Stunning…
Pat Sweet continues to have a direct line to my imagination as she reads my books and creates not just the characters but the infamous garment itself. 
You’ll remember she designed the robe and I revealed it last week and now she has now conceived a proper dressmaker’s pattern.
We have communicated long about the ins and outs of this robe, debating over folds and pleats and I remarked on the potential need for both sides of the garment to be balanced as I tend to be a little anal. Pat’s comment made me think twice about exactly what I had put Adelina through as my protagonist in The Stumpwork Robe. She said: ‘I’m sure the robe didn’t turn out the way Adelina had originally planned. ‘
O f course Pat is right. Adelina had been embroidering under duress. In addition, her normal supply of silk and perle threads would have been limited at best. At worst unavailable. In addition, as the story progressed there was no doubt she was struggling to come to terms with everything happening around her.
Firmly tongue-in-cheek, Pat contributed the following:
‘The robe is not only a work of art but a piece of history, and the finished robe will keep the art historians of Eirie busy for centuries figuring out the reason for the selection and placement of each element. Please see the following…
“The Path of the Rainbow: Symbolism and Semiotics of the Color Progression of the Stumpwork Robe Dragonflies” E. Balthasar and G.P. W. Khalish, University of Trevallyn, 1835
“Strands of Other: Eirish-Faeran Thread and Textile Trade In the Golden Age of Veniche” C. d’Occhio, Veniche Museo Textile Studies Quarterly, Veniche 1894
“Permeability and Identity in Feminist Objectification of The Stumpwork Robe and Its Imitators” R. Valle, B.L. Nunzotio, and F. Jeg, Eirish Language Association, 1977 ‘
And I had to laugh!
But this next communication stopped the laugh in its tracks. 
May I present the robe in its beautiful flat version? (click on it to enlarge to screen size) It’s now possible for readers to see exactly where Adelina would have secreted the tiny books as she wrote her story…
It’s true the robe is not symmetrical -it tells its own history.
That’s such an arty comment!
yes, stunning! and yay! love the flat version. i can see the dragonflies which is not so noticeable from the side view. i’m wondering if you could possibly turn the robe into a bookmark or paperdoll.
Now there’s an idea Pat… a paper doll! Over to you! Personally I love the idea.
November bride is talking about a real doll and i love that as well. The number of ideas this has sparked is truly amazing.
And the title of my own Master’s thesis:
From A Veil To A Shroud: The Stumpwork Robe’s Tipping Point From Wedding Garment To Murder Weapon
That’s so good.
We have been asked at different times to develop a one sentence pitch and I think the above is a beauty!
I came up with one this morning: (this is for when I run into Peter Jackson or Steven Spielberg in a lift in Hobart, Tasmania)
‘A robe to die for: think Chanel meets Lord Voldemort’
I haven’t read the book yet (it’s a treasure yet to be examined!) but I am already enthralled with this robe. Will there be an actual physical robe made? Or does it already exist outside the realm of your book?
I wish, Nikalee. At the moment it’s just drawings but SUCH drawings!
The book’s available on kindle now by the way!
The Texas term for us, Pat, is artsy fartsy! 😉 I include myself as I love all things not symmetrical. The artist in me turns up her nose at anything symmetrical and/or balanced. I drive my accountant/math teacher daughters-in-law CRAZY. They don’t get staggered, odd numbers or crooked line.
And for more detail, I clicked on my screen’s zoom after I clicked on the pic and jacked the % to 200 and WOW, I can now see everything clear as a bell. I can’t wait for my mom to see this.
Pat, this is just gorgeous, stunning and stellar! Not enough adjectives to do it justice.
How about a paper doll bookmark?!!!
The term here is ‘arty farty’; much the same but a bit less class!
A paperdoll bookmark is a further extension of the idea!!
OMG I went to SMU!
I have a WAY larger resolution version for anybody whose computer is manly enough.
Yes please. And what is SMU?
SMU Mustangs!!!! Not my alma mater but a friend’s nephew, Gary Patterson, is head football coach there. He grew up in a neighboring rival town 20 miles down the road. And many of my high school friends attended SMU.
Mes…Southern Methodist University located in north TX.
Not sure about the classy thing tho, Mes. :0) Texas if not usually associated with the term, but OK, I’ll take it!!!
Let’s see if my computer can handle it, Pat?! I’m living on the edge tonight.
Correction Pat…Patterson is at TCU not SMU. My entire life, I have confused the 2. Sorry. Both good schools, altho I’m sure you feel that SMU is best!!!!
Oh, wow. What I wouldn’t give for that pattern! Exquisite!
*more awe*! You should include it in the next versions of the book!