Solo Evening of Peace

[Naiya]

2nd Day of Spring, 516 AV
Late Evening
Dawnwhisper Pavilion

The light of the lantern bathed the pavilion in a gentle glow, with the events of the day mostly complete, Naiya had taken to getting ready for the season to come. Spring should be mild, but she was sure that soon enough they would need cooler clothing, and what she had was growing old. Her breeches were showing sign of wear, and already the seams of the seat of her tunic were coming loose from being pulled beneath her butt when she rode. It was silly, she decided, and she was going to have none of it in the hot seasons. It really just made more sense, if she put away the pants until the seasons grew cold, she could wear them through twice as many winters.

Gathering her materials was easy enough, leather for the belts, and linen for the rest. It was all in her stores, the cloth she had been putting together for just such projects. She cut a strip short ways across the antelope leather, checking the length against the circle of her hips. Satisfied, she cut a second one, sure that it would fit around her sister's hips despite her pregnancy.

The belt had plenty of extra room, so she could tighten it or loosen it as needed, so rather than sewing the material together at the edge, she tied it to the approximate size.

She plucked at the knot, tying and untying it a few times before deciding the material could stand the repeated strain. She measured a length of linen next, once more checking the width against her own hips.

Leather was easy, she ran the edges of the material near the lantern flame, sealing them with the heat to keep it from unraveling. That made the belt done, except perhaps some decoration later.

Still, one of the bands was for Seirei, perhaps an indication was warranted. She shuffled through her kit until she found a thick gauge needle and a string the color of Seirei's eyes, running a double floss of it through her needle she marked a line of thread through the middle of the belt, from one end to the other. Her hand pressed strongly to get the needle through the thick material.

Once she had tied off the thread she glanced at the work. The dark blue was subtle against the black, but prominent enough to distinguish hers from Naiya's. It would be just right.

[Naiya]

She laid the linen on the ground, marking the measure with chalk where her fingers fell. She folded the fabric over, making a line of cloth to trace. Chalk dotted along the line, making a path to cut with her scissors because she knew this cut would be more important.

Her hand was unsteady, she had to be careful, placing the chalk down with care at each point so that it did not fall outside of her path. Once she was finished she cut the fabric away, following the lines she had made carefully. The black linen would sit nicely, but she would have to sew the edges to keep it from wearing away too quickly.

She placed that aside, picking up the belt and arranging it in a circle on the floor and tying the knot again. She draped the black cloth over it, leaving plenty in the center. It was too long for working, she discovered as she picked it up, but it would work if she cut it in half.

She took the measure, double checking her thoughts by pulling most of the length of the cloth through to the back and re checking the front. That seemed better, a proper length that wouldn't get tangled while riding.

She removed the cloth from the belt, folding it double and cutting along the seam. When she was finished the cloth had three raw edges, but it was simple enough to fix that.

First, she checked the length again, finding it to be much more appropriate this time, she grinned. For a moment she considered that Seirei might not be comfortable in clothing like this, it wasn't her usual garb, but perhaps she would find she liked it. If not, Naiya could always keep it for herself.

She searched for black thread in her sewing kit, pulling the thread free she set the rest of the kit close beside her. First she needed to measure the length of thread she would need, which she did by doubling the length of all the edges she needed to cover. Then she cut the thread, sticking the loose end of the spool into the wedge in the top to keep it from unwinding.

[Naiya]

Naiya picked out a thin needle, stringing it with a practiced hand she dropped the needle to find the middle of the thread and tied off the two ends of string into a single knot. Knowing now that the thread wouldn't pull through her work, she began at the corner of the uncut edge, following it down away from the intact edge to trace the edges she had cut. Her needle moved much more quickly this time, the linen was thin and easy to get through, her stitches were simple as well, little loops around the cut edge, binding the fibers together with the threads.

It was work that let her move quickly with little attention, the most difficult part was keeping the loops close together, and remembering to count the stitches so that she could go back over every fourth stitch with a back stitch. That was important, it kept the thread from pulling too tight and crinkling the edge of the cloth. The pattern was easy, four forward, one back, it meant she had to take a bit more time, but it didn't hurt to be careful, and it would keep the entire edge from unraveling if a stitch were to catch on something and break.

She finished the first side, coming to the corner. She tied off the string, cutting it and starting a new line of stitches.This would save her time if she decided to change the edge or if the stitches tore. She would start a new thread at each corner, simply because it was a more complicated spot, and she had to line her stitches carefully, making sure the corner didn't bend or wrinkle. She slowed down for that, getting as precise as possible as she worked over the tip. once she had made it past the hurdle there, it was quick work again, only slowing once more for the second corner.

She finished the first cloth quickly, setting it beside her as she imagined what sort of design or patterns Seirei might like on it. Would she want it embroidered? Or perhaps she would decide she liked the appearance of tassels instead. She frowned at the cloth, but in the end decided it would be best just to wait and ask the woman the next morning.

[Naiya]

Her own cloth was easier, she knew what she wanted, and that was a simple border like Seirei's with a line of copper knot work around the edge. She had to dig to find the copper toned thread, the same one that had made the satalu for her herd, measuring a length of thread against the sides of the cloth.

She measured a second time, a double floss through her needle made the color more apparent along the edge. She threaded the floss through together, letting the needle fall towards the earth as it sought the middle of the two threads. The four ends tied together into a single knot, although she had to do it twice as one of the threads slipped free the first time.

She followed the same procedure as before, scooping the edge of the cloth up in small wraps of thread, holding the fibers together, and, this time, creating a decorative border around the hem. She worked quickly, her motion small, fast, and well practiced. The copper toned thread quickly ensnared the cloth, beginning a new line of stitches from the corner she continued to work, the light outside quickly fading to nothing. Still, the lantern gave her light to see by, she opened it further to make it easier, moving her self and her project closer. Between the fire and the lantern she could see easily enough, and so she continued.

The second side, opposite the uncut edge of the fabric, was short, and although her hands grew tired, she managed to make it to the second corner before she had to take a break. She put her work aside, slipping the needle through the cloth so that she wouldn't lose it.

She spread her fingers wide, opening and closing her hands into fists to stretch weary muscles. When her hands loosened, she shifted to other muscles, reaching her arms above her head and leaning side to side to stretch her back, stomach, and shoulders. She let her arms sink slowly to the side, pausing at her shoulders to reach back away from her chest, adding new feelings of vigor in her chest and upper back. She rolled her head in a circle, loosening her neck, then turned her hips and legs, loosening them as well. Finally she lay both her legs together in front of her, reaching arms up over her head and lowering her entire body down over her legs, getting as close to touching her toes as she could. Her flexibility wasn't as good as it used to be, she noticed, vowing to make sure to get back into good practice of stretching and exercising her muscles away from her weapons.

[Naiya]

Feeling refreshed, Naiya went back to work. She worked carefully around the corner, making sure that even her back stitch fell appropriately so it didn't mangle the corner of the cloth, then she was sewing quickly again, wrapping the cut edge in colored floss. She didn't have to take long, the final edge was simple work and she wanted to see what she could get done on the embroidery before she went to bed.

She tied off the thread, finding that she had only just enough, if she had cut the thread any further from the cloth, or made a single snag in her thread, she would have had to start over to finish the row. She was grateful that that wasn't the case. She had new plans, the knot work that she wanted to add was going to be thin, simple. She wanted it to be barely there, perhaps a double floss in a straight stitch rather than a filler stitch. That would give the shape and depth she wanted, but without appearing too intricate or obvious. She threaded her needle again, cutting a generous amount of thread, but really the length she would need was just a guess. She wasn't good enough yet to measure thread for embroidery patterns.

She began on the top left, working the outer bar of the knots, weaving a familiar pattern that made up the shape of their satalu. That was one she had made and shaped so many times she hardly had to think about it. She made the soft curves, the spaces between shapes large in comparison to the space between stitches. This was slower work, however, and there was a lot of edge to cover, maintaining her space away from the edge but out of the middle. It was careful work, and she only got three quarters of the way done before she was too tired.

She set the sewing aside, putting the sewing kit away and folding the unfinished cloth on top of it. She would finish it the next morning, the food from their celebration today would allow her to wait and check her traps later in the day. Then she could ask Seirei what she wanted and finish up the work before making a trip into the market.

She stretched herself out again, raising her hands above her head as she stood, feeling the pull through her entire body, then bending from the hip to put her hands on the ground, or as close as she could manage. She felt a tightness in her hips release, and a tight pull through the back of her legs and lower back. She sighed, letting herself hang for a chime before raising herself back up, reaching up to the roof before bending backward, letting her hands lead her body into a stretch in the opposite direction.

A yawn stretched her lips, and with a reluctance that had everything to do with missing her husband beside her in bed, she unpacked her bedroll and blankets, undressing silently before climbing carefully into bed.

[Jasmine Stormblood]

Message me if i missed anything girlie

 

Naiya Dawnwhisper

XP

• Acrobatics: 2XP
• Logic: 4 XP
• Sewing: 5 XP
• Planning: 3 XP
• Drawing: 1 XP

Lores

• Sewing: a needle doesn't enter leather easily
• Sewing: linen is easier to sew
• Acrobatics: stretching after sitting for a long time