#Megan Nielsen patterns

[qplourde]

Winter successes and failures

What have I been up to during winter hibernation? While I am behind on some of my winter projects, I was able to finish up a #Butterick retro sweater dress, a #VeronikaSkirt and another #Vogue top for the season.

[newcatmeow]

Batch sewing some modified acacia undies! I added three inches to the rise and modified the back leg opening to make them a bit cheekier. I am a sucker for picot elastic, it's too adorable.

[bmwiid]

I'm starting to make these Dawn Jeans by Megan Nielsen

Now I'm doing a mock up this time because:

Denim is expensive and I don't want to fuck it up.

I don't know what style this girl is wearing - is it a cuffed straight leg or a cuffed tapered leg? They don't bloody tell you on the pattern.

So what I'm doing is making one of each - one leg will be straight and one will be tapered. I can also make any changes to the mock up and then transfer it to the denim, saving myself time and tears. Theoretically.

I have a couple of fabrics that would be really nice if these work out for me - and I really hope they do - and I'll keep you updated.

[kris-mage-fics]

If you know how to sew it's possible to modify some patterns to better accommodate various disabilities. For instance, adjusting the length of a shirt for a wheelchair user isn't too hard. But a lot of modifications would be harder and not everyone who sews wants to learn how to pattern hack or draft their own. Unfortunately, even on the indie pattern scene there are hardly any patterns that are designed to be accessible. Rad Patterns have a few that are accessible. There is a pattern from Jalie for underwear that works with an ostomy bag. And Ruth Maddock Makes specializes in patterns for kids with SPD. I found a few examples of regular patterns from indie companies that might be more adaptable. (I picked indie pattern companies because more of them have a decent size range, and the instructions tend to be a lot better.) 1. Wrap tops and dresses can be easier if you have mobility issues. The Cassidy Wrap Top from Helen's Closet Patterns is really cute. And The Elodie Wrap Dress from Closet Core Patterns is elegant. 2. These two patterns have a unique side opening that's either a tie and one button, or two buttons. The buttons could be replaced with snaps if that's easier. The Flint Pants and The Wattle Skirt from Megan Nielsen Patterns come in two size ranges with a lot of overlap. (I own the a copy of Flint and the instructions are really good! Plus it isn't an overly complicated make, especially for pants.) 3. The Envelope Dress from Cris Wood Sews is a very easy zero-waste dress with no sizing because it's drafted to your measurements. It does pull over the head, but I saw someone modify it by putting an invisible zipper down the center front. (I've made this one and as far as dresses go you pretty much can't get a faster make than this!) 4. These two skirts open down the front; the buttons could be replaced with snaps or a zipper depending on what's the easiest for the wearer. The Evelyn Skirt from Chalk & Notch also has a view that has a partial elastic waist. And The Anna Button-Up Skirt from DIBY Club is a classic slim denim skirt. (DIBY Club has really good instructions and tips to fit each pattern.) 5. There's a lot of great jacket patterns out there that don't have fiddly closures. The Belmore Jacket from Muna and Broad is great for color blocking and looks really cool. (Muna and Broad only sell plus-size patterns. And they offer to grade their patterns up if their normal sizes are too small for you, at no extra cost.) There is also The Hvar Jacket from Itch to Stitch which has a lovely waterfall collar. Like I said before, there really isn't much out there for sewing patterns that are made for us disabled folk. But I hope someone will find this list useful.

I feel like for every ten small businesses that make autistic/sensory safe clothing there’s like 1 that makes medically accessible clothing. You can get noise muffling from headphones instead of having it built into a hood. I, however, have to go to the disabled bathroom and take off my fucking pants to clean, brace, and topically medicate my joints, and that’s only one thing I have to do.

We need more affordable medically accessible clothing. If someone knows of a brand that sells that stuff please god reblog this and give me a link.

[brazenbells]

So I've been wanting to try sewing my own underwear for awhile, for a variety of reasons, not least that I have a lot of frustrations trying to purchase the right size and end up spending more than I want to, and while making your own isn't cheaper per se, it does mean you can get something that fits AND is actually what you want on the first try.

This was my first attempt and it went pretty well!

The pattern was pretty simple and stitched up extremely easily--I used the Acacia pattern from Megan Nielsen Patterns (free if you join their email list) and really liked it.

However, stretch fabric is always a little tricky, and this being the first time I sewed the pattern, the stitching is all over the place. Not a problem for wearability, but it does look a little messy, especially because I used a visible thread color.

I could do better. So today I gave it another go, and these came out AMAZING.

Now, I have pretty conflicted feelings about the Harry Potter series for obvious reasons, but it's been a major part of my fandom life for two decades, so I'm working through how to balance my love of what it brought me with not wanting anything from the hands of a racist TERF.

Still, JKR can kiss my ass, and the Marauders' Map is gonna be on it.

[trashpandacraft]

some more great designers who have plus size options:

muna and broad has a default size range that's already very inclusive (goes up to a 60" bust and a 71.5" hip), but if that's too small, they'll grade their patterns up to your size for you. for free. a bunch of their patterns have multiple looks, too, so you buy a single pattern, but get two or three versions of the pants, for example.

artist made patterns goes up to a 5x

closet core offers many of their patterns up to size 32

cris wood sews has zero- and minimal-waste patterns that have you do some basic maths with your measurements to size the garments, so they're all custom sized

megan nielsen goes up to a 20 in their standard line, and their curve line goes up to a size 30

sew liberated goes up to a size 34

sophie hines has cute underwear patterns that go up to 3x or 6x, depending on the pattern

Where can I buy patterns for plus sizes?

So the big 5 patterns companies are basically all now owned by the same company. They have never had great plus size options, however this year the Know Me by Mimi G line has started and it not only has some awesome interesting plus size stuff it also features bipoc designers. So far these patterns have not been on extra sale which is annoying, but hey the other good plusize patterns out there and not going to be cheap either.

Mostly you want to look for independent pattern companies and makers. Places like Etsy are great to get pdf patterns in all sizes. Below is a link to a plus size site that has links to other patterns as well and the link for the website I've used to get patterns printed from pdfs relatively affordable. You also can invest in a projector and set up to trace your patterns directly onto fabric even. However steer clear of the ditto, because for everything I have read it only let's you use proprietary patterns.

[sagehaleyofficial]

HERE’S WHAT YOU MISSED THIS WEEK (1.8-1.14.20):

NEW MUSIC:

·         Record Store Day went on social media to unveil its 2020 date, which is set for April 18th. Last year, a special edition turntable manufactured by Crosley Radio was available at select record stores.

·         Green Day took to social media to share a GIF announcing their new track “Oh, Yeah” will be released later this month. Additionally, they also confirmed a rumored tracklist that was anonymously sent to a fan earlier this month.

·         Spanish Love Songs announced the release date of their third studio album, Brave Faces Everyone, on February 7th via Pure Noise Records. The band also released a new single “Kick” with an accompanying music video.

·         New Found Glory announced that they are looking to include fans in filming a new music video. Recently, guitarist Chad Gilbert took to Instagram to tease that the band have been working on a new album, which will follow up their 2017 release, Makes Me Sick.

·         Silverstein announced a release date for their next studio album, A Beautiful Place to Drown. They also dropped their latest single off the LP, “Infinite,” featuring Underoath and The Almost musician Aaron Gillespie.

·         In a very recent interview, Senses Fail vocalist Buddy Nielsen revealed what he thinks will be the title of the band’s eighth album, calling it Hell is in Your Head. The frontman also talked about the relationships between this new album and their 2006 record, Still Searching.

·         Evanescence dropped a music video for their cover of Fleetwood Mac’s song “The Chain,” which was featured on the soundtrack for the video game Gears of War 5. Singer Amy Lee also lent her vocals to the game’s launch trailer just prior.

·         The 1975 announced the debut of a new song titled “Me & You Together Song,” set to drop this Thursday. Their fourth studio album, Notes on a Conditional Form, was then pushed back from its original release date on February 21st to sometime in April.

·         Halsey took inspiration from country music in her latest single “You Should Be Sad” off her upcoming album Manic, dropping this Friday. She revealed on Twitter that the track was inspired by some of her favorite female artists of the genre, namely Carrie Underwood.

·         Creeper announced the release date for their upcoming album, Sex, Death and the Infinite Void, along with a brief tour in the UK. The band teased fans on Twitter prior to the announcement by posting a series of periods and short videos.

·         PVRIS dropped a haunting acoustic version of their song “Hallucinations,” originally the title track of the band’s latest EP. Singer Lynn Gunn also shared it on her own Twitter feed, saying “It’s chill.”

·         The upcoming film Birds of Prey is getting its own soundtrack, appropriately titled Birds of Prey: The Album. The soundtrack features Halsey, K. Flay, a collab by Megan Thee Stallion and Normani, and more internationally-acclaimed female artists.

·         Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams teased what could potentially be a lyric from her upcoming solo project debut, Petals for Armor, releasing January 22nd. Clues of the new project surfaced on Instagram and city streets with a release date for some time this month.

·         A recent video shows Halsey in the studio with Bring Me the Horizon’s Oli Sykes and Jordan Fish. It appears that the video is referencing her new song for the Birds of Prey soundtrack titled “Experiment on Me.”

·         Alexisonfire dropped a new single titled “Season of the Flood,” which marks their third new song in 10 years and premiered on BBC1’s Rock Show. Last year, the band dropped two singles, “Complicit” and “Familiar Drugs.”

·         Point North’s new song, titled “Into the Dark,” just dropped, featuring current tour mate and Sleeping with Sirens‘ singer, Kellin Quinn. The bands are currently on tour with Set It Off and Belmont.

TOUR ANNOUNCEMENTS:

·         Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival announced the lineup for the festival’s 2020 dates. This year’s headliners include Tool, Lizzo, Tame Impala, Miley Cyrus, Bassnectar, Flume, Oysterhead, Lana Del Rey and Vampire Weekend.

·         The Almost frontman Aaron Gillespie recruited his Underoath bandmate Tim McTague to join him on stage during a show at the Orpheum in Tampa. Gillespie shared photos of the evening, touching on the “unnecessary friction” at The Almost’s formation in 2005.

·         In anticipation of their upcoming release Father of All… next month, Green Day announced that they want to host a wild party at a fan’s house. In a video posted to Instagram, Billie Joe Armstrong talked about wanting to play in one very lucky fan’s backyard in California.

·         Halsey announced the dates for the North American installment of her Manic World Tour. It was also announced that CHVRCHES, Omar Apollo, blackbear and PVRIS will all join her on select dates of this tour.

·         Circa Survive announced that Polyphia and Gouge Away will join them on their Blue Sky Noise 10-year anniversary tour. The band took to social media to announce the supporting cast for the tour.

·         Billie Eilish, Gwen Stefani with Blake Shelton, Aerosmith and Lizzo will all take the stage at this year’s Grammy Awards on January 26th. R&B songstress Alicia Keys will again host the ceremony.

·         Post Malone was announced to headline the “Bootsy on the Water” pop-up event at one of this year’s Super Bowl kick-off parties in Florida. Fans have the opportunity to see the rapper live, but tickets range from a hefty $1,000 to $150,000.

·         The Maine announced their second edition of 8123 Day to celebrate their 13th anniversary as a band. The event will offer fans fun opportunities such as an online scavenger hunt, contests, new merchandise and more.

·         My Chemical Romance’s return show grossed nearly $1,500,000, making history as the highest-grossing show at the venue ever. A Paradigm agent, Matt Galle, spoke with Variety last December about how everything came together.

·         Joe Rogan, Jim Jefferies and Whitney Cummings are joining forces to appear at Stand Up for Australian Fires, the Australia wildfires benefit show taking place on January 26th. Proceeds from the show, co-produced by Kevin Lyman and Joe Sib, will go to Wildlife Warriors.

·         After announcing their first full U.S. headlining run last month, Sleep On It finally announced the opening acts for the “Pride and Disastour.” The band’s upcoming tour, which kicks off at the end of February, will be supported by Bearings, Between You and Me and Neverkept.

·         Sleeping with Sirens revealed a stacked co-headlining run with the Amity Affliction kicking off in April. The tour will begin April 15th in Reno, Nevada, and conclude May 23rd in Milwaukee with support from Stray from the Path and UnityTX.

OTHER NEWS:

·         The Maine drummer Pat Kirch married his longtime partner Shacara Nemetz, with his bandmates, family and friends in attendance at the ceremony. Last September, the couple also announced they were expecting their first child together.

·         One talented drummer took on the challenge of combining 50 My Chemical Romance songs in 10 minutes. The fan in question, Sage Duvall, is a member of Florida-based indie band Raggy Monster and impressively recorded it all in one take without the use of a click track.

·         Bad Religion announced the release of their new book, “DO WHAT YOU WANT: The Story of Bad Religion,” which is set to drop on August 20th by Hachette Books. The autobiography is a deep examination of the band’s four decades in rock music.

·         Music IP investment company Hipgnosis Songs acquired 157 songs from alternative icon Tom DeLonge‘s catalog. “All the Small Things” and more Blink-182 hits were reportedly acquired.

·         Ice Nine Kills joined numerous musicians in fundraising to help put an end to the Australian wildfires plaguing the country. The band is selling a T-shirt featuring a kangaroo dressed as horror icon Freddy Krueger, with all proceeds going towards Australia’s relief efforts.

·         The upcoming film Birds of Prey revealed its second official trailer, which may reveal what happens to Jared Leto‘s Joker character. Recently, lead actress Margot Robbie, who plays Harley Quinn, confirmed that Leto would not be in the film.

·         Featuring a red, black and white color palette, Vans’ latest “I Heart” shoe collection recently hit their online store. The line showcases the phrase “I heart boys, I heart girls” in a continuous pattern.

·         Neil Peart, iconic drummer and lyrical voice of legendary Canadian prog-rock act Rush, has passed away. Rolling Stone reported that Peart had succumbed to aggressive brain cancer at age 67 after a brave three-and-a-half-year-long battle.

·         The Umbrella Academy fans were surprised last week when the comic series appeared as a question on the game show Jeopardy!. The show is currently hosting its “The Greatest of All Time” tournament, which has three record-breaking former contestants playing.

·         Blink-182 joined the relief effort toward stopping the Australian bushfires by releasing a new merch collection. Proceeds from the shirts will go towards Australia Zoo, which is giving medical help and rehabilitating to sick, injured and displaced wildlife in the country.

·         Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker is partnering with Barrett-Jackson to sell a few of his vehicles to the highest bidder. There will be three cars up for sale – a 1941 Cadillac 62 Series convertible, a 1960 Cadillac Coupe Deville and a 1972 Chevrolet K5 Blazer.

___

Check in next Tuesday for more “Posi Talk with Sage Haley,” only at @sagehaleyofficial!

[clobbercreations]

#sewmystyle - June - Briar Tee

#sewmystyle – June – Briar Tee

I can’t believe it’s nearly the end of June!  I cut out the fabric for June’s make at the very beginning but found myself actually constructing it towards the end of the month, assuming I still had loads of time.  This month, it was back to knits. (more…)

[qplourde]

Beachwear for a Rainy Day

When you're having a rainy summer, it's time to make some clothes to get ready for the next beach day. I was excited to get out and show off my #Simplicity2414 pants and my #EucalyptDress at #SalisburyBeach last weekend.

[zanyreviewfestival]

2015 Tour of my workroom - Megan Nielsen Patterns Blog #toddlersmallroomorganization

#organization #room #small #smallroomorganization #toddler #toddlersmallroomorganization

[julestriesreallyhard]

The Project to End All Projects

That sounds super dramatic... because it is.

Okay, it’s actually just a thing. Like many crafters, I have a huge stash of WIPs (works in progress) that just accumulates over time. 

In early September, I decided to bust this stash by working on only these WIPs until the end of the year, at which point I throw out anything I haven’t finished (except unused fabric, thread, etc.) Anything that’s half-done goes.

Here’s a picture of most of my WIPs when I conceived of this project, labeled and explained:

From left to right, up to down:

Overwatch Patches machine-embroidered by my mother-in-law for my husband. I’m going to buy a nice black American Giant hoodie for him and iron the patches on. It shouldn’t take long once I’ve gathered the supplies.

Goodwill Dress: I bought a striped winter dress with pockets from Goodwill that’s about two sizes too large for me. We’ll see how well I can alter it to fit. In theory, making things smaller is a breeze...

Tank Top: I bought a beautiful stretch woven from Joann a few years ago that’s just a bit too sheer for my tastes. So I lined with a white cotton that’s completely wrong for the fabric. As a result, the drape is awful. I’m going to try removing the lining. That said, I’m not super excited about the pattern anyway. I have some spare fabric, so maybe I can turn the whole project into something I like better.

Butterick C6168 by Lisette: Got this one around the same time as I got the fabric for the “Tank Top” I’ve forgotten the name of. I started sewing it out of a quilting cotton that I’ve since fallen out of love with due to its feel. Still, the print is nice.

Rug (Yarn on Burlap): I did technically promise to make this for my friend Pooja, knowing that it’s a big undertaking and that I often run out of steam 10% in. Well... I did. Still, I think it would be a cool project to eventually finish. We’ll see what happens to this one.

Made by Rae Ruby Tank: I bought this because I went to the store looking for a new project (while I still had 70% of these WIPs on the back burner...) The fabric is pretty and it’s a nice, clean pattern, but I’m not sure it’s my style, so we’ll see what happens to this one.

Discworld Embroidery: This is the last of the hoodies I’m embroidering for my bridesmaids (and yes, the wedding was almost six months ago.) I could finish it soon, or I could learn needlepainting first and do a much better job of it later. We’ll see!

Green Fat Quarters: I bought these when I was trying out English Paper Piecing (EPP.) It turns out that isn’t really my thing. However, I now have this fabric lying around that I’m not sure what to do with. I could toss it or I could make it into something small--potentially a treat bag, since the one we bought was a dud.

Apron for Mom: bought the fabric for this apron two Christmases ago. Oh well... I don’t plan on using a pattern for this, I plan on modeling it after an apron we have in the kitchen that’s just lovely and very useful. This one can wait until close to Christmas.

Leftover fabric from that mysterious tank top.

Navy leggings from Megan Nielsen Patterns: These were a great introduction to using stretch fabrics and MN’s instructions are a dream, but in terms of usability, the leggings leave much to be wanted--specifically, the pattern can’t be easily altered to add pockets, which I feel are crucial when it comes to sportswear. Plus, the original pair that I made, I added lace to the bottom following an out of commission picture from Etsy, and I didn’t like the result at all.

Stained Skirt: I loved this skirt, but bloodstains happen when you’re a disorganized lady. I decided to “upcycle” it in a flash of inspiration that quickly died. The style I was going for is cool, but it’s not the kind of thing I’d wear.

Ogden Cami: Found a lovely cotton double gauze at the local small-business fabric shop and bought about two yards of it. I decided to try it out on the Ogden Cami by True Bias Patterns (https://shop.truebias.com/product/ogden-cami.) On second thought, the Ogden really isn’t my style. I prefer closer-fitting clothes, which do a better job of showing my figure (which I’m happy with) while concealing a bit more of my skin (which I’m not happy with.)

Two off-the-shoulder tops that I won’t wear without straps for the sake of modesty and comfort.

Floss for Miniature Needle Painting Book: After seeing some incredible photos of needle painting online, I decided to try it out. I bought a book and started working my way through it until I realized how many things I’ve started, which brings us to the present. Now, I want to finish this book before I finish the Discworld hoodie, and I want to finish the Discworld hoodie before I finish the rug. There’s a sequence of events emerging here! Good stuff. I need to buy more floss for this, though.

That’s it! Next up, the Ogden Cami, which I finished this afternoon, and a discussion of my Halloween costume which I suppose is now a WIP!

[shackleyjackson673]

2019 Workroom Tour & Office Decor | Megan Nielsen Patterns Blog

While fantastic for me on my own, my workroom wasn’t set up for two people. So I made some changes! Let me take you on a tour of my updated workroom.

[owenian745492]

2019 Workroom Tour & Office Decor | Megan Nielsen Patterns Blog

While fantastic for me on my own, my workroom wasn’t set up for two people. So I made some changes! Let me take you on a tour of my updated workroom.

[likos064]

The Reasons Behind the Musings

The following exchange takes place in the comments, but I thought I’d repost it here because it explains a bit about my motivation to post Musings of a Newbie. I would also like to apologise for not responding to the other answers I have received. 

Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. It was really kind of you.

I thought I’d explain a bit more why I chose the questions I did and respond in turn to your answers.

Every question is motivated by a specific complaint that I saw on my dashboard during season 11 of The X-Files. One continuous complaint was how many horrible things have happened to the characters, especially Scully, since the beginning of the show. The reason why I asked about the ensemble cast is because I believe that some of the abuse heaped on the characters is due to the size of the cast. When John Doggett and Monica Reyes joined in seasons 8 and 9, they were tormented quite badly as well. And every time the focus turned on Skinner he had to endure all sorts of torture. However, quite a few were upset when they found out that one episode of season 11, Kitten, would primarily focus on Skinner and his back story. And the addition of the characters Einstein and Miller was mostly met with disdain. 

Furthermore, you pointed out one downside in that the actors became exhausted with the amount of work they had to put in due to the limited cast. It also meant that they couldn’t easily pursue other projects while doing the show, and had to be nearly paranoid about possible injuries or illness. Some of it was mitigated with the use of cell-phones in season 2, as David revealed while they did press for season 10 - both didn’t always have to be available at the same time. However, some storylines were directly motivated by the actor’s availability e.g. Scully’s original abduction being due to Gillian’s pregnancy and the delivery of Piper, Mulder becoming an absentee father due to David leaving the show, and Scully staying behind with William, despite the the clear threat against the child, due to Gillian’s contract for season 9.

2nd R: A pattern that shows up continuously on my dashboard is that when the show doesn’t provide what people want - mostly lack of confirmed romance, no kissing etc., or the storyline goes in a direction that is less than desired e.g. continuous storylines centered around Scully’s fertility and reproduction, they will attribute it to the lack of female input. Therefore, I was curious as to what that would mean in practice. The current commentary is too abstract for me to understand what is meant. However, I do agree that a more diverse and inclusive writing and directing pool would lead to a more welcoming working environment, and The X-Files certainly worked as a springboard for a lot of careers e.g. Alex Gansa & Howard Gordon - Homeland, Frank Spotnitz - The Man in the High Castle, Vince Gilligan - Breaking Bad, and Better Call Saul. 

3rd R: I will have to disagree with you when it comes to FOX being willing to end the show if Chris Carter wanted to. As I mentioned before, there was a plan for a movie franchise, even if it did not come to pass, after season 5. There were also attempts to end everything in season 7 e.g. closing up the storyline with Samantha, getting rid of the Cigarette Smoking Man, and season 8 e.g. forcing Mulder permanently, at the time, off the X-Files, tying his storyline and motivation to William and giving Mulder and Scully one perfect moment of happiness in Existence, which is probably the least cliffhangery season ending we’ve received. FOX ordered one more season, as the numbers went up again following David’s return, when Mulder came back from his abduction. David’s contract had already ended and he was not willing to extend it, while Gillian signed up for both season 8 and 9 at the same time to achieve parity in pay. Chris Carter was set to leave, however, he stayed for Gillian, whom FOX demanded complete her contract. At the moment FOX has still not said whether there will be one more season or not, though I suppose after their acquisition that is now up to Disney. Thereby not saying that Chris Carter doesn’t have a monetary gain in continuing, however, as far as I can tell it has never been solely up to him as to whether there will be more or not. At a Paley conference in conjunction with the second movie, I Want to Believe, he explained the difficulty in planning when you never know who will be available to you in terms of writers, directors, and actors. Furthermore, they never knew if they were going to get another season.

Last R: While I agree that there was lack of women involved in the show there are still quite a few that could have commented. True, there were only two female directors during the original run, one in season 7 and one in Season 9 Episode 7 John Doe, as you already mentioned, and at that time David wasn’t around in any official capacity. However, the reason I used Joel McHale and Robert Patrick as my examples was because they spent a comparatively short time on the show. Robert Patrick got added in Season 8 and made 40 episodes, with his last being Season 9 Episode 19-20 The Truth. Annabeth Gish as Monica Reyes appears in Season 8 Episode 14 This Is Not Happening, and appeared in 26 episodes during seasons 8 and 9. She would have had a couple of episodes with both of them together, and she was there for both Season 9 Episode 16 William and Season 9 Episode 19-20 The Truth, when David was on set as he directed the former and came up with the original story together with Frank Spotnitz and Chris Carter. She was also there for season 10 and 11. Joel McHale only had two episodes in season 10 My Struggle I and My Struggle II, and one in season 11 My Struggle IV and he still commented on it. Martin Landau was only in The X-Files: Fight the Future and had only scenes with David and still compared them to Spencer Tracy and Kathrine Hepburn. 

Furthermore, there were a few recurring female characters. Sheila Larken as Margaret Scully joined in Season 1 Episode 13 Beyond the Sea and has a total of 17 episodes through seasons 1-5 and 8-10. She is also married to R.W. Goodwin who worked on the X-Files during its Vancouver years as a co-executive producer, executive producer, director and writer. Melinda McGraw as Melissa Scully joined in Season 2 Episode 8 One Breath for a total of 4 episodes, her last appearance being in Season 5 Episode 6 Christmas Carol, though David was absent as he was promoting Playing God with Angelina Jolie. One might even count Megan Leitch, the actress who portrayed Samantha Mulder as an adult. Her first appearance was in Season 2 Episode 16 Colony, and her last Season 7 Episode 2 The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fait making it four episodes in total. Admittedly she had hardly any scenes with Gillian, but she was in episodes where they both appeared. Or even Rebecca Toolan as Teena Mulder, who also first appeared in Season 2 Episode 16 Colony, and came back in episodes through seasons 2-4 and 7 with Season 7 Episode 11 Closure being her last episode, bringing her up to ten episodes. 

Laurie Holden as Marita Covarrubias was introduced in Season 4 Episode 1 Herrenvolk and became fairly recurring during season 4 and then appeared more sporadically during seasons 5-7, her final appearance was in Season 9 Episode 19-20 The Truth for a total of ten episodes. Veronica Cartwright as Cassandra Spender appeared in Season 5 Episode 13 Patient X to Season 6 Episode 12 One Son making it four episodes. Mimi Rogers as Diana Fowley joined the cast in Season 5 Episode 20 The End and came back for a few episodes during season 6-7 until her final appearance in Season 7 Episode 2 The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati totalling 7 episodes.

There were also a number of female writers. The first being Marilyn Osborn who wrote Season 1 Episode 19 Shapes, followed by Sara B. Cooper as Sara B. Charno who wrote the episodes Season 2 Episode 12 Aubrey and Season 2 Episode 21 The Calusari. Kim Newton wrote Season 3 Episode 11 Revelations and Season 3 Episode 22 Quagmire, the latter with some assistance from Darin Morgan e.g. conversation on the rock. Valerie Mayhew and Vivian Mayhew wrote Season 4 Episode 6 Sanguinarium, Jessica Scott wrote Season 5 Episode 9 Schizogeny, and Dr. Margaret Fearon who wrote the story for Season 10 Episode 6 My Struggle II together with Anne Simon, the latter who worked as the science advisor in 1998 as well as during the revival. 

Kristen Cloke wrote Season 11 Episode 7 Rm9sbG93ZXJz together with Shannon Hamblin as well as worked as an actress as  Melissa Rydell Ephesian in Season 4 Episode 5 The Field Where I Died and she is married to Glen Morgan who was a writer for season 1, 2 and 4 and came back for season 10 and 11 to both write and direct. Karen Nielsen was a script coordinator for season 10 and 11 and wrote Season 11 Episode 9 Nothing Lasts Forever, and she is the one who rather gleefully announced that the whispering between Scully and Mulder was between Gillian and David and would not be revealed.

In season 11 both Carol Banker and Holly Dale directed, episode 6 Kitten and episode 8 Familiar respectively, even if Carol Banker’s episode mostly focused on Skinner. But she was also a script supervisor from season 6 to season 9, and an actress as Carol in Season 7 Episode 17 all things, which admittedly once again had less of David.

One of the reasons that I find it so fascinating is that the shipping fandom, those compelled by David and Gillian’s chemistry to pair up Mulder and Scully is mostly comprised of women. But when it comes to the show, the men seem far more impressed. Almost enamoured, or maybe its envy. Maybe they wished that they had that kind of connection with someone. Maybe we all do.

[ganrachi]

Summer swishy trousers - I’d be imagining a pair of trousers like this for work wear, to wear with cotton lawn tanks and breezy shirts in hot weather, but it took me a while to get round to working out how to make exactly what I wanted. I would have bought some but being pear-shaped I find trousers from shops never ever fit me well and nothing I saw was just right. I wondered about using the megan nielsen flint pants pattern but in the end went for Nina Lee London portobello trousers but hacked them to look like the Flint pants from the front!! Megan Nielsen has a great tutorial on her website on how to hack the flints to have a flat front instead of release tucks, so I figured the same must be possible with the portobello trousers! I simply folded the pleats on the paper pattern piece and smoothed the paper flat. I then measured the pattern pieces across the waist (taking off the seam allowances and missing out the darts on the back) and compared to my waist size, and decided I wanted a bit more room and unfolded half of one pleat to allow for this. I also lowered the waist line by an inch as I find a super high waist isn’t my jam and I added slant pockets using the pocket pieces from the Capri pants in the Gertie sews vintage casual book. Overall they worked out pretty well - having the zipper next to the pockets isn’t ideal but manageable. I think if I made them again I’d draft a curved waist band to get a better fit at the waist, but I still love them and have been wanting to wear them every day!!