1790s Riding Habit

I've been sewing so much and neglecting my blog. Many items get put on my facebook page and never get written up here.
My most recent adventure is inspired by an embroidered jacket in the Kyoto collection. It is two separate garments and I've found a waistcoat at the V&A that I'll be copying for the under garment, minus the standup collar. I've been playing around with drafting pattern pieces and am now hand embroidering the collar - one bit at a time. Since I don't normally embroider it will probably take a while, so my goal is to have it wearable for the Jane Austen Festival next April.

Jacket in Kyoto Collection. This is two separate garments.

Waistcoat in the V&A

Back of waistcoat

Working out my design.

Chalked Design

Testing out embroidery possibilities.

My hand embroidery so far. I've just changed to a different frame to stop damage occurring under the ring. 

Playing around with patterns.

Questions about an 18th century gown...

I have some glorious fabric to make into an 18th century court gown, like this V&A gown and it will be used for dance performances, so smaller pocket hoops will be used instead of large ones.
I'm hoping this fabric will work - but if my friends don't think so - can they recommend a gown with decoration like the one above that I could copy? Please send any pictures to aylwengg at gmail dot com
I've pasted some links to books about 18th century court dress below this cut.

Coifs and bonnets to make yourself

Duran Textile's Newsletter 4-2008 shares with us some wonderful images of 18th Century coifs and bonnets, together with patterns. Yes, patterns so you can make them yourself.

1780s Stays Diary - Day 1

Last night I started a new set of 1780s stays in preparation for a stays workshop I'm teaching this weekend.

After drawing up the pattern and matching it against a pattern I knew fitted me, I plunged in and got started.

My inspiration  http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O115752/stays-unknown/ 

Three layers - 1 silk, 2 linen canvas. Tacked around the outside of the pattern piece through all three layers.

Starting to backstitch the boning channels. 

I've placed some background images of stays patterns on my facebook page at  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.453507391355455.104255.126088964097301&type=1

So what is an 18th century polonaise?

For a long time I've thought that the term 'polonaise' referred to the way the gown's skirts were tied up. My research now indicates that it is actually how the back is created - as well as the skirts being tied up, the back is made with a centre back seam and two side seams like a man's coat. There is a fitted bodice underneath an overbodice that flows into the skirt.

Norah Waugh states in Cut of Women's Clothes on pg 73 that the robe à l'anglaise was often equipped with tapes to draw up the skirt, and on the topic of the polonaise says:

Though this term is often applied to any eighteenth-century dress with back drapery, it belongs, strictly speaking, to an over dress that appeared c. 1775. This was cut like the man's coat of the same period, with centre back and two far-back side seams all terminating in inverted pleats, the front being in one piece with an underarm dart. It was caught to the top of the bodice centre front ...

18th Century Stays - when I first started out

I've had an interesting seven years making 18th century stays. When I started out I found it hard to find any online tutorials, no one near me had ever made any - all I had for reference were my books - and the one I found most useful was Costume Close Up.

I devoured this book and learnt so much, and was so excited when I got to meet the author, Linda Beaumgarten, in person in Williamsburg in March 2011.

My first challenge was making the pattern fit me, and my large hips. After a few unsuccessful toiles, I ordered the JP Ryan strapless stays pattern. That was one of the best decisions I've made, as Janice has drafted up a wonderful pattern that is adaptable to ALL body types. If you are just starting out, I thoroughly recommend this pattern. The pink stays below were size 16 bust, 18+ hips - and the pattern they came from was a Size 14!

My 2011 stays - Size 12/14
 silk brocade-duck interlining-linen lining-leather binding

My journey is not over - I have lost more weight and am making new stays. I just need to find the time!

1780s Dress Trimming

When you start looking at 1780s gowns you notice that a fair number were untrimmed and that many were made of linen or cotton chintz. I have chosen to make a special gown of printed silk, and to trim it as was done on the Snowshill gown.

Above is a diagram of the trim from Janet Arnolds Patterns of Fashion I of another gown, yet it looks similarly folded to the cream silk polonaise I am copying. The trim is sewn around the neckline and down the front edges of the overskirt. In the drawings of this gown it is hard to see the whole trim, and only on close examination do we see how it is actually made.

The skirt trim is shown above. Below is a close-up of the trim, showing a stuffed circular puff at regular intervals.

I plan to cut long strip of self-fabric and then to sew narrow trimmings onto each side of the strips before folding and attaching. I don't think I will have a chance to bring out my new 'old' hand pinking tools with this dress unless I choose to do a pinked flounce on the underskirt.

Men's Seventeenth & Eighteenth Century Costume: Cut and Fashion

This book is a must if you are sewing men's costumes from these periods. Comes with excellent instructions at the back on drafting a pattern smaller or larger. We used this book during the tailcoat workshop as Simon is a small and the pattern starts at M.

The ubiquitous 18th century cap...

Caps are a clothing item that many shy away from. No wonder, when most of our childhood years we associate them with an elasticated mob cap. Period movies put them on old maids, and it is rare that we see them on main characters. On the other hand, how many times do we see them worn for the wrong situation? How many times do we see them worn to a costume ball? And how many times do we 'not' see them worn under a hat or bonnet?

Below are some pictures I took of reproduction caps and portraits at the Dewitt Wallace Decorative Art Museum at Colonial Williamsburg. There is so much variety, so we no longer need to look like cookie cutters!

18th Century Seams

A little while ago I posted pictures of some seams from the inside of a dropfront regency gown in my collection. Koshka-the-Cat mentions these seams when making her blue gown , and tonight I took a picture of the inside of an 18th century casaquin jacket in my collection.

Whereas in the regency gown these seams were left exposed, in the 18th century casaquin jacket they were covered by linen tape. Running my hand over them it felt like mini-boning- or that a sturdy piece of string was underneath. Luckily some tape had come loose so we can see for ourselves.
I'll be doing a step-by-step this week to show you how it was done.