Tuesday, July 16, 2013

18th c. boy's shirt and Indienne waistcoat


I took a little break from Costume College sewing last week to whip up some new clothes for my boy to wear to a Bastille Day brunch.  First, I made him a little Indienne print waistcoat that would work for  both my Curtain-Along project and the Historical Sew Fortnightly "Eastern Influence" challenge.   I used a Mill Farm Pattern for his waistcoat, and I thought the pattern made up quite nicely and was definitely worth the very reasonable price that I paid for it.  My biggest complaint was that you have to pick one size for the patterns, and since I bought this one 2 years ago, I had to size it up on my own to fit him now.  Multi-sized patterns are definitely a plus when working with kids clothes!  


My inspiration for this garment came from this adorable boy's waistcoat from the Winterthur Museum.  The front is made from a scrap of my Waverly curtains, and the front lining and the back are made from tan cotton duck.  I also used a bit of striped light-weight linen for the lining in the back because I like the idea of using mix-and-match scraps for period linings.   I was incredibly lazy and machine sewed and bag-lined the waistcoat instead of using period construction techniques, but it still looks pretty much the same and it saved me a good bit of time.

I also needed to make him an 18th c. shirt, which I am going to count for the HSF "White" challenge.  I used the instructions in that same Mill Farm pattern to get me started, although I think I messed something up because the neckline and sleeves are less gathered than I expected them to be.  I also had some trouble figuring out how to do the gussets and finish the seams.  I am very much a visual learner, and unfortunately, the Mill Farm patterns are quite sparing with their illustrations.   I referenced several other sites online to help me wrap my head around it, and I think it all came together okay in the end.  I really liked this article by the Northwest Territory Alliance and found their instructions very helpful, even though I didn't follow them exactly.


I made the shirt out of a lightweight linen/cotton blend, and while I used my machine on some parts, I finished everything by hand.  I was also excited to be able to use some of my tiny 1920's mother-of-peal shirt buttons from the collar and cuffs.  As a finishing touch, I hemmed a triangle of gingham fabric and made a neckerchief to tie around his collar.  All of the materials for the waistcoat, neckerchief, and shirt came from my stash.

This outfit is still a work-in-progress, and I hope to make him some drop-front trousers and a jacket sometime this fall.  I also made his shirt and waistcoat bigger than necessary, so maybe they will last for a few wearings.



12 comments:

Anonymous said...

It looks great!

Maggie said...

That turned out so cute!

Cathy Raymond said...

It's a splendid outfit, and he wears it very well. I look forward to the day that you give him his own sewing machine and he starts designing his own clothes!

Quinn said...

Super cute! I love his new waistcoat! It's really a lovely use of your scraps!

Best,
Quinn

Kleidung um 1800 said...

So cute! And it's fun to see that your son is fond of historic clothing, too :)

Sabine

Anonymous said...

I noticed you said you machine sewed it instead of using period construction techniques. Can you tell me where to learn more about period construction? I am a very beginning/novice/amateur maker of fur trade era costumes and would like more info. I know hand stitching is 'correct' but I don't know about any techniques. Thanks! Oh, and your gussets look perfect :-)...I have to use them all the time.(BTW, I posted the very same link from Northwest Trade Alliance a few months ago on my blog, lol. It works for fur trade, too.)

The Dreamstress said...

Fabulous! I like that it's such a different interpretation of the Waverly fabric. (I think you may have unleashed a monster with the curtain along, with 1000 permutations of what can be made with that fabric ;-) )

Also, totally awesome that your boy will wear this! Hurrah for raising kids with history and costumes!

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