Just Keep Sewing
Asara was so excited. It was Arts & Crafts Day at the Carnival! She loved the arts. When it came to the arts, music was best. She loved the piano. But crafts were always fun. It was one the very few activities where the adults were happier the messier she got.
She'd even dressed up for it. She was in an large brown shirt with stains from grass, mud and paint, and her very oldest still fitting jeans. All put together by her Ma. Apparently wanting her to go get messy wasn't the same as liking the laundry the came with it.
Her first stop was the sewing tent. She saw the list of things she could make and the scrunchies made her decision. Her favourite accessory being there had to be a sign of good fortune. If it turned out alright she might even wear it to her sorting.
Asara walked into the tent, carefully looking at all the things the girl running it had made. The dresses were pretty enough. She didn't much like wearing dresses but she didn't mind the look of them. She loved the cross-stitched bunnies! They were adorable.
Done looking at them, she wandered over to the scrap table with the scrunchie instructions. There were mugs filled with elastic bands, safety pins and other bits and bobs along the sides of the table. In the centre were fabrics of all sorts folded and piled up on top of each other, just a little messy from other people rifling through them. There were soft ones and rougher ones, plain colours, sparkles and patterns. There were so many to choose from.
Which colour? Which colour?
Or maybe which colours?
One of the patterns let her choose two to piece together. Asara thought it over, thinking that way it'd look even cuter when it was twisted around her hair. Or she could use it as a double-sided bracelet. She'd pick nice soft fabrics for it.
Blue, green and yellow were her favourite colours and pretty patterns were the best. Asara dug through the little squares and pulled out a soft plaid fabric. There were blues and greens criss-crossing into pretty gradients. That was her first one for sure! Since she already had two of her favourite colours, Asara decided the next one would definitely be yellow. She pulled out the matching fabrics, both the yellow ones and the ones with yellow pictures, tidying her mess as she went. After sorting through them there were 3 she really liked.
And heads won! Her scrunchy would have one side with a green and blue plaid and one side with denim and cute, grinning, sunglass wearing suns. Asara pulled together her haul and raced over to the girl, stumbling a bit she she saw her chatting with someone. She wavered for a moment, debating on going forward or sitting by a girl who looked to be making her own scrunchie, when the person she was talking to left.
That decided it. She ran over, hoping to ask for her help before someone else got there first. Well, she could always listen in or wait her turn if she did caught up. But off she went, you never know.
She'd even dressed up for it. She was in an large brown shirt with stains from grass, mud and paint, and her very oldest still fitting jeans. All put together by her Ma. Apparently wanting her to go get messy wasn't the same as liking the laundry the came with it.
Her first stop was the sewing tent. She saw the list of things she could make and the scrunchies made her decision. Her favourite accessory being there had to be a sign of good fortune. If it turned out alright she might even wear it to her sorting.
Asara walked into the tent, carefully looking at all the things the girl running it had made. The dresses were pretty enough. She didn't much like wearing dresses but she didn't mind the look of them. She loved the cross-stitched bunnies! They were adorable.
Done looking at them, she wandered over to the scrap table with the scrunchie instructions. There were mugs filled with elastic bands, safety pins and other bits and bobs along the sides of the table. In the centre were fabrics of all sorts folded and piled up on top of each other, just a little messy from other people rifling through them. There were soft ones and rougher ones, plain colours, sparkles and patterns. There were so many to choose from.
Which colour? Which colour?
Or maybe which colours?
One of the patterns let her choose two to piece together. Asara thought it over, thinking that way it'd look even cuter when it was twisted around her hair. Or she could use it as a double-sided bracelet. She'd pick nice soft fabrics for it.
Blue, green and yellow were her favourite colours and pretty patterns were the best. Asara dug through the little squares and pulled out a soft plaid fabric. There were blues and greens criss-crossing into pretty gradients. That was her first one for sure! Since she already had two of her favourite colours, Asara decided the next one would definitely be yellow. She pulled out the matching fabrics, both the yellow ones and the ones with yellow pictures, tidying her mess as she went. After sorting through them there were 3 she really liked.
- A pale, faded fake denim print with little smiling suns wearing sunglasses on it,
- A fuzzy brown fabric with yellow tufts that she couldn't tell the make of but was very nice to touch, almost like a teddy bear, and
- A neon yellow fabric that looked like it had been died with highlighter ink, covered in shiny stars that looked almost like stickers.
And heads won! Her scrunchy would have one side with a green and blue plaid and one side with denim and cute, grinning, sunglass wearing suns. Asara pulled together her haul and raced over to the girl, stumbling a bit she she saw her chatting with someone. She wavered for a moment, debating on going forward or sitting by a girl who looked to be making her own scrunchie, when the person she was talking to left.
That decided it. She ran over, hoping to ask for her help before someone else got there first. Well, she could always listen in or wait her turn if she did caught up. But off she went, you never know.
HP = 700 | MP = 50% || Sta = 7 | Eva = 5 | Str = 6 | Wis = 7 | Arc = 5 | Acc = 5
Just Keep Sewing
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speech • #427c9a
thoughts • italics
others • #ffffff
london quidditch stadium (summer camp) • location
arts & booths expo • threadOphelia wandered around some more. It turned out that getting lost in the carnival-like setup of booths and tents was quite easy, easier than the Ravenclaw had accounted for. She'd made stops at a few booths already, and she was quite excited for this next one that she'd chosen.
Sewing. Ophelia had learned to sew with her mother at a young age. Mother and daughter had sat together on rainy days, pulling together scraps of old fabric and thread and putting them together to create something beautiful. For Cecelia Northwell, it had just been a hobby that had been passed down from her own mother, something to spend the time. But for little obsessive Ophelia, it had quickly become something for her to excel in. What her mother had taught her, she'd taken a step further, designing elaborate things and making them by hand with some help from her mother. As she grew older, her mother busier, Ophelia began taking matters into her own hands, creating these pieces herself.
Mostly, nowadays as she'd grown so busy, Ophelia just altered the clothing that she stole from her mother's collection to her size. But every once in a while, her hands would itch to create something amazing like she used to. It had happened this summer, resulting in the derby hat that she'd been so proud of for summer camp this year.
Ophelia entered the tent with curiosity. She hadn't met many other students at Hogwarts-- or in the international schools-- that liked to sew like she did. Maybe that was due to the uniqueness of the hobby, or maybe it was because most people never made things for themselves anymore, they just bought it all.
The Ravenclaw was not disappointed with what she saw. There were displays of stitching patterns and stations were students could try out some cross stitching for themselves. But what interested Ophelia the most, other than the fact that there were quite a few people in the tent, were the designs that were on display. Handmade pieces, most likely. She examined them closely, appreciating the design and effort that had been put into them.
Ophelia caught the runner of the booth's eye. Her name was Maisie, if Ophelia remembered correctly. Should Maisie notice her, she could smile and wave. Mouth a quick, these are so cool. Otherwise, Ophelia would exit the scene. Too many people in one place for her taste.
interactions • @Maisie Gemmell
mentions • @
stats • sta 9 | eva 9 | str 7 | wis 9 | arc 6 | acc 9
xxx • outfit
perfectionist, paragon of health, keen eye • abilitiesophelia leaves the thread☽ •----------------------------------------• ☾
☽ Ophelia Lynn Northwell | i have a whole universe in my mind | Aurélie Nathalie Duval ☾
Just Keep Sewing
"Probably gonna head back to the tent and see if I can get Mylo to do something fun," Avis said as she left.
"Ha," Maisie laughed as she replied, "I'll help you later." The struggle to help Mylo have fun was a constant and persistent one, but noble all the same. She gladly would help Avis in this if it hadn't been for the flood of people who arrived at the booth. Honestly, Maisie wasn't expecting it. At home, her mother took on one client at a time, maybe two if they needed the money. The rush of a marketplace was a new and confounding problem, but she'd rather this than it be empty.
In addition to the two youngsters Avis had abandoned left her with, the first visitor she recognized: Ruth, the silent Hufflepuff. Though, she'd heard through the rumor mill that Fairchild had made a fair flyer, something Maisie had to admit she was a bit jealous of. When she had a moment, she sauntered over to her. "Hey, thanks for stopping by. Scrunchie? That's a great color for you. Let me know if you need help, ok?" she addressed her, wanting to stop and chat more, but the flood kept going.
A ginger girl raced over to her with a wave. She looked eager and excited, which was good. All these new faces meant the shop was actually interesting to regular people, not just her friends, and she took some pride in that. " Hi. Welcome. How can I help you?" she asked as she admired the fabrics the girl had pulled.
Last but never least, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a girl she knew from the Quidditch pitch. Maisie had gone to enough games cheering on Avis to be able to identify members of the team. Ophelia she was pretty sure, and a recent prefect too if she recalled correctly. The older girl seemed to understand running a busy booth was not easy and mouthed a compliment in her direction. "Thanks," she said softly as she waved back. Maybe one day she'd get to see more of Ophelia.
But for now, there was only one thing to do: just keep sewing.
@Avis Greymond, @Ruth Fairchild, @Asara Fayre & @Ophelia Northwell
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Just Keep Sewing
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Booth: Just Keep Sewing: Sewing,
Cross-Stitch and Crafting| -
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Seraphina was truly amazed to learn that the older girl and her mother had sewn all the dresses themselves. Her fingers brushed the fabric once more before her attention was drawn to the little stack of cross-stitch patterns she was offered. After looking them over carefully, she chose the one shaped like a cupcake, it felt cheerful and just challenging enough.
She picked up a wooden ring that the girl explained was called an embroidery hoop. Following the instructions, Seraphina placed a square of fabric over the inner ring and pressed the outer ring around it, tightening the small screw at the top until the fabric was stretched smooth and taut. This process almost reminded her of preparing parchment on a desk, no wrinkles allowed, or the stitches wouldn’t sit right.
Next came the threads. Seraphina leaned over the box of colors, enchanted by how neatly the skeins were arranged. Her gaze lingered on a vivid dark cherry-red thread, her favorite shade, warm and bold. She chose it for the cupcake wrapper, carefully threading her needle and tying a small knot at the end. The fabric itself was unusual: it had a tiny, grid-like weave, each square giving her a place to bring the needle up and down. She realized that this was what kept the stitches even.
She began with the bottom of the cupcake. The first few stitches were awkward, her thread kept pulling too tightly in one moment and too loosely in the next. She knew that the Xs should be neat and even. Seraphina frowned, concentrating hard. Anything less than perfect was unacceptable. Slowly, steadily, she adjusted her hands until the pattern of tiny red Xs looked uniform.
Once the wrapper was finished, she moved on to the cake itself. For this, she chose a thread as dark and rich as chocolate. By now her fingers were steadier, and the rhythm of making each cross came more naturally. The process was calming, up through one hole, down through the diagonal, and repeat. It was like building the picture one square at a time.
For the final part, the creamy frosting, she chose a warm parchment-colored thread. The shade reminded her of old letters in her family’s library, soft and comforting. The frosting grew stitch by stitch, curling like swirls of icing atop the cake. Finally, she scattered little golden stitches across the top like sprinkles. They glimmered faintly whenever the light caught them, transforming her simple cupcake into something almost celebratory.
Seraphina leaned back with a smile on her lips. It wasn’t perfect yet, but it was hers.
Turning to the older girl and she lifted the hoop proudly to show her finished work. “I’m done! Thank you so much for teaching me, it was much more fun than I thought it would be! I’m Seraphina, by the way. I hope we’ll see each other around Hogwarts someday.”
With a small wave and a grateful smile, she left the booth, still carrying the warm glow of her first finished piece.
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| | | - | ⟡Ency⟡ | - | | | - | STA: 6 | EVA: 5 | STR: 2 | WIS: 8 | ARC: 7 | ACC: 7 |
| | - | "The sea whispers secrets to those who listen." |
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Just Keep Sewing
Date : August 19th, 2025 Color code : Written|Thought|Said It's pretty busy here.
Sere was impressed by the number of visitors coming and going from this particular booth. She saw Avis Greymond, one of her acquaintances, leaving the booth just now, and curiosity made her stop by to see what was in this booth. Several people were at the booth, each engaged in their own activities. One was making a scrunchie with some pale red remnant fabrics (Sere had seen her at one of the Hogwarts broom racing matches she'd spectated last year) and two others were chatting. It seemed like one was giving instructions to the other. Sere clearly recognized one of them, but she gave them some time to finish their conversation first while she strolled around the booth.
The booth showcased handmade dresses and patterns, and seemed to also offer activities related to crafting and sewing. "So creative." Sere refrained herself from touching the dresses, some of which looked comfortable while others looked more 'exploratory'. All of them were designed by a student, making the booth even more impressive.
Short time passed, Sere decided to approach Maisie Gemmell, who was clearly the booth owner. "Hi, Maisie! It's been a while! You should know that you clearly have a talent in this field," the girl praised sincerely, "I guess you're pretty busy, aren't you? The DIY scrunchies are definitely catching people’s attention. Ah right, I saw your friend Avis leaving this booth earlier and decided to stop by... out of my sudden couriousness."
She then pointed the dresses on display. "How long does it take to make those dresses?"ReducioSere's outfit.
Interacting with: @Maisie Gemmell
