June: Rainbows - Drag is Joy

One of my favorite movies of all time is John Waters's 1988 cult classic, Hairspray. I love all of his movies, but Hairspray will always be my favorite. It's such a wonderfully wholesome yet subversive movie. I know that sounds like it's not a thing, but it absolutely is. A big part of why the original Hairspray is the best is Divine. Divine appeared in many of Waters's early films and is probably best known for her role as Edna Turnblad in Hairspray. Divine is legitimately divine in the movie. If you've only seen the musical version of the movie, do yourself a favor and watch the original. 

Anyway, Divine was the first drag performer I knew was a drag performer. I saw the movie for the first time when I was 12ish. Prior to that, drag was in my world but not something I was aware of. You can't watch a cartoon or sitcom from the 1960s through the 1980s without experiencing a character in drag. It's mostly used as a punchline rather than celebrating the art that drag truly is. My connection to drag got stronger when I was in college. I went to college in New Orleans and lived there through most of my 20s. I worked in theatre (college and local theatres) and met and worked with a fair number of drag performers. I have a few friends who are drag queens or have performed drag over the years. Drag is one of my favorite types of performances. There's so much joy and humor and subversion in one performance. 

I honestly don't understand people who think drag is something dirty and horrible. I assume most of these people have never been to a drag show. Not all drag is for everyone, but drag is not inherently evil or bad. I'd rather take my fictional children to drag story hour than to have them practice active shooter drills in their school. Hearing a story from a person dressed as a rainbow unicorn sounds like a great day to me. I can't stress this enough: Drag is joy.  

Drag is under attack right now from small minded people who don't know anything about anything except how to be hateful. Drag queens don't want to hurt you or your children. You can help support drag performers and fight censorship by donating to the ACLU's Drag Defense Fund. 

I also love my "Drag Is Joy" shirt from Raygun. It was sold out the last time I checked, but they have a great collection of Pride shirts if you're looking to add joy to your wardrobe. I wore this shirt last weekend and a random guy stopped me to thank me for wearing it. Wearing a supportive t-shirt is a small thing, but it matters.

I also have the "Cracker Barrel Has Fallen" shirt because that is hilarious.

Here's this week's recap:

June 18: satin and chain stitches, woven wheel

June 19: stem, split back, buttonhole wheel

June 20: satin, running, and chain stitches, buttonhole wheel

June 21: stem and chain stitches, buttonhole wheel, bullion knots

June 22: buttonhole wheel, chain, satin, and stem stitches

June 23: back stitch, buttonhole wheel

June 24 #1: chain stitch

June 24 #2: back stitch - starting the design to finish the bottom of the shirt. Each color will connect at the bottom. I'm working on all the beginning stitches first and then I'll move the hoop. Then I'll repeat on the right side. 

The finished right side of the shirt

The top of the shirt

Other Projects

I got started on Iconic #16. I haven't started embroidering it yet, but hope to do so later today or tomorrow. I'm going to complete the text first and then decide if I want to add stripes to hint at a pinstripe suit. I associate navy pinstripe suits with mediocre white guys.

I also finished the hoop for my PopLush embroidery club pattern. I haven't ironed the piece yet, but here's what it'll look like once I do.

I hope to finish the rest of the Iconic this week and next so I can work on the book binding. I have a few other projects to work on that are for other people. I haven't started the designs for any of them, but I have a few ideas.