New Year - New Project - L

The holiday chaos is not completely cleaned up, but I'm back and I'm starting my Renaissance costume.  I'm still having a tough time getting excited about it, but I think I'll be better when all the underthings are done.

I spent most of the post-Christmas doldrums knitting socks.  Sadly, not very many.  My first effort was stymied by my inability to understand the instructions.  My second effort (using a knitting board for the first time) is almost complete.  I'm about two hours from a completed pair of socks.  They are soft and warm and make my feet look very, very long.  Here's one and a half socks, and the knitting tool:

I also decided to make my farthingale. I got it cut out and realized that I didn't mark all the lines for the hoop channels.  Then I had to try and 'interpolate'.  My pattern is traced, and the original had been cut to accommodate my height. I also forgot to cut all the markings, and only cut some.  Seriously, if you're going to cut the little triangle at all, cut all or none.  Needless to say, there was additional confusion about which sides were to be sewn together.  Ultimately, I got it figured out and sewn.  I was going to do the recommended flat fell seams, but by that time I just wanted to be done.  So the seams are zig-zagged down.  I got most of the channels sewn in....at least until my bobbin ran out and I opted for a glass of wine and bed.  I can finish that this afternoon.  I took advice from a friend, Kyle Bogartman, who sells renaissance outfits and sews for an Austin designer Jennifer Ayers and used plastic pipe with connectors for my hoops.  It's fairly easy to take apart for washing.  Anyhow, after I put in my first channel, I had to put in a hoop to see how it looked.  It looked like a jellyfish.

It really seems too big, but I will be patient and wait until it's done before I change it.


 

Working the skirt - and another Dickens photo - L

I'm attempting the get the gathers 'just so'.  I had them nearly perfect and discovered another bit to add in.  So I tried to add more and messed it up.  Now I'm unpinning and re-pinning.  Here's what I had before I started messing with it.  I'm really glad I did the lace between the ribbons because I like it and it really wasn't that hard.

I took a break from sewing and being sick (again!) to create holiday cards.  And then I'm going to get a xmas tree set up.  All the while I'm thinking about the top I'm planning to go with this skirt.  I got the fabric yesterday and it refused to be photographed.  I'll have another go at it in better light.  I've seen about six styles of bodice that I like.  I need to edit my brain. I am going to create with bits of patterns that I already have and make up the parts I don't have, and am finding it difficult to avoid trying to cram all the things I like in one piece.  And I realize that a lot of things I like will NOT flatter my figure.  So my brain is going to churn away in the background while I'm making Christmas.


Here's a very silly photo of all our Dickens costumes (and my son in his Issun Boshi Halloween costume)

Robin's beau, in the vest and frock coat she made him (not quite finished here).
Robin in her 1850's full crinoline and bonnet.
Lisa in her 1870's Polonaise and straw boater.
Valerie in 1870's style we made together, and fascinator.
Her boyfriend in the vest and cravat Lisa made, along with a regular dress shirt with the collar tips starched to look Victorian, and the amazing jacket (a woman's size 10 long blazer with 4 inches of twill added in the center back and back collar - it should never have worked)
Zach - photo bombing as usual
We ended up doing a lot of last minute 'fixes' after this Thanksgiving dress rehearsal.

Now, back to the gathers...   Sewing cat, Tsunami, and I are making this face.
We are not amused.  Unlike Tsunami, I won't go pee on the laundry.  I will pin and un-pin and pin again.  And promise to never ever self medicate a cold with Chardonnay again.  (note - this does not work...not even a little)

New project - Lisa

I am making a black skirt with a more steampunk feel.  I have the basic skirt made and have made a band of pleats around the bottom.  Now I'm fiddling around with additional decoration.  I've pinned together a couple of ideas.  And I'm having trouble deciding....
I plan to have two rows of velvet ribbon, and the gathers above them (the pleats beneath the ribbon are really hard to see - black on black).  Should I add the strip of lace between the ribbons?  It's really pretty.  It's a lot of work if the pretty is nearly impossible to see.

Right now I'm leaning toward the pretty.
I have a little time to think it over since I haven't finished the petticoat yet. I also plan to let the white lace at the bottom of the petticoat peek out a bit beneath the skirt.  Is that a bit 'twee' for a woman of my 'experience'?  Yes.  And I just don't care.  Feel free to disagree! 

I have a couple of different top options planned, which I will post when I have all the fabric.  I'll just say that one is posh, one sort of military and one very librarian.

R says: More! More! Victorians did not have our sense of restraint when it came to frou-frous on the clothing.  Our modern sensibilities dictate "When in doubt, remove an item" but in that time it was "When in doubt, add more!" At least that's what it looks like in the fashion plates I've seen.  Go for it, Lisa.  Add as much decoration as that skirt can hold but rest assured you will never seem "twee".

The first of many photos - Dickens

Here, in this grainy pictures, we are strolling the Dickens Faire.  We have clearer pictures of us, along with the other outfits we put together, but not available...at this moment.  Robin was the dream of many young girls with her lovely crinoline, and she was well photographed.  And finally, for my part, Heather's patterns were fantastic.  The instructions were logical and everything fit together.  My biggest problems were all of my own making.  Truly Victorian

Getting Down to Crunch Time - R

Lisa helped me get started on the Frock Coat. Because I didn't understand all the directions, I was afraid to cut anything out.  Her style is to charge ahead and deal with the consequences later. Her approach actually worked this time, although I have run into a few tricky spots that the instructions just didn't deal with adequately.

I used my own method of collar attachments.  The Laughing Moon pattern had you hand sewing the upper collar on to tailor's felt. I just faced the upper

collar with silk and sewed it on as a piece in a method I learned from a ladies' jacket I'd made some time ago.  Here's a close up of the collar.  It came out great. The jacket doesn't fit, though. I need to take in about 1 inch on each shoulder, otherwise it looks as if he is swimming in a giant bathrobe. Strange, because the muslin fit just fine. These are the things I don't understand, how you can make a muslin that fits but the jacket looks too big in the fashion fabrics. Ah, Life's Mysteries!

Crunch time meant it was time to stop fiddling with the flowers and actually sew them on to the bonnet.  Here's what I came up with.  In the spirit of the True Victorian, when I thought "OK, that's enough", I then added a few more flowers!

Voila, the finished bonnet.  It looks cute over the wig. Yes, friends, I bought a wig.  You'll see it in the final picture.  It is from Vogue Wigs online and is the "Scarlett" model from Lacey in Auburn. It is quite comfortable.















I now have two more days to finish the Frock Coat, with lots of hand sewing left to do.  Hopefully, my Beau will not travel to the Dickens Faire with pins still in his outfit!

We had tons of fun trying everything on for friends and family for Thanksgiving.  We took tons of pictures and will post them soon.  OK, some are already on Facebook.  Mysteriously, my Polonaise managed to grow and now needs to be taking in down the center front.  This will allow me to fix the mistake I made when I didn't follow instructions.  It will also need to be done all by hand.  My alternative is to undo a whole lotta facing.  Like the frock coat, this is truly a mystery.  No other item of clothing I own is looser.

Dickens Faire on Sunday!  Two days to fix and finish everything!

A blank black slate - L

I have been haunted...seriously haunted...by thoughts of a black victorian skirt with lots of trim.   I have ideas of what I would wear with it.  And I finally decided I just needed to make it.  Get it done.  Clear my head.  I have 2 pieces of thin black silky stuff (the dreaded silkessence), one is 3 yards and one is 2 yards.  I used the 3 yard piece to make the main part of the skirt.  Again based on that 1895 walking skirt.  It is lower calf length.  I used the two yards to make pressed pleats about 7 inches long.  Yessiree....120 inches of 7 inch tall pressed pleats.  I used the vinegar water technique to set them and it worked really well.  (google it...there a hundreds of examples on the interwebs).  That actually took most of the remaining two yards.  I made two inch strips with the rest.  I used a candle to 'burn' the edges so I wouldn't have to hem.  It worked OK.  I wasn't totally steady so have some uneven melty parts.  And yes, I melted fabric to the candle and spilled the whole thing in my lap.  I HIGHLY recommend using soy candles for this.  The 'wax' washes out easily.  I'm going to  gather up the thin strips and use them to make designs on the dress.  I'll attach the pleats at the bottom with a bit of velvet ribbon. And make a pattern with ruching above the pleats.

Of course I had to make a new petticoat.  This skirt will be a bit shorted than prior skirts.  It needs it's own petticoat.  And the petticoat might have lace at the hem.  And it might peek out a bit.  I got that mostly done too.  I just need to attach the lace to the ruffle and the ruffle to the petticoat.  I was going to use french seams but I got lazy.  So I zig-zagged the seam allowance.  Like a flat fell.  A Zig-Fell.

And then Rob and I spent the day working on her frock coat.  And it was a LOT of work.  We got most of the parts put together.  All the interfacing and junk attached.  Lining pockets done.  She just needs to put the parts together.  And figure out the crazy instructions for the back pleat.  (For reals, she has a ton of work still to do, but we did a lot too)

And with that, I'm going to have to tidy up the sewing and start getting ready for Thanksgiving.  Probably won't do to have twill tape, pins and scraps of ribbons and lining all over the dining room table.  And the living room.  And the sewing room.  And the bedroom.  Uh, yeah, I've been making a mess.

Sorry, no pics.  Black on black didn't photograph well, and I was just too busy to fiddle with it.  Seriously.  Black skirt, white petticoat, frock coat, all 60 - 70% done.  In a weekend.  And there was some playing of the new Drake's Fortune game.

We did an amazing amount of sewing in one day.  It helped to have two machines, each with a different color thread in it (lining is red, fashion fabric is grey). It was like a little production line.  Lisa hates ironing, so I did all the pressing and interface bonding.  It helps to have another brain with you so that when you are staring at instructions that somehow have turned into a foreign language there is someone there to translate.  All in all, a fantastically productive day. Now I feel as if I have a chance to finish this as opposed to feeling overwhelmed.  Unfortunately for me, this is pay-forward for all the blackwork I'm going to be doing on Lisa's Ren outfit!

The jacket looks fantastic!  And you'll be doing blackwork for yourself too.  ; )

Another sewing day and an outing - L

We had another group sewing day.  As always, we seemed to work non-stop all day and get almost nothing done.  Robin made undersleeves out of muslin and trimmed them with lace.  She stretched out the process by making placket closures.  They do look nice.  Lisa made a cravat, stitched together a large decorative bow, sewed the lining in a vest and other necessary pains in the arse.  We also laid out the frock coat and starting cutting.  But then it was dark and we were tired and other snively excuses.  

We also wore out dresses to a Victorian Haunted House  (Rob was pinned together!).  Pics or it didn't happen.....check out the vest!

 Of course we stopped for dinner ahead of time and created a bit of a stir at the Indian Buffet.  We had a big fan though....a five year old girl asked her father to come over and tell us that she liked our dresses.  I actually coaxed her into coming over to our table to say hello. 

We are sewing again this weekend.  We promise to take pictures.  In fact we plan to stage some pictures in Lisa's very overgrown backyard.