first day I actually put things together (depends on how I feel after going supermarket shopping and whether I go to the cinema).

I've really been appreciating how lucky I was in 2006 to find wide, long roman blinds in exactly the colours and size I needed in a £2 shop - meaning back then my fabric only cost me £4, went down to below my knees and all the way around my body with a generous amount left over for straps, tabs and test material. Cut to 2009 and I had to go to a market stall to buy fabric, where I found the cheapest lowest quality fabric was £3 a metre, not as long, not as heavy duty and not seamed at the bottom. Foam also cost £9.40 a sheet, so the costs of this costume have grown rapidly over my expectations! Oh well, hopefully it'll be worth it - I'm certainly going to do my best to justify the expense!

I also wasn't lucky enough to find something appropriate for my top and bottom structures at a pound shop this time, so one of my first construction tasks will be to make the top structure out of wood... now, I have dyspraxia and a few traumatic childhood memories involving woodwork classes! But I'm hopeful that all will go well, especially as I'm working with pretty lightweight model shop bought wood and I'll be working with glue rather than nails... So I'll post another update once I've screwed that up and glued myself to something! ;)