Tuesday, May 22, 2012

hand-sewing madness

I have caught the hand-sewing madness lately, and one of my big goals for the summer is to hand-sew a new set of stays from 1790.  I can't guarantee that I'll actually pull this off, but I'm really excited about the thought of trying!


I have the pattern fitted now and I just got my fancy linen thread in the mail today.  I ordered it from William Booth Draper and I was so happy with the customer service there.  The shipping ended up being less that what was listed on the website, and they even let me go back and add some cotton tape to my order when I poked around their site some more and realized how cheap it was.  Some of you have probably been ordering from them for years now, but this was my first time and I couldn't be happier.  And it is such a treat to have nice sewing supplies to work with - it feels so decadent! 

You can also see the wool that I am using to make my stays in the background of this picture.  I dyed it myself to look like the pretty pink stays seen here.  I'm SO excited about starting this project.  Hopefully I'll be back in a few months to show you the finished results.  


6 comments:

Kleidung um 1800 said...

Looking forward very much to following this project! Stays & hand sewing sounds perfect in my ears!
And isn't hand sewing in summer just wonderful, as you aren't chained to the cord of the sewing machine, which means sewing outside in the shade on a sunny day!
...actually hand sewing is awesome in every season ;)

Sabine

Caroline said...

William Booth is fantastic! Everything arrives so fast and they have such a great selection. Good luck on the new stays! They sound very pretty.

Amanda said...

Oh are you doing those FUN shoulder straps! I SO want to do a pair up like that!

Jen Thompson said...

Amanda - no, I am using a different pattern for the stays, but I was just inspired by the color of those others. But yes, the adjustable shoulder straps are way cool!

Cactusneedle said...

Don't wait til you're finished to post again! We want to see pictures of your progress!

Angela said...

Hi. Just found your blog! Handsewing is actually very calming for me. However, I have yet to make a dress or outfit totally by hand. That is next on my list. William Draper is fab. American Duchess shoes are fab. I have the leather Devonshires. I think that is the right label. Anyway, yes, I agree with Cactusneedle - post as you go.

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