tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47243130513853394242024-03-19T04:48:35.210-05:00Festive AttyreHistorical CostumingJen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.comBlogger178125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-88314037107537366672018-08-11T20:59:00.000-05:002018-08-11T21:47:14.336-05:00Victorian Cycling Costume<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Wow. It's been a loooong time since my last blog post, but I'm so giddy over my new 1890's cycling costume that I decided to knock the dust off of this website so I can share a little bit about my new outfit and throw in a pattern review while I'm at it.<br />
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After hearing that a few of my friends were making cycling costumes for Costume College this year, I decided at the last minute that I <i>desperately</i> needed one too, so I ordered the <a href="http://wearinghistory.clothing/1897-victorian-bicycling-outfit-pattern/">Wearing History Bicycling Outfit pattern</a> since I was in a rush and didn't have time to draft patterns from scratch. This turned out to be a really excellent plan, and I couldn't be happier with the way this pattern went together. Unlike a lot of historical reprints, Lauren has graded this one so that it includes multiple sizes, which was extremely helpful. I made up one of the largest sizes, and I was really pleased with how close it was to fitting right off the bat. I did end up taking in the bodice seams in a few areas, but that's totally to be expecting when working with a Victorian period pattern, and it's always easier to make something smaller than try to make it bigger. The only part of the pattern that seemed a little odd was the neckline, which I found to be lower than it needs to be if you were attaching a high collar. But since I decided to change the design to an open neckline, this really wasn't a problem for me - just be mindful of it if you want to make up the bodice like the original and are using a larger size. I also decided to make the shoulders on the bodice a little narrower so the sleeves didn't sit so wide (helps prevent the linebacker look!), but that's another easy change to make, and it's definitely more of a personal preference than a necessity.<br />
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Even though my final results might appear quite different from the original pattern illustration, I really didn't have to change much to get a completely different look. The sleeves and bloomers are made up exactly like the pattern, and I love both of those elements SO MUCH! The sleeves have the perfect amount of fulness to give you an 1890's shape without being so large that they are ridiculous. I flatlined my sleeves with a layer of tulle to help give them body, but most of the "poof" is controlled by mounting the outer layer of fabric to the inner layer before assembling the sleeves. It really does a excellent job of creating the right shape, and I'll definitely be using this sleeve pattern again in the future if I make more dresses from this decade.<br />
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The bloomers are my favorite part of this whole pattern, and they went together so quickly. I used <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdjpROgfR-4">Wearing History's excellent YouTube tutorial</a> to help me figure out how to assemble the pointed side plackets, and they both went in perfectly on the first try. I've never used that technique before, and it was kind of like magic to see how well it works! My only other tip on the bloomers is to cartridge pleat the bottom of the legs into the cuffs if you want maximum fullness - it makes them even more jaunty and fun, and it is much more practical than gathering or pleating if you are using a heavier fabric, like wool. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_jidxx0Uj-Mp1JqjFj7x9a8sUgSL2SfYxVsoTXgGCp6HF-cuWq3gamdUHJ4s_VjBmbn6vjv_uSfEuVYinGyJ0neWZkiQnjJSsECOsuLFBxurth8o8WCe6vQxQC3BPnyXxWD94LUg1xH2K/s1600/IMG_5100.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="859" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_jidxx0Uj-Mp1JqjFj7x9a8sUgSL2SfYxVsoTXgGCp6HF-cuWq3gamdUHJ4s_VjBmbn6vjv_uSfEuVYinGyJ0neWZkiQnjJSsECOsuLFBxurth8o8WCe6vQxQC3BPnyXxWD94LUg1xH2K/s320/IMG_5100.jpg" width="171" /></a>To personalize my costume I decided to pull some inspiration from other 1890's fashion patterns and cycling imagery and convert my bodice into a jacket. I used the pattern diagram for a "ladies' street costume" in <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486283577/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0486283577&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=449dee56c845e15e2128d44b654fc79b">Kristina Harris's 59 Authentic Turn-of-the-Century Fashion Patterns</a> to create the jacket peplum, and these patterns also to helped me figure out how to add a wide collar and lapels to my existing bodice. There are a lot of great historical patterns in Harris's book (and its companion, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486407217/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0486407217&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=cfe2ea2b9c2355dd345f323696d8152d">Authentic Victorian Fashion Patterns</a>), and in my opinion, it's a million times easier to modify a good foundation pattern like the Wearing History one than to draft something from scratch.<br />
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Under the jacket, I am wearing a modern man's tuxedo shirt that I bought at a thrift store, plus a bowtie that a made from some silk scraps left over from a previous project. I also re-trimmed a vintage straw hat with a long strip of striped silk that I sewed into a tube so that it looks like ribbon.<br />
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Amusingly, the part of my costume that got the most compliments at Costume College was my plaid stockings! These socks were a lucky find on Amazon, and <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01L6AFJ9Y/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B01L6AFJ9Y&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=0eef75778ca271b5586054018f4c414e">they come in a three-pack with red and tan as well.</a> I've always been completely charmed by images of Victorian women wearing checked and plaid stockings with their bloomers, and it seemed to be quite a fad during the 1890's. Even if you don't have a cycling costume in the works, I highly recommend these socks if you want to add a bit of fun to your historical (or modern) wardrobe!<br />
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This costume turned out to be a real joy to wear. It's quite comfortable, and the bloomers make you feel so free and liberated compared to heavy skirts. I have to admit that I frolicked around like a big nerd when I was wearing this for my photoshoot. All of that extra mobility makes you want to run and jump and flop on the ground! I can totally understand why cycling outfits were so popular with Victorian women - they are just so much fun to wear!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtCy0Ms5a9wodrRwkWr6XT7aij34ds8LFeoFtJtJmJUteDfwdm9S6egf2TJMarw_KAIkLw7naqUFSCABCkzyBrOeH5MiSawtd8FGLVjZbRKkJHyMcPRbxMk5CdDGKee3JBmtNwalOUUgRv/s1600/bike.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtCy0Ms5a9wodrRwkWr6XT7aij34ds8LFeoFtJtJmJUteDfwdm9S6egf2TJMarw_KAIkLw7naqUFSCABCkzyBrOeH5MiSawtd8FGLVjZbRKkJHyMcPRbxMk5CdDGKee3JBmtNwalOUUgRv/s1600/bike.gif" /></a>And because I'm officially Extra™, I also pulled out my bicycle and took it for a spin to see how this outfit feels on a bike. The bloomers are really comfy while riding, although you still have to dismount carefully so they don't get caught on the seat. My only issue was with my shoes, which tended to slip on the plastic pedals if I wasn't careful thanks to their smooth leather soles, but that issue could probably be solved pretty easily by adding some rubber grips. I've had several people ask me if I would be wearing this outfit for any tweed rides, and I would absolutely <i>love</i> to do that if they host any more themed cycling gatherings in my area. It was crazy fun to ride my bike in this kooky outfit, and the only thing that would be better is if I could buy an actual antique bicycle to add to the authenticity. </div>
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I have some more photos and another video of me riding my bike on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157699490197974/with/43154910304/">Flickr,</a> and you can find more <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/victorian-edwardian-cycling/">Victorian and Edwardian cycling costume inspiration</a> on my Pinterest. I'm also having a ton of fun using these photos to practice my faux-antique photo techniques using photoshop, so I'm sure I'll be adding more of those to my Flickr account whenever I find some more time to play.<br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com224tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-10052992761390372722016-12-19T13:31:00.000-06:002016-12-19T17:13:53.942-06:00a round gown with Vandyke scollops<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I have always had an obsession with quirky trends from fashion history, and one of my favorites is a late 18th-century fad that used a row of small triangles to decorate the borders of gowns, hats, and shoes. I have seen modern historians refer to this design feature as "sawtooth" trim, but the the English fashion magazines from this era always refer it to as "Vandyke scollops" - named after the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthony_van_Dyck#/media/File:Sir-Anthony-van-Dyck-Lord-John-Stuart-and-His-Brother-Lord-Bernard-Stuart.jpg">large pointed lace trim</a> that was common in the works of the 17th century Dutch artist, Anthony Van Dyke. This style of trim seemed to be <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/18th-c-vandyke-scollops/">quite popular</a> for about 20 years, and it not only reflected the Georgians' love of sartorial historicism during this period, but it also was a surprisingly easy and cost-effective decorative technique. With just a bit of scrap fabric, a seamstress could create eye-catching and fashionable embellishment on an otherwise simple dress. </div>
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This past summer, I found myself in need of a new gown to wear to the Gala at Costume College, so I decided to make a new silk round gown and matching sleeveless spencer with Vandyke scollops. I based the construction of my dress on <a href="http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/81127">this Italian round gown and spencer</a> from the Met, although I did change a few details, such as using shorter sleeves and raising the waistline so that it better matched the Gallery of Fashion illustration from 1796 shown above. </div>
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I was quite fascinated by the construction of this Italian gown's bodice, since it seemed to feature flaps that are gathered up on cords in the front. Most round gowns from this period have the bodice and skirt all in one piece, but in this gown, you can see that the bodice is more heavily gathered that the skirt, which would help to fine-tune the fullness of each piece. Although there aren't enough photos to tell how the original bodice is constructed under the flap, I used an educated guess and decided to make a lightly gathered bodice attached to the skirt, and then a heavily gathered section to cover it. This type of double-layer construction would also explain a few surviving gowns with odd flappy bits at the sides that <a href="http://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/80193">museums never seem to know how to style</a>. </div>
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The Vandyke trim is <i>quite</i> bold - especially on the front of the spencer - and while I do like quirky fashions, it's nice that I can also wear the dress without the spencer for a slightly less busy look. </div>
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I am wearing this dress with my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2013/10/1790s-transitional-stays.html">transitional stays</a>, a taffeta petticoat, an old velvet turban, and my new muff. As usual, 1790s fashions tend to not be the easiest style for modern audiences to appreciate, but for some reason I adore them! The skirts are so full and the waists are so high that it does create a very odd silhouette, but when these outfits are all put together with the right accessories, I think they feel so glamorous and dramatic - especially from the back! </div>
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If you'd like to see more photos of this outfit, you can find them on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157676413022391">flickr</a>.</div>
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com197tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-33912069871250786152016-11-22T09:33:00.000-06:002016-11-22T21:12:25.083-06:001795 Half-Mourning Robe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Every year, the <a href="http://www.dfwcg.org/">DFWCG</a> holds a Georgian Picnic, and as usual, I waited until the very last minute to decide what to wear. I had originally planned on wearing something old, but my state of mind since the election has been pretty gloomy, so I decided to wear my heart on my sleeve and make another mourning gown. <br />
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I was originally inspired by a fashion plate from Gallery of Fashion showing an "afternoon dress, in half-mourning" that combined a black robe with a white round gown. I already had a white gown, and I found a 3 yard piece of black wool in my stash that would work great for the robe. Luckily, I also had some good 1790s patterns that I had drafted for previous projects, so it ended up being a really quick and easy garment to put together. <br />
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A black robe on its own is pretty boring, but I also found lots of examples of 1790s robes edged with fur, which seemed like a perfect choice for a November picnic (you can see a variety of robe fashion plates <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/1790s-open-robes/">here</a>). I picked up a yard of faux fur and used this to trim the edges of the robe, and I also made a new muff since the 1790s is ALL about the accessories. <br />
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Turbans are the most common type of headwear that women seemed to wear with this type of gown, and the crazy-long feathers add such a fun finishing touch. Since I was short on time, I made a really simple fixed turban by tacking a long strip of silk over a wool hat blank. I also wore my curly grey wig to try to mimic the look of the ladies in these fashion plates.<br />
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So that's pretty much it! My obsession with 1790's fashion knows no bounds, and it was a lot of fun to make another robe to add to my growing collection. <br />
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As usual, I'll post a few of my favorite photos here, and the rest are on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157672942884533/with/30807405360/">Flickr</a>.<br />
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<br />Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com42tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-4919473435494350532016-05-27T23:08:00.000-05:002016-05-28T07:13:28.448-05:00rewear and refreshSoooo... it's been 6 months since my last blog post, and I thought I'd drop in and let you all know what I've been up to. I had a big push of productivity last spring and summer, but then I crashed after Costume College and desperately needed some time to hibernate and recuperate. It's been good. I really needed a break from sewing to recharge my batteries a bit. But I haven't stopped going to costume events during this past year - I've just been rewearing older pieces from my wardrobe and giving each outfit a few tweaks to make them feel more fun. <br />
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I started off last January by wearing my mourning calico to a exhibition of artwork by Gustave Caillebotte. I took this opportunity to make a new set of white collar and cuffs to finish off the dress. The inner collar and cuffs are items that you almost always see in original Victorian fashion plates and photographs, but as modern costumers, we tend to leave them off - probably because they were separate items and aren't typically included in the display of surviving Victorian garments in museums, so our eyes aren't as accustomed to seeing them there. But 19th century women used the inner collar and cuffs to protect the dress from dirt and body oils, and they could be easily removed and laundered, so it makes sense that they were essential finishing touches during the period. I ran out of time and didn't get to finish my own collar and cuffs for the first wearing of this dress at Costume College, but the dress feels SO much more complete now that I have them.<br />
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You can see the difference between the dress with and without the collar/cuffs in these pictures, and I also wore a new bow at the neckline to change things up a bit more. It's a subtle change, but I like it a lot better this way. The cuffs are just rectangular strips of cotton edged with eyelet that I tacked to the inside of the sleeves. The collar came from a mysterious little pattern on page 294 of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0963651765/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0963651765&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=SGNMZLEXH5ILBVDU">Fashions of the Gilded Age, Vol. 2</a>. The diagram is not labeled and there's no illustration showing what the pattern piece looks like when made up, but I suspected that it was one of those <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/7925952642/in/album-72157631394182050/">jaunty winged collars</a> that you see so often during the natural form years. Sure enough - it worked perfectly! </div>
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My next event was a trip to the Cowgirl Museum, so I decided to restyle my Victorian cycling outfit with some new accessories to give it more of an Old West look. This one didn't require any sewing at all, which was a wonderful treat. I just wore a different hat, a bandanna, some leather gloves, and an old belt and pouch with a turquoise brooch in the place of a buckle. I wish I could claim that the holster was mine too, but this piece was just on loan from my friend Christy for this picture. </div>
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I found it amusing that Christy had also restyled one of her old dresses to give it a cowgirl vibe, and we happened to have worn these outfits together at another event 4 years ago. Even when we were supposed to be proper ladies, we still couldn't resist pretending to be outlaws! I guess it just runs in our Texas blood.</div>
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Finally, the local costume guild organized an 18th c. dinner party, so I decided to wear my black chemise once again. To change this one up, I wore my big embroidered kerchief, a new purple striped sash, and I rewound my turban with some purplish-grey silk. But most importantly, I styled a new wig that matches my natural haircolor, which was a HUGE improvement! (Good lord! What was I thinking with that crazy blond mess on my head?!) </div>
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I have a bad habit of wanting to make new costumes for EVERY event that I go to, but this year has made me grateful to have some good pieces in my wardrobe that I can rework and rewear in different ways. Plus, I've really enjoyed focusing on the stress-free fun of <i>wearing</i> costumes vs. the often exhausting process of <i>making</i> them. I have to admit that I'm itching to make some new things again, and I've already started one big project that I'll be sharing here soon. But hopefully I'll be able to stay a little more balanced with my work load in the future, and I think this sewing hiatus has taught me to appreciate my older costumes a lot more than I used to. <br />
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BTW - if you'd like to see more pics from my recent costumed adventures, feel free to check out my <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums">flickr</a>. Even when I'm not blogging, flickr is one place that always stays updated because I like to share my pics with my wonderful friends in the <a href="http://www.dfwcg.org/">DFWCG</a>. And if you happen to be in the area - come out and join us! We'll be adding a bunch of new events to our calendar over the next week! Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com52tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-90523374698603423592015-11-29T15:37:00.001-06:002015-11-29T15:54:02.872-06:00Grandma, the Wolf, and Little Red<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The tale of this costume follows a long and meandering path, and to tell its story, I need to go back to the beginning, over a year ago: <i>“Once upon a time, a lowly seamstress heard news of a magical ball in a far off land…”</i><o:p></o:p></div>
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*ahem* Okay, so maybe that’s a bit too dramatic for a blog post. Let me try that again: <o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;"><i>John Singleton Copley, Portrait of a Lady, 1780</i></td></tr>
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In the summer of 2014, the organizers of Costume College announced that their next theme would be “Plucked from the Pages: Costuming Your Favorite Literary Characters”. I usually have a HORRIBLE time deciding what costumes to make for big events like this one, but I knew almost instantly want I wanted to make for the 2015 Costume College Gala. Out of all the old fairy tales, Little Red Riding Hood is my favorite, so I decided that I would be the Wolf wearing Grandma’s clothing. But I had no intention of being a sweet old grandma wrapped up in blankets with curlers in her hair. I wanted to be an elegant 18<sup>th</sup> c. <i>grande dame</i> like you see in so many paintings from that age. There is so much subtext and darkness and deeper meaning in old fairy tales, so I started wondering if the real Grandma was meant to be somewhat terrifying and wolf-like on her own, and maybe that’s why Little Red couldn’t tell the two apart. Who knows if that was the original intention, but it’s a fun thought, and one that you could easily imagine being true when you see the countless historical images of stern-looking matriarchs with silver hair and piercing eyes.<br />
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I started by collecting pictures of older women in Georgian
paintings (check out my <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/18th-century-grande-dames/">Pinterest board</a> for lots of great Grannies). Many of these ladies are shown in grey or taupe gowns with an abundance of frilly white caps, aprons, and fichus, and this color combo already looked very wolf-like to my eyes. For my costume, I decided to make a simple grey silk taffeta round gown, and I drafted my own pattern by modifying and combining several of the dresses in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/089676026X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=089676026X&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=DE7ZPIDJNWV3NWWC" rel="nofollow">Patterns of Fashion</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=089676026X" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />. Although my dress is quite plain on its own, I was lucky enough to find some gorgeous tambour embroidered curtain panels from the 1930’s at an antique show a few years ago, and they worked perfectly for my apron and fichu. The panels all had some staining and damage in various places, but I was able to cut around the bad spots, and I’m thrilled with the way they turned out. To finish off my gown, I made a pair of organdy sleeve ruffles that I just pinned in place. <o:p></o:p></div>
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Although my dress was fairly simple, I decided that I wanted my hair to be more dramatic for the gala, so I made a large 18<sup>th</sup> c. wig based on the instructions in Kendra’s Van Cleave’s wonderful book - <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0692220437/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0692220437&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=GFEE7XUNNPLFQZ5G" rel="nofollow">18th Century Hair and Wig Styling</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0692220437" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />. I used the instructions for the Lilac wig to build the wire base, and I used a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018J4MCAY/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B018J4MCAY&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=YAIWVI7LPJWDMMU7" rel="nofollow">Lioness wig</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B018J4MCAY" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />
plus several hanks of loose hair to cover the base and make the buckles. The wig was originally dark brown, but I sprayed it with <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004WRCXRA/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B004WRCXRA&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=LQVJRKOB2RG5WA4R" rel="nofollow">Jerome Russell B Wild Color Spray</a> in Siberian white to make it grey, and this was definitely the best white hair spray that I’ve tried yet. I’ve never worn a wig this big before, but it was lots of fun and surprisingly comfortable. The only unexpected side effect is that it gave me a bit of a face lift from the weight of it pulling backward on my head, which made me look a less matronly than usual. The funny thing is that even though this wig seemed MASSIVE when I was building it, it didn’t seem big at all once I had the whole outfit on. While I was wearing it, I kept thinking, “eh – I could have gone a lot bigger”, and if period painting can be believed, this ‘do was still quite modest compared to many. <o:p></o:p><br />
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More than anything, 18<sup>th</sup> century grandmas seemed to love their ridiculous caps, but I wasn’t sure how huge and silly I really wanted to go with mine. What I ended up with was relatively tame compared to what you often see in period paintings and fashion plates, but that’s mainly because I put the cap off for the last minute and didn’t have time to keep hemming ruffles. My cap is made from organdy, and it is just a much larger version of a typical 18<sup>th</sup> c. cap. It is made from a large oval in back with a band that is wider at the sides and narrower at top, and I covered the band with several rows of box pleated ruffles and some poofed black ribbon. It also has a hanging tail of fabric in the back, which is a common look, even if it doesn’t seem to serve much purpose. <o:p></o:p><br />
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While I was sewing my gown, I was also working on a wolf mask, which was quite an adventure as well. I discovered the work of Joni Good and her book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0974106542/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0974106542&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=OWL6446L7FZ5QLFC" rel="nofollow">How to Make Masks!</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0974106542" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />. Joni makes some of the most amazing papier mache masks that I’ve ever seen, and you can find much more of her work on her website, <a href="http://www.ultimatepapermache.com/">Ultimate Papier Mache</a>. I used her techniques and sculpted a mold for my mask using terra cotta clay, then I covered it with shop towels and the plaster/glue mixture that she describes in her book and instructional videos. I actually ended up making two wolf sculptures and papier mache shells because I forgot to use a release agent on the first one, so the paper mache stuck to the clay and wouldn’t come off. Whoops! But it all turned out for the best because I liked my second version of the wolf much better. <o:p></o:p><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>photo by jennylafleur</i></td></tr>
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While I loved making the wolf mask, I have to admit that I didn’t love wearing it. Very few people knew who I was when I arrived at the gala, and it was almost impossible to hear me when I talked because it was so noisy and the mask muffled my words. I also had a limited range of sight, so I had to be very careful not to step on trains or bump into tables. So it was fun for the grand reveal and a few pictures, but poor Wolfie didn’t last long at the party. But the best part about wearing this costume was that my friend Ginger decided to make an 18<sup>th</sup> c. Little Red costume to go along with my Grandma Wolf, and she made the most AMAZINGLY gorgeous <i>polonaise à coqueluchon</i>, which is a hooded gown that was popular at the time. Recreating the characters of this story in a more historical way was SO incredibly fun, and I was thrilled every time somebody had an “ah-ha!” moment and realized who we were. I’m so happy and grateful that Ginger decided to play along with me, and doing this theme with her was one of the highlights of my trip. <br />
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So that’s the story of Grandma and the Wolf, but this tale had one more twist that surprised even me in the end. Although I wasn’t planning on wearing this outfit again so soon, we had an unexpected cold front move in right before our yearly Georgian Picnic, and I decided that a silk round gown would be a little warmer than my semi-sheer cotton chemise dress that I had originally planned on wearing. I still desperately needed a cloak to block the wind, but when I dug though my stash, the only thing suitable that I found was some coat-weight red wool that I found at an estate sale many years ago. So I used the hooded cloak and mantle patterns in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0896762262/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0896762262&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=QKNCM5LRJCR4Q5FA" rel="nofollow">Costume Close-Up</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0896762262" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> as a guide, and I quickly threw together a little red mantle to keep me warm at our picnic. So without even planning it, this costume now has become Grandma, the Wolf, and Little Red Riding Hood all in one!</div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>Maurice Quentin de La Tour, </i></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.8px;"><i>portrait de Nicole Ricard, enfant, 1748-175</i>0</span></div>
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I trimmed my mantle with strips of pinked, box pleated wool in a style that is very similar to this charming painting of a young girl. I think most winter cloaks were probably lined in the period, but I didn’t bother to do that on mine since the fabric was felted and quite heavy already. My only complaint is that the hood pattern that I used probably dated from the mid-1700s, so it ended up being a bit small for my later 18<sup>th</sup> c. hairstyle. I’m tempted to take the hood off and try adding a larger one in the future, but I still love my little red riding hood like crazy, and it kept me quite warm and cozy at the event. <o:p></o:p><br />
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I also wanted to take a minute to thank several of my friends for giving me some of the gorgeous accessories that you can see in these pictures. My mitts, workbag, pinball, and muff were all gifts made by amazingly talented and generous ladies, and I can't tell you how much that I treasure them! So thank-you Kendra, Angela, Stephanie, and Mary - you are all so dear to me! <br />
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And as a final epilogue to this story (which I'm afraid has gotten quite long winded!), I also wanted to mention my new market cap and hair experiments. I had no interest in wearing my large wig to a windy outdoor picnic, so I decided that a more simple style of hair with a market hat would be much more appropriate. I bought a market cap pattern from Maggie at <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/235598012/18th-century-bonnet-epattern-instant?ref=shop_home_active_3">Undressed Lady</a> last summer, and I made it up in a few hours last week from some scraps of black taffeta left over from older projects.<br />
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I’ve also been dying to try out the pomade and powder that I bought earlier in the year from Abby at <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/HeirloomHaircare?ref=search_shop_redirect">Heirloom Haircare</a>, but I had a huge disaster on the morning of the picnic and discovered that I had misplaced my pomade. So after a failed search and a lot of panic and cursing, I finally resorted to wearing my bushy white wig out of desperation. It’s not the right style of hair for my outfit, and it badly needs restyling, but it was better than nothing, so I sucked it up and just made do with my sad backup wig. Unfortunately, the market hat really needs a tall hairstyle to support it, so I was pretty disappointed with the way it looked at this first wearing (my picnic pictures are <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157660813463889">here</a> if you are curious).<br />
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But then as I was cleaning my sewing room two days later, I found my pomade and decided to give it another try. OMG – I am in love! My hair is mid-back length right now and not overly thick, so I wasn’t sure if I would be able to pull off an 18<sup>th</sup> c. hairstyle without adding in extra pieces. But the pomade and powder thickens up your hair so beautifully, and I was amazed by how well it stayed in place with no need for teasing or hairspray. I started by pinning a rat of loose synthetic hair that was wrapped up in a hair net on the top of my head, then I combed my own hair over the rat and pinned it down in back. Then I made two large buckles and a loop with my remaining hair that was hanging down (I basically just copied Abby’s look shown on <a href="http://stay-ingalive.blogspot.com/2015/02/heirloom-haircare.html">her blog</a>). After it was all in place, I re-powdered it to make it more obviously grey, and I hid the parts in back where it was pinned with a cap and a bow. I don’t think I’ve ever had such good luck styling my own hair before, and I’m absolutely amazed that I managed to pull this look off on my first try! And as an added bonus, my market hat suddenly went from “wah, wah, waaaa…” to “WOW!” once I had the right hairstyle to support it.<br />
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Since I had such good luck with my practice hairstyle, I decided to get dressed up one more time and finally take some proper pictures of my dress. I didn’t get many that I was happy with at either Costume College or the picnic due to bad lighting and my failed hair, so it was fun to finally come up with some shots that I’m really happy with. Check out my <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157659313079564">flickr</a> if you want to see more. <br />
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<span style="font-style: italic;">"... and they lived happily ever after. The end!"</span><br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com152tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-40132430431677685522015-11-04T11:26:00.000-06:002015-11-04T13:15:10.880-06:00Another trip to Lost Hope<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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For Costume College this past summer, a group of ladies decided to make Lost Hope costumes inspired by the fabulous book and BBC miniseries, <i>Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell</i>. I had already made <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2013/05/a-fairy-from-lost-hope.html">one Lost Hope costume</a> a few years ago, but after seeing this world brought to life in the new miniseries, I was totally charmed by the silvery gowns seen at the nightly faerie balls, as well the creepiness of the scenes where the not-quite-human moss-oak version of Arabella wandered through the wilderness in a black gown. Confused? Go watch the miniseries! <span style="font-size: xx-small;">*cough*youtube*cough*</span> It's SO GOOD!<br />
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So instead of re-wearing my old gown, I decided to combine these two influences into one dress by adding some silver sparkle and a few fun accessories to my black <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2015/10/regency-mourning.html">Regency mourning gown</a>. I found some silver lamé fabric in the clearance bin with a design that reminded me of gnarled wood. It's pretty gaudy in large doses, but when you just see glimpses of the pattern and sparkle under the sheer black fabric of my mourning gown, it fit my vision perfectly for an oak-y ballgown. The lamé undergown is a bib-front style dress, and I could also wear this gown on its own... <i>if</i> I ever want a disco-themed Regency costume. <br />
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<a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/sleeveless-spencers-and-over-bodices/">Sleeveless overbodices</a> were a popular way to dress up Regency ballgowns, so I decided to also use the lamé to make a new bodice to wear over my gown. I ended up cutting it too high in the back at the waistline, so I had to improvise and add a little peplum to cover the gap. But this turned out to be a happy accident because I think the peplum adds a fun detail to an otherwise simple garment. I had originally planned on embellishing my bodice with lots of beads and spangles and embroidery, but I ran out time, and honestly, I'm not sure how much that sort of thing would show up anyway since the fabric is already pretty busy. <br />
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I also made a faerie tiara by twisting together some plastic sprigs of grain sold with the fall floral supplies. I wanted my costume to be sort of creepy and earthy, so I added some plastic bugs to my tiara for good measure before spray panting the whole thing silver. I also loved the look of moss-oak Arabella's wavy, raven-colored hair, so I bought a long, black, 3/4 wig, and I sprayed the front of my own hair with temporary hair color to match. A simple beaded necklace and a pair of silver flats from the resale shop finished off my outfit. <br />
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We had a large group of gorgeous Lost Hope characters at Costume College, including a wide variety of fairies, Lady Pole, and the Gentleman with the Thistledown Hair. We never managed to get everybody who participated in one spot at one time, but we did arrange a few group photos where you can see most of our faerie finery. This was such a fun theme for a group costume project, and I LOVED seeing all of these creative interpretations of magical Regency fashions. <br />
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Unfortunately, sunny California summers don't make the best backdrop for slightly sinister moss-oak gowns, so I've been dragging my feet about posting this write-up in the hopes that I could take some better photos in a more appropriate setting. I finally had my wish granted this past weekend, and I snuck away on the evening of Halloween to take some pictures in a muddy park after a few days of heavy rain. Then I used Photoshop to make the photos even darker and more blue to match the look of the miniseries. Much better! Now I feel like I'm finally ready for an otherworldly faerie ball. <br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com23tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-58953777839392038402015-10-27T17:20:00.000-05:002015-11-04T11:34:28.079-06:00Regency mourning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Although the "little white dress" of the Regency period might be the iconic gown that the era is best known for, black dresses during this period were also extremely popular and make equally great wardrobe builders. This past summer, I decided to make a sheer black dress from around 1810 to wear as a mourning gown, and I've worn it to several events and have enjoyed dressing it up with a variety of accessories to get slightly different looks. <br />
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My dress is made of mystery-fiber fabric from the clearance bin of a local fabric store, and I think the whole dress ended up costing me around $10. I sewed much of the dress on the machine, but because it is so sheer, all of the seams are carefully finished by hand on the inside. To create the pattern for my dress, I used the very helpful diagrams and photos of a <a href="http://www.19thus.com/WomensClothing/GCV_RollerPrintGown.html">roller printed dress</a> from the <a href="http://www.19thus.com/WomensClothing.html">19th US Regiment of Infantry Women's Dress page</a>. I started out with double poof sleeves like you see in the original gown, but after wearing the dress that way a few times, I cut off the bottom poof because I thought the single puff was a little less fussy looking. The dress closes in the back with a drawstring at the top and a single hook at the waist, and I wear it over over a white bodiced petticoat.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "ヒラギノ角ゴ pro w3" , "hiragino kaku gothic pro" , , "meiryo" , "ms pゴシック" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px; text-align: start;"><i>Madame Faber</i>, 1816</span></td></tr>
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The first time I wore this dress, I was attending a concert in a park, so I accessorized it with my black shawl, black boots, a black collet necklace and earrings, and a black Regency-style brass tiara/comb which was made by my amazingly talented friend, Megan of the <a href="http://mistress-of-disguise.blogspot.com/2015/07/tiara-palooza.html">Mistress of Disguise website</a>. I often think of tiara as a very formal thing, but when you look at Regency-era portraits, it is fairly common to see women wearing these tiara-like combs with daywear, so it's fun to be able to wear a pretty flashy accessory to a less formal event.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "ヒラギノ角ゴ pro w3" , "hiragino kaku gothic pro" , , "meiryo" , "ms pゴシック" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px; text-align: start;"><i>Princess Charlotte of Wales</i>, 1816</span></td></tr>
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On it's next wearing, I was attending a Regency ball, so I wanted to dress the outfit up some more. I switched out the black jewelry for a rhinestone necklace, earrings, and tiara, and I also added a rhinestone clasp at the waistline under my bust. There are quite a few paintings of Regency ladies in black dresses with white satin slippers, so I picked up a pair of white <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0013M2PHA/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0013M2PHA&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=YH22GSQI4O6D5N2Y" rel="nofollow">Touch Ups ballet flats</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B0013M2PHA" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> and added some silk ribbon ties to create a similar look. To finish off the outfit, I wore a pair of long white vintage gloves, which really did a lot to make the outfit look more dressy. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "helvetica" , "ヒラギノ角ゴ pro w3" , "hiragino kaku gothic pro" , , "meiryo" , "ms pゴシック" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 17px; text-align: start;"><i>Modes et Manières du Jour</i> no. 27</span></td></tr>
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The next time I wore this dress was to the Breakfast with the Bennetts event at Costume College, so I wanted to go for a more casual "at home" look. I took inspiration from this fashion plate from <i>Modes et Manières du Jour </i>and added a splash of color with a yellow silk turban and a yellow reticule. I made the turban using a similar method to the <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/06/regency-turban-cap-tutorial.html">tutorial I posted last year</a>, and I also sewed some fake curls to the front edge of the hat so that it would be even easier to get dressed early in the morning. I also decided to dye my beloved pair of <a href="http://www.american-duchess.com/nankeen-fabric-regency-boots">American Duchess nankeen boots</a> with yellow Rit dye, which was a bit scary, but I really like the results.<br />
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I also played around with wearing this dress with an antique black lace shawl, black gloves, and my black bonnet with a lace veil over it to create more of a full-mourning look. I doubt I'll wear it like this to many outings because the veil and shawl are pretty delicate and are prone to getting snagged on things, but it was fun to at least take a nice picture or two.<br />
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I do have one additional way that I've worn this dress, but I'll save that for its own post since it is much less orthodox. So, I'll just end this post with a few more pictures and a "<a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2015/11/another-trip-to-lost-hope.html">to be continued...</a>"<br />
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As usual, more pics can be found on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157660349745886">Flickr</a>.Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-30559394963804013522015-10-17T18:19:00.000-05:002015-10-17T18:19:45.250-05:00a hobbit at faire<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This year for our annual family trip to the Renaissance Faire, I decided to make myself a hobbit costume. The theme for the weekend was Octoberfest, and since the female hobbit costumes from the Lord of the Rings trilogy are very dirndl-like, it seemed like a fitting choice. I also have to confess that I've been daydreaming about a hobbit dress ever since Sarah from the Romantic History blog made her <a href="http://romantichistory.blogspot.com/2012/09/lady-hobbit-costume-finished-at-last.html">beautiful hobbit gown</a> a few years ago. Sarah makes hobbit fashion look SO GOOD! Plus, with my love of home, food, and non-adventure, I've always identified with hobbits, so it was great fun to finally get to dress up like one! <div>
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I started by looking through a bunch of screen caps from the movies and I modeled my dress after some of the styles that I spotted on various hobbit ladies. My bodice is made of plaid wool cut on the bias, and the front panel is made from contrasting linen fabric with flowered ribbons criss-crossing across the front, similar to the lady on the right of this screenshot. Like most of the LotR hobbit bodices, mine laces up the back, is bound around the edges with a contrasting fabric, and has decorative trim at the edges of the front panel. I used my old 16th c. bodice pattern to make my bodice, and I decided to add a few strips of cable ties to the front panel to keep it smooth. </div>
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Almost all of the hobbit ladies in the film are wearing short-sleeved blouses with a ruffle at the cuff. Most of these blouses are a pale color instead of white, and some are embroidered or have a woven pattern. My blouse is made of pale green cotton with a subtle woven stripe, and I used a 1980's peasant blouse pattern to construct it. </div>
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My skirt was an older piece that I've had since I first started going to faires, but I dressed it up by adding an apron made out of striped blue and peach cotton. I also wore a gingham kerchief around my shoulders to add another layer to the mixed-matched look. It was really fun combining so many colors and patterns in one outfit, and I think it gave my dress a fittingly rustic feel. </div>
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Several of the hobbit women in the movie wear new-agey looking pendants on leather cords, so I picked out one of my husband's old stone necklaces to wear. I originally planned on picking out something more dainty to buy while I was the faire, but I liked getting a chance to wear this one, so in the end I decided not to switch. </div>
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Hobbit hair is always curly, and most of the women have bangs or shorter layers on top. I bought the <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/261007247905?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&var=560113266679&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT">Delihla wig</a> by Mona Lisa for this costume, and think it worked perfectly for hobbit hair. I was very pleased with the quality of this wig, and I got complements on my hair all day - I think I need to start wearing this wig all the time! </div>
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I don't remember seeing any of the women in the first LotR movies wearing a hat (they do wear them in the Hobbit trilogy, but those hobbit costumes are more like 18th c. fashions), but I decided to add one for sun protection since it was going to be such a hot day. I decorated a vintage straw hat that I found in an antique shop with a bit of trim and a cluster of flowers. I LOVE my hat! It's definitely my favorite part of this costume. </div>
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And of course you can't be a hobbit without a pair of big hairy feet, so I ordered a pair of child-sized rubber <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rubies-Rings-Hobbit-Costume-Enfant/dp/B000HAMKJM">hobbit feet</a> and stitched them to a pair of my old leather clogs. I got the idea from <a href="http://deeed.deviantart.com/art/Hobbit-Feet-Process-308858757?q=gallery%3Adeeed&qo=1">this tutorial</a> for hobbit shoes, but I thought that the child-sized feet wouldn't be so big that I would trip over them all day. After they were attached to my shoes, I repainted them with acrylic paint to make them look more realistic. They were obviously fakes if you look close enough, but I left my skirt pretty long so that you would mostly just see the toes peeking out as I walked, and I was pretty happy with the effect. </div>
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Here are a few more pictures from my day at faire, and you can see some additional shots on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157659919610546/with/22268078651/">Flickr</a>. </div>
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-59453568322512744512015-09-18T15:06:00.000-05:002015-09-18T15:06:10.560-05:00mourning calico<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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So back in January, I shared a new <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2015/01/little-house-natural-form-dress.html">natural form dress</a> that I had made for a <i>Little House on the Prairie</i> group that was in the works for Costume College. But then I had a change of heart and decided that I wanted a lighter weight cotton dress instead of a heavy wool one. I also am a hopeless follower, and when I heard that my friends were making calico prairie dresses, I decided that I needed one too! I found a great deal on a repro calico fabric from <a href="http://www.saudersfabric.com/">Saunders Fabrics</a>, and I picked a black fabric with a simple diamond pattern, which I thought it would make a lovely half-mourning dress. I'm so glad that I ended up switching plans because I think we made such a fun little group of Ingalls sisters in our nicely coordinating calicos.<br />
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For something a little different, I decided to try a yoked bodice, which was an incredibly popular style in the late 1870's. In April of 1879, Peterson's Magazine features a plaid yoked house dress and stated that "the deep waist is made plaited back and front into a yoke; a belt around the waist, with a bow of ribbon on one side." Most of these yoked bodices had high, round necklines or small standing collars, but I found one example of a yoked bodice with a middy collar on a teenaged girl, so I thought that the V-neck might help keep me cool while I also try a style that I haven't done before. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNxxrG905eAWkesGcA4v4MgXqabAIl4sueMXZJYwIE4QpJLC0VU3048mgaB23Au58uuGMJbafTWUFhXsn_PMkLVJD28S4G0iG9Uos_Gdq0drENX2J4nqpJTRZ10MthRraHLEfSWMenvlET/s1600/collar.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNxxrG905eAWkesGcA4v4MgXqabAIl4sueMXZJYwIE4QpJLC0VU3048mgaB23Au58uuGMJbafTWUFhXsn_PMkLVJD28S4G0iG9Uos_Gdq0drENX2J4nqpJTRZ10MthRraHLEfSWMenvlET/s320/collar.jpg" width="202" /></a>To help me get started with the construction, I found 2 yoked bodice patterns and several narrow overskirt diagrams in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0963651757/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0963651757&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=SYXQKS5EAUGQWY4R">Fashions of the Gilded Age, Volume 1: Undergarments, Bodices, Skirts, Overskirts, Polonaises, and Day Dresses 1877-1882</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0963651757" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />. Although I changed these patterns up quite a bit to make my own dress, they were a huge help as I figured out the overall shapes. </div>
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I used cotton velveteen for the collar, cuffs, and belt, and I edged it with natural linen rickrack, which really made these features stand out nicely. The buttons are vintage and slightly mismatched, which is a fun little detail that seemed appropriate for a prairie dress. I'm always amused when I see Victorian photos of women who have a mismatched button on their dress. It happens more often than you would think, and I love imagining a practical frontier woman just replacing a missing button with something "close enough" and not wasting any time worrying about it.</div>
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I also wore a silk bow at my neck, and a mourning rosette at my waist. The rosette was a lovely gift from 2 friends, and I made a faux tintype of my husband to use for the portrait. Similar mourning badges were quite popular after the death of Abraham Lincoln, and you can see a similar style <a href="http://www.icollector.com/Exceptional-1865-Abraham-Lincoln-Mourning-Badge-I_i5244695">here</a>. </div>
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As the finishing touch, I restyled a vintage black straw hat into a bonnet. You can see the "before" version on the left. I cut the brim off in the back of the hat and then wired the edge and covered it with petersham ribbon so that I could curve it around my face. Then I stitched some wide vintage lace into the inside of the brim, and I trimmed the outside with some vintege ribbon and the original black feathers from the hat. The ivory silk bow that was around the hat when I bought it was repurposed for the bow at the neck of my dress. <br />
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I love the long, loosely curled ponytails that you sometimes see in the late 1870's, so I took the easy way out of styling my hair and just attached a clip-in hairpiece and tied it with a bow. I think it's a nice change of pace from the more severe buns of the 1880s. <br />
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I only got a few posed pictures of my dress at Costume College, but I'm hoping to get some more fun ones in a pretty setting when I wear it again this winter. But if you'd like to see a few more, you can check out my <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157658162049998">Flickr album</a>. </div>
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-23947508106783042602015-09-06T20:06:00.000-05:002016-11-22T09:40:08.414-06:00A Summer Chemise<div style="text-align: center;">
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A friend of mine was hosting an 18th c. themed birthday party this weekend, and I decided at the last minute that I wanted a new dress that lightweight enough to be comfortable in our lingering summer heat. It's still in the high 90's here in Texas, so I thought a new chemise gown would be well worth a little detour from my other sewing and blogging plans. I also couldn't resist joining my friends, who were also wearing chemises to the party. I'm such a sucker for a theme!<br />
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The fabric is a figured cotton with woven stripes and dots, and it was originally brown. I bleached it and then re-dyed it to be a periwinkle blue-grey color. I thought the color that I ended up with was a nice match to the hue in this lovely fashion plate from <i>Cabinet des Modes. </i> I originally wanted to make a ruffled neckline and hem to make my dress match this fashion plate even closer, but I only had around 4 yards of fabric to work with, so I didn't have enough left over for ruffles. </div>
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Although colored chemise gowns during this time period are plentiful, it's hard to find much evidence for <i>cotton</i> chemise gowns in colors other than white. Most of the surviving examples and period references show that colored chemises were typically made of silk. But there is one fashion plate that shows a chemise of <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/pin/186688347023936730/">pink English muslin</a>, and as far as I know, 18th c. muslin was always made of cotton instead of silk, so I'm hoping that little tidbit of evidence is good enough to let me get away with this somewhat unusual material.<br />
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I used the same basic pattern that I created for my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2012/07/black-chemise-sneak-peek.html">black chemise</a> a few years ago, but this time I made elbow length sleeves and only had 2 drawstrings on the bodice instead of 3. Chemise gowns with fitted backs are very easy to construct, and I think they are a lot less fiddly than the kind that are gathered all the way around. I took a picture while I was getting dressed to give you a peek at the construction. It's really just a basic round gown with a gathered section attached over the front of the bodice, and this panel is stitched down on to the bodice at the sides and tied in the center with ribbons. <br />
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For the party last night, I just wore a simple ribbon and some flowers in my hair since this seems to be a very common look for ladies in portraits from the late 1780's and early 1790's. But I also loved the way the dress looked with my black tall hat, so I took some photos of both styles while tromping though the woods at my local park today. Here are a few of my favorite shots, and there are a few more pictures on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157658256839062">flickr</a>. <br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-42938467639959687632015-08-15T08:34:00.000-05:002015-08-15T12:38:23.139-05:001920 Bathing Suit<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4N1TwcKVLB784wlqYHtDIdRsr8Q214xnnOogA21oUsaXqsnb7GZ2Dmex-0ol1RK6xY2Fffuyrygben8c0TlnuI9w6al1szQoH5lzPquNhJ2lF89k_oRv3hoa2v0abNofBFYrIgevT7pxf/s1600/beach1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4N1TwcKVLB784wlqYHtDIdRsr8Q214xnnOogA21oUsaXqsnb7GZ2Dmex-0ol1RK6xY2Fffuyrygben8c0TlnuI9w6al1szQoH5lzPquNhJ2lF89k_oRv3hoa2v0abNofBFYrIgevT7pxf/s640/beach1.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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I’ve been madly sewing for Costume College over the past few
months, and I finally have enough free time again to blog about my projects and
show you all what I’ve been up to lately.
I’ll start by sharing the most summery of my new outfits – a late 1910’s/early
1920’s bathing suit. I think these bathing suits
tend to look pretty silly to our modern eyes, but they are comfy and fun and so easy to make, and I thought it would make a great low-stress costume to wear to
the Costume College pool party after a long day of traveling.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hpTfPfkz_zIy2AYSVuTGQ377WNCakZU8DWHA7Ll6VlEhFm5D617xh0CXmq1N4gr6gyNI4srvrDhdY7nh1rTnu4qTTICGuuZwQeyV05e3nj0OCXCZShRmdbje_VNjmbI61uZKhBNO7wFJ/s1600/7414664158_9e7133f19c_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2hpTfPfkz_zIy2AYSVuTGQ377WNCakZU8DWHA7Ll6VlEhFm5D617xh0CXmq1N4gr6gyNI4srvrDhdY7nh1rTnu4qTTICGuuZwQeyV05e3nj0OCXCZShRmdbje_VNjmbI61uZKhBNO7wFJ/s320/7414664158_9e7133f19c_o.jpg" width="220" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">bathing suits from 1918 <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/7414664158/in/album-72157630223461846/">New Idea Quarterly</a></td></tr>
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My suit is not an exact copy of any one historical outfit,
but the basic long tank top and boxy shorts were hugely popular in both photos
and fashion plates of women (and men!) from the years around 1920. You can see a wide variety of similar styles on my historical bathing suit <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/historical-bathing-suits/">Pinterest board</a>. Black was one of the most popular colors for
bathing suits, and like most of the surviving examples, I made mine from
wool. I had a hard time finding wool
knit for an affordable price, but I lucked upon some wool mommie cloth, which
has a slightly stretchy crepe-like weave that worked perfectly for my
project. Then I decorated the edges with
white rayon soutache. I threaded the
soutache onto a large eye tapestry needle, then sewed it directly into the
fabric by using a big running stich around the edges. The weave was loose enough that the soutache
slipped through holes in the cloth with no trouble at all. You can see a similar treatment on bathing suits like <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/pin/186688347030459685/">this one</a>. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I drafted my own pattern for this suit after consulting
several 1920’s swimsuit pattern diagrams in the book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887346545/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0887346545&linkCode=as2&tag=festatty-20&linkId=YKZ4NKAFP3IPB234">Women's Wear of the 1920's: With Complete Patterns</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=festatty-20&l=as2&o=1&a=0887346545" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />.
I was very doubtful that the shorts pattern
from that book would work for me - it’s just one rectangle for the front, one rectangle for the back, and a square gusset inserted into a slit for the inner
legs and crotch - but it actually worked quite well. Many of the 20’s bathing suits had the shorts
attached to the top, but I made mine separate and used elastic at the
waistline just to make it less fussy. Or if you wanted an even easier alternative, this type of suit would also be very easy to fake with a modern sleeveless blouse and shorts pattern. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4lwUD9qlvTgLHsHbb0ozkbkaIO38QLJypSkG3YUJpn3QWxcTNPidCmvaWxzIIXkZ4Z-PZHYNXvgQZPYABJ8SbklSIbUA6VCtpteexnF1g0tx6mRLyXfska7q0yVaeukrUEk3IcanejtYl/s1600/beach12.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4lwUD9qlvTgLHsHbb0ozkbkaIO38QLJypSkG3YUJpn3QWxcTNPidCmvaWxzIIXkZ4Z-PZHYNXvgQZPYABJ8SbklSIbUA6VCtpteexnF1g0tx6mRLyXfska7q0yVaeukrUEk3IcanejtYl/s640/beach12.jpg" width="456" /></a></div>
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These early bathing suits are pretty plain on their own, so
accessories go a long way to creating a more historical look. The vast majority of women in 1910’s and 20’s
photos of bathing suits are wearing some sort of cloth cap or bandana to cover
their hair, so I just hemmed a large triangle of striped cotton to wear for my own beachy headwear. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJeMMiivMobrXCxAUA_XR-oKTMbmw6mkfV4mx-OH6c7Ekn0Y6as7NJiif2cIXpuha-Nn0TBB3Dn46K02KIwW-QeJOQzyDA3ZJKc52d7r_Jb5oqMYeib-RQLNcjUcnkHMLEWPb7AoGbeFg8/s1600/beach11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJeMMiivMobrXCxAUA_XR-oKTMbmw6mkfV4mx-OH6c7Ekn0Y6as7NJiif2cIXpuha-Nn0TBB3Dn46K02KIwW-QeJOQzyDA3ZJKc52d7r_Jb5oqMYeib-RQLNcjUcnkHMLEWPb7AoGbeFg8/s400/beach11.jpg" width="292" /></a></div>
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I also loved that so
many of the women in the earlier photos were wearing black tights with their
bathing suits, so I took some photos both with and without the tights, but I think I like the look of tights better just because it is more "old timey" looking. I was also curious to see how it felt to wear hosery on a beach or in water, but it was really pretty nice. They offered protection from the itchy sand, and having wet tights next to my skin kept me much cooler than having the sun on my bare legs. But it was also fun to take the tights off and get a more modern, later 20's look. After having the tights on first, I have to admit that bare legs felt quite scandalous! </div>
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For my beach shoes, I stitched some soutache around the edges of a pair of cheap ballet flats from Target and added some ties to wrap around my legs. It was an easy alteration, and they held up well to wading through the water. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pw90LWFmB0xlnfuV7eSdam0DmBO01WrVxFRqBxTBTN_bMYJQBkY_vWCq4YUQThIxOrpa99ng-KDBA9VXcGVWB-Vvcx-lgTkkFCH99iPJZzhuvHrSpuiZsThtOC4AD-D_4H6pcUkjpHpg/s1600/Jacques+Henri+Lartigue.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8pw90LWFmB0xlnfuV7eSdam0DmBO01WrVxFRqBxTBTN_bMYJQBkY_vWCq4YUQThIxOrpa99ng-KDBA9VXcGVWB-Vvcx-lgTkkFCH99iPJZzhuvHrSpuiZsThtOC4AD-D_4H6pcUkjpHpg/s320/Jacques+Henri+Lartigue.jpg" width="144" /></a>But my favorite accessory of all was my parasol. The big one in my beach photos is made of canvas and bamboo, and it was sold at World Market a few years ago. It is HUGE and heavy, but I loved how similar it looks to the beach umbrellas seen in some period photos, like this famous image by Jacque Henri Lartigue. I tried to take some similar photos, but it was harder than I thought it would be to look glamorous while running back and forth to take pictures with a tripod and automatic timer in the soft sand. My umbrella kept rolling away and the waves would catch me off guard, so I'm sure I made quite a curious and memorable sight for the tourists watching me from their balconies at the condo! </div>
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I obviously couldn't carry such a huge umbrella around Costume College, so I painted some swallowtails on a cheap paper parasol in a design similar to the parasol in <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/7414663348/in/album-72157630223461846/">this fashion plate</a>. It's not nearly as exciting as my big umbrella, but it definitely helped my outfit feel more complete. The black and white is pretty severe without a little dash of color. </div>
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So that's pretty much it for my first new Costume College costume. I've uploaded all of my pictures from the weekend to <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157656368819550">this flickr album</a> if you want to see some spoilers about what I'll be blogging about over the next month, and I also have another album with a <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/albums/72157654949746664">few more of my beach pics</a>. I also had fun indulging in my other hobby and turning some of my favorite shots into faux-autochromes and other antique photo fakes. I think my favorite part about Edwardian and 1920s costuming is getting to Photoshop all the pictures when I'm done! Autochromes are the best, and I always love getting new inspiration by looking at the real ones - <a href="https://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/autochromes/">aren't they gorgeous</a>? <br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com30tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-17388157414428785392015-05-15T09:18:00.001-05:002015-05-15T09:24:33.804-05:00When life throws you lemons, make a hat!Like many people, I was very touched by the recent blog post on Wearing History about <a href="http://wearinghistoryblog.com/2015/05/social-media-and-the-myth-of-perfection/">Social Media and the Myth of Perfection</a>. I can relate to many of the things she has gone through, and I SO admire the courage that she showed by giving us a glimpse into the less public side of her life. I think Lauren started a conversation that really needed to happen. It is SO easy to feel inferior, jealous, or like the people around us live charmed lives when we only see the highly curated images that are typically shared on blogs and Facebook. I can also relate to the Dreamstress's post on <a href="http://thedreamstress.com/2015/05/privacy-perfection-and-blogging/">Privacy, Perfection, and Blogging</a>, because I too am an extremely private person, and there are just some things that I don't feel comfortable talking about in this very public forum. <br />
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2014 was a very bad year for me. 2015 has been much much worse. I have been struggling with what to say or how to say it here on my public site, so this string of recent articles was very timely for me. Everybody is different, but for me, costuming is my joy, my creative outlet, and most of all, my <i>escape</i>, and I just don't want to talk about sad personal things here - that's what LiveJournal is for! But if you notice that I'm not posting as much, I'm replying to emails even less than usual, or you see me wearing lots of black for awhile, just know that there's a lot going on beneath the surface, and I'm doing the best that I can.<br />
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So on a lighter note, I thought I'd show you a quickie project that I just completed last week. I wanted to wear my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/11/edwardian-half-mourning-dress-pics.html">Edwardian half-mourning outfit</a> to a DFWCG outing, but we were going to a crowded museum, so I didn't want to be a nuisance in my ginormous Merry Widow hat. So the night before the event, I whipped up a much smaller version to wear instead. <br />
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Edwardian hats are some of the most delightful things to make because they often appear to be big piles of fluff with very little rhyme or reason to them. I started with a flat brimmed straw hat that I found at an estate sale, and then I took some scraps of velvet and piled them on top to make the crown seem much bigger than it actually is. I tacked the velvet down by hand, and I just folded and scrunched it up as I went until it looked "right". (I know that's not very helpful, but I don't know any other way to say it!) I finished it off by adding 4 feathers that I lightly curled with my curling iron, and an antique buckle brooch that I bought on Etsy. These brooches are quite common and are often surprisingly affordable, and I love them because they are so easy to switch out from one project to the next. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhxPrRItZCUTxPTGTyAUzyHr3wKKdgw_GhoXLT_jOXRi6uuw4jmCJVs23OorVDjdfjesVLJU7fTM-z1HUwaBM52lcCChyaYvt-Hcazv7wT2DBiTixwUJNzPb4Os3QVUggRISZc-yQt7s_c/s1600/hat1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" onmouseout="this.src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhxPrRItZCUTxPTGTyAUzyHr3wKKdgw_GhoXLT_jOXRi6uuw4jmCJVs23OorVDjdfjesVLJU7fTM-z1HUwaBM52lcCChyaYvt-Hcazv7wT2DBiTixwUJNzPb4Os3QVUggRISZc-yQt7s_c/s1600/hat1.jpg'" onmouseover="this.src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBykJwT2sQZsFb6O_RBaUjuJ4JqsOpyjpJexLuIKyjrW_YPz2rIlfy_ox7cdy87aEgYxWFNnnLs9LWQbJW0C5v2BWYuTyqZ6hS3z2oLRR4-Mig6gNYj59AlQqqex8nta_gWNk7P2mowJ6c/s1600/hat2.jpg'" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhxPrRItZCUTxPTGTyAUzyHr3wKKdgw_GhoXLT_jOXRi6uuw4jmCJVs23OorVDjdfjesVLJU7fTM-z1HUwaBM52lcCChyaYvt-Hcazv7wT2DBiTixwUJNzPb4Os3QVUggRISZc-yQt7s_c/s1600/hat1.jpg" /></a>Even though I don't want to delve into sad personal topics today, I will share one "myth of perfection" confession with you all. I often retouch my photos to remove wrinkles, blemishes, dark circles under my eyes, or fix my hair a little better. I figure that all of those issues could be avoided or at least lessened if I used expensive eye creams, botox, wrinkle fillers, or a hairdresser... but I'm poor and Photoshop is free, so eh? why not? I also take an average of 50 photos for every 1 that is good enough to show up on my site, so I'm extremely selective about what I show here. I often wonder if people see me in person at costume events and are shocked by how old and ragged I look compared to my online photos. :) But it's really hard to put yourself out there for the amusement and nit-picking thousands of strangers. A bit of retouching makes me feel braver and less self-conscious - it's like a psychological coat of armor - so I feel more comfortable sharing more photos of my costuming work, which is the <i>real</i> point of it all. So now you know my dirty little secret, and if you'd like to see the raw, un-retouched me, just roll over this picture and take a peek.<br />
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So am I spreading the myth of perfection by retouching my photos? Maybe. Am I going to keep doing it? You better believe it! Because in the end, costuming is not reality - it's an escape. Reality is not always pretty and it's not always fun, but I'm grateful to have this quirky little hobby where I can take a break from the real world to cast off my woes, wear silly hats, magically erase my wrinkles, and laugh with my friends. For me, it's the best therapy in the world. Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-41110214536238951432015-03-03T10:32:00.000-06:002015-03-03T10:32:40.658-06:00Regency Chemise<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This year, I'm thrilled to be participating in a group project that will recreate the costumes illustrated in Vernet’s <i>Merveilleuses and
Incroyables </i>from 1814. (for more info, check out
the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/vernet1814?fref=ts">Facebook page</a>) We are supposed to keep the dress that we are making
a secret until the grand reveal in December, so I decided to focus my blog entries on undergarments and
accessories for most of the year and save my dress for the very end. I’m really excited to
have an excuse to make myself some new and improved Regency undies, and
I am looking forward to hand-sewing everything from the skin out. I know, I know… that probably sounds like
madness to many of you, but I’ve grown to love hand-sewing over the years, so it seems like a
fun challenge to me. <o:p></o:p></div>
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The first garment on my list was a new chemise. There isn’t much to
blog about with a simple shift or chemise, but I’ll share my progress here anyway. My chemise is made from a lightweight linen/cotton blend fabric, and it is stitched with linen thread. The seams are all sewn by hand with a small backstitch, then I flat felled the seams. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv7W_qWhgGLDctkHKOcFaXk5Qq6Cl5Fcp4Tuloxk4FOImICABYtvrU5odK9Uey0UIcxBfmUv8oeSfNZjML5DhgL2QVg8EYqwRY70qOJ8Pn9VsjSC6NCaiF_W3J6Ls9kAgsJQO5pRXr31U8/s1600/gore.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgv7W_qWhgGLDctkHKOcFaXk5Qq6Cl5Fcp4Tuloxk4FOImICABYtvrU5odK9Uey0UIcxBfmUv8oeSfNZjML5DhgL2QVg8EYqwRY70qOJ8Pn9VsjSC6NCaiF_W3J6Ls9kAgsJQO5pRXr31U8/s1600/gore.jpg" height="320" width="201" /></a>I decided to use <a href="http://www.lafnmoon.com/product_p/p115.htm">Laughing Moon #115</a> for this garment, and the pattern is based on a surviving chemise in the designer’s
collection. The sizing worked well, and
it saved me a good bit of time and effort vs. drafting my own pattern from scratch. It would have been nice if the instructions had been more detailed about inserting the underarm gussets – those were tricky with the felled seams – but I worked it out eventually. I’m sure there are some wonderful tutorials online somewhere, but I was too lazy (or maybe too stubborn) to go searching for them.<br />
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The only thing that I didn't like about this chemise pattern is that it has a very high neckline in back, so I cut it into a more rounded shape after it was assembled to
lower the back edge. Both <a href="http://emuseum.history.org/view/objects/asitem/search@/31/title-desc?t:state:flow=ac52624f-d0bb-4a22-b6ea-fd31351a8d8f">square</a> and
<a href="http://emuseum.history.org/view/objects/asitem/search@/6/title-desc?t:state:flow=cc9ccfd0-c750-43eb-85f3-dbc7c16b9d7f">round</a> necklines were common in Regency chemises, although I'm not sure if they were ever combined into one garment. I actually like the rounded back better than the square front, so I think if I made this pattern up again, I would choose the high neckline option for the front and then round off the shape of both the front and the back of the chemise. <br />
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I also wish that I had cut the selvage down to something narrower than 5/8" before felling the seams. Period undergarments usually have tiny seams, and mine look pretty ham-fisted in comparison. But this was my first time to hand-sew a chemise, and I learned a lot from the process, so I'm still pretty happy with the end results. <br />
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My biggest discovery was that chemises don't take nearly as long to sew by hand as I had feared. It always seemed like too much effort to hand-sew something that would rarely be seen by anybody other than myself, but this chemise made up so quickly that it was really no trouble at all. I only worked on it for a couple of hours over 3 evenings, and it was a soothing and mindless project while watching movies and TV. <o:p></o:p></div>
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As one last finishing touch, I thought it would be a fun to embroider my initials on the front under the neckline. Embroidered initial are commonly found on period chemises, and I can imagine that if you lived in a Regency household filled with women, it would be quite necessary to
monogram your garments so that you didn’t end up wearing your mother’s or your
sister’s underwear. I'm afraid that if I was one Jane
Austen’s heroines, I definitely wouldn’t win any praise for my
needlework skills… but I guess this is good enough for a modern Janeite. ;) <o:p></o:p><br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com15tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-54675696292473755382015-02-22T20:44:00.003-06:002015-02-22T20:44:42.740-06:00The Mojo Dress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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2015 has not been very kind to me so far with sewing projects. I had a string of sewing/shopping disasters, so I finally got fed up and took a break from anything costume-related for most of February. But inspiration comes from the strangest places, and for me, it was seeing the horribly tacky 60's/70's clothes in the new <a href="http://tomandlorenzo.com/2015/02/mad-men-season-7-5-more-promo-shots/">Mad Men</a> <a href="http://tomandlorenzo.com/2015/02/mad-men/">promo pics</a>. I know most people would run screaming from all that pastel, plaid, and big hair, but I love it like crazy! It's hideous and glorious and it made me want to sew something RIGHT NOW, so yesterday I whipped up my own pastel plaid monstrosity to wear to a retro-themed bowling event today. It felt great work on a no-stress dress for a change, and hopefully it will help me get my sewing mojo back on track again. <br />
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To make my dress, I used a very simple mail order jumper pattern from the late 60's or early 70's. The fabric is vintage wool plaid that I found at an estate sale many years ago. This is actually my second garment that uses this fabric - it also made an appearance in a pair of <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/search/label/menswear">Victorian pants</a>. What can I say? I LOVE crazy plaids! The dress is finished off with a few vintage buttons that were given to me by my mother-in-law, but unfortunately, I wasn't paying attention and make the dress button on the wrong side. Whoops! <br />
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I also used today's outing as an excuse to wear my Vintage Coat of Awesomeness. That was another amazing estate sale discovery. God, I love that coat! <br />
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So that's about it. It was fun to make, fun to get dressed up, fun to do something different, and fun to indulge in my Mad Men obsession. A perfect palate-cleanser project.</div>
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com21tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-1884070509072395492015-01-11T13:30:00.000-06:002015-01-11T13:30:53.999-06:00Little House natural form dress<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'm planning on going to <a href="http://129.121.107.232/~costumer/college/">Costume College</a> again this summer, and it is never too early to start making dresses! The theme for this year is "Plucked from the Pages", so a couple of my friends and I are planning on wearing <i>Little House on the Prairie</i> inspired outfits for one of the days while we are there. I have been obsessed with all things "Little House" for most of my life, so I decided to make a very simple wool natural form gown that would be right at home on the prairie during the early 1880's, which is when the last few books took place. I remember spending many hours of my childhood (and adulthood!) pouring over the illustrations in those books and re-reading the passages that described their dresses. Although my outfit isn't meant to copy one specific dress from the book, I was definitely influenced by several of the charming illustrations and descriptions from the series when coming up with my design. <br />
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I also wanted to have something new to wear this weekend for an <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157650229935511/">outing to the museum</a> with the DFWCG. The wool that this dress is made from is quite heavy, which makes it warm and cozy for winter. Plus, the narrow skirts and lack of a train made it much more manageable around crowds, which was nice since the museum was packed. Unfortunately, I ran short on time and didn't get to fine-tune my outfit as much as I would have liked, so I'll probably go back and made a few minor adjustments before it gets a second wearing a Costume College. I know these are nit-picky things, but the peplum is a little unruly and refused to lay flat in back, the collar and cuffs need a bit of lace, and the velvet collar seems a bit awkward to my eyes. Is it too wide? Should it be wool? Or maybe I just need to add some ribbons or a lace cravat to dress it up some more? I haven't completely worked a solution just yet, but luckily I have 7 months to mull it over. <br />
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I used the same basic bodice pattern that I used last summer for my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/05/late-1880s-plaid-bustle-dress.html">plaid dress</a>, and I reused my bonnet from that project too since the colors looked so pretty with the maroon. The overkskirt pattern was drafted from the 1880 "sateen dress" diagram in <i>Fashions of the Gilded Age Vol 1.</i> I discovered that the front of the overskirt was a lot longer in real life than the illustration shows, and I had to add in extra pleats to make it match up with the back panel correctly. But that's okay because I like the look of the longer skirt just as well. I also used two straps of wide elastic to keep the overskirt pulled back tightly, and that seemed to help the draping of the front a lot while still giving me freedom to move. <br />
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My favorite part of the dress is the set of antique Victorian buttons on the bodice, which are nothing exciting in photos, but I think they are quite pretty in real life. I love being able to use old buttons on a new dress. It's such a fun finishing touch. <br />
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I also got to wear my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2013/12/1883-winter-accessories.html">fur capelet</a> again, which made me incredibly happy. It's so warm in Texas that it's always a treat when I can find an excuse to wear coats and capes! <br />
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As usual, here are some of my favorite photos, and there are a few more additional pics on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157650244581115/">flickr</a>. <br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-17884214600858308402014-12-14T12:29:00.000-06:002014-12-14T12:29:44.059-06:001869 dress for Candlelight<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I got a bee in my bonnet last weekend and decided that I couldn't bear to wear my same old bustle dress to Candlelight two years in a row, so I made a new 1869 outfit for the occasion. Luckily, this style of dress goes together quite easily, and I was able to pull all the supplies that I needed from my stash. All I had to buy this week was a $1 sprig of greenery for my hat. Now that's my kind of Christmas miracle!<br />
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The gown is made with green plaid silk that I picked up at a <a href="http://www.fabriquefabrics.com/">Fabrique</a> sale earlier in the year for $16. No, not $16 per yard - but $16 for the dress length. Best. Deal. Ever! I had no idea what I would make with it, and I usually try to avoid adding things to my stash without a plan, but this was just too good of a deal to pass up. My students pointed out that the fabric looks like a roll of Scotch Tape, and wow - yeah it does! Maybe I can convince Scotch to sponsor my dress if I sew a big product patch on my back like a race car driver. But even though I do look a bit tape-ish, I thought the green was quite festive, and I matched the event's Victorian Santa so well. <br />
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To make the dress, I used a combination of patterns from <i>Patterns of Fashion</i> and <i>Theatrical Costumes for Stage and Screen</i>. It's a pretty simple dress on its own, and the only embellishment is a set of antique glass buttons with flowers cut into them. At first, I thought about adding fringe or rows of trim on the dress, but then I fell in love with a 1869 fashion plate from <i>La Mode Illustrée </i>showing a similarly austere gown worn with a black tunic over it. I poked around and found several period patterns for this type of garment, including one in the book <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=uvMtPPhDFV4C&pg=PA104&lpg=PA104&dq=1869+mantilla&source=bl&ots=dPf85bOzZm&sig=Do8YlQEMjAHY_Wke511vyH8ZH4A&hl=en&sa=X&ei=9K-NVOnBBoi9yQSwk4D4Cw&ved=0CB4Q6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=1869%20mantilla&f=false">60 Civil War-Era Fashion Patterns</a> that is referred to as a "pannier mantilla". I loved the description, which states: "a more useful article of dress is not likely to appear this season, and will more than repay for the slight trouble of making it." How charming!<br />
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I also found a similar garment and pattern in an 1869 copy of <i>de Gracieusse </i>that is archived on the<i> </i><a href="http://www.geheugenvannederland.nl/">Het Geheugen van Nederland</a> archive (search for "gracieuse" plus the year that you want to find the magazines). This mantilla, which you can see in the middle of the top and bottom row of the illustration above, is a little more fitted and has an open V-neckline, so I used the body from this pattern, and the pannier flounce from the other. I always love detangling the pattern sheets in these old magazines, and somewhere hidden in this jumble you can find the pieces for my mantilla. <br />
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To finish the outfit, I dyed another pair of vintage gloves with Rit to match the yellow in my dress. I also took a straw pillbox hat from the 1960's and tacked the sides of the top together to make it look more like an early bustle tilt hat. I added a vintage moire ribbon to the back and a bit of Christmas greenery to the top, and that's it. The ribbons liked to flap around in the wind and stand straight up or wrap around my face and look ridiculous most of the time. I probably should have gone with narrower ribbon like the hat shown in this 1869 fashion plate, but the color matched my dress so well that I couldn't resist. Oh well. Go big or go home, right? :)<br />
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On the way to the event, I stopped by my favorite Victorian chapel and took a few pictures. Here are some of my favorites, and as usual, there are more on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/">flickr</a>, plus <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157649343907870/">a few others</a> of our group at the Candlelight event. <br />
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-90374945796047172772014-11-30T13:29:00.000-06:002014-12-06T02:30:43.363-06:001790s Autumn accessories<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Gallery of Fashion, 1796</i></td></tr>
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A few weekends ago, the DFWCG had its annual Georgian Picnic, and I decided to make some new cold-weather accessories to dress up my old <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2012/01/mat-hatter-costume.html">1790's spencer and round gown</a>. Unfortunately, I ran short on time and had all sorts of unforeseen drama that weekend, so my fancy new accessories did not get finished and I ended up with <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/15805762805/">a very boring outfit</a> for the picnic. *blah* But I was so excited about what I was working on that I decided to give it another try and finish everything so I could at least do a photo shoot and share my projects here. I spent lots of time pouring through Gallery of Fashion illustrations when coming up with ideas for my new accessories, and all of those plates can be found on the <a href="http://digital.bunka.ac.jp/kichosho_e/index.php">Bunka Gakuen</a> archive, which is an invaluable resource for studying costume of this era. <br />
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First on the list was a new fixed turban. The construction was very similar to the <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/06/regency-turban-cap-tutorial.html">turban I made last summer</a>, but this one has a 3-yard strip of velvet wrapped around the crown, which made it much rounder and taller than my first version. I didn't get a chance to decorate it before the picnic, so it was painfully plain during its first wearing. To add a bit more excitement, I added strips of fur to the twists and a drape in the back, and I like it a million times better now. It just goes to show how important those finishing touches are when making hats from this era. I used a straw hat as the base for this turban, and everything is tacked into place by hand, so it would be easy to change again in the future if I wanted to try something else.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Gallery of Fashion, 1801</i></td></tr>
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I also had a massive hair fail on the morning of the picnic and didn't have time to work out a plan B, so I decided to invest in a new wig to make sure that never happens again. I bought the <a href="http://www.wigsbymonalisa.com/Aneesa-Wig_p_2573.html">Aneesa wig by Mona Lisa</a> (you can sometimes find cheaper prices for this wig on Ebay), and I think it's a nice match for the short cropped curls that you see in some of the fashion plates from this era. I took sections of hair and brushed them out, then I wrapped them around my finger to make distinct ringlets. It's sort of a silly look, but it seemed very Gallery of Fashion-esque, which is exactly what I was going for. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/15805762805/">reticule from the MFA Boston - 1800</a></i></td></tr>
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Next, I decorated a silk reticule with brass spangles. I made the reticule earlier this year, but it wasn't anything exciting, so I decorated it with a pattern similar to the bag shown on the left. My version is fairly subtle since the color of the spangles matches the silk so well, but I'm quite pleased with the way it turned out, and I discovered how fun it is to add spangles to things. I don't think I'll ever have a plain reticule again! <br />
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The gloves were another quick project that helped to add some more color to my outfit. They are vintage gloves that I found at an estate sale, and they were originally orange. I over-dyed them with purple Rit to make them a burgundy color that would match my turban. The color is a little spotty in a few areas, so the next time I dye gloves, I'll be sure to wash them first to make sure any old grease or oil is removed, which can cause the dye to be absorbed differently in those areas. But it's nice to know that I can take boring old gloves and dye them any color that I want. I never even though about doing that before.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Gallery of Fashion, 1795</i></td></tr>
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In the past, I wore my paisley shawl with this outfit, but paisley shawls don't typically show up in fashion plates until after 1800, so they aren't the most historically correct style to use with this period. So I decided to make myself a fur tippet, which is an accessory that you do see often in 1790's illustrations. I had a small remnant of faux fur left over from another project, so I pieced it together and sewed it into a long tube. Honestly, it doesn't provide much warmth unless you wrap it tightly around your neck, but they do look pretty glamorous, so I guess that's the main point.<br />
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Finally, I made myself a high-necked chemisette to fill in the neckline of my round gown and make it more appropriate for winter. I made it out of a vintage baby gown that had been badly stained and torn and was headed for the scrap bin. But I managed to salvage enough of the plain cotton to make the chest piece and collar, and then I used the lace edging to create some long ties that I could arrange like a cravat. I think more than anything, the chemisette helped to keep me warm by covering one of the few exposed areas on my body, and I love the smart and sporty look that it creates - perfect for a hike through the woods on a November day.<br />
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So I might have missed my goal of having these new accessories finished for the picnic, but I still had fun wearing them for my photoshoot, and I hope I get another chance to wear them to a real event in the future. You can see the full set of photos on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157649124278089/">Flickr</a>, and here are a few more of my faves.<br />
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<br />Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-8787135163646600682014-11-04T22:19:00.002-06:002014-11-05T15:14:57.076-06:00Edwardian half-mourning dress pics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I knew I would be incredibly busy at the <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157649003346892/with/15030142054/">DFWCG's Mourning Tea</a>, so I stopped by a beautifully restored Victorian chapel and cemetery near my home so I could take a few pictures of my new half-mourning dress before the party. I was running short on time and never made it down to the cemetery itself, but I did get some pretty shots outside of the chapel. Here are some of my favorites, and there are a more on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157646812101093/">flickr</a>. I'm also having fun turning these into faux-autochromes and Longchamps-style photos, so I'll probably keep coming back and replacing these as I have time. <br />
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I'll start by reposting my original inspiration from a 1908 edition of <i>La Mode Pratique, </i>followed by two photo where I tried to copy the poses shown in the illustration. I didn't intend to copy every last detail of this dress, but I think I managed to capture the over-all feel of the fashion plate pretty well, which was my main goal for this project. Out of all the things that I create, nothing beats the satisfaction of recreating an outfit from a work of art. There's just something magical about seeing an artist's depiction of fashion once again turn into a living, breathing, moving thing. </div>
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Thanks for following along with my little mini-diary about this dress, and if you missed the earlier entries, you can go back to read about the <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/08/edwardian-corset-and-pattern-review.html">corset</a>, <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/10/edwardian-half-mourning-costume-pt-1.html">skirt/blouse</a>, <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/10/edwardian-jacket-for-half-mourning.html">jacket</a>, and <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/11/merry-widow-hat-and-gibson-girl-hair.html">hat</a>. </div>
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com37tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-34329086991555194722014-11-03T19:54:00.000-06:002014-11-03T20:36:43.337-06:00Merry Widow hat and Gibson Girl hair<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gS81lteclUZuHRaURx4CKjlh17FYnSzMnq9MNZqXj1JAHP-ldukOAVSb8kfjLxez-TfWnTtD07mieRY-KPNc7qi_WYoAMQnT_0YOi0JWIQ1XuPsAMYJYWY7-4u1y2dRSBekvee7teobI/s1600/Elsiemerrywidow.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_gS81lteclUZuHRaURx4CKjlh17FYnSzMnq9MNZqXj1JAHP-ldukOAVSb8kfjLxez-TfWnTtD07mieRY-KPNc7qi_WYoAMQnT_0YOi0JWIQ1XuPsAMYJYWY7-4u1y2dRSBekvee7teobI/s1600/Elsiemerrywidow.jpg" height="188" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lily Elsie from <i>The Merry Widow</i></td></tr>
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One of the main reasons that I wanted to make an Edwardian outfit for the DFWCG's Mourning Tea Party was because I've always wanted a proper "Merry Widow" hat, and a mourning party seemed like the perfect place to wear one. These fabulously oversized confections were inspired by the operetta <i>The Merry Widow,</i> which took London by storm in 1907 and sparked a huge craze for the large hats worn by the leading actress, Lily Elsie. Judging by the the frequent mentions of Merry Widow hats in magazines from from this period, it seems that men found them annoying, cartoonists thought they were ridiculous, moralists saw them as sinful, and women just couldn't get enough of them! They continued to grow in size throughout the end of the Edwardian years, ultimately reaching the largest expanses ever seen in the history of fashion before finally shrinking back to a more manageable size by the mid-1910's. Since I also happen to be a huge fan of ridiculous headwear, I decided to make my own Merry Widow hat with proportions epic enough to make my Edwardian ancestors proud.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgErR24WY2IWe0RBu_PYC0e8oRowRmLHQ4EYjJ64eNCCiz8D5yorA3NGv8SBP_IFX6UKbP2i58CWwDXJKye4GVPnEDHidviK2yRZ0ZZG_WLEn6Hr-OM1joeHZJ37HZYLNBoBL3273YE4jWm/s1600/bohemian1908.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgErR24WY2IWe0RBu_PYC0e8oRowRmLHQ4EYjJ64eNCCiz8D5yorA3NGv8SBP_IFX6UKbP2i58CWwDXJKye4GVPnEDHidviK2yRZ0ZZG_WLEn6Hr-OM1joeHZJ37HZYLNBoBL3273YE4jWm/s1600/bohemian1908.png" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Bohemian Magazine</i>, 1908</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWhrZzGmpyteHmnPIxNt3w3UdFKXLphZ3RNxIo6R6DJ54IGfg33ZUKlGZebdQE-2iD4KQviAgikwVDVsIjydxfwS3h-E9KkiCiEebJhsH7iOGdURi0MUn95ayju6EORHXuX0yAFyT4HgYH/s1600/photo+(2).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjWhrZzGmpyteHmnPIxNt3w3UdFKXLphZ3RNxIo6R6DJ54IGfg33ZUKlGZebdQE-2iD4KQviAgikwVDVsIjydxfwS3h-E9KkiCiEebJhsH7iOGdURi0MUn95ayju6EORHXuX0yAFyT4HgYH/s1600/photo+(2).JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
I've noticed from handling some wide-brimmed antique Edwardian hats that they are often hard as a rock, so I suspected that they used cardboard as a base instead of buckram and wire. Modern sombreros also use cardboard bases, and they are the only hats that I know of that are still as large as Edwardian Merry Widows, so I decided to experiment with converting a sombrero into a historical style. Although sombreros often show up on Ebay or Etsy, the cheapest one that I could find was <a href="http://mariachiconnection.com/s1cardboardhatcoveredincloth.aspx">this hat from the Mariachi Connection</a> (as a bonus, they seem to have frequent sales too). The sombrero is plain enough that you might could replace the crown only and skip recovering it, but it is covered with a a velvet-like synthetic material that I wasn't crazy about, so I decided to deconstruct the entire thing and see if I could cover the base with my own fabric for a more sophisticated look. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5E9qZtroo4sPjYl9c-W_RBb57h5WI1JFlpRGbIfzR4UXokCIFJ4TEYuZ2covKt4TYuiVUxp6a4ysiiwpuYZGNZF7JCqP515rjtE7ZmXtY-tTkw169WvlDFpIW8pIDaelIASgrrAUN1kYQ/s1600/barehat.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5E9qZtroo4sPjYl9c-W_RBb57h5WI1JFlpRGbIfzR4UXokCIFJ4TEYuZ2covKt4TYuiVUxp6a4ysiiwpuYZGNZF7JCqP515rjtE7ZmXtY-tTkw169WvlDFpIW8pIDaelIASgrrAUN1kYQ/s1600/barehat.jpg" height="400" width="177" /></a></div>
My first step was to remove the edge binding and decorative cords and then pull the fabric off the cardboard base. The cords and binding are sewn all the way though the cardboard, which is impressive considering how hard the base is. The fabric came off easily though, and it seemed to be glued down with something similar to rubber cement. The fabric on the entire top side of the brim was glued down, but the bottom and crown were only glued around the edges. It looked like the cardboard was shaped over some sort of block that formed the rolled edges of the brim, and the larger upturned side had several places where the cardboard was cut and overlapped to make it curl up more smoothly. Once the fabric was removed, I cut off the crown and enlarged the opening for the head to a larger size, although I did not worry about the exact size of the opening until the crown was attached. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX9FpQLGrJyiGM6COe1Z7W8_xzouw9arBdXy7CIjShqfRB4lN_jnG3BZUq9Obr1PUUlRRoZ7Vp3wDFFNKUcPdt4C2VpIHSbGx0eichYqw7mtt0zxL2HvvbxpJxglz4IH-QT6ELxGg1Xirc/s1600/crown.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX9FpQLGrJyiGM6COe1Z7W8_xzouw9arBdXy7CIjShqfRB4lN_jnG3BZUq9Obr1PUUlRRoZ7Vp3wDFFNKUcPdt4C2VpIHSbGx0eichYqw7mtt0zxL2HvvbxpJxglz4IH-QT6ELxGg1Xirc/s1600/crown.JPG" height="400" width="265" /></a>The next step was to construct a new crown for the hat. I found an article in a 1909 edition of <i>La Mode Illustrée </i>that gives a pattern and instructions for making a similar style of hat, so I used those dimensions for building my new crown. The article called for a crown that was was 10.5" in diameter, 33.5" in circumference, and 4" tall. I built my crown using a double layer of buckram with wire around the top and bottom edge, and then I covered it with cotton velveteen. It is a bit silly looking on its own, but I had fun modeling it to show you exactly how huge the crowns of Edwardian hats are supposed to be. It felt like I'm wearing a lampshade on my head at this point, but you really do need to make the crowns this large or else they don't sit correctly over the large hairstyles of the period.<br />
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After the crown was finished, I then covered the brim with my velveteen. I decided to use spray adhesive to attach the fabric to the cardboard base, and I used Scotch brand Super 77 for this project, which worked quite well. Just be sure to spray the adhesive outdoors, and do it on the grass or on newspapers because the spray glue is incredibly sticky, and it is very hard to remove if you get it on something by accident. It took me two tries to attach the fabric to the cardboard base smoothly, and there are a few tricks that I learned that made my second attempt much more successful. Please forgive my quickie hand-drawn diagrams, but hopefully they will help to illustrate the concepts.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGp1qq7UkZ0gxMlZzgpwoQy6Vz_MMalfJBrGOTOZZ-rv2tXmpPUyNyzYQhm1quk25TzjF4kFcMpILdMvz-8fz7hhnJpttk2pogCR_XcthZi_6PZjWovTIQMofd0UDw2zJeezkANDMpb3BO/s1600/dia1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGp1qq7UkZ0gxMlZzgpwoQy6Vz_MMalfJBrGOTOZZ-rv2tXmpPUyNyzYQhm1quk25TzjF4kFcMpILdMvz-8fz7hhnJpttk2pogCR_XcthZi_6PZjWovTIQMofd0UDw2zJeezkANDMpb3BO/s1600/dia1.jpg" height="262" width="320" /></a></div>
First of all, be sure to cut your circle of fabric a good bit larger than the actual size of the hat, and don't cut out the center hole until after it is completely stuck down. It is hard to line everything up exactly when applying the fabric, and you really only have one shot at getting it on there right with the spray glue. The first time I tried it I was a little off center, and I didn't have enough fabric on one side to completely cover the edge. The second time I tried, I cut wider selvages, and I also marked the middle of the brim and the middle of the fabric with chalk so I could stick the center down first and then work my way out to the edges instead of working from one side to the other. I did this to the top side of the brim first, and then I repeated the same process on the bottom. Once it is all stuck down, then you can trim off the excess fabric and cut the opening for the crown. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNAh2LmrEiNoaUmGE9yxamiRhYoUImuF2o58FCJ7HzvAImqX620IMylKiPtOq_T6gNWHwEjHLNto7qczshgowFesVEBjabmLbRcYwqpPceO4qmdhv_45iUS6o6K3jIyXtLk3QZU0fMgAWZ/s1600/dia2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNAh2LmrEiNoaUmGE9yxamiRhYoUImuF2o58FCJ7HzvAImqX620IMylKiPtOq_T6gNWHwEjHLNto7qczshgowFesVEBjabmLbRcYwqpPceO4qmdhv_45iUS6o6K3jIyXtLk3QZU0fMgAWZ/s1600/dia2.jpg" height="239" width="320" /></a></div>
The other tip that I learned is that the direction of the bias is incredibly important when trying to get the fabric to lay down smoothly over the curves in the brim. The first time I glued down the fabric, there were small wrinkles around the edges of the hat, but on the second try, I managed to smooth out all of the wrinkles by stretching the fabric on the bias in specific areas. I discovered that the straight grain needs to run up to the highest point of the upturned edge of the brim, and you will do the most stretching and smoothing along the sides of the upturn. The spray adhesive actually stays tacky and the fabric is repositionable if you don't press it down hard, so I started by sticking down the edges of the hat where the straight grain runs, then I would stretch and smooth the bias sections until all the wrinkles were gone. After stretching, then you can firmly press everything down to get a permanent bond. <br />
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The brim was finished by sewing a bias strip of the velveteen around the outside edge. This step needs to be done by hand with a curved needle, and it was a pretty long and tedious process considering how large the brims is. You probably could glue some trim around the edge instead, but I think the hand-sewn edging looked really nice, so I'm glad I took the time to do it that way. <br />
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Once the brim and crown were both covered with fabric, I attached the crown to the fabric on the top side of the hat brim - again by hand-stitching it with a curved needle. After the two parts were sewn together, I then went back and cut the round opening in the brim larger so that it fit the position and shape of the crown. The last step was to hand sew a strip of cotton around the edge of the opening for the lining of the crown. I made a casing on the top of this strip and ran a drawstring though it so that I could gather it up and adjust how high or low the hat sits on my head. <br />
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So at this point, it was finally a real hat, although quite an awkward looking one without the decorations. But never fear, because hats like these are all about the feathers and flowers and fluff. In the photo series below, you can see the hat as it looked bare, then with a super-wide vintage moire ribbon tacked around it, and then in the final shot, you can see the finished look with 5 extra long ostrich tacked across the front. Much better!<br />
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The last secret to making a Merry Widow hat look authentic is creating a large enough "Gibson girl" hairstyle to support a monster-sized hat. I taught a class on Edwardian hairstyles a few years ago, so I already had a variety of rats and hairpieces that I could use, plus a <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/festiveattyre/edwardian-hairstyles/">collections of images on Pinterest</a> to give me inspiration. My hair is just past shoulder length right now, so I wore a long wavy wig to give me some more length to work with. I used the <a href="http://www.ebay.com/itm/STEPHANIE-WIG-BLONDE-BROWN-BLACK-AUBURN-80S-WOMAN-LONG-WAVY-CURLY-WIG-1223-/251044986848">Stephanie wig by Wig America</a>, and I hid the edges by combing some of my own hair over it. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaseMBbPE4JaamA-sWU1TojV-n5N3ZVZcOAhBjG3TrGmzfwSD9unKj9f7cPA6NKm7qL1VFF32yrOWWRumUFYKJy7E32yiS2wtsm_88VM-QXE7EvyS5Jb0GFxKFr2bbsAdk5-MD1KEnVHV_/s1600/DSC03577.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaseMBbPE4JaamA-sWU1TojV-n5N3ZVZcOAhBjG3TrGmzfwSD9unKj9f7cPA6NKm7qL1VFF32yrOWWRumUFYKJy7E32yiS2wtsm_88VM-QXE7EvyS5Jb0GFxKFr2bbsAdk5-MD1KEnVHV_/s1600/DSC03577.JPG" height="213" width="320" /></a>The poofy sections along the front and sides of my head are made by combing the wig hair over a large rat on one side and a foam pad attached to a comb on the other. I made the rat by stuffing a stocking with wool, then I wrapped some lose braiding hair around it, then I covered it with a hair net to keep it tidy. On the back side of the rat, I have two toupee clips stitched to the stocking to hold it in place on my head. The smaller foam pad is something that I bought at a beauty supply store recently. It worked okay once I wadded some of the extra length of wig hair over it, but it was harder to secure, and I plan on replacing it with another home-made rat in the future.<br />
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Although 1910's hair-styles concentrated the fullness at the back of the head, <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/186688347023633227/">earlier Edwardian styles</a> were more like a pompadour with the bulk of hair hanging over the forehead and fullness at the top and sides. To create a similar look, I did not pad the back of my hair at all, and I just twisted the back length up and pinned it into to loose curls at the crown of my head. I was in a rush on the day of the party, so my hair is a bit messier than I intended, and I could have done a better job of covering the rat and arranging the back, but it still worked out okay, and I'm sure I'll do better next time. The large size of these Gibson girl 'dos are a bit of an adjustment if you are not used to wearing big hair with your costumes, but you really do need this sort of bulk to fill out the bottom of the crown and support the wide expanse of brim. <br />
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Be sure to check back later this week for more pictures of my new Merry Widow hat and the final reveal of how the whole outfit looks together!</div>
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcHM6Nq_mEyUcn_JdP-U7uPF0uZRJOFHnY7jZDiv61ghq_yvTSatrCUKyF9_lsqYMnz83viWchb6RLAPqz7UxbvEK_aDbQs-7Lqhoa85YbRrMkpTLv1EGl0QKbnlbuo2t4AhS4k2YuS0Nw/s1600/crown.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a>Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-45161237956656732562014-10-28T15:12:00.000-05:002014-10-28T15:12:29.188-05:00Edwardian jacket for half-mourning<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghZI7bVC6iNP3ul54zfwhm3XGv_Yv-uqW-PXzkhiGwuQkiC0zuIwr4t00HJDtk4oL6O6zezceVH4JUJWj5I1iHNmwx_F2d1LVbZ49nK_VSp807k_u8oQZyQA6oAg0NGI50JH1JlL-olZv1/s1600/jacketside.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghZI7bVC6iNP3ul54zfwhm3XGv_Yv-uqW-PXzkhiGwuQkiC0zuIwr4t00HJDtk4oL6O6zezceVH4JUJWj5I1iHNmwx_F2d1LVbZ49nK_VSp807k_u8oQZyQA6oAg0NGI50JH1JlL-olZv1/s1600/jacketside.jpg" height="640" width="401" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH9c2aSRECC0ERyQqQdGahOR5XGf83mbZ9jyHoFokk8rJGwYlUI8R34bq2llEqnl2sUHWS3hP8GwkTcJy4AxngCBUghFICyOEQ2PYiDN8cPha488KSzYpy1nwUSBwtNns0sn4dFqhf-OTu/s1600/inspjacket.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH9c2aSRECC0ERyQqQdGahOR5XGf83mbZ9jyHoFokk8rJGwYlUI8R34bq2llEqnl2sUHWS3hP8GwkTcJy4AxngCBUghFICyOEQ2PYiDN8cPha488KSzYpy1nwUSBwtNns0sn4dFqhf-OTu/s1600/inspjacket.jpg" /></a>For the next installment of my Edwardian half-mourning dress series, I thought I'd show you some of the construction details that went into my jacket. The jacket was the part of the inspiration fashion plate that really captured my imagination and made me want to recreate this outfit. I love the quirky transitional styles from the end of the Edwardian period, and this jacket has such a cool combination of crisp tailoring at the waist contrasted by soft volume at the bust. It definitely wasn't easy, and I can see some things now that I wish I had done differently, but was such a fun challenge and I learned a lot along the way.<br />
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To get started on this project, I searched through everything that I could think of to see if I could find a period pattern diagram for a garment with a similar shape. I couldn't believe my luck when I discovered that one of the <i>La Mode Pratique</i> magazines in my collection had a full sized tissue pattern for a blouse with a similar fitted bottom and blousy top. This pattern dated from 1914, so it was 6 years later than my Edwardian inspiration, but I loved that they are both from the same magazine, and if nothing else, it gave me a place to start. (BTW, I'm dying to make up a version of this 1914 blouse at some point in the future too!)</div>
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The next step was make a mock-up and then use draping techniques to alter the 1914 pattern into something that was closer to my goal. The Edwardian jacket has a different style of collar, pleating on the shoulders, a strange point up the center-back, and a bell-shaped sleeves instead of tapered ones, so the pattern ended up looking a LOT different by the time it was done. You can see my final pattern pieces laid out flat in the picture below. What a weird shape!</div>
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I made this jacket out of fairly lightweight wool, so I decided to interline the entire bottom section with hair canvas to give it more structure. I attached the hair canvas to the wool with lots of rows of tiny prick stitches at first, and although you couldn't see them on the wool side, I ended up chickening out and removing a lot of them in the end because it caused some slight puckering when the jacket curved across the dip in my waist. I also pad stitched my lapels, which helped them roll a little better. You can see one finished lapel at the bottom of this picture with a strong roll line compared to the un-stitched collar in the background, which still lays flat. All of these tailoring techniques are covered in <a href="http://www.blogforbettersewing.com/search/label/Lady%20Grey%20Sew-Along">Gertie's Lady Grey Sew-Along</a>, which is a wonderful place to learn about tailoring techniques.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6iznXOEtymqoejjS0JHacEcsQgYJYoNUmuK5hwlnRhecvd7NPvVTlWgt4tvwPDMGLIzxPh59Nvc8e15nBx6KeW6v4Hq1_Gz1pluvZ92YwFyKbtfDJ07f8r036Zz6MB17EwTFG1Jwjlzb/s1600/padstitching.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6iznXOEtymqoejjS0JHacEcsQgYJYoNUmuK5hwlnRhecvd7NPvVTlWgt4tvwPDMGLIzxPh59Nvc8e15nBx6KeW6v4Hq1_Gz1pluvZ92YwFyKbtfDJ07f8r036Zz6MB17EwTFG1Jwjlzb/s1600/padstitching.jpg" height="640" width="426" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmMnJ5e8N4c67tM7Z6IBEhTjn4h1gX1gduOn5fnnzjWd-3FDWum7yGmdn0RkT1x1F1T9Vt9WjCF1G5zvakFmcpImFC-n-ACnI2mOOH5W85xTW6slsQU1ohYirVlouDx_9qr3bGzGSbAS-E/s1600/bottom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmMnJ5e8N4c67tM7Z6IBEhTjn4h1gX1gduOn5fnnzjWd-3FDWum7yGmdn0RkT1x1F1T9Vt9WjCF1G5zvakFmcpImFC-n-ACnI2mOOH5W85xTW6slsQU1ohYirVlouDx_9qr3bGzGSbAS-E/s1600/bottom.jpg" height="282" width="400" /></a>Once the hair canvas was attached, I assembled the bottom section of the jacket and whipped down the seam allowances. It was finally starting to look like something now, but still so odd!</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXie-hOtww4EXzmDzitPk3hVEUM_6Sp2H2wfum0C-0nR9ipzxZ0V9d9i4D3g0xVeA6Hw8UjCsm6qSwshxjfwOGNeVo9Qu0XTqI4Pcl-5wxdKlW-o2hQUi0cpWdbVsfRJwS2MpIoj_JhIgp/s1600/DSC03576.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXie-hOtww4EXzmDzitPk3hVEUM_6Sp2H2wfum0C-0nR9ipzxZ0V9d9i4D3g0xVeA6Hw8UjCsm6qSwshxjfwOGNeVo9Qu0XTqI4Pcl-5wxdKlW-o2hQUi0cpWdbVsfRJwS2MpIoj_JhIgp/s1600/DSC03576.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a>For the top of the bodice, I made a fitted lining from checked cotton, then I pleated and gathered the wool shoulder pieces and basted them to the lining to keep everything stable. Then I top-stitched the bottom half of the jacket on top of the gathered section. Unfortunately, this is where my photo narrative fell apart. I was too frazzled and tired to remember to take pics on the night it finally all came together, so you'll just have to use your imagination for the last few steps. But I do have a pic of the inside of the finished jacket, which shows the fitted lining and the inside facings that hide all the raw edges. </div>
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The final step was to add 36 small cord buttons to the pleats on the shoulders, and one large button to the waist. After seeing some really cool antique cord buttons online, I decided to try making one myself. I took a fabric covered button and wrapped it with soutache with a simple basket-weave pattern in the middle. It was was a quick and easy project compared to the more complicated Dorset and death's head buttons that I've made in the past, but the techniques are all very similar. I also covered the bound buttonhole with some more soutache just to give it a little extra embellishment. You don't notice it very much in all that sea of black, but it still makes me happy that it's there. </div>
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Here are a few more very over-exposed shots so you can see the details of the jacket, and check back later this week for info about my Merry Widow Hat of Awesomeness(!!!) and some pictures of all the pieces together for the final look.<br />
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<br />Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-2979188777849116432014-10-16T08:33:00.000-05:002014-10-16T08:38:03.049-05:00Edwardian half-mourning costume, pt. 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The next big event that I have on my lineup is a <a href="http://www.dfwcg.org/p/upcoming-events.html">Mourning Tea Party with the DFWCG</a> in late October, so I decided to make an Edwardian half-mourning gown inspired by this 1908 fashion plate from <i>La Mode Pratique</i>. Although the original plate wasn't intended to be a mourning outfit, I thought it would translate well to half-mourning if I switched the brown colors to black and left off the flowers on my hat.<br />
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This is a new era for me, and I'm having to build quite a few costume pieces in order to make it come to life, so I thought I'd break this project down into a few different blog posts so I can talk about each garment in more depth. Actually, the true beginning for this series was with my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2014/08/edwardian-corset-and-pattern-review.html">Atelier Sylphe Edwardian corset</a>, which I posted about two months ago. After making the corset, I moved on to three additional garments that I could make from commercial patterns. I'll start by sharing some more pattern reviews and give you a few sneak peeks at what I've finished so far.<br />
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My first step was making the skirt, and for that I used the <a href="http://www.trulyvictorian.net/tvxcart/product.php?productid=111&cat=14&page=1">Truly Victorian 1905 Circle Skirt</a>. I'm a pretty huge cheapskate, so at first I thought about drafting this pattern myself to save some money. After all, it's just a big half circle, so how hard could that be? But then I came to my senses and remembered what a colossal pain it is to draft and fit large curved pattern pieces. I am SO glad that I decided to buy this pattern in the end! It saved a huge amount of time and aggravation for me. Yes, it's a really simple pattern shape, but the massive size makes it tricky to work with. I think it took longer to clear out a large enough section of floor and smooth out the fabric for cutting than it took me to cut out and assemble the entire skirt. I was very pleased with the way the waist and hips fit (looks better on me than my non-curvy manikin), and it has a lovely sweep to the back. Definitely a good pattern to own. <br />
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I made a bit of a theatrical choice with the plaid that I chose for my skirt because I fell in love with some black and white boucle of unknown fiber content and authenticity. I was worried at first that plaid boucle wouldn't be documentable for the Edwardian period, but a Google Books search came to the rescue, and I found over a dozen references to plaid boucle fabrics from the late Victorian period and the early decades of the 20th c., such as this reference in a 1903 Dry Goods Reporter stating:</div>
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So even though I haven't found any examples of plaid boucle fabric exactly like this one in Edwardian photos or surviving garments, at least I know that the concept was something that they were familiar with. Unfortunately, that still doesn't solve the fiber content issue, but "shhhhh"... I won't tell if you won't. ;)</div>
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Because the skirt was so fast and easy to assemble, I decided to also make a new petticoat to wear under it using the same circular skirt pattern. This time, I cut off the bottom 14" from the pattern and added a ruffle of eyelet fabric that came from a bedskirt that I picked up at an estate sale. This made assembly even easier because the flounce was pre-gathered, and the whole thing only took me about an hour to make from start to finish. Nice! It's not the fanciest thing in the world, but I think the extra layer will help hold the demi-train out, and combined with a few other petticoats, it should give the skirt a pretty nice shape. Once again, this circular skirt pattern really paid off.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLjOFyBy70Zic2Phkgjut-xiYq_lOmhlX5rRFnERf4X7aNwjRo37dZr0OSHIIqCTnZBG9_zWcdYe8WjhM4l41YfTDE8bkuHPYh9Dktg-QehScvuyiR4a54rrnJbNx-LcP0eFD1LUQdryBI/s1600/FW205.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLjOFyBy70Zic2Phkgjut-xiYq_lOmhlX5rRFnERf4X7aNwjRo37dZr0OSHIIqCTnZBG9_zWcdYe8WjhM4l41YfTDE8bkuHPYh9Dktg-QehScvuyiR4a54rrnJbNx-LcP0eFD1LUQdryBI/s1600/FW205.gif" height="200" width="158" /></a>The other pattern that I tried out for this project was the <a href="http://www.folkwear.com/205.html">Folkwear Gibson Girl Blouse</a>, which I used to make a guimpe to wear under my jacket. This pattern only cost me $1 at a recent antique show, so I was super excited to give it a try. I used some antique eyelet for the bib part of the blouse, and I changed the bib slightly so that it was V-shaped instead of rounded in the front. I also made the top of the collar higher and left off the sleeves because Edwardian guimpes often left off sections like the sleeves or the back to conserve fabric when they were intended to be worn under other garments. This pattern was a joy to work with too, and everything went together easily and fit well right off the bat. It definitely made my task easier, and I would love to try making another version with sleeves at some point in the future. </div>
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So now that the easy parts are finished, I'm working on the jacket, which has proven to be much more of a challenge. I'll be back soon to show you how that project turns out! </div>
<br />Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-9782503643638671522014-09-14T09:30:00.000-05:002014-09-14T09:30:22.071-05:00Wearing History Kickstarter<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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If you haven't seen it yet, I just wanted to mention that my friend Lauren from the amazing <a href="http://wearinghistoryblog.com/">Wearing History website</a> and <a href="http://www.wearinghistorypatterns.com/">pattern company</a> is currently running a <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wearinghistory/wearing-history-vintage-style-clothing-made-in-the">Kickstarter campaign</a> to raise money for a line of her own ready-to-wear vintage clothing. Even if you prefer to make your own vintage styles instead buying them, you can help support her project by buying one or more of her amazing Victorian, Edwardian, or Retro patterns as one of the Kickstarter options, and the funds will go directly toward making a her dream a reality. I bought two of her patterns, and now I'm wondering how I will ever narrow it down to just two - they are all so wonderful! <br />
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So if you'd like to pick up some fun new patterns, or even better, some fabulous retro clothing, <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wearinghistory/wearing-history-vintage-style-clothing-made-in-the">go help her out!</a>Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-80664324985536942262014-08-12T20:21:00.000-05:002014-10-28T15:13:11.723-05:00Edwardian corset and pattern review<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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For my birthday last spring, I splurged and bought myself something that I've been lusting over for years - one of the gorgeous corset patterns made by <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/AtelierSylphecorsets?section_id=8048266&ref=shopsection_leftnav_3">Atelier Sylphe</a>. After a lot of waffling over the many beautiful choices, I finally picked <a href="https://www.etsy.com/listing/97860631/ref-w-antique-edwardian-1940-inches?ref=shop_home_active_9">corset ref W</a> since it has such an amazingly curvy Edwardian shape, plus it looked like the construction would be relatively simple since it didn't have as many pieces as some of the other patterns from this period.<br />
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There aren't a lot of instructions included with these patterns - just some notes about the corset materials and measurements, plus a page of diagrams showing the construction method for the seams. But for me, that was plenty, and I didn't have any trouble with assembly since I have made a number of corsets in the past. However, if you are new to corsetry, the pattern designer gives you links to several of her incredibly helpful online tutorials, like this one showing you how to <a href="http://sylphecorsets.livejournal.com/3772.html">set in bust gores</a>. She also provided about 20 additional photos in an online download showing the original corset from every angle imaginable, both inside and out. I really loved that!<br />
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The pattern itself is beautifully drawn and very accurate when assembled. My only tiny complaint is that the boning length was not marked on the channels in this pattern, and since it appears that some of the bones in the original were shorter than their channels, it would have been nice to know exactly where they ended. Another thing that I wanted to point out is that different pieces of the pattern have different seam allowance widths, which I found to be a little confusing at times if I wasn't paying close attention to the pattern after I cut out my fabric pieces. Personally, I think it would have been easier for me to cut down the paper pattern to the exact measurement of each piece and then draw my own more standard seam allowances, but that is easy enough to do on you own if you aren't used to the specialized seam allowances that are common in corsetry. I really appreciate how accurate the designer was by including information like this in regards to selvages, but unfortunately, it was a little over my skill level since there were no written instructions specifically telling me how to make each seam for each piece. But I think advanced corsetmakers would love it, and it's simple to change for the rest of us. <br />
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I made my corset with a layer of coutil and a layer of silk brocade treated as one. There are boning casings on the inside of the corset, and it is boned with spiral steel. I built my version almost exactly like I made my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/p/reconstructing-1910s-era-corset.html">1910's corset</a>. My favorite part of this project was finding some beautiful antique lace with silk ribbon beading for the top of the corset. Good lace is so hard to find, but such a wonderful treat when you stumble across the perfect piece. </div>
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I did not alter the proportion of the bust/waist/hips on this corset at all, but I did enlarge it by a few inches just by making slightly smaller selvages on a few pieces and adding a bit to the CF and CB edges. I also added 1" to the length of the torso since I am long waisted and have to use this adjustment on almost everything that I make. The only other change that I ended up making is to cut down the length of the bones in the front so that they don't go all the way to the bottom edge of the corset. During the final fitting, I discovered that the bones dug into my legs when a sat down, so it was much more comfortable to raise them a bit, and it didn't change the shape of the corset at all. </div>
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I was a little disappointed at first that my corset didn't create the extreme waspy shape that you see in the original, but I think I have finally accepted that corsets can only do so much. There are some body types that are more naturally suited for that sort of exaggerated hourglass look (I'm looking at you, <a href="http://augustintytar.blogspot.com/">Beyond the Automobile</a>!), and I'm sure years of waist training would probably help too, but even the best corset pattern in the world can't work a miracle on an average modern body. But this pattern still creates a gorgeous shape, is comfortable to wear, and I'm thrilled with the final results! I definitely recommend this corset pattern to experienced corsetmakers or anyone who is ready to "level up" a bit. I thoroughly enjoyed making it, and I hope I get a chance to try out more of the Atelier Sylphe corset patterns in the future. </div>
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Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com77tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-24205313356576804422014-08-12T17:22:00.000-05:002014-08-12T17:35:00.850-05:00Thank-you!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I just wanted to take a minute to thank everybody for the sweet replies to my Empire gown post... and all my other recent posts too. I wish Blogger made it easier for me to reply to you all directly, but maybe this is better than nothing. It's been a tough year for me due to lots of personal issues that I don't usually talk about publicly, but all of your kind words about my dress really boosted my spirits and made me feel wonderful. I am honored beyond words.<br />
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*hugs* You guys are the best! I feel so privileged to be a part of such a supportive and amazing online community! Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4724313051385339424.post-50995845902627213152014-08-10T22:17:00.000-05:002014-08-11T12:05:09.141-05:00A Painted Empire Gown<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I made this dress for a <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157642756529513/">Regency dinner party</a> with a few of my dearest friends way back in March, but it was dark and rainy and my hair didn't want to cooperate that night, so I didn't get very many blog-worthy pictures of the dress at that time. I kept thinking that I would get dressed up again and do a photoshoot during the spring, but then life happened and time just slipped away. Part of the problem is that this outfit seems too fancy for most of my usual photoshoot settings. Plus, once I add 24 inches of ridiculous feathers sticking straight off the top of my head, I'm well over 7 ft. tall, and that's no fun in a car, as you can see from one of the photos from March! So I made myself a little backdrop in my sewing room last weekend and took some pics that I am finally happy to share. <br />
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The inspiration for this dress came from two major sources. First, I fell in love with the shape of this 1797 printed gown from the <i>Musée de la Toile de Jouy</i>. It is almost like an open robe with those flaps under the bust, but it appears to be all one piece like a round gown. I don't think I ever found another example quite like that, but I love it like crazy so I decided to do something similar with my own dress. <br />
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But I also fell in love with the idea of painting a design on my dress. There are loads of examples of painted dresses from the 18th century, but it seemed to be less popular during the Empire period. But I did find a several examples of Empire dresses with painted borders in <i>Gallery of Fashion,</i> webbed by the <a href="http://digital.bunka.ac.jp/kichosho_e/index.php">Bunka Gakeun library</a>. One of my favorites was this dress that is described as a "robe of white tiffany, with a painted border of vines".<br />
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Painted textiles during this period were typically made with tempera paints, but I couldn't imagine doing work like this with a paint that is water soluble, so I cheated and used satin finish acrylics instead. It took quite a bit of trial and error before I came up with a design that I liked, but my final pattern was inspired by the top design this 1815 embroidery pattern sheet from <i>Ackermann's Repository</i>. EK Duncan has webbed a large number of these embroidery patterns on her website, <a href="http://www.ekduncan.com/search/label/Needlework">My Fanciful Muse</a>, and they were an enormous help when I was creating my design. <br />
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The painting was a bit long and tedious, but not particularly difficult. My research found that the fabric "tiffany", which was mentioned in the painted border fashion plate, could be a thin silk similar to taffeta. I was thrilled to find some semi-sheer silk taffeta at my favorite local fabric store, <a href="http://www.fabriquefabrics.com/">Fabrique</a>, that seemed like it would be a good modern substitute for tiffany. It made painting a million times easier because I was able to draw off a few repeats of the design, then create large stretches by splicing copies of that drawing together. I was able to place this pattern under my fabric while painting so I didn't have to transfer the design to my fabric at all. I painted each section in stages (leaves, then flowers, then final shading) to streamline the process. I painted the bodice and sleeves before assembly because I wanted to line those areas and I wouldn't be able to see my pattern once it was assembled, but I painted the skirt after hemming since it was unlined. My original design idea used a very wide border with lots of different colors, but even though I'm a fast painter, I had to scale it back by a LOT because it took so much longer than I expected. <br />
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I drafted my own pattern for this dress by altering the pattern from my <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/2011/11/1790s-round-gown-and-open-robe.html">1790s round gown</a>. The silk on the bodice is flatlined with white cotton so that the color would be consistent compared to the fabric over my chemise sleeves and petticoat, and then the bodice is lined with linen. The gathered front section and sleeves are lined with white voile since they are so sheer and I don't like seeing too much of my undergarments through the dress. The bodice closes with lacing on the foundation layer, then the front is gathered down on two ties at the neckline and waist, then the outer bodice flaps hook in the center front. To conserve fabric the gown is pieced in several places, which you can see here under the arms. The entire dress is hand-sewn using 18th c. sewing techniques with linen and silk thread. <br />
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To finish off the outfit, I am wearing my collet necklace and earrings from <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/damesalamode?ref=l2-shopheader-name">Dames a la Mode</a> and a super long <a href="http://www.festiveattyre.com/search/label/shawls">paisley shawl</a>. My turban and feathers are huge and crazy and fun, but I think I liked the simple look even better when I switched out the turban for a brass headband, which is actually a repurposed Victorian papier mache bowl handle. <br />
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I realize that this style of dress is a bit of an acquired taste. The crazy high backs and kooky headwear are pretty odd looking, and the heavily gathered skirts are not the most slimming fashions ever created. But for some reason, I just can't get enough of these late 1790s dresses! There is just something about these fashions that feel so elegant and exotic when you wear them. Here are some of my favorite pics, and there are a few more on <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/festiveattyre/sets/72157646261790546/">flickr</a>.<br />
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<br />Jen Thompsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02438676216575488009noreply@blogger.com42