Maria da Agonia "Nia" Álvares de Castro- Iris
Stats
Gender: Female Age: 22 Nature: Bear Occupation: Dressmaker, Reenactment/Living History Appearance: With peachy skin she prevents from tanning, Nia’s Mediterranean heritage shows in her doe-like brown eyes and curly dark brown tresses. 5’4’’ with a pear shaped body typical of portuguese women, Nia has a more accentuated waist thanks to the corsets she’s worn since she was 14. With a foot set firmly in the past, Nia keeps a very feminine and somewhat 19th century inspired look. She's usually seen in either dresses or skirts, and rarely in trousers, prefering to keep them for more formal and sober events or for exercising. However, modern clothes are few thanks to her focus on making historical clothing. As a bear, she’s a brown bear of average built and dark brown fur. |
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Personality: When not portraying one of her personas, Nia is a friendly and enthusiastic domestic history geek with a penchant for pretty and frilly dresses. Polite - sometimes extremely so - and a homemaker at heart, Nia feels she must be in control of herself to reach comfort and stability.
And that's where her personality shows a more negative side. Not only must she maintain control of herself through routine and mental to-do lists, but hierarchies must be respected and upholded, making it so the need for stability and control slowly seeps into every aspect of her life, making it hard to form new friendships and relationships. Another aspect of this is that she doesn't allow herself to react too strongly, bottling up every negative emotion until they eventually burst out in emotional meltdowns that leave her nauseous and with an headache. However, she uses reenactment as a way to delay such meltdowns.
All in all, Nia lines well with what is expected of her as a Bear, in fact, she feels comfortable with the duty placed on her shoulders and for which she has been educated for her whole childhood. This could be because of her grandma, who lives and upholds the motto of the Estado Novo dictatorship - “God, Fatherland and Family”.
History: Born June 21st, 1995, in a small rural village in the district of Viseu, Portugal, Nia’s childhood was marked by her grandmother’s upbringing and guidance, as well as her father’s overprotection.
Second child to a stay at home mother and a construction worker, Nia’s days were spent between her grandmother’s house and her own, homeschooled from age 10 and helping around the farm. It was the internet that opened a window to the world beyond her little corner, and soon her fascination with history expanded, she found about reenactment after visiting a renaissance faire, and later on, living history.
After lurking various forums for months, Nia finally starts talking to people within those groups. Later on, with the help of her grandmother, she makes her first corded corset and starts wearing it, delving deeper into domestic history, searching books and documentaries and everything she could get her hands on. When she finished 6th grade, Nia went to trade school to become a dressmaker, fulfilling the long line of seamstresses on her mother’s side.
Only getting further interested in the tailoring of 18th and 19th century, Nia finds herself completely stuck since Portugal didn’t give her any opportunities to follow her aspirations. While talking with her mother, she is able to find the chance to finish her studies while working on doing what she loves: costuming. Her family wasn’t happy to say the least, with her father quickly rejecting the idea of his underage daughter moving out of the den and the country, but her mother and grandmother manage convince him.
In 2012, Nia moves in with her aunt in Massachusetts, determination making her finishing high school and slowly build up her portfolio despite the culture shock. Nia quickly searches for a job as soon as she graduated, and finds herself in Atlanta, working for a manufacturer and retailer of reproduction 18th and 19th Century clothing. It’s with the help of her aunt’s husband that she found a small rental house in Stone Mountain.
Abilities: Sewing, pattern making, corset making, embroidery, etc - Costume making related.
She’s a good cook, knows how to farm and enjoys baking now and then.
Weaknesses: Nia tends to repress her negative emotions, bottling them up, and tends to not be as assertive as she could be. Despite her best efforts, Nia is rather loud, and excitement only makes her louder.
Quirks: She wears corsets almost every day, despite the fact that they make shifting a bit complicated, likes cold showers and usually puts organizing and cleaning her house before her hobbies.
Weapons: None
Family:
Maria Madalena Sines de Castro - Paternal Grandmother
João Tavares de Castro - Father
Maria do Céu Cardona Álvares - Mother
José Luís Álvares de Castro - Older Brother
Maria Catarina Álvares de Castro - Younger Sister
+ Relatives: cousins, aunts and uncles, etc
Vehicle: A second-hand car, gift of her aunt.
Home: Small rental house in Stone Mountain
Character song: Amanhecer (Sempre mais uma vez), by Susana Félix
Character image portrayed by:
And that's where her personality shows a more negative side. Not only must she maintain control of herself through routine and mental to-do lists, but hierarchies must be respected and upholded, making it so the need for stability and control slowly seeps into every aspect of her life, making it hard to form new friendships and relationships. Another aspect of this is that she doesn't allow herself to react too strongly, bottling up every negative emotion until they eventually burst out in emotional meltdowns that leave her nauseous and with an headache. However, she uses reenactment as a way to delay such meltdowns.
All in all, Nia lines well with what is expected of her as a Bear, in fact, she feels comfortable with the duty placed on her shoulders and for which she has been educated for her whole childhood. This could be because of her grandma, who lives and upholds the motto of the Estado Novo dictatorship - “God, Fatherland and Family”.
History: Born June 21st, 1995, in a small rural village in the district of Viseu, Portugal, Nia’s childhood was marked by her grandmother’s upbringing and guidance, as well as her father’s overprotection.
Second child to a stay at home mother and a construction worker, Nia’s days were spent between her grandmother’s house and her own, homeschooled from age 10 and helping around the farm. It was the internet that opened a window to the world beyond her little corner, and soon her fascination with history expanded, she found about reenactment after visiting a renaissance faire, and later on, living history.
After lurking various forums for months, Nia finally starts talking to people within those groups. Later on, with the help of her grandmother, she makes her first corded corset and starts wearing it, delving deeper into domestic history, searching books and documentaries and everything she could get her hands on. When she finished 6th grade, Nia went to trade school to become a dressmaker, fulfilling the long line of seamstresses on her mother’s side.
Only getting further interested in the tailoring of 18th and 19th century, Nia finds herself completely stuck since Portugal didn’t give her any opportunities to follow her aspirations. While talking with her mother, she is able to find the chance to finish her studies while working on doing what she loves: costuming. Her family wasn’t happy to say the least, with her father quickly rejecting the idea of his underage daughter moving out of the den and the country, but her mother and grandmother manage convince him.
In 2012, Nia moves in with her aunt in Massachusetts, determination making her finishing high school and slowly build up her portfolio despite the culture shock. Nia quickly searches for a job as soon as she graduated, and finds herself in Atlanta, working for a manufacturer and retailer of reproduction 18th and 19th Century clothing. It’s with the help of her aunt’s husband that she found a small rental house in Stone Mountain.
Abilities: Sewing, pattern making, corset making, embroidery, etc - Costume making related.
She’s a good cook, knows how to farm and enjoys baking now and then.
Weaknesses: Nia tends to repress her negative emotions, bottling them up, and tends to not be as assertive as she could be. Despite her best efforts, Nia is rather loud, and excitement only makes her louder.
Quirks: She wears corsets almost every day, despite the fact that they make shifting a bit complicated, likes cold showers and usually puts organizing and cleaning her house before her hobbies.
Weapons: None
Family:
Maria Madalena Sines de Castro - Paternal Grandmother
João Tavares de Castro - Father
Maria do Céu Cardona Álvares - Mother
José Luís Álvares de Castro - Older Brother
Maria Catarina Álvares de Castro - Younger Sister
+ Relatives: cousins, aunts and uncles, etc
Vehicle: A second-hand car, gift of her aunt.
Home: Small rental house in Stone Mountain
Character song: Amanhecer (Sempre mais uma vez), by Susana Félix
Character image portrayed by: