From Twitter 10-23-2010

• 22:29:22: First time I made it to finals/earned a silver. Gonna sit& feel good about it for a day or so. And fight what seems to be a cold.
  
• 22:58:06: RT @briandgregory: A little inside news regarding turnout for the Stewart/Colbert rally. - Wow, DC is going to be a TOTAL... http://tumb ...
  
• 23:00:24: RT @librarianbyday: Ladies when you buy a pencil skirt and the kick slit is tacked closed you need to snip those threads before wearing it
  
• 23:15:09: RT @rebecca_ruiz: Why do boys and girls often behave in gender-specific ways? And don't say fetal testosterone! http://slate.me/aOVnmu
  

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season of pleat: the conclusion

Friday was my long anticipated trip to visit the Fortuny gown.

I was a bit nervous. Even though I've been behind the scenes at museums before and even used to volunteer years ago, this was my first self-scheduled trip to see a specific garment on my own. I decided to choke down the simultaneous "OMG it's the REAL THING" and "I'm not worthy" internal chatter and just get on with it.

The curator was courteous and informal, which took a lot of the edge off. She even went to the trouble of pulling other "inspired by" garments from the collection for me to look at.

The Fortuny itself was...well, it was the real thing. No one has done anything like those tiny pleats on such whisper-fine silk before or since, and though there are many imitators, there is only one master. To see it is a beautiful thing, to handle it was to fulfill a childhood dream.

I was extremely careful and under the curator's supervision I was able to turn it over and look at the inside in a limited way. Fortunately for me, there was enough wear that stitches and other construction details were easily visible. I was even allowed to take photos(!), which I didn't expect and was grateful for, though I didn't end up taking many. I wasn't sure I could completely prevent the flash from going off, and the "macro" setting wasn't fine enough to get what I really wanted: photos of those tiny hand stitches and worn fibers. Out of maybe 3, only 1 came out and it's not what I'd hoped for :/

The single best reason this went as well as it did was that I planned beforehand: I had a list of questions that came out of my reading so I'd have some direction, and I'd checked in advance into what kind of handling and instruments would and would not be allowed. I also set the appointment several months in advance so I'd have time to get all of the above together.

What I'd do differently next time is be more systematic with my measurement taking (with a chart, if necessary), bring some kind of graph paper for more accurate sketches, and use a better quality camera. Any photo buffs know how to get insanely detailed close up photos without a flash?