Friday, July 23, 2010

Fascinate Me

Figuring out the placement of my materials in the bathroom mirror, while wearing jammies. That's how I roll!

If you follow my Facebook page at all (and I hope you do), you'll know that I'm going through a bit of a hat obsession. I can't stop looking at them! There are so many beautiful headpieces out there - vintage, contemporary, couture. I've never been a hat-wearer myself . . . but no time like the present to start, right?

There's nothing more beautiful, I think, than a veiled hat. So I decided to dabble a bit in making some veiled fascinators, since that seemed like a good entree into the world of chapeaux. (You know, like a gateway drug for hats!)

I looked at some online tutorials (like this one) and they really demystify making little headpieces like this. It all seems very crafty, involving things like felt squares and glue guns. In other words: fun! So I went on an Etsy spree, and ordered some materials. I got a straw base and nude veiling from this seller, and she was fab - super fast shipping, even from the UK.


The trim I chose is a vintage millinery supply - velvet strawberries! (Purchased from this fantastic seller.)

I haven't actually put them together yet; I just started playing around with the placement while looking in the bathroom mirror. This is how Jeff found me before before bedtime last night:

I ordered the skin-toned veiling so it wouldn't compete with my glasses, but I feel like it might still be a bit too much muchness around my face. Might be time to place a contact lens order - sigh.

But I think this fascinator business is SO FUN, guys! I want to buy a bunch of feathers and flowers and ribbons and invite you all over for a slumber party and we can put stuff on our heads together! Afterward we'll watch old seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer while eating cookies. Are you in?

74 comments:

  1. Were I in New York, I'd be there with bells on! Veils & vampire slaying - hells yeah.

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  2. I love the look with the glasses far more, really striking.

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  3. I made one for my wedding! It had a purple flower and feathers with off white veiling. Here's a picture:

    http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/DOixz8OfAt36giDH_8nP_2LzGiz6iUH-IbykCFD5vSk?feat=directlink

    I felt so glam wearing it.

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  4. Count me in! I will be making a fascinator for my daughter's wedding next year. So a jammie/crafting/Buffy (can we get the one with Hinton Battle?) party is just what I need. BTW the look is fabulous on you!
    MomO

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  5. Oh how I wish that the hats for leaving the house would come back in style! I love hats. I don't own many but I would start wearing them again if I could.

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  6. Oh, pleeeaaase don't get contacts! Your glasses are so unique (in a good way!).

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  7. Fascinators are a ton of fun to wear--if nothing else just for the heck of it! Funny you should mention millinery-making; I spent yesterday evening pouring over "From the Neck Up" and plotting a foray into making a little straw hat for myself. ;) lol. Can't wait to see what you come up with!!!

    I'm totally in on the party--if only we could invent some way for me to travel that doesn't involve long/expensive flights! haha!

    ♥ Casey
    blog | elegantmusings.com

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  8. Buffy AND hats? I'm IN! I'll bring the raspberry-infused booze.
    x

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  9. A craft and Whedon slumber party?! I think all my weekends for the next ten years have been sorted...

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  10. I don't think the veil and glasses are too much muchness, I think they are FAB!

    I made a feather, felt, and rhinestone fascinator last year and I love love loved it. There's a definite sassy factor to a fascinator.

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  11. So in for the Buffy.
    I don't think its too much around the face.

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  12. The magic of a veil. I like it both with your glasses, and without, but I'm the same way with worrying if I can add an accessory when I have such bold glasses on.

    LOVE Buffy, we could wear our new fascinators and then dance around to "Walk Through the Fire"

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  13. Ooh!Ooh!Ooh! I'm going to make a fascinator for my wedding too! I'm doing ivory accented with royal/sapphire blue because my engagement ring is a sapphire (although I still haven't actually got it yet, lol - but it should be made by now). So I'm thinking and ivory fascinator with that shade of blue flowers/feathers!

    However, now you've got me thinking - we're going to a wedding in early Oct, I should make one to go with whatever fall-coloured dress I make!!!!

    Also, you should totally check out this site/store:

    http://www.lilliputhats.com/

    They have lots more fascinators in their store, but are in Toronto (my hometown). Last time I was home I was in there trying some one to get ideas.

    Another also: for great supplies you know about the Tinsel Trading Co in Manhattan, right? So lovely and delicious, my fave NY store!

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  14. I agree that the veil looks fine with your glasses.

    I also agree that a slumber party with hats and Buffy sounds great.

    I love hats. I'm eager to see what you come up with!

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  15. It's a pity I'm nowhere near, or I'd be in! I, too, am fascinated by hats but hardly wear them. I find that my glasses are never a problem with fedora-type hats or classic brimmed lady's hats or those sun hats or felt ones with wide brims. They are however a problem with the lovely vintage veiled pillbox which I own. The veiling is supposed the fit rather tightly around the face, which makes wearing glasses nearly impossible and ridiculous looking. I've never tried a fashinator, expecting the same problem and the 'too much ado around my face'-thing you mention

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  16. Buffy is totally rockin'! Style AND serious vampire butt kicking skills. You're on!

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  17. i LOVE it with the glasses!! It's a really nice twist! Don't change it!

    xo

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  18. I love hats (though I don't wear them often), especially vintage ones with veils! Yours looks like it will be awesome (and I like it with the glasses, actually.)

    My mom gave me this vintage book on hat-making a few weeks ago: How to Make Your Own Hats from 1948. Makes me want to invest in a head block!

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  19. I'm with the others -- the netting looks great with your glasses, in fact it's perfect. Very YOU.

    Love it.

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  20. Count me in. I love hats and have contemplated making a few myself.

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  21. Love the velvet strawberries! I would definitely be in were in NYC and if you are ever in Chicago I reverse the invitation as well!

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  22. The glasses you have are really cool, but if you don't want to wear contacts, you might consider a pair of glasses with lighter (color or style) frames.

    I think it would be the most awsome thing ever if you took your hat to the store and tried on eyeglasses with it.

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  23. I think the nude netting looks WONDERFUL with your glasses! Screw the contacts!

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  24. I don't think the lace netting + glasses is too much at all, I think it looks just charming! Really cute, it makes you look like that brainy woman in the 1940s, the one who is the first woman in her town to get her PhD or something.

    Those velvet strawberries are amazing!

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  25. Hey! Like the other girls, I made something similiar for my wedding. I bought the veil (chin length french net) from the evil bridal big box store, then made a little thingie with ostrich feathers, vintage rhinestone buttons and a vintage brooch - like you, I wear black glasses, dark red lipstick. I couldn't STAND my glasses with the veil look - it just was too much. I left the glasses off for the day and liked it so much that I'm thinking of getting contacts. Lately I've been so drawn to lighter and brighter colors and fabrics and perhaps it's time (for me!) to put the black glasses on the shelf!

    Also! The vintage strawberries are awesome! I have a hoarding tendency for vintage trims - lace, ribbon, net, whatever - I usually end up spending about $20 buying little bits and bobs when I'm in an antique shop - old hats are some of my favorites - here in Minneapolis, you can get a hat in not-so wearable shape, but with TONS of those awesome old velvet trimmings for about $12. I LOVE the colors of those velvet flowers and leaves! So pretty! And I'm not sure what it is, but the net on the vintage hats is so much more soft and delicate than anything I've seen available new.

    Yay hats! One more story - I have a friend who wears hats and gloves pretty much all the time - in the fifteen years I've known her, I've only seen her hair maybe 3 times. People call her the hat lady around town - anyway - a few years ago she was asked to leave a jazz place in downtown Mpls (since closed down) because she wouldn't remove her hat and was violating their 'hat policy'!! Can you believe it??

    Bring on the hats!

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  26. Oh Gertie!

    I also have a hat obsession.

    I have a black velvet "New Look" hat that I love.

    The label reads Sue-Clair NY, Paris, San Francisco.

    I had to wear it back to SF in Union Square and spin around in my big-skirted dress.

    A hat-making break is the perfect creative outlet. Then everyone could pop them on their heds, grab a favorite pair of gloves and handbag and go lunch in a sidewalk cafe.

    Sounds better than going to work today!

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  27. Oooh, that looks fun to do and very pretty too! That fascinator-base was cleaver, always wonderd where one might find those...Think I will have to order some and give it a try...Thanx for the tip! (BTW, the "Blueprint"-book i wonderful, I look in it almost everyday! So thank you again for that!!)

    / Olivia

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  28. There are still a few hatshops in the district where you can purchase all of these supplies and more. Some of them will even help you plan a hat. There is one right around the corner from M&J (same street as Tinsel Trading) that is just awesome. I have the card at home...will look at the info and get back to you.

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  29. That sounds like a fun party. I've always made the ones that go on the back of the head, a la http://corvustristis.wordpress.com/2007/02/25/positively-fascinating/

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  30. Google images of Kate Middleton (Prince William's GF) and oggle the utter fabulosity of the hats she wears to royal family events. Not that I routinely do that or anything.

    (PS - I rotate between contacts and my chunky vintage specs - I like the option of both! Glasses just don't go with every outfit.)

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  31. This is why I read your blog even though my sewing skills are minimal.... I'd totally be about some hat making and Buffy.

    Also, I don't think the netting/glasses is too much around the face. It looks so cute!

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  32. Awesome! I love old Buffy episodes as well. Team Spike!!!

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  33. That sounds like such an awesome party. I would SO make the drive up there to attend.

    Also, ditto what Frances Joy said. I love to sew, but my skills leave much to be desired. Even so, I keep coming back.

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  34. sounds like fun! My forays into vintage have mostly been sewing for my nieces and nephew. I've made them a few hats.... if only they'd wear them *sigh*

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  35. I'm in! Although New York is too far, really.

    In February I went to a hat making class, it was the most fun I've had in a long time. I made a felted cloche and a straw hat from a original fifties mold!

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  36. I would seriously consider flying to New York for anything involving cookies and crafts and Buffy!

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  37. I have been reading a lot about Claire McCardell since our trip to the Brooklyn Museum. She loved hats and had hundreds of them. Hats can really make an outfit. I hope to make a few deerstalkers for the fall. Vogue put out some good vintage hat patterns.

    Buffy is my TV show of choice while sewing! Veronica Mars comes in a close second.

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  38. That really does sound like fun! I love the look on you! So sexy and innocent all at the same time. Gorgeous. Why don't we wear hats anymore? Why oh why?

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  39. Gertie - I'm with everyone - you look beautiful with the glasses. It adds to your beauty and uniqueness. I love hats even though I don't like the on me :o). I cannot wait to see your creations.

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  40. I'm there! Funnily enough I've been designing my own fascinator too (on one of those straw bases - from the same seller!). I just can't decide what to put on it - I toyed with using some vintage millinery cherries (I collect hats with cherries on, so it seemed an appropriate place to start), then I thought about flowers, then I thought about a big old ribbon rosette...

    Anyway, I'm rambling! Yours looks great - the strawberries are adorable.

    xx Charlotte
    Tuppence Ha'penny Vintage

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  41. I love that seller on etsy. I got a white tear-drop sinamay base from her and I'm just trying to figure out how to decorate it.

    I'll have to look for different accessories to put on it. I'm probably going to go with a nautical theme though.

    Your fascinator looks great!

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  42. Oh, the pains we girls who love our glasses go through... the world will never know! My frames are black with white temple arms and I have a bobbed hair cut so I spend much time in front of mirrors trying to decide if what I want to put on my head is too much. (Especially when I have my eyes done up too.) I pretty much always decide that the glasses are part of my retro look (a modern take on the classic horn rimmed) and leave them on.

    I don't believe I've actually ever opted for my contacts with headwear. I leave them for days when I REALLY play up my eyes, or want to accessorize with sunglasses. I actually bought black netting a few weeks ago to put on a fascinator and hadn't even thought about the color competing with my glasses. I'll have to pay special attention to that when I get around to sewing it up. However, hasn't the point of netting always been to be noticeable and make you a little mysterious?

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  43. Hi! Have you ever visited http://thehatshopnyc.com/ ? They have amazing hats and the cutest lady to tell you, "No, try one with a wider brim!" or "Your face was MADE for a fedora." It's right down the block from Hiroko's Place, where you can get Japanese American meatloaf! Squee!

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  44. Next time you want to make a hat check out Manny's Millinery Supply in Manhattan. They have been around since to old days of the garment district - a real throwback. they have everything you need, plus very knowledgeable staff. In the garment district - I think 38th street?
    Good luck hat-making!

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  45. I don't remember the title of a book I read on hats but the intro said (and I will never forgt it), "How to wear a hat? With aplomb, knowing you are absolutely right". I think that's the key to wearing hats. You must stop worrying about skin tone, glasses, placement on head - - and just have the confidence to stand out. Because in this day and age, wearing anything but a baseball cap and ponytail, you will get noticed. Not a fashion venture for the faint of heart. But I love my vintage hats - best collection ever!

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  46. I'm in!!!!! I love making hats. I made the one in my avatar pic. I just bought a couple vintage veiling at an antique fair... need to find some bases and I'll be ready to make some more hats! I love hats. I'm drawn to them. And with my hair growing out, it's becoming a necessary accessory.

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  47. Oh Gertie! Can we get married again? I once had a very short-lived blog where I analyzed all the Buffy episodes one by one. *sigh*.

    I don't think the veil competes with your glasses. I think it's great. I've never wanted to make hats before, but your velvet roses entice me.

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  48. If it wasn't so far to travel (I'm in the UK) I would so be there. I've wanted to have a go at these for ages and coupling that with Buffy and cookies is just too much. Damn when will they invent teleportation!

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  49. I am so in! Love Buffy, cookies, and have recently fallen in love with fascinators. Especially feathery ones.

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  50. Um, I ♥ vintage hats, and being crafty, and Buffy, and sleepovers!!! But I'm almost 3000 miles away... =( Oh well, you look fascinating in your fascinator.

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  51. Hi, the fascinator looks great! I think it works with or without the glasses. Here's a link to some hat instructions, http://www.vintagesewing.info/1950s/52-hmh/hmh-intro.html and you can buy a reproduction of both of Ruby Carnahan's books if you Google her. I think the company is Dakota Prairie Treasures.

    Also, buckram hat frames are available here http://www.patternstudio.com/hatframes.htm

    I especially like the bridal head bands - cover with fabric and add veils, beads, feathers, etc. Watch "Mona Lisa Smile", particularly the wedding sequence, for hat ideas.

    Love the blog.

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  52. Love love Love it! But I say keep the glasses if you want. It adds something off-kilter to a dainty fascinator, you know? The contrast between the veil and the glasses just brings the focus even more to your eyes and face.

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  53. If everyone who loves hats just started wearing them - then they would certainly be fashionable again. I just completed a hat toile - small-scale, so that I could practice the sewing directions. It was gigantic Vogue 8213 - a grand sunhat - to protect my easily-scorched head.
    My favorite hat book of all time (which I think I saw advertised in the back of Victoria magazine in the 80's)is Denise Dreher's from the neck up. Now, thanks to your blog, I know where I can order some millinery supplies. This is really inspiring!

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  54. I love to wear hats! they are like shoes for your head! yours is going to be so adorable-- those strawberries are precious!

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  55. I am SO in! I also love hats, though lately I've been having lots of fun with hairdos. Can we do each others' hair, too? lol

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  56. What could be better - sewy/crafty stuff, Buffy an cookies? Too bad I'm not closer to NYC.....

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  57. That sounds like so much fun! Buffy and hats... *sigh* Love the strawberries! (and the birdcage veil. Gorgeous!)

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  58. LOVE it! And it looks ADORABLE with your glasses! What a great project!

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  59. Gimme 3 seconds, I'll be right over! I'll bring strawberries and cream.

    Seriously cute fascination there :-)

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  60. Oh man! FUNNEST SLUMBER PARTY EVER.

    Have you heard of the book "Saturday Night Hat"? Good instructions for making a variety of hats.

    And if you end up making cloches, definitely check out the hoods here (you make them with felted wool):

    http://www.hatshapers.com/

    And there's a huge list of hat-making suppliers here: http://www.hatbook.com/suppliers.htm

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  61. Ooh, I would love to go! I love Buffy and crafty things!

    I bought a vintage hat several months ago but I still don't have the guts to wear it...maybe now I will :)

    The hat looks very cute; can't wait to see what you put together. The glasses suit you too.

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  62. Contacts are so uncomfortable. Cat-eyes look fabulous with hats and even veils. Luscious berries!

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  63. Thank you, thank you, thank you for this post...and the link.

    I've been pondering on my wedding headdress for far too long and couldn't find a veil that I liked.

    Now...I'm making my own.

    Did I say thank you? x

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  64. Oh man Gertie, you turn me on to many things, now hat veils, which I'd be lying if I said I don't have an interest in them, but now you've made me brave to get crafty and try them out, and linkage to some awesome looking stores, Etsy is way too much fun :)

    And I agree with others, wear your glasses proudly! (us blind people have got to stick together!)

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  65. I think that looks like so much fun! I sell flower fascinators in my etsy store, Thimble Kiss (http://thimblekiss.etsy.com) and have made a few with some lovely french veiling for brides, but the hat thing takes it to another level! I might have to experiment with that myself... complete with cookies and Buffy of course!

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  66. oh goodness, I LOVE the velvet strawberries!

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  67. p.s. I've never ever worn hats (except playing softball that one time...) and I still think they look terrible on me. I think maybe I have a funny-shaped head. Anywho, perhaps fascinators are the best way to start? And if I understand them correctly, they are sheer decoration, no practical function? Maybe hiding blushing cheeks? Or a bad pimple? Perhaps a veil is one of those things you just have to get used to - like seeing yourself in curly hair and red lipstick without feeling silly.

    Looks just darling!
    cheers,
    Daisy

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  68. I am SO in. I love making fascinators!

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  69. I really like your glasses, but I think the picture of you without your glasses is so lovely. I wear glasses as well and sometimes I like the look of an outfit without mine. Either way-the hat is awesome!

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  70. Gertie,

    I just found this one! It is awesome! You look wonderful in that little thing and no, it was not too much "muchness".

    So glad this little style has found its way back to us again and thank you for showing us the way :)

    Might you make another soon?

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  71. Thanks for the link back :) Good job on the fascinator - it looks lovely on you. Like the others I agree the nude coloured veil works with your glasses.

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Thanks for your comments; I read each and every one! xo Gertie

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