Volume 5, Issue 2 March, Editor s Message. Page 1. Dana MacDermott

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1 Volume 5, Issue 2 March, 2007 Editor s Message 1 The Last Stand 2 My 2006 visit to Japan (pt. 2) 5 Star Trek, The Experience 7 Proxy Form 10 President: Richard Man Vice-President: Betsy Delaney Treasurer: Bruce MacDermott Secretary: Jeanine Swick Representative to the ICG BOD: Betsy Delaney Alt. Rep. to the ICG BOD: Richard Man Web Site Coordinator: Ari Hollander Editor Dana MacDermott The Silicon Web Costumers' Guild (SiW) is a non-profit, volunteer-run chapter of the International Costumers' Guild (ICG). Redistribution or republication of content requires permission of the author and editor of this publication. Editor s Message Dana MacDermott This is the pre Costume-Con/ICG annual meeting issue. Unlike last year, there are no contested positions to arouse the membership. The Guild has begun the processes leading to the possibility of extending the 501 (c) 3 tax exempt status to the individual chapters, and there will be discussions on this and the implications for the chapters. There may be motions made, and action taken on this and other issues that can come up. You will find a proxy form at the end of this issue. The ICG meeting agenda can be found at: So far this year, the SiW has gained five new members, including our first member from Japan, Yuichiro Sakuta, who will be running the Masquerade for this year s World-Con in Yokohama, Japan. We happily welcome him, as well as Christopher and Christine Bertani, Signe Merrifield, and Alta Rockwell. The SiW membership at this moment sits at 56. Everything seems to be well in hand We can, as a result, devote this issue primarily to costuming topics, which are, after all, our shared interest, and the reason we exist as a group. In this issue, Audrey Russell introduces us to the costumed world of the Single Action Shooting Society, and we finish Jeanine Swick s article on the Textiles she saw in Japan. In addition, Bruce and I were in Las Vegas the end of February ostensibly for a conference (related to building decks, but our motivation was to see the remaining Cirque du Soleil productions we had not seen, and for me to revisit Star Trek, The Experience at the Las Vegas Hilton. You will find my report on The Star Trek Experience also in this issue. I will add that Ka and Cirque s new Love, are fantastic shows with amazing costumes. Page 1

2 The Last Stand Audrey I. Russell Last summer my husband introduced me to the sport of High Power Rifle shooting. I ve never had any interest in shooting or demonstrated any prior athletic ability, so I was surprised to find that I not only enjoy it, but am good at it, too! After gushing about my new hobby to a fellow costumer, she suggested I check out SASS: the Single Action Shooting Society. Here was an opportunity to combine my love of costume with my new passion for shooting! screen dress. After taking a cowboy shooting class in November, I decided to volunteer at the Florida State SASS championship, aka The Last Stand, hosted by the local chapter each year in January. The match committee members were tickled that I appeared in costume even though I was not competing. SASS members are required to adopt aliases, so my questions about both shooting and costuming were eagerly answered by shooters with names like Lady Robin, Feathers Ryan, Saltillo Jane, and Stumpy Ryan! The Single Action Shooting Society is an international organization for the sport of Cowboy Action Shooting. From the SASS Shooters Handbook (p.1): Cowboy Action Shooting is a multifaceted amateur shooting sport in which contestants compete with firearms typical of those used in the taming of the Old West The truly unique aspect of Cowboy Action Shooting is the requirement placed on authentic period or western At SASS events, shooters are required to be in costume for all activities, even when not actively competing. Guests and family members are also encouraged to come in costume. At The Last Stand, I noticed that historical and screen accuracy were not strictly observed. SASS makes it easy for new shooters to participate, so other than a short list of outlawed items (such as t-shirts, ball caps, sneakers, and Velcro) and the requirement that clothing be typical of the late Page 2

3 19th century, a B-western movie, or Western television series (SASS Shooters Handbook, p.3), clothing requirements for non-specific costume categories seemed open to interpretation. The most common costumes consisted of loose button-up shirts in a variety of cotton prints, yoked button-fly pants with suspenders, and large kerchiefs tied around the neck. All shooters wore hats and either cowboy boots or period-style shoes. Pictured are some costume interpretations. Some shooters even costumed their gun carts, disguising the rolling units as pack mules or stagecoaches. SASS member Horsey Rider made a grand entrance on his giant motorized rocking horse! Props extended to the various shooting stages, creating a fun, theatrical atmosphere. In the shooting competition, there are two clothingspecific categories: Classic Cowboy/Cowgirl and B Western. While shooters are not scored based on their costumes, the Range Officer verifies that they have met the costume requirements for their category and they compete for prizes only against those in the same category. Some SASS events also have separate costume contests. The Classic category leans towards the historical; shooters are required to choose at least five elements from a list that includes items such as chaps, Page 3

4 vest, and pocket watch with full length chain for the men and split riding skirts, bustle, and period hair ornaments for the ladies. In the B Western category, the flashier the costume, the better! Leather belts, holsters, and boots are all embellished with stitching or tooling, and shirts are embroidered, appliquéd, and fringed. Men must wear spurs. Additionally, B Western shooters must include at least one of a list of optional items that includes gloves, coat, and cuffs. On the last night of the match, shooters and guests broke out their best finery for the Governor s Ball. These ran the gamut from fancy B Western shirts to embroidered coats and Victorian gowns. I found a comfortable seat in the lobby of the host hotel and watched the Wild West runway show parade by! An important aspect of Cowboy Action Shooting is the Spirit of the Game : Competing in the Spirit of the Game means you fully participate in what the competition asks (SASS Shooters Handbook, p.2). From good sportsmanship on the range to costuming at the Friday night barbecue, these Cowboys and Cowgirls participated 110%! You can learn more about the Single Action Shooting Society at Page 4

5 My 2006 visit to Japan Part 2, Tokyo and Yokahama Jeanine Swick As most of you know, unless you have lots of disposable income, a new kimono is not easily affordable. The Tokyo flea markets are good places to look for secondhand ones (both modern and antique) at reasonable prices. There are numerous markets on Sundays at various locations around Tokyo, some occurring every week, others monthly. We visited one at the Togo Shrine with was a mix of modern and antique items. The number of kimono, yukata (cotton kimono) and obi was great; you could spend all day there just looking at textiles. I found two haroi jackets. One, which is black with cherry trees, went to my daughter Elaine for Christmas. The other is a shabori design in shades of green and yellow in an intricate leaf pattern. I plan to wear this one at Costume-Con. I could have spent lots more there, but I decided to be good; one can only carry so much at a time; and it was still early in the trip. tel.033/ Other good places to shop are the areas around the larger temples and shrines. One of the larger ones I visited was Sensoji Temple in the Asakusa section of Tokyo. Nakamise Dori is the street that leads up to the temple and it is lined with small shops that sell religious objects and just about everything else, as well. In addition, the surrounding neighborhood has several blocks of shops of many kinds. There were quite a few kimono shops that had a box of scraps out front. This is one way to collect a lot of different fabrics from kimono and obis without spending a lot of money. I picked up a kimono at a shop that had rentals as well as selling new ones. I found three obi which insisted on returning with me. The temptations there are great, and you do need quite a bit of will power not to come home with every textile you see that catches your attention. On Sundays in the Ginza section of Tokyo they close off the main street to vehicle traffic and turn it to a pedestrian walkway. If it weren t for the signs it would look like any other modern big city Oriental Bazaar is another place for Kimono and other Asian objects. Prices range from inexpensive on up for handicrafts to antiques. Need a suit of Samurai armor? It can be yours for only 175,000 yen. It is not nearly as large as the descriptions in the books make it sound. Oriental Bazaar is located at Jingu-mae, Shibuyaka-ku, Page 5

6 shopping district. In my opinion it was interesting to walk trough but not exciting shopping; then again I m not much for modern shopping. (Give me Pennsic any day.) Believe it or not, if you go through Tokyo Station at 6:30 in the morning you can actually move with out getting run over. At that hour it isn t wall to wall people in a mad rush to get to the trains. In Yokohama there is the Silk Museum, which is closed on Mondays, It is located in the Silk Center Building, 2 nd floor, No. 1 Yamashita-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama, tel. 045/ There is an admission fee of 500 yen (about $5), though it could have changed since I visited. The Silk Museum is small with a lot packed into it. There is a section on how silk is produced, from silkworm to how the fiber is processed. The procedures of weaving and dying are shown. The displays include silk clothing from around the world, as well as historical and modern Japanese traditional clothing. I wish the display cases had been either a single row of clothing or that they had staged mirrors to show the other side of the garments. I m one who always wants to see all sides of an object. Before I left the museum I was presented with a silkworm cocoon as a memento. The Yokohama Doll Museum, 18 Yamashita-cho, Yokohama, tel. 045/ , is also closed Mondays. Admission is 300 yen. The displays contain about 9,000 dolls from over 130 countries. It includes modern, antique, and puppets with a floor devoted to Japanese dolls. A fun place to stroll around is the Chinatown section of Yokohama, the largest in Japan. It is always crowded, all kinds of souvenir shopping and places to eat. For the cat lovers there is a tiny shop with all kinds of cat objects and art. Yokohamaya, Yamashita-cho, Naka-ku, Yokohama, 045/681/0883. The owner s daughter went to Kansas University. This I learned when I was browsing the outdoor display, and she asked me where I was from. The JR (Japan Rail) passes are wonderful and are worth looking into even for a short visit. You have to get an exchange order before you travel as they can t be purchased in Japan. You can ride just about any JR system train as far or as many Page 6

7 times as you want while your pass is valid. There a few restrictions, but not many. Here is a tip: if someone asks where you are from, give the nearest internationally known city and your state. Tour books are good investments, but also look for the local tourist information center to get maps and more information where you are visiting. I doubt that this exists, but something I would like to go on would be a Textile Junkie tour of Japan. The trip would be two weeks minimum up to a month of touring the different textile areas of Japan, and designed to show how the traditional methods of fabric production and dying are done along with some hands on experience where possible. You could throw in visiting the different craft centers where the other traditional crafts are kept alive, again with some hands on learning. A way to periodically ship things home so you wouldn t have to lug stuff along would be included. As an organized tour with interpreters it wouldn t be a cheap trip, but to do something like that with a dozen or so like minded folk would be quite a learning experience. Well, I can dream and put that thought in other folk s minds. You never know what may happen in the future. (Ed note, see ) Star Trek, The Experience Dana MacDermott Star Trek, The Experience is located in the Las Vegas Hilton, which was the site of a convention (on deck construction) that Bruce and I recently attended. Conference attendees got $10 discounts on admission, which is a help, since admission, at just under $40, it is not negligible, but includes both the museum and two 18 minute rides Page 7

8 (Klingon Encounter and the Bourg Invasion). Associated with the Experience, but requiring no ticket, is a series of shops (the DS-9 Promenade, tho nowhere nearly as grand or extensive as the real DS-9) and a café called Quark s Bar and Restaurant. You can buy t-shirts, tribbles (that purr), models, Blood wine and Romulan ale, chocolate gold foil wrapped Latinum bars, teddy bears in various Trek costumes and configurations (including Borg, Vulcan and Andorian) and all manner of other souvenirs. There are also some reasonably good costumes and props available as well as some genuine pieces from the series. There are costumed characters wandering around. I chatted with Klingon and Ferengi representatives, who were the only ones out on that fairly quiet off season weekday. There are screens showing films and series episodes in the restaurant and the Promenade. My Mother sat and watched DS-9 episodes while I joined Bruce on the exhibit floor for a couple of hours.!geordie s Visor (very expensive!) The menu at Quark s is ordinary food with star trek names. They seem to do better with the drinks which are served in interesting containers. Although we could hear casino noises in the background, there were unfortunately no Dabo girls. Hanging above Quark s, and visible from the side of the Museum were large Star Trek models. I do not know whether they were originals used in filming. The museum itself is wonderful. On a back illuminated plaque that runs the entire length of the balcony is a history which begins with the early rocket development and Page 8

9 space attempts, and segues into the Star Trek universe, placing series events and characters. Against the outside wall are cases with props, costumes and descriptions. And they allow photography. When I was last in Las Vegas some years back, I discovered this, having not brought my camera. Since then, the history was expanded to include the series that had not yet been produced, and the collection of costumes and props has expanded along the corridor to the two rides/productions with a focus on alien and non-human races. There is also a separate one hour backstage tour available, which we did not take. Brochures say that the facility is available for special events and award-winning weddings. It is Las Vegas.!Cochoran s flight suit One of the Klingon sisters "!Grand Negus, others!spock s Parents Dom Perignon 2265 " Page 9

10 Proxy Form This Proxy Statement is for ICG members who will not be attending the Annual Meeting at Costume-Con. If you want to vote, complete the form and give it to someone who will be attending. ================================================================ International Costumers' Guild 20 Annual Meeting Proxy Assignment Form On this day of, 20, I,, member of Chapter of the International Costumers Guild, assign my vote to and authorize the below named member of the International Costumers' Guild, to represent me in all business coming before the 20 Annual Meeting of the International Costumers' Guild. Assignee Name*: of Chapter Address: City: ZIP/Postal Code: State/Province: Assigner Name**: of Chapter Address: City: ZIP/Postal Code State/Province: Signature: *Who you are authorizing to vote on your behalf. **Your name. If you have specific instructions on voting, attach a sheet or write below Page 10