Blue striped half-robe

I really should finish several other projects before starting a new one again, but that wouldn't be me... ;) The half-robe will be worn over a round robe - which I still have to make. Uh well... Anyway, I wanted to start working with this fabric: middle-blue cotton with weaved-in dark-blue and claret stripes; it's one of those I found and immediately knew what I wanted to make from it. Still adjusting the pattern, there's an odd piece that doesn't quite fit in, but I'll figure that out :D Said pattern is, again, from "Patterns of Fashion Vol. 1." - I somehow came to like this book really well! *bg*

Blue and white striped regency dress

I did this one already years ago - and the first comment I got was that it looks like a nightgown! Wharrgarbl... Anyway. The pattern is from Norah Waugh, "The Cut of Women's Clothes: 1600-1930". Same procedure as every time: enlarge, fit, cut out, try on, adjust, sew. I left away the fluffy flounces of the original and instead finished the edges with lace. The dress is only slightly trained and therefore thankfully survived a march through the muddy forest quite well. The original dress would have been fastened at the front, but I didn't want the skirt to be open on any side, so I changed it and now it's put on over the head, the waist is just wide enough to allow that. Nonetheless I'm going to line the bodice, the gathered fabric keeps slipping out of position at the shoulders. Nothing beats a good lining...

It was while sewing this dress that I discovered the best way to pleat the back of the skirt, namely in a way that allows you to leave away the little pad that usually kept the skirt from falling into the hollow of the back. I'll post a sketch of it as soon as I got time to draw one ;)

Regency apron

I somehow got caught in some kind of regency-faible (for lack of dress-stand to make late-rococo dress, meh!), so I decided to make a quick apron to go with my two dresses. The pattern is simple and can be found online or you can just cut the pieces yourself. I used a leftover piece of white fabric, machine-embroidered with small, unobtrusive flowers, visible seams are sewn by hand (I just had that fancy when I started). Closes at the back with little mother-of-pearl buttons. And yes, I should have ironed the apron for the pictures...

Green-golden renaissance dress

Another historic ball upcoming, and of course I needed a new dress - actually already in June. Well, as so many things in my life, it was begun early and finished very late, namely the following year :D I've had the fabric in my wardrobe for years, waiting for inspiration, and I found it in another pattern from one of Arnold's books and in a dress I found online. The fabric is a pale green with golden threads, looks lovely even in candlelight!



The skirt is trained this time (great thing for washing...), and again it was amazing how many gentlemen liked the train so much they stepped on it :D It's the usual skirt pattern, folded neatly into a lined waistband so the stiffer lining fabric helps to hold 4 1/2 metres of brocade. The train is about one foot long, which makes it long enough to look good and short enough to handle it even when dancing. The skirt should be worn over a slightly oval hoopskirt but I had to improvise (due to lack of time again) and wore it over a round hoopskirt with bum pad and a definitely non-period tulle underskirt. Anyway, who would dare peep under a lady's skirts! ;D

The bodice is the same pattern I used for the green-black renaissance dress (drafted it when I was fifteen, sheer beginner's luck!), with two layers of boned lining and a top layer of brocade. It's laced at the back. Just the front is boned to give the bust the flat shape typical for the renaissance period, and two pieces stiffen the closing at the back.

The sleeves can be taken off, as there are two pairs of sleeves to be worn with the dress. One consists of ten strips of brocade sewn into tubes and ironed flat, joined at the wrist and at the shoulder and decorated with pearls (or gold ornaments? let's see...) in between. With these sleeves, the dress is worn over a renaissance chemise. The second pair of sleeves (still to be sewn) will be puffy at the shoulders and tight along the rest of the arm, to be made from the scraps of fabric that were left when cutting the trim pieces for sleeves #1.