the Quasi-Historical Costumer

2011 in review and 2012 plans

Sun, 01 Jan 2012 13:19:15 GMT

Hmm, yes, hi, I'm alive.
Not much of a review this year, I've been mostly below the radar...
I found out in early spring that I was pregnant, a surprise, but a good one. It was a quite difficult pregnancy with me being on sick leave for a few months, and when our beautiful baby girl (lovingly nicknamed Kidlet) was born in October she didn't leave me with any spare time for costuming either ;o)
But of course she's oh so worth it! =)

Fortunately I didn't set any written in blood goals for 2011, only listed a few hopes, two of which I actually made, and then some other few tidbits for our Tolkien society event Bokskogen and some baby stuff (none of which I ever posted about, sorry, but it's coming).

Finished projects this year
• 18th C kci redstriped jacket FEB
• 10th C handsewn viking underdress (room for baby bump) JULY
• 10th C handsewn viking apron dress (room for baby bump) JULY
• 10th C undershirt for Jo JULY
• 10th C viking tunic for Jo JULY
• 10th C viking pants for Jo JULY
• 10th C handsewn shift for Kidlet NOV
• 2 breastfeeding pillows NOV
• baby mattress cover DEC

I had dubbed 2011 the year of Simplifying, I didn't want any must-dos, obligations or expectations to kill my sewing mojo, but as it turned out I didn't get very much use of that resolution anyway... ;o)

2012 - the year of DOWNSCALING!

I'm really going to lower my own expectations this year!
However, we do have a jubilee for the Tolkien society so I'm hoping to crank out at least one fancy costume each for Jo and me.

Wishes for 2012: (S=stashed fabric)
• 16th C Kampfrau for the jubilee
• 16th C Sture suit for Jo for the jubilee

and IF IF IF there's more time and energy it would be nice to make
• 16th C flemish some last changes
• 10th C viking jacket for Jo
• 15th C french working class dress
• 18th C pet en l'air or pierrot

(If you're interested, here are my reviews from 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010

Silver lining

Tue, 25 Jan 2011 09:17:54 GMT

With my lack of updates you'd be guessing that nothing's getting done over here, but that's actually far from the truth, I've just devoted my precious time to sewing instead of updating. At this point the lining of the jacket is done, meaning that the patterning has been tweaked and adjusted into perfection for the outer fabric.

I did make a muslin first, this was based on a slightly altered version of my trusted 18th C bodice pattern.

The fit worked well, so then I went ahead and made some changes to the pattern to get the characteristics of the jacket - the overlapping front bodice with a wider CF bottom, the small skirt at the back, and slightly higher neckline etc. I tried that on the lining straight away since they weren't major changes and I do have plenty of that fabric. This was last weekend and all was hunkydory.

Then came monday, bringing teh Sleevils. Sigh. My first (ever) attempt at making a twopart long sleeve turned out awful. The angle at the elbow was too small and the width was too generous and the whole thing fit horribly into the bodice armscye. So on tuesday night I started drafting a new pair, a Franken-pattern that is based on the onepart short sleeve that I'd previously drafted to use with the original bodice (because then at least I knew it would fit into the scye), with a lot of guesswork and trying to imitate the twopart sleeve for the pierrot in "Kvinnligt Mode". The good thing is that I can now use this sleeve pattern for when I make that pierrot, in some other life.

I first tried out that new sleeve pattern by pinning the pattern (drawn on a plastic bag) on my arm, and after that made it up in the lining fabric. It worked out great. Now they are attached to the bodice and I'm ready to get started on the striped silk outer fabric.

In between, I've also worked on a little fichu, just a triangular piece of cotton voile that I've hemmed by hand while watching telly.
If I stick to my plan of sewing every night, I might just finish in time for the Your Wardrobe Unlock'd Double Period Project deadline, and in an ideal world I'll get all the accessories made too ;o)

Half a flemish

Wed, 05 Jan 2011 20:21:53 GMT

Right, when I summed up the year it seemed like there were quite a few projects that I never showed you guys pictures of, so I'm gonna get right on to that.

The 16th century flemish ensemble isn't technically finished, since the overgown still needs a few eyelets and a hem, but I, being clever for once, made the kirtle of wool too, so both can be worn as outer garments, meaning the kirtle and co have actually been worn to 3 events already.

Meaning I shoulda been a good girl and posted some pictures. ;o)

Everything is handsewn with waxed linen thread.

The first two pictures are a somewhat anachronistic homage to all the flemish women Aertsen painted at the stove or generally in the kitchen. The third pic, at Visby Medieval Week, is showing the versatility of removable sleeves and partlets. I really love that aspect of the flemish. Once I've finished the gown and its matching new blue sleeves there'll be lots of combo possiblities! =)

2010 in review and 2011 plans

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 14:31:22 GMT

This year really hasn't felt very productive, what with a new job, and life, the universe and everything ;)
But still, some things were accomplished and now's the time to be proud and not mope about coulda woulda shoulda! =)

Some pictorial highlights:

I had 14 projects planned for 2009 and I actually made 14, just not exactly the ones planned...
My goal was to use stashed fabrics as much as possible 2010, indicated by S

Finished projects this year
• 18th C pockets to match stays S FEB
• 18th C bjd gentleman's waistcoat S FEB
• 18th C waistcoat for Jo MAR
• 18th C cravatte for Jo S MAR
• faux fur jacket S APR
• 16th C handsewn flemish wool partlet MAY
• 16th C handsewn flemish linen partlet MAY
• 16th C handsewn flemish kirtle MAY
• 18th C bjd fur breeches S AUG
• wedding dress for Sister-in-law SEP
• 18th C CC-U pondicherry jacket S OCT
• 18th C bumroll to match stays S NOV
• 18th C picture hat S DEC
• faux fur hat S DEC

I realise now that I havn't posted pictures of half of these finished projects. Oups.

The stash resolution worked out quite well, the flemish I'd already made exceptions for (plus I got those fabrics for my b-day) and the wedding dress commission bloody well had to get new fabrics ;o)

I also kept up the 2009 resolution to only work on 3 projects at a time!

This year I'm going to try to get back into the swing of things and the joy of sewing by simplifying. I easily get caught up in things and get too ambitious. Not posting here because I don't have fabulous pictures to share with my updates; going nuts on handsewing and accuracy; stressing myself into crazy deadlines; over-ambitious projects...

F*ck that!
I don't want any must-dos, obligations or expectations to kill my sewing mojo this year!

2011 - the year of SIMPLIFYING!

In honor of this, I'm not making any plans for this year, but here are a few things that I hope to WANT to do =)

Wishes for 2011: (S=stashed fabric)
• 18th C kci redstriped jacket S STARTED
• 18th C blue/bronze Georgiana for me and/or bjd S
• 18th C pink and/or green floral anglaise for myself and/or bjd S
• 10th C viking for Jo
• 18th C pierrot pink striped S
• 15th C french working class

(If you're interested, here are my reviews from 2007, 2008 and 2009

hats off!

Sun, 12 Dec 2010 17:42:40 GMT

With giftmas around the corner things have been rather hectic, especially with a bout of sinusitis to spice things up. Which means that I havn't started anything major, but sewing in front of the tv is perfect when home sick, so I decided a slightly smaller project would be perfect. Accessories are always fun, and as it happens, I did have some planned for the Your Wardrobe Unlock'd Double Period Project. So I got cracking on the Gainsbourough hat, something I've been meaning to make for ages and had all the ingredients for =)

The Gainsborough hat, or Picture hat, or Devonshire hat was made famous by Georgiana Cavendish, the duchess of Devonshire, in her portrait by Gainsborough. All of a sudden everyone wanted a huge black hat with a big ribbon and a sway of ostrich feathers. Being a true fashionista, of course I wanted one too, some hundred years later ;o)

There are millions of ways to cover a hat, but here's my way if anyone's interested.

Here are the raw materials, a straw hat to cover, silk, wire, ostrich feathers, buckle, and ribbon. I first chose that ribbon because it almost matches the one in the Georgina film, but it didn't match the jacket fabric so well so I'm probably going to use something else. First the a wire is sewn to the frame so that the hat will keep its shape when worn. The ends are secured with electrical tape.

The brim and crown are measured and traced on folded fabric. The brim is stitched and the crown cut out. Then the brim cover is wiggled onto the straw hat, this can be a bit of a struggle. The height and circumference of the crown is measured and a corresponding rectangle is cut out to which the top of the crown is sewn. My crown was a bit tapered so the side crown had to be gathered a little, but this will be covered by the ribbon. This is then pinned and stitched to the straw hat.

I use a millinary needle that is curved for these seams, they are very handy! Then the brim cover is turned under, pinned and stitched on top of the side crown. Turn under and sew the bottom side to the straw hat too for a nice finish without fraying. And that's it. It's ready to be decorated, the fun part! I can't wait!

KCI close-up

Fri, 19 Nov 2010 15:41:52 GMT

In an attempt to get to know the KCI jacket a little better (so I'll at least know what it should look like before I deviate from it ;), I've been pouring over the great zoom in function on the KCI website to get up close and personal with my new friend.

Here are some points of interest:

There's no side seam visible, meaning the front will have to be patterned to go quite far back. This isn't unusual in 18th C clothing.

A cute stitch shows where the outer fabric and lining has been joined, telling us about the construction.

The cuff is really pretty, and makes me a little nervous trying to figure it out, but I guess I'll have to mock it up until I get something resembling the original.

The collar is pinked and scalloped, it will probably need fraychecking. It has a seam half way up to the shoulder. The way it looks slightly torn between the two pieces of the collar, and the lines of the stripes makes me think that the collar's been cut as one with the bodice up to the seam. I'll have to do a scale test to see if that's possible.

A close-up of the silver-coloured buttons, need to find something like it.

And here's my biggest conundrum - the back. As far as I know there are no pictures of the back of this jacket, please tell me if you know of any!

It looks like the back's laying very fat to the skirt and is just one rounded point, but it's described as a pierrot, and those usually have a flared peplum like this one or this one.
However, here's one that seems like it would lie quite flat. It's buttoned up and has got a collar not totally unlike the KCI jacket and is from 1785, so around the same time. The peplum might be sewn shut or it might have boxpleats in the back, I seem to see some brown curves from the lining at the bottom but I'm not quite sure.

Here at mme_du_jard's flickr I found a real a gem though, a pierrot with views from all angles! And in the side view the back looks identical to the KCI! It's got a very similar collar to the KCI jacket too, even with the same seam placement halfway up the shoulder. And from the back view you can see that even though it lies flat, it has an intricate pleating in the peplum! The only discrepancy is that the peplum side seems to be cut apart from the bodice, which it looks like the KCI isn't, but I'm hoping that's just a matter of adjustment.

I can't decide whether to make that kind of intricate peplum or play safe with a rounded point.

But either way - I'm loving my jacket more the more I ~~drool~~ look at it =)

I have a cunning plan

Thu, 18 Nov 2010 13:37:54 GMT

Have you all heard of the Your Wardrobe Unlock'd Double Period Project? It's a costume competition focusing on two periods, this year it's the victorian natural form era 1876-1882, and the Revolutionary period of 1770-1789.
As you might have guessed I was one of the lobbyists for the revolutionary era ;o)

So having lobbyed I suppose I should fess up and make an entry, right? =)

As it happened I had long planned to make the Kyoto Costume Institute's gorgeous redstriped jacket, so with the DPP in mind I had put it on the list of projects for this year, and it being November now, it's high time to get cracking.

I've secretly worked on some of the accessories already without mentioning the DPP in case I chickened out or never had the time to make it, but now that the jacket will be in the making I thought I might as well make it official ;o)

Here's a rundown of my planned outfit
• Redstriped Jacket
• Gainsborough picture hat
• Sheer striped Petticoat from 2009
• Fichu
• Miniature portait in a black ribbon started
• Cockade
• Stays finished
• pockets finished
• Bum roll finished

I've got the perfect striped silk that I bought in 2009 specificly for this project. Now, where to set my standards - to handsew or not to handsew? Will I have the time to handsew? Will I have the time even with the machine? ;o)

Bummer

Wed, 17 Nov 2010 11:45:07 GMT

Ever since I finished my scalamandre stays I wanted to make some accessories for them. In February I made a matching pocket and now I fianlly made myself a new bum roll.

My old bum roll was very ungainly and gave the wrong siloutte - it stood out too much and didn't have the soft sloping giant ass from period paintings. Also it went all the way around my waist which looked really weird from the front. I've been eager to try out the petal shaped variety, so with both means and motive, I was ready to rock!

And here's the result, my new handsewn bum.

It might be a tad too small, but the old one was way to large, and this one gives a much better shape. Might make a medium sized one in the future ;o)

corset cleanup

Thu, 04 Nov 2010 20:44:16 GMT

Remember this old thing?
Can't blame you, cos well, I didn't...
It was the Your Wardrobe Unlock'd corest I started back in 2008. I found it while cleaning out my wardrobe and after my 'little' selfimposed sewing hiatus after finishing my sister in law's wedding dress, this seemed like a great thing to start, as it would be relatively easy to finish. =)
This was the dummy:

I had already made it up this far in 2008, and this October I've worked on it during two corsetry group tuesdays and I'm happy to say I'm on the finishing stretch. First it needed some adjustments since I was a tad thinner back when. That was easy enough since the sideseams where only basted. Then it was time for boning. The back canals next to the eyelets were already boned with spring steel. But I really liked the clean outside without canals, so for the spiral steel I decided to go for bone casings sewn onto the lining in between the layers. Lucky me again the side seams were only basted, so after marking the changes I ripped them up, sewed the casings on and then restitched the sideseams. This way the seams for the casings show on the inside, but not the casings themselves, and I really like the clean look. The boning at the side is stuck into the serged seam allowance which will be stitched down. Again, nice and clean.

Something not so clean though, I managed to bleed on the white corset after a pinprick, oups. But I guess it ain't a real project till you bled on it, right? ;o)

I won't make it to corstery tuesday for two weeks, but basicly I'm only bias binding and pimping away from a finished corset. Yay!

summer sewin' happened so fast

Sat, 04 Sep 2010 20:20:59 GMT

The summer went by in a jiffy and without a computer I've been unable to post about all the wonderful things I've been sewing on. Ok maybe that's a bit of an exaggeration, but I HAVE been sewing, promise.

I've been working on 3 things; the pondicherry jacket (which I wore to the Bokskogen event, but it still needs a few more eyelets before I'm all done with it), the flemish (who's underdress I wore at Bokskogen and again at the Medieval Week at Visby and who's overdress I'm almost done with), and most importantly a wedding dress! My sister in law asked me if I'd make her wedding dress and although I know that family make the worst clients, I just couldn't refuse!

She wanted a very simple white silk dress with black details, very much like what I had planned to sew for my own wedding, but didn't have the nerves to sew.

I've made her a muslin in a pretty retro floral patterned fabric (seen to the right on my dummy set to the wrong size) which she'll be able to wear as a summer dress, and before my vacation I cut and sewed most of the lining. This weekend I'll start the silk and hopefully I'll have some pictures of the real deal for you soon!

Mini Jo

Mon, 24 May 2010 16:08:37 GMT

I've always loved 18th Miniature portraits, and ever since from bauhausfrau's excellent tutorial came out on Your Wardrobe Unlock'd I've been meaning to make one of my own dearest Jo. (Yes you'll need a subscription to get to all the goodies there, but I've subscribed since the beginning and promise you it's such a wealth of information!)
So today I scavenged for a suitable portrait and found one on http://www.historicalportraits.com that actually resembled Jo a bit. Then I foraged for a picture of Jo whith a similar facial angle. Some photoshopping later his face was merged in and I also retouched the gent's clothes into Jo's suit and waistcoat.
I'm really happy with the result and can't wait to make it into a real physical miniature!

Flemish preview

Tue, 18 May 2010 13:18:30 GMT

I must admit I'm feeling rather smug. Ok, I didn't finish the entire flemish in time for our visit to the SCA event, but I finished enough to make it wearable and I didn't succumb to the urge to machine sew. I didn't even get started on the overgown, however, since I made the kirtle out of wool that turned out just fine by itself.
I made ugly little handmade eyelets for the kirtle, and the linen partlet had to live without a ruffle, but I patterned and made up a pair of very nice sleeves in little over an hour using the very helpful instructions at the Tudor Costume Page.

Quite a few people recognised it as being flemish, and I even got a compliment from a woman who's blog I'd surfed for flemish inspiration. =)

Unfortunatly this picture © mrmonkeyboy of half of my back is all I could find since I didn't bring my own camera, but consider this a preview for now.

Flemish flailing

Tue, 11 May 2010 12:20:49 GMT

Alright, I'm mad.
I'm leaving for the SCA event tomorrow and I have yet to finish more than half of my flemish... I havn't been idle, but because it is a very fitted garment and from a period that I haven't explored very much I really wanted to do some thourough mock-up-ing before cutting out my very 'spensive wool. So I've done 3 mocks on the bodice and then 1 mock-up of the partlet.

Here's the third and final bodice mockup.

The first bodice mockup was made using Drea Leed's Elizabethan corset pattern generator and the second mockup following her instructions of turning that into a bodice. Alterations were made along the way and it all resulted in this final mockup.

The partlet's based on one in Period Costume for Stage & Screen 1500-1800

To further slow down progress, I accidentally ordered a linen thread which was too thick (18/3 instead of 35/2) so when I had finally cut out the wool partlet and started sewing on wednesday last week I only made a few stitches before realising it was all pearshaped. So everything was on hold until friday night when I got the new threads (unbleached 35/2 for the wool, and 60/2 halfbleached for the linen). The weekend was very busy, but I got the wool partlet finished and the linen partlet only needs its ruffle.

Last night I cut out the kirtle bodice and started sewing it.

I managed to take this afternoon off and I still have tomorrow morning before I leave, but the to-do list is quite frightening...

kirtle bodice finish
kirtle skirt
gown bodice
gown skirt
sleeves
and a new smock (if there's time)(insert madman laugh here)

All handsewn.

Yes, I'm mad.

Rural rapture

Thu, 29 Apr 2010 13:30:39 GMT

This weekend we went to our little cottage to soak some spring sun and have some R&R, and since I hadn't started on the flemish yet, I brought the pondicherry jacket to finish up to last handsewn eyelets. And because it was sunny and I just love the rural atmosphere I had to try it on and take a few photos. So all the eyelets aren't sewn, meaning the lacing looks a little weird, and I'm shamelessly stayless ;o)

It's all handsewn: linen chemise, linen petticoat, linen cap and cotton jacket.

To split or not to split the flemish

Fri, 23 Apr 2010 16:15:30 GMT

After drooling over copious amounts of Aertsen and Beuckelaer paintings I went in search of other costumers' reproductions on the net.

Fans of the 16th C flemish working gown seem to be divided into two camps, one with Drea Leed as figurehead, making gowns with a split skirt front; and one headed by Jen Thompson and Kass McGann arguing for a gown without a split skirt front.

At first I had decided for the split skirt front because it seemed like a natural continuation of the split bodice, and most reproduction costumes seem done this way, but then I went back and looked at all the paintings again (here is an excellent source!) and while their (damn) aprons are almost always hiding their skirts I couldn't find one single source where a split front was visible, yet several where the skirt is one piece.

Here are some examples where I think the skirts are conclusively without a split:

Close-ups from Aertsen and Beuckelaer paintings

There are some pictures from behind of skirts pulled/pinned back, with a contrasting lining showing, which I think might have been a root to the theory of split fronts. However, I'm now convinced that this could be acchieved by hitching up the onepiece skirt and pulling it back. It seems that skirts where hitched or pinned up in various ways, both in front, back and sometimes even on the sides.

Here are some variations:

Close-ups from Aertsen and Beuckelaer paintings

So as you might have gathered, I'd say that the flemish dresses didn't have split fronts. I'm not an expert and don't claim to have the right answer, but that's what I think, and that's what I'll make.

When I planned my fabrics I was still planning a splitfront skirt and because the kirtle underneath would then have been very much visible I assumed that it would have been made out of wool, so that's what I've bought for the kirtle as well as the gown of course. If it indeed wasn't split though, I suppose linen might have been used back then, as the kirtle would have been more of an undergarment. Still, if it's hitched it shows, and since I've got the wool, I'll use the wool.

Flemish plans

Wed, 21 Apr 2010 14:50:39 GMT

Remember back in November when I said we might be visiting friends at an SCA event and I thought it would be a nice homage to make a flemish gown to wear to it, since I lived in Flanders during my teens?

Well, it turns out we ARE going.
And it's in 3 weeks.
And I meant to handsew it.

Right, so you'd think someone working in marketing would have thought of a feasibility study, but no, I'm just gonna (blindly) boldly go ahead and give it my best shot!

Since I had decided to go all in on accuracy this time, I asked for really pretty (expensive) fabrics for my birthday, and my parents, who still live in Flanders, were only too happy and excited to comply. (And this was the one project I allowed myself to buy new fabric for in spite of my Year of the Stash pledge) It's slightly ironic that a working class gown will probably be the most expensive one I've made to date, but I could just die for that wool, it's so scrumptious! The outer dress will be made out of the cornflower blue light twill wool, and the kirtle out of the light madder red of the same kind. I've also ordered black wool for the partlet and the sleeves and nice wool thread to sew it with. I already have white linen for the inner partlet and the smock.

I have only gotten to the research and planning stage yet, and I'll post all about the split/non-split gown dilemma later, and hope to get to patterning asap so I can get cracking on this crazy puppy...

Time to waist

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 14:31:37 GMT

I did some work on my fax fur jacket it during last weeks corsetry group but other than that, there really hasn't been much sewing going on, as usual after any party, I've had some downtime sewingwise. I did dress up Jo to get some pictures of his new waistcoat and cravat.

This costume has undergone an identity crisis. It started out as a navy uniform (and is still tagged as such). But Jo wanted it to be rather simple and not as pimped with gold as would have been required. Also, I recently got the pattern and an infobooklet about the famous uniform of Carl XII of Sweden, so I offered to make a replica of that for him (some day) if we decided that this would just be a gentleman's outfit. I showed him the gorgeous suits the whigs wore in the Georgiana movie, and he liked the look and agreed that this would be a better incarnation for his suit.

It only needed a cravat, which I made out of a fine cotton voile; and a waistcoat, for which I found a pretty striped fabric that effectively combined the colours of the breeches and coat. I opted for using the striped fabric on both front and back only cos I love matching stripes.

Ah I love matching stripes so much!

Yes, I need to convince him to get a wig.

Post party

Wed, 10 Mar 2010 15:08:49 GMT

It's time to hang my head in shame. With the 18th C themed Spring Banquet I had a perfect excuse to sew both myself and Jo new pretty outfits, but between being swamped at work, having tummy flu and general life stress I realised it would all end with epic fail unless I prioritized.

So I decided to pimp my husband and leave my dress. This decision was also partly due to the fact that while I am absolutely in love with late 18th C fluffy anglaises, most other people at the party wouldn't know that Indienne cotton was actually very luxurious and I'd just be the girl in a floral common cotton dress.
Instead I opted for wearing an outfit inspired by the Marie Antoinette movie's milk maid, with my new stays and petticoat, accessoriesed to no end with ostrich plumes, paper roses, paper birds and my new cute pocket.
I got so many compliments and I know that this outfit was much more appreciated than the floral anglaise would ever have been. It makes the costume nerd in me a little sad, but at least I got a chance to show off my new stays which would otherwise only have been an undergarment.

I'm going to do a proper photoshoot with the stays at some point but here are some partypics for now.

Thanks mrmonkeyboy for the pictures. Please excuse my goofy face. Pictures of Jo's new waistcoat will follow. Oh and the banquet was a great success, we partied until 05.30, just like la Reine herself would have ;o)

Hat trick

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 12:20:53 GMT

I'm so excited! I've previously collected the page on the right and 2 others from The Mode in Hats and Headdress, but now, thanks to lisotchka who posted a link to the entire book on the Historical Sewing Forum, I've discovered that there are 193 pages of droolworthy hats, 26 of these being from the 18th C...
Here's the 18th C section, and here's the entire book.
Inspiration overload!

Sewing update: I've sewn the bodice lining for the anglaise and have started laying out the pattern on the floral fabric, but I figured I'd best try on the lining first as I had adjusted the shoulderstrap on the back without a mockup. For a while there I was being crazy and wanted to handsew the entire thing cos the fabric is so pretty and would look so good with external stitches but common, with a week and a half to go that was a tad unrealistic... Especially since I also have to make the waistcoat that Jo's suit is missing along with pimping his coat. And now there's about a week left. Worried? Me? Nah. ;o)

Pocket sized

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 12:05:47 GMT

I still haven't found my camera's usb cord, but in a sneak attack I borrowed Jo's posh camera and here's a picture of the pocket I finished the other week. It's handsewed with the same fabric as my new stays, backed with green linen leftovers from the matching petticoat. Some day I'd like to emroider a pocket, but not all pockets were, and in the spirit of matching, I'm happy with this one.

No real progress on the anglaise since I spent the weekend either cleaning up the mess that was our house or hungover. Yes, there's only a week and a half left. Yes, this makes me nervous.

Confession time

Thu, 18 Feb 2010 10:20:23 GMT

So you know how I said I wanted one bjd gent and one lady in order to sew both ladys' and gents' wear in 1/3 scale? Well, turns out I levelled up. Apparantly one of each is not enough after all. While I probably would never have gotten him had Unidoll not decided to discontinue their Ark, now that his expressive face was to be lost forever, I very impulsively bought him. Ok, so they lowered their pricetag too, that helped me over the edge. This happened at the end of Jan so I'm in my 4th week of waiting out of the 6-8 weeks, and he's being sent straight to a faceup artist since I think his default is a little too dark for my taste. I want him to look macho and displeased but not mean and grumpy...

In my defense, I'll be sewing completey different things for him, so that'll be my alibi for breaking my 'only one of each gender' rule. He'll be my bad-ass 18th C fop, with leather breeches, lots of black lace and leather and fur frockcoats. Neat huh?

The whig waistcoat that sneaked in

Wed, 17 Feb 2010 12:36:35 GMT

I've been a bad girl. Instead of working on one of the three projects I allow myself to have going at any given time I decided to do a little thing on the side...
Yes, the spring banquet is comming up in 2 weeks and it being 18th C themed and all, I'll kill myself if I don't finish my new anglaise on time. And yes, the whole idea of the faux fur winter jacket is being able to wear it during winter, but we're still having snow, so I don't feel all bad about it.

So anywho, I made a waistcoat for Mano, it's handsewn with a striped cotton front and a white linen back. And itsy cute little buttons down the front. Major learning - it's probably much easier to line the whole thing than flatfelling 0,5 cm seam allowances. Doh.
I'm slowly working my way through Mano's whig themed suit, the one Charles Gray wears when canvassing in the Duchess movie. Now all it needs is the coat. But it's nice to have a project in which I'm in no hurry.

And to try to redeem myself - I have started on the pattern adjustments for the floral anglaise and hope to really get that going this weekend. And instead of starting my new victorian corset I'm going to bring the faux fur jacket to my corsetry group tonight.

Spring awakening

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 09:29:05 GMT

Yes, I know I've been in total hibernation since xmas, but winter just makes me want to crawl into ~~a cave~~ my bed and pull up the covers. What better time to pull myself out of it than Candlemas/Imbolc/St. Brighidh?

I have done some sewing, I've actually finished a pocket to match my new stays, I'll share pictures once I've found the usb cord for my camera. The pocket's been handsewn in front of the telly which is excellent, I get to slouch on the couch and still feel accomplished =)

I've also started on a faux fur jacket. That's right folks, I'm sewing something that's not historical - I'm making 'real' clothes as my mom and mom-inlaw would say. Since faux fur is all the rage this winter and I had a bolt of it intended for lining a mideaval-ish hooded cape X years ago I decided I'd sew myself a (gasp) modern piece.

But now on to exciting things! For the Tolkien Society Spring banquet in 4 weekes we'll be having an 18th C theme - SQUEE! It took me a couple of weeks to calm down and decide which one out of all of my fabulous planned 18th C costumes I'd make and wear. It was a close call between the floral anglaise, the georgiana victory, and the redstriped KCI jacket. Now I think I've made up my mind to make the floral anglaise, mostly because it'll probably be the quickest option.

I'll be using my standard 18th C bodice and sleeve patterns to make an anglaise out of the pretty 'Krystal lillies' floral fabric I've been hording for 3 years.
Under it I have 3 options; wearing the sheer georigiana petticoat, with or without a burgundy linen petti underneth for a slight redish hint; the burgundy by itself; or, if I have time I'll make a new quilted petticoat. Yes, I know, I never fessed up to you about buying the quilted bedspread back in October, but I did and it's a perfect match for the floral print. But I might not have time to make it and also I think the sheer petti is better for a late 18thC look, like the one from KCI to the right in the picture.

I'll pimp it all up with my pink and white ostrich feathers, my miniature on a black silk ribbon and hopefully I'll have time to make a fichu.

For the banquet I'll also pimp up Jo's 18th C quasi-uniform, adding some gold trim and fixing some loose seams, and maybe even make the matching vest it is shamefully missing.

2009 in review and 2010 plans

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 19:04:09 GMT

Another year has come and gone and it's time to sum it all up, costumewise!
Yeah I know it's the end of January already, but I've been hibernating a little.

(If you're interested, here are my reviews from 2007 and 2008.)

Some pictorial highlights:

[rightclick > view to enlarge]

I had 16 projects planned for 2009 and I made 15, just not exactly the ones planned...

Finished projects this year
• 18th C bjd Sooah's chemise a la reine JAN
• 18th C sheer petticoat JAN
• leather UB corset JAN
• 18th C bjd striped/blue FEB
• 16th C cranach MAR
• 18th C bjd handsewn linen shirt MAR
• 18th C handsewn linen shift APR
• 18th C handsewn pondicherry petticoat MAY
• 18th C bjd handsewn breeches MAY
• 18th C petticoat to match stays in green Samir linen JUL
• 18th C bjd sherbert dress SEP
• 18th C handsewn linen cap OCT
• 18th C cotton polonaise NOV
• 18th C bjd kci zone jacket DEC
• 18th C new stays DEC

Was planned for 2009:
~~• 18th C striped cotton polonaise~~ FINISHED
• 18th C striped cotton tricorn I opted out on this one
• 18th C hybrid hooded jacket I will prioritize this in 2010, honestly
• 19th C victorian corset lined up for corsetry class this spring
~~• leather UB corset~~ FINISHED
~~• 16th C cranach~~ FINISHED 3rd renovation
~~• 18th C linen shift~~ FINISHED
~~• 18th C sheer petticoat~~ FINISHED
~~• 18th C bjd chemise a la reine~~ FINISHED
• 18th C floral anglaise for myself and/or bjd moved on to 2010 list
~~• 18th C new stays~~ FINISHED
~~• 18th C striped/blue for me and/or bjd~~ FINISHED
• 18th C stays for bjd I decided it would be too many layers
• 18th C blue/bronze Georgiana for me and/or bjd moved on to 2010 list
• 18th C picture hat moved on to 2010 list
• 19th C victorian cuirass bodice moved on to 2010 list, as it needed the corset finished

My resolution for 2009 was to remember to always work on only 3 projects at a time which worked surprisingly well, so I'm very pleased!

This year I'm going to try to be a frugal costumer and use stashed fabrics as much as I can - saving money and reducing fabric space! =) I've made exceptions for three planned costumes (my flemish and jacket and Jo's new viking) and I hope these will be the only splurges this year.

Plans for 2010: (S=stashed fabric)
• 18th C CC-U pondicherry jacket S (only eyelets left)
• 18th C pockets to match new stays S
• 18th C bumroll to match new stays S
• 18th C hybrid hooded jacket oh let this be the year plzkthxbai
• 19th C victorian corset S
• 16th C flemish
• 18th C blue/bronze Georgiana for me and/or bjd S
• 18th C picture hat S
• 10th C viking for Jo
• 18th C bjd kci redstriped jacket S
• 18th C pink and/or green floral anglaise for myself and/or bjd S
• 19th C victorian cuirass bodice S
• 18th C bjd gentleman's coat S
• 18th C bjd gentleman's waistcoat S

2010 - the year of the stash!

kci zonefront jacket

Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:18:55 GMT

Everything has been rather slow on LJ the past few weeks with the holidays coming up, so I'm not feeling overwhemingly bad for not posting much lately.

I'm calling the striped cotton finished and wore it to the hobbit-themed harvestfeast the other weekend, and I intended to post about it but was hoping some pictures of it would surface. I didn't seem to get caught on camera however, so I'll have to play dress up one day to take some pics.

The pondicherry jacket is getting there, and the scalamandre stays just need the stomacher bound before it's all done.

So there's a lot of finishing up going on here.

Another thing I have just laid the finishing touches to is the bjd-sized zone-front jacket from the Kyoto Costume Institue. The fabric isn't perfect but I was going for the right look rather than perfect material. There are no pictures of the kci jacket from the back (that I'm aware of) so I made a cute little peplum and futzed around with the stripes, inspred by koshka_the_cat's redstriped anglaise. I love stripes so much, it's just so much fun lining them up and playing around with angles!

Clickto enlarge. The real one to the left ;o)