Yellow rococo dress

I actually made this dress already years ago, but remade it last year to weed out a few flaws. The ribbons of the stomacher were only sewn on, being mere decoration, the bodice did not fit perfectly and there was too much fabric at the front of the skirt and not enough at the back to make the watteau-pleats fall nicely. Now everything has been corrected, and I'm almost completely satisfied with the outcome. The ribbons are now fully functional and are tied into bowties after the dress has been put on. That's how it should actually be.



The fabric of the dress is a printed cotton, no actual pattern, just shades of yellow that make up to a nice overall colour. Unfortunately I bought only about four metres, which is not enough if you want really nice pleats at the back. But they're okay for the simple summer dress it's intended to be. The stomacher and underskirt are very lightweight cotton in a matching shade of pale yellow. And yes, it was a helluva job to find exactly the right colour! Especially as I continually kept forgetting to take a swatch with me to the fabric store... Talk about scattiness :D In the first turn, I bought the wrong yellow - which led to me making a very nice late renaissance/early baroque peasant's dress. I'll put that one online someday. Anyway... A decent rococo/Georgian dress needs plenty of decoration, for which I used white lace, yellow braid, satin flowers and an attempt of self-made flowers made from the same fabric as the dress. Lace on the dress might not be completely period, but I'm no reenactor :P



I used the pattern and instructions I found on www.marquise.de - a very recommendable site. The lining of the back joins the front sections together, so the folds at the back can fall loosely. Front parts are also lined, as are the sleeves. The stomacher should actually be stiffened with boning (plastic, steel, whatever you prefer), I have to admit that I used cardboard in the first attempt. Hey, I was a beginner back then! ;D Worked quite nicely for some time but lost its shape over time so I redid it with boning and buckram. The stomacher is attached to the dress with hooks and eyes and covered by the eschelles, the bows, which close the robe over the stomacher. I've since add some embroidery.

The engageantes, means the white, lace-trimmed flounces on the sleeves, actually should belong to the chemise beneath, but I didn't bother with that and just stitched them to the dress. They can be taken off for washing.

The underskirt is decorated with a stripe of ruffled fabric along the hem. If I had known how difficult this is to iron...

The hat was actually a round place mat. Yes, hatting can be a very creative thing! :D I shaped it by moistening the centre a little and molding the centre and back so the hat can be worn on top of a rococo hairdo. It's decorated with lace, little silk flowers (or whatever they really consist of these days...) and yellow satin ribbon.



The lining is sheer white silk, sewn to a wire frame, and the whole thing is sewn to the brim of the hat as well as to the centre (beneath the lace ruffle on top so you don't see the stitches).



What's beneath this dress is a chemise, pocket hoops, hanging pockets (I already posted that) and a corset - though the latter isn't worn in the pictures, it was the hottest day of the year, and by the way, I'm currently re-working my rococo-stays because I misinterpreted something when I sewed them years ago.

The dress is completed by a silken fichú (neckerchief; not worn in pictures due to climbing mercury column) that I simply bought so I needn't bother with doing the rolled hem myself, and a little lace cap.