Solo Means to an End

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A city floating in the center of a lake, Ravok is a place of dark beauty, romance and culture. Behind it all though is the presence of Rhysol, God of Evil and Betrayal. The city is controlled by The Black Sun, a religious organization devoted to Rhysol. [Lore]

Means to an End

Postby Piraen Saneka on August 13th, 2014, 2:26 pm

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18th of Summer, 514 AV


Piraen kept his head down, and his eyes focused. He was hunched over his newest commission as he worked at a steady pace. Recently, he had realized that he needed to step up his game. If he wanted to own his own business, he would have to be able to sew together simple garments first. He couldn't resize and repair clothes for the rest of his life.

Now, he was completely committed to becoming an expert in sewing and fashion design. He had at least one major job coming up, with another one waiting in the wings. Both jobs would require more skill than he had. How could he make an entire reversible disguise when he could barely construct a shirt?

Today, he was working to change that. As soon as he could, Pi went to the market. He had bought 5 yards of fabric, and ran back to his apartment. Now, he was not going to leave again until he had used up all of the fabric. It didn't matter on what, he was just going to use it.

First on the docket was a small drawstring purse. Piraen had seen a woman at the market using one, and he figured it'd be a nice, simple place to start. Using his arm as a ruler, Pi made a small cut about a foot from the corner of the fabric. He then placed his elbow at the cut, then placed down his arm parallel to the selvage. He cut next to his arm to form a peninsula in the fabric, then quickly snipped it off.

The tailor lifted his square of fabric up to the window, and thought about what to do next. He knew he needed another piece of fabric to sew to this one, but he wondered whether it'd be best to cut it out now or not. If he cut out another square like this one, then he'd be able to lay the two squares of fabric on top of each other and cut them to be the same size. Pi frowned. Seems like a lot of fabric to waste. He looked at the sea of fabric in front of him. He did have fabric to waste . . .


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Last edited by Piraen Saneka on August 13th, 2014, 5:16 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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If a building isn't called a built even after it has been completed,
then a thought should be called a thinking even after it's been said.
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Piraen Saneka
Commit old sins in new ways.
 
Posts: 180
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Joined roleplay: July 18th, 2012, 1:31 am
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Means to an End

Postby Piraen Saneka on August 13th, 2014, 3:02 pm

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Piraen dropped the square onto the unused fabric. He used the square he'd just cut out as a guide, cutting out a near-identical square of fabric. He pushed the rest of the fabric out of his way, then placed the two squares in front of him. When they appeared to be as well aligned as they could be, Pi took up his measuring tape and pencil. He measured the fabric to be fourteen inches from one edge to the other.

"That'll be okay." Piraen nodded as he checked his calculations. Two inches for the seams and drawstring, the inside will be six inches tall. A coin purse, at least.
"Yeah, that'll be fine." He confirmed, then made a mark at seven inches. He repeated this with the other two sides to find the center of the fabric. Then, placing the end of the measuring tape on the center mark, the tailor measured out seven inches and marked that spot. He moved his tape, measured seven inches from the center, then marked again. After repeating this process eight or nine times, there was a circle of dots around the center of the fabric. Lightly, Pi connected all the dots to form a vague outline of a circle.

Taking up his scissors once more, Piraen cut out the circle. He moved slowly, making sure that the two squares of fabric stayed together as he cut.

"Oh, petch, that's right." Pi muttered to himself. He rose, crossed the small room, retrieved his extra fabric needles, then returned. He cursed himself for wasting his own time; using the needles to pin the fabric together would have saved him a few chimes, and a lot of worrying. He used six needles to pin the circles together. There was no real rhyme or reason behind the placement...they were just there to hold things together as he sewed.

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If a building isn't called a built even after it has been completed,
then a thought should be called a thinking even after it's been said.
User avatar
Piraen Saneka
Commit old sins in new ways.
 
Posts: 180
Words: 88697
Joined roleplay: July 18th, 2012, 1:31 am
Location: Ravok
Race: Kelvic
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Medals: 1
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Means to an End

Postby Piraen Saneka on August 13th, 2014, 3:50 pm

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Pi picked up his favorite needle, and some black thread. He wasn't sure if that particular needle had a specific use it was supposed to be used for, but Pi used it for everything. It was a thin needle that could slide through fine fabric without leaving to noticeable of a hole. At the same time, though, it could push through cotton, felt, and ramie. This needle was made of magic, no doubt. It was perfect.

Piraen licked the tip of the thread, then pulled the tip through his fingers to create a point that would easily slip through the needle. He raised the needle to the light of the window so that he could spot the hole in it. After a few ticks, he found the hole and managed to stab the thread through it. He pulled a few inches of thread through the needle, then double-knotted the end. Piraen then pulled thread off of the spool. When he was satisfied with the amount of thread he had unraveled, he snipped the thread away from the spool.

Ready to begin sewing, Piraen picked up the circles. He allowed a little less than half of an inch for his seam. Well, that's what he had planned to do. Pi had the tendency to allow the needle to stray while he was sewing, which made the last stitch farther from the edge than the first one. Fortunately, that didn't matter too much right now: he'd be flipping the circles inside-out when he was almost done sewing them together.

Folding his legs underneath him, Pi began to sew. One hand was beneath the fabric, keeping it steady, while the other guided the needle. His stitches were medium in length, which made them about as long as his pinky finger's nail was wide. Of course, some were longer and some were shorter. Most of the time, they were longer. This was just because Pi grew impatient sometimes and that made him stretch his stitches so that he could finish faster. He often had to remind himself that if he finished faster, that the end product would looked rushed. If the end product looked rushed, then the end pay wouldn't be very good.

Pi stopped sewing about two or three inches away from where he started. He couldn't sew all the way around, or else he wouldn't be able to reverse the fabric so that the right side was facing out. Taking his needle, he hooked the tip of the needle on the last stitch and slid it underneath it. Pulling the last of the thread through under the stitch, Pi then slid it under the stitch again. This created a loop, with the stitch being inside it. The tailor pushed the needle through the loop and pulled tight, which created a knot on the last stitch. This would make sure all the previous stitches stayed in place. He cut off the extra thread on both sides, and removed the pins.

"Not bad," Pi smiled, nodding in approval of his stitch. He hadn't puckered the fabric anywhere, or made the stitch zig-zag obnoxiously. Granted, the seam wobbled a bit and wasn't all that straight. Nevertheless, it didn't look too rushed. "Almost done now."

Piraen put the needle down, then pulled the fabric through the small opening on the edge. With the exception of the unsewn portion, the edge was nice and rounded. That, however, was quickly fixed. He rethreaded his needle, knotted the end, disconnected the thread from the spool, and began to sew once more. He threaded the two-inch hole shut, then knotted his last stitch.

Now, he had a lame looking pillow. All he had to do to turn it into a purse, though, was sew a pocket for the drawstring and loop the string through it.
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Last edited by Piraen Saneka on August 13th, 2014, 3:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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If a building isn't called a built even after it has been completed,
then a thought should be called a thinking even after it's been said.
User avatar
Piraen Saneka
Commit old sins in new ways.
 
Posts: 180
Words: 88697
Joined roleplay: July 18th, 2012, 1:31 am
Location: Ravok
Race: Kelvic
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Medals: 1
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Means to an End

Postby Piraen Saneka on August 13th, 2014, 3:54 pm

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Thankfully, sewing a pocket for the drawstring was just as easy as seaming. The only drawback was that this seam would be visible. Though he was sewing with black thread on black fabric, those who looked closely would be able to see mistakes that he made.

As insurance, he took his pins and measuring tape to the circle again. This time, he placed the pins exactly two inches from the edge. He needed more pins this time--he used eight--in order to be sure he was making the best possible seam. Happy with this guiding line of pins, he turned to threading his needle.

Once his needle was threaded and his thread was cut, he began to sew just on the inside of the guiding pins. He made his stitches small this time, making them about half the size that they were before. He wanted this to be a tight, good looking seam. Yes, it would take more time, but hopefully it would pay off.

After he passed a guiding pin, he took it out and placed it back in his kit. He didn't want to get stabbed by a stray pin while he was focusing on this tiny stitches. Half a bell later, Pi was almost done with half of the bag. At this point, though, his hands were beginning to cramp. He placed the bag down beside him, then shook out his hands.

"Almost there." In reality, the tailor had at least a bell of work left before he was "there." He preferred not to think about that, as it made him feel more tired than before. After cracking his knuckles, Pi returned to sewing.

Piraen remembered how soothing the task used to be for him. In between the parties and observation sessions, he used to just haphazardly stab at clothe. His tiny toddler fingers used to bleed after being pricked by his wild stitches, but he didn't mind. The motion was calming. The idea of creating something that was completely his own, that couldn't be replicated...it made him happy. Or, at the very least, it made him busy. For Pi, busy was good. Busy kept him sane.

After all the pins had been removed and all the stitches had been tighten, Pi knotted the thread onto the first stitch. He separated the remaining thread from the bag, then checked to make sure that the pocket was, in fact, a pocket. Puffy all around. He thought as he picked up his scissors.

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If a building isn't called a built even after it has been completed,
then a thought should be called a thinking even after it's been said.
User avatar
Piraen Saneka
Commit old sins in new ways.
 
Posts: 180
Words: 88697
Joined roleplay: July 18th, 2012, 1:31 am
Location: Ravok
Race: Kelvic
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Medals: 1
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Means to an End

Postby Piraen Saneka on August 13th, 2014, 5:05 pm

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Outside, the sun was setting. Though he vowed not to leave his apartment until the fabric was used, he did not vow to stay up until then. That would've been a promise he couldn't keep.

Piraen cut two holes in the pocket. They were a centimeter or two apart. Both were small slits that were roughly an inch tall. They were perpendicular to the edge and seam of the pocket, and would serve as the drawstring's holes. After folding the bag in half, Pi eyeballed a spot that was almost directly across from the first two holes. Then, he created two more holes there. Now, he had two pairs of slits that were opposite the circle from each other.

Taking his pencil and some simple, black string, Pi began to work on the drawstring. He tied the end of the string to the end of the pencil, then pushed it through on of the holes. Then, he bunched up the fabric on the pencil until the end of the pencil reached the other pair of slits. After pulling the pencil out of the hole, he then pushed it back through that same hole. Since the pencil wasn't big enough to bunch the whole pocket onto it, he sectioned it into two parts. He restarted bunching the fabric until he reached the slit that was next to the one he had started in. Now, the string looped all the way around the purse. Pi figured this would make the purse close tighter, thus making it much more suitable for a Ravokian's lifestyle.

After cutting the string, he tied the two ends together. The knot wasn't very pleasing to the eye, so he slid it into the pocket before starting with the other side. He retied the string to the pencil, then began the bunching process again, this time from the other two slits. Once the bunching business was done, he cut the string, made a sturdy knot, and hid the knot.

Piraen smiled victoriously as he pulled on the drawstrings. The purse closed smoothly, and was big enough to be used by someone. As the moon rose, Pi sighed. Sadly, making the bag was only half of the battle. Now, he'd have to find a buyer.

"I finished it, that's all that matters." He sighed, kicking everything off of his bed. He tossed the bag onto the table, then threw himself onto the bed. "I'm on my way." As he spun himself into a cocoon of blankets, he laughed. I might even have this in the bag.

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If a building isn't called a built even after it has been completed,
then a thought should be called a thinking even after it's been said.
User avatar
Piraen Saneka
Commit old sins in new ways.
 
Posts: 180
Words: 88697
Joined roleplay: July 18th, 2012, 1:31 am
Location: Ravok
Race: Kelvic
Character sheet
Storyteller secrets
Scrapbook
Journal
Plotnotes
Medals: 1
Artist (1)

Means to an End

Postby Nemesis on August 30th, 2014, 7:11 pm

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Piraen Saneka


Knowledge :

Skills

Skill XP
Mathematics +3
Observation +3
Planning +1
Sewing +4


Lores

    *Sewing: Using Pins

Micellaneous :

Injuries
    *None

Loot/Expenses
    *+1 bag
    *-1gm, 5sm for cloth



____________________________________________


Notes

    *This was a good thread, pleasure to read, and is hope you like the award to reflect your efforts :)
    *I wasn't sure what fabric you bought so I've gone with fine wool - lemme know if you want otherwise ^.^

Feel free to PM me with questions, comments, or concerns, if you have any.
Also, remember to either delete your grade request or edit it as 'graded'.
Thank ye!
Nemesis
Fortune and Retribution
 
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