I am stretched on your grave and will lie there forever

If your hands were in mine
I'd be sure they could not sever

My apple tree, my brightness
It's time we were together 

For I smell of the earth
And am worn by the weather

When my family thinks
That I'm safely in my bed

From morn until night
I am stretched out at your head 

Calling out to the earth
With tears hot and wild

My grief for the girl
That I loved as a child

Do you remember the night we were lost
In the shade of the blackthorn
And the chill of frost 

And thanks be to Jesus
We did all that was right 

And your maiden head still
Is your pillar of light

The priests and the friars
They approach me in dread
Because I still love you
My love and you're dead

I still would be your shelter
Through rain and through storm 

And with you in your cold grave
I cannot sleep warm

So I am stretched on your grave
And will lie there forever 

If your hands were in mine
I'd be sure they could not sever 

My apple tree, my brightness
It's time we were together 

For I smell of the earth
And am worn by the weather

 * * *

 Notes: I first discovered "I Am Stretched On Your Grave" through the Abney Park song a number of years ago.  More recently, I have also discovered Sinéad O'Connor's older, but no less gorgeous rendition.  Upon having my socks knocked off, I learned that the lyrics are taken from a 17th century Irish poem.  Since then, I have wanted to do a BJD photostory as tribute.

What finally made me start the photostory was an enormous amount aggravation around my attempts to make another Edgar Allan Poe tribute.  As I mentioned in my last post, this Poe project is a collaboration, so there is some extra pressure.  I had started shooting and found that practically everything was garbage. 

Then, we had some rare snow in Vancouver, and to blow off some steam and do a less complicated project, I decided to try an interpretation of "I Am Stretched On Your Grave."  Since this is a poem, I wanted to keep things a little more abstract.  In "Ligeia," I tried to honour Poe's ambiguity.  Here, I wanted to push the ambiguity of what is real and imagined a little further. 

* * * 

BJD Resolutions for 2014

Hello dear readers,  I thought that today I might share some of my bjd-related goals and resolutions for the new year.  They are, in no particular order, as follows:

-To edit and post the photoshoot from which the above image is derived.

-To conclude a Once Upon A Time-inspired outfit for Elena.  Progress has been shockingly slow, but the end is (sort of) in sight.

-To finish sewing and then to photograph a Frozen cosplay for Aurora.

-To complete the photography and editing of another Edgar Allan Poe adaptation.  This one is a collaboration :0)

-To continue modding Elena.  I have been quiet about this project because I am not yet convinced it will be successful.

-Possibly to update Marlowe's face-up.

-Possibly to find new eyes for Eric and Aurora.

-Possibly to lessen the dire infrequency with which my dA account is updated.

-Possibly to re-string Madeline, though the task is a dreadful one.

-To take steps (for life in general) toward treating my condition as a chronic un-finisher.

* * *

When I let the water take me [Soom Chrom]

* * *

Notes:  Eric, my Soom Chrom, and a teddy bear.  I made a photostory about his bear a while ago, but I wanted to express more about how he feels without using words.  The title for this post comes from "What the Water Gave Me" by Florence and The Machine.  This song reminds me of a storm, and so I thought of it a lot while trying to depict Eric's own inner storm.  I'm sorry some of the pictures were compressed in a blocky way, it wasn't something I noticed until they were uploaded. :-/

* * *

Eric - Preview

It's been a long, grey January.  I have been working on a photoshoot with Eric to try get through some of these depressing doldrums.  The above picture is from that photoshoot, and I hope to post it in the near-ish future.

For those of you (okay, there's maybe two of you) who were waiting for news on the Enchanted Doll front, I have one word: Alas.  The Regular Mail people did not do their job properly and my would-be client's doll was sent back after being who-knows-where for over a month.

Dear and lovely readers, let this be a lesson to you: the more times we hazard the Post for our hobby, the more often disappointing mistakes are likely to happen.  Always take precautions when sending your resin people for accessory fittings, mods, or painting.

* * *

Garden Meet-up

I am sorry for the long absence.  I meant to post these pictures two weeks ago, but various distractions kept getting in the way.  Hopefully, I will manage one or two more posts before the end of the month. 

This was a relatively small meet compared to the few others that I have attended, and the location and weather were gorgeous.  A huge thank-you to the organizer of the event, and another one to the kind person who covered my admission when I forgot (egads!) my wallet. >.<

* * *

Many of the resin people sitting in a row.

Close-up of a beautiful Iplehouse JID Tania.

An amazing Soom Coquina.

Eric under a bjd-sized tree.  Even though his shirt is badly blown-out, there's something about this picture that I still like.

A Teenie Soom... Grit?  He had such deep, starry eyes.

A Soom Albany looking like a steampunk explorer.

A cute SD13-ish girl... I wish I knew what she was. 

I think this charming girl is from DoD, but I'm not entirely sure.

An ingenious hybrid mermaid.

As we were moving to another spot in the garden, the Soom Coquina lost one of her stylish shoes, and Eric found it.

Another close-up of Soom Albany.  This was inside a little room with benches and a moon gate.

Eric met Iplehouse Tania and an adorable Luts Aru.

The garden on the other side of the moon gate.

Apparently this corridor is zig-zagged to confuse evil spirts.

Another picture of the mermaid girl, perched in a tiny tree.

IH Tania and Luts Aru went rock climbing.

Eric decided to try too.

At an astounding elevation of 3 whole feet.

Resting for a minute after about two hours in the garden.

* * *