Pink 1860 Dress New Pictures

I finished my pink 1860  dress a year ago but never really got great pictures of it! I've been trying to get better pictures of dresses I've made, for my portfolio, so this dress finally got it's turn!

I am absolutely incapable of not squinting my eyes in the sun so this was the very best shot of the front I could get!

Since I intended this dress to be more of a work dress when I volunteered, even though I love it with the hoop, I most often used it as an 1850 dress with a corded petticoat or none at all. With, of course my pinner apron.

I do still love those puff sleeves. They may possibly be my favorite sleeve ever. 

In the meantime, I've got a historical and a modern project in the works and hopefully will get pictures of another 18th century outfit this week!!

1860 Sheer Dress

I'm about to start working on my sheer 1860 dress so that I'll be able to volunteer at the historical village near my school when fall comes around and being in Texas it will still be ridiculously hot! So a sheer dress will be perfect. I have some voile fabric and as soon as I get more of it I was planning on using that.

I would really like to try to stamp a design on the white fabric somehow. I haven't fully figured out what I'd like to do.

Secondly, I'd really like to make a swiss waist for it. I've mostly only seen swiss waists over a sheer top and contrasting or same as swiss waist fabric skirt but I've found a couple over a sheer or at least not a skirt top combo.

Via

Via

The second is actually a girl in Texas and a homespun dress. From what I take from it seems that someone could have very well used it over a sheer dress or any dress they wanted to dress up or change a little bit

From an Ebay auction a while back

The last I found on Ebay quite a while back and it's what really made me want to make a swiss waist!

As for sheer dress inspiration I've kind of got some ideas for it but I think it may just be pretty basic so I can add things to it like the swiss waist. I keep thinking I should make short sleeves but I already have the pink one...

1860 Part 2

I didn't get as much time as I would have liked this weekend to work on the pink dress but I did get a good amount done! As of Sunday night...

I finished the darted lining and started building the top fabric onto the lining and finished with an almost done bodice! Almost... there's still quite a lot to do. 

I did find an old collar I embroidered a while back for a different 1860 dress, it didn't fit though and has been sitting in my stash serving no purpose until now! The embroidery pattern is actually from a Godey's Ladies Book, though I can't remember what year. 

I made some piping for the armscyes with leftover yarn I used for my corded petticoat. 

And... I started my sleeves! I decided to go with puff sleeves. I have one just about done and one half done. I decided these were best since I look young enough to still get away with short sleeves and I really did like them. Starting the sleeves I actually had no idea where to even begin but thankfully I found this tutorial on one of the blogs I love to read, Romantic History! It helped so much! 

As of right now I think I'll have some leftover fabric so I may try to make some long sleeves that I can easily baste on and then take off when I just want short sleeves.  Somewhat like this... 

source

I have the skirt sewn together but I want to cartridge pleat it and still have to make the waist band and buttons. Lots of hand sewing so while I'm hoping I will be able to be done by Tuesday... most likely it will be a little longer!

1860 Dress

Part 1:

So far this is what I knew I wanted on my dress-
- Gathered bodice with a yoke
- short sleeves (possibly with long sleeves that are removable)

I got about 5 or 6 yards of this beautiful pink cotton fabric! I hope it's accurate, I know they had floral prints, but I just loved the fabric too much too pass it up!

Source

I've also discovered another inspiration picture

Source

Mostly I really like how the waistband is on this one. If you look closely the bodice opens directly in the front, but the waistband extends past and the skirt opens more on the side.  Though I'm liking the sleeves with the small ruffle a lot too.

First I had to draft a pattern for this dress. It's something I really should do more often and get better at but I always put off drafting any patterns mostly because I'm scared to mess it up! 

I started with the bodice from Simplicity 7212 and I made a copy of the front bodice. The back I left the same. I cut the bodice where I wanted the yoke to end and then just made a somewhat rectangular lower bodice that extended past the top piece so there would be fabric to gather.

I made a mock-up of it and it had some issues being a bit big and just didn't look as great as I wanted it too. At this point I considered just making the darted bodice from the pattern and I cut out a piece in spare fabric and sewed up the darts to see how that looked. Then I remembered reading about how gathered bodices typically had a darted lining inside. So I placed my mock-up pieces on top of the darted bodice to help me figure out how much to cut off of the lower bodice and basically just fit the gathered bodice to the darted lining and it worked! 

So now I feel confident cutting out the front bodice tomorrow and getting that together.





I did put the back lining and top together tonight though I have to admit I didn't iron it!  The color is actually a dustier pink then the picture shows. I'll have to get a better picture showing the fabric color next time!

Looking at this I'm not sure how accurate it is to do the gathered front with this particular bodice back... I can't think of seeing one like that but I'm not going to change it now, I really need this to be done to wear on Tuesday!

Starting the 18th century

It's been one of my goals for a while to work on sewing for the 18th century since I live in Texas the only opportunities I've had are mostly for 1840-1860 reenacting.  I finally decided to go ahead and just do it.
I'm starting from the inside to out, so with the shift first.

I've found some great websites for just starting out  here's one, and  this one here! I used both of them to create my pattern. I've also been handsewing all of it, I want it to be as authentic as possible!

So far I've got one sleeve and almost the side done. It's not that its so very time consuming, but I really only get a bit of time on the weekends or when I happen to be watching a show on tv to work on it. Taking 18 hours of school and a teaching job has been taking all my time!

Along with that, I actually have started back up working on a dress I'm making from a homemade pattern that I think is somewhere in the 1910's or 1920's. I got stuck on how to make the closing for it but I've been studying some examples from the 20's. 

I used a fagoting stitch by hand on the bottom of one of the skirt pieces. The pattern I got at a garage sale and it was with another homemade pattern for an envelope chemise, my plan is to make the chemise in a blue that will show through the white of this dress. Hopefully when it's completed if I put it together right it will be easier to date the pattern. 

Both are slow in coming since I'm sewing them by hand, but progress is being made! 

Tomorrow I start up my volunteering again at the local historical village by me and while I can just squeeze into the dresses I've had forever, I desperately need a new one and new 1860 underthings. Mine are ripping apart! So that will need to be squeezed in and soon! 

P.S.  I haven't left my vintage patterns behind! I've been ordering quite a lot while I've been idle and I'm anxious to start sewing those too! 

Advance 6410

Knitting and Civil War dress!

I am determined to learn to knit so I can knit 1940 and 50 sweaters. I know a little bit so I thought I would just go ahead and start with a 1950 simple sweater pattern but I was way in over my head. So I'm starting with some simpler projects first. I haven't made any new dresses or garments for reenacting lately and I found a renewed interest so i'm practicing knitting making some 1860 garters from Godey's lady book. Then hopefully I'd like to try to make a knitted 1860 pattern for a hood and a shawl. I also found this pattern that I'd love to try!

Other than that I've finished another blouse from 1950, I just need to take pictures.

So until then I'll keep working on my knitting and hopefully I'll learn enough to make a sweater sometime soon!!

19th Century Sandwich Bag

I'm in the process of finishing an 1860 dress I started a year ago. It's a very plain dress but I just kept pushing it aside but I'm finally determined to finish it because I'd like to wear it to an event in September. I finally finished embroidering a collar for it, I have pictures and will put them up.

On a side note, but still related to the 19th century, I found this somewhat pattern for a 19th century Sandwich Bag! I thought it was pretty funny to see they would make embroidered sandwich bags for their picnics! I almost want to make one for myself, though I have no idea what I would do with it lol. It came from Beeton's Book of Needlework, and here is what it said-

"Sandwich Case.

Materials: Strip of grey kid; strip of oil silk; 1 skein black silk; 1 skein red purse silk; 1 hank steel beads; steel button.

This case will be found very useful on the occasion of a journey or picnic, as it can be carried in the pocket without any inconvenience.

The case is made of a strip of grey kid, scalloped out at the edges. The words "Bon appetit," or "Good appetite," at will, are worked over it in overcast with black purse silk and steel beads, the scroll pattern in chain stitch with red silk. The back and front of the case are formed of the same strip, which is lined with oilskin, and to which narrow side-pieces are added to form the pocket. These pieces are lined and scalloped out in the same way as the back and front, and then the scallops of both sides are joined together, and worked round in button-hole stitch with purse silk.

The case is fastened down with a steel button.

If another colour is preferred, the sandwich case can be made of brown kid. The scroll pattern should then be worked in rich blue purse silk, and gold beads used for the letters, which should be embroidered as before in black silk. The edge may be worked in double overcast stitch in blue or black silk. A gold button must replace the steel when this alteration of colour is made."

New Layout!

Today I got around to changing the layout of the blog. I just didn't like the one before. I love this new one except I cant figure out how to get my heading in the middle of the pictures of the flowers.

And as for sewing, this is what im planning for the next couple weeks:

-Advance 9209: I know I want blue fabric I just need to find some I like for this dress

- Find some cute 1940 summery dress patterns to make for summer time

- Finish my cream 1860 dress that I've been working on for months and still haven't finished!

- and I want to buy this adorable 1940 suit pattern I found. Its one of those patterns that the illustration on the front is so perfect you want to make it exactly like the one on the cover same color and all!

And on a side note I found this wonderful 1940 dress pattern but it was sold out:(

It's a gorgeous dress though, the short sleeves are so pretty. I love the detail of the collar and waist too.