Hi, my name is Kay, aka NoGunz Kay. I have been sewing since my Grandma taught me to hand sew doll clothes at age 5.  I received my first sewing machine, a singer toy, at age 8 and sewed clothes for Barbie and tents for her beau, G.I. Joe.  I lost interest in sewing when my Grandma died until high school where I signed up for 3 1/2 years of Home Economics.  For Christmas of my senior year, I received a floor model Kenmore sewing machine, but lost interest again in sewing.  After college, I gravitated toward quilting, and out came the Kenmore again.  When Wal-Mart moved into our little town, I got hired on in receiving, but the fabric department was right outside the receiving doors, and another "Fabric Stash" was born.  I was designing, sewing and quilting wall hangings, and sewing for me a little. 

         When I married in 1988, I was wearing a dress I had made.  Later that year, I moved to Houston and the Kenmore came with me, of course.  My husband took me to the Texas Renaissance Festival in Plantersville twice the next year.  The first trip we were wearing modern clothes, the second, I was wearing a "Lady in Waiting" costume and so began a love affair with costuming.  Over the next several years I made more costumes from wenchwear to the ultimate "Queen's Gown" complete with a feathered fan, jeweled girdle and matching jeweled crown, all made by me. 

         In there too, I had found another venue for costuming, "Old Humble Days" was held in downtown Humble in September of each year.  It celebrated Humble's beginnings in the 1890's and hosted a costume contest.  The first year it was open to the public, I made my first Victorian costume.  The fabric came from Wal-Mart for a dollar a yard and the pattern was a Simplicity gotten on sale for 99 cents.  And that was also when I started changing my patterns, I wanted this dress to look like one I had found in an Amazon Dry Goods catalogue.  I also made my first order to Laughing Moon for a corset pattern which was made from a damask dress I purchased from a local thrift shop.  I arrived attired very properly in drawers, chemise, corset, boots, stockings, the dress, a matching reticule, a boater's straw hat and a matching parasol that had started life as a miniature wedding centerpiece.  I won first prize which was  $150. 

         In December of that year, I went to my first Dickens on the Strand in Galveston and wore the same dress.  For the next year I had planned and made a new dress, made out of more dollar a yard fabric.  Again I used a Simplicity pattern, and a McCalls pattern and a Butterick pattern, all combined to make one jacket.  I was hemming the skirt while watching the morning news and witnessed, live on TV, the second plane crash into the second Twin Tower.  I sat there stunned, just like the rest of the U.S.  As a result of the attack, the Humble event was canceled but I wore the dress to Dickens that December.  I wore it to the next Humble event too, but was disqualified due to having already won once, no one told me though until after the contest.  GRRRRRRGHH!!! I wore the dress again to Dickens in December because I didn't have time to make a new one for I had promised a friend that I would make her a new dress for Dickens.  I discovered the Truly Victorian website some months previous and had ordered three patterns, but they sat unused, so I used them for her dress.  It was made of navy broadcloth and a pretty blue plaid.  I also made her a navy blue velvet bonnet with shirred ivory satin lining.  It was the last dress I made for awhile. 

         While on the TV forum site one day, a lady named Fannie Kikinshoot invited me to another site aimed at Victorian costumed ladies who also shot guns.  This was my introduction to Cowboy Action Shooting.  I remained a lurking member of the Belle Alley for a couple of years before I finally decided to attend a local shoot to see if I was missing anything.  I watched and listened and learned.  At the end of the shooting, a guy named 3X8 asked me if I wanted to shoot his guns.  I said no, thank you, but he insisted as he handed over his 44-40 Henry.  My first shot was a miss and I gave the gun back.  He said there were four more, so shoot and I did, hitting the next four targets.  Gosh, that felt great!!!  Then he handed me his 1894 Marlin loaded with ten rounds.  Each of those rounds hit a target too.  I was hooked!!!!! 

         Coming back to the Alley, I was all excited, so the guys, Kid Sopris, Iron Ed, and Wallaby Jack, all decided on an alias for me.  I was thinking of being a watcher only, it would be too expensive to actually get into this new sport, so I figured on "Kay O'Spectate", the guys however vetoed that.  So at the next match, I introduced myself as "NoGunz Kay" and Catawaba Jake said "we'll have to change that!"  True to his word, he sold me a Rossi double barreled, hammered, 20 gauge shotgun.  I was sponsored by 3X8 on the last stage that day, and the next day, SASS gained a new member.  My pistols and rifle came from GunBroker.com about a month later, my guncart was built from scrap lumber I had fished out of the trash piles around the neighborhood.  I started attending regular matches twice a month when 3X8 told me about another club down by Angleton.  I soon learned how to write stages for this club and eventually was elected vice president. 

         It was about this time when I met Lorelei Longshot.  Her husband, Lazarus Longshot, and I had been on the same posse several times and talked about his bride, how school was keeping her busy or she was off hunting Bambi's mother.  We really started to get to know each other during a work day at a club.  From then on, we made a point to be on the same posse and really had lot's of fun together.  It wasn't until November of  '06 however, that we discovered we share a birth day, and that was the glue that melded us together. 

         In April of  '06, I was contacted by a new Alley member who was looking for someone that lived in her neck of the woods.  We arranged a phone call for her to ask me questions and to give her some tips, etc.  She said she had been to Trailhead and that Jailbreak was coming up and she was going to go and watch.  It was decided I would drive up to meet her at her place and she would drive us to Jailbreak and I'd introduce her to lots of fun people.  That was our first meeting, me and Texas Butterbean, and we have been inseparable ever since.  And it didn't hurt that we also shared a birth month and that she is only a year older than me.  When she began shooting with me and Lorelei, we became the November Trigger Sisters.  Bean has lent Lor a dress, corset and bustle for the banquet at Jailbreak ‘07, and I made the dress she wore at EOT 2007 for the costume contest.  Now there are two more dresses on the drawing board for her, and we plan on wearing our matching VBS's to a match later this year.