chocolatepot | (no subject)

The Tissots are SO COMFORTABLE. I did get a little rubbing on the back of my calf at the top of the boot, but I think that was mainly from driving - and that said, I was able to drive without wanting to pull over and take them off or anything. I'm definitely thinking of not bringing any other shoes with me to New York to save on what I have to carry on the E. So a big recommend from me.

They are still shedding polish on my hands, though. Why. Why.

The Boardwalk Empire finale was excellent. I kind of wish the show'd been under the threat of cancellation earlier - maybe it would have gotten sharper and clearer and more narratively satisfying over the past few seasons, instead of getting more and more bulky until this season pared it down. It could have used maybe one more episode for closure, but I guess this ending just solidified that it really is all about Nucky. I say this without judgment. Okay, maybe a little judgment because it's always been all about Margaret for me. Not that Margaret didn't get her moment. The implication that she's found her career and doesn't need to rely on men for protection anymore was great. It needed more for Gillian, though. I don't know, I like the idea of the show ending with the last day of her innocence, but at the same time it feels unfair to her character - it's all about Nucky. Nucky brushing her off in the institution, and Nucky lying that he'll take care of her.

I'm still a little spooked by the television scene. The period settings are so well done - and in this season, there's always been two exquisite, believable period settings in each episode - that I get sucked in, and seeing Nucky, who's always been an Edwardian in some respects, confronted with such a modern piece of technology by an eerie prophet was actually kind of frightening. Television has changed the world so much; this signals the end of an era. And I'm not quite sure what that era is (apart from, obviously, the pre-television era) but it's so alien to what came before. TBH, this has been a bit spoiled by the fact that 1924->1931 is a huge jump in terms of art, dress, and design so we already seemed to be in a slightly alien world.

I hope HBO follows up with another show that's as perfectly period but maybe slightly less graphic. I know all dramas have to be about a Man With Issues who gets worse and worse until he has to die, but HBO is HBO. They could change that if they wanted.

Put the hooks and bars in the dress lining. Tomorrow: snaps, the hem, and potential (probable) alterations.

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After a little research some possibilities regarding the dye problem.
Some dyes need to cure for a while, i.e. no touchy, weary or handly. Some dyes also require a sealer http://www.amazon.com/Super-Shene-Leather-Sealer-4-4/dp/B003RBG0XK Someone in one forum mentioned beeswax which I guess wuld have to be reapplied.

I love research. There are leatherworking forums out there, trust me.

I'm pretty sure it's not the dye - I followed all the instructions on it, it was supposed to sit for 4-5 hours and I left it overnight. When I went to polish them, I didn't really know what I was doing, and I suspect that I used way too much.

I'm old enough to remember, albeit dimly, the days when people polished their shoes on a routine basis. It seems to me the stuff always got everywhere. There might be a place, like that Victorian Gentlemens site where they explain the fine art of keeping one's shoes polished including useful hacks that I don't remember. There must be some. There are tricks to everything.