Rebeka Pierce

This week's Featured Attyre was nominated by Bess VanTassle to recognize the work of her friend Rebekah Pierce, who is the seamstress who created this fantastic Elizabethan girl's costume. Bess is also the proud mother of the beautiful young noble that you see in the photo, known in the SCA as Victoria de Nevell. You can see more pictures of this lovely gown on Victoria's very own webpage, and you can also read some comments from Rebeka below the picture. It's so fun to see young people who are able to experience a part of history this way. My inner 10 year-old is so jealous!!!

The main fabric of the gown in a teal green antique satin, trimmed with dark green velvet guards and mint green braid. The chemise is cotton muslin with Venice lace ruffles at the cuffs. I was experimenting when I made the chemise, and pretty much based the pattern on the Italian camica on the Festive Attyre site. The pattern for the upper sleeves was based off of the pattern in Margo Anderson's Elizabethan Ladies Wardrobe, and scaled down to size. The gown also has a detachable set of lower sleeves that are not shown here. The farthingale I made out of some green broadcloth I had laying around using the Alcega pattern found on Drea Leed's website. I think it gives a really nice shape, without being overpowering for a smaller person. This dress was a present for Tori's tenth birthday, and was influenced by the portrait of Princess Elizabeth in that I tried to keep the lines simple but elegant.