Challenge # 1 - 2014

The first challenge of this years Historical Sew Fortnightly is finished. Here are the facts:

The Challenge: # 1: Make, Do & Mend

Changing the old petticoat into a fluffy new one and rearranging the hoops on the crinoline to achieve a round shape.

Fabric: cream coloured polyester lining fabric; originally 15 metres and polyester netting from an old ebay hoop skirt.
Pattern: from "Corsets & Crinolines" - p. 94 for the crinoline, none for the petticoat

Year: 1864

Notions: polyester thread, elastic for the waistband

How historically accurate is it?  Not very much, I am afraid. The crinoline pattern is accurate and my ruffle petticoat is somewhat accurate as well, but the fabric and the netting are both polyester and not accurate at all. Neither is the elastic... Let's say 60%

Hours to complete: Petticoat: approx. 12, rearranging the hoops: 5 hours

First worn: Not worn yet. I yet have to make an awsome dress to go with it :-)

Total cost: 0,00€ Everything from the stash!!

Pictures!!!!

This is the petticoat I have made originally. Although it contains 10! metres of fabric, it is thin and not concealing the hoops very much.
Pattern used: Truly Victorian free petticoat pattern.

And here is the new one! It is basically the old one, just in new shape. I added two rows of netting for even more volume. For more details have a look here .
















                                             The Whipped Cream Petticoat!

 Here we have the crinoline the way I made it in the first place. The centre back is pointy and thus the side back panels are misformed and turning inside rather than outside.

To redo the boning channels I opened up the seams on the back panels and fixed them in a more curvy fashion.

And it was absolutely worth the effort! Now I have a nice round shape and not just at the centre back seam, but also on the sides. I also turned the channels a bit upwards on the centre front.

See the white dots on top of the 2nd hoop? That's where the optional ruffle is attached with hooks...

Before and after mending the crinoline.
Red lines are the old shape, blue ones the new.

Crinoline with hip pad.....                                                        ..... and without hip pad.

 

 Again with hip pad.....                                                               ..... and without

 

And I have discovered that my new petticoat is quite wearable with my TV 141 cage crinoline as well:

                                        But I think I like it better on the big crinoline!!!

Make Do & Mend

It is time to think about challenge #1 for this years Historical Sew Fortnightly.
The first challenge is due on 15th this month and says to Make, do & Mend.
I only own 1 really old piece of fashion (a very, very old fur muff), which is in no need of mending or anything alike. All my self made garments are somewhat new, so no mending here as well...
BUT
I have made a huge crinoline some month back and I am not quite satisfied with the TV free petticoat pattern I used for the petticoat, so why not change this one until I am happy with it?

Challenge #1 Make, Do & Mend

 This is the hoop skirt. I used a 1864 pattern in "Corsets & Crinolines" and enlarged it to a bigger circumference. I never measure the finished hem-line, but I guess it is close to 5 metres...

Since the finished skirt ended up a bit short, I added a ruffle to the hem later.
Please excuse the mess in my sewing room...

Here we have the petticoat made from the free TrulyVictorian pattern. I used the same fabric as for the crinoline and used 15 metres for both.

What I absolutely don't like here is, that one can see where the last hoop is. The ruffle helps here, but the fabric is somewhat too delicate to cover the hoops to my satisfaction.


So two weeks ago I started to undo the petticoat entirely and drape a gored skirt from the scraps on my dress form.

Since the petticoat leftovers were quite narrow I had some difficulties to cover all of my crinoline, but I wasn't going for perfection in this step and added gussets here and there. The Hem ended up to be a rolled one I made using my serger. For the waistband I used elastic. It is not accurate, but soo comfortable to wear!

To attach the ruffle to the crinoline I used hooks and made tiny buttonholes, but they keep slipping out. Any opinions on how to keep it flexible but fixed to the skirt???

For the new petticoat I plan to make lots of ruffles! This way I can add volume to the skirt and no hoop can ever show through...

This mess are the ruffles I prepared from the former petticoat ruffle. 4 rows instead of 1. I hope it will be enough to cover the crinoline from top to bottom. I used the serger to make the ruffles (ruffling and hemming) and it went absolutely neat and fast.

The netting is from another hoop skirt I teared apart. It was an awful ebay hoop skirt I actually never used, because the shape was a. boring and b. somewhat angular. Only three hoops and all of them extremely visible. We'll see, how the netting will fill up my new petticoat.





I didn't make many progress pictures, because I was very eager to finish it today.
This is what I ended up with:
My new Whipped Cream Petticoat :-)

Front view                                                                                   Back view

 

And finally the test with a piece of fabric, because I don't have a skirt to go over the crinoline yet.

Nothing showing!

Maybe I am going to use that fabric for challenge #3 Pink...

Now the only thing left do do is readjusting the hoops on the center back seam. As soon as I am done with those I will have finished my first challenge this year!

Possible Projects 2014

Happy new year!
 
I know I am late for this, but better late than never, right? I am very glad 2013 is over for it really wasn't a good year for me. However, I am eager to make the new year a fantastic one!
I intent to sew a lot and not let me stress at work too much.

Since I am only starting my historical wardrobe I will make lots of underwear this year and focus on skirts rather than bodices and equivalent. But I would not be me, if I hadn't some nice projects in mind I would love to do anyway. I really don't know when or where to wear those dresses, but I just love them so much I simply have to make them!

What do you think of theese?

1. Complete my oldest UFO

- a 1798-1805 morning dress from Janet Arnold's "Patterns of Fashion 1"
This dress is almost done. The only things left to do are to finish the sleeves and sew on some self fabric buttons to the BIB front.

Original dress in Arnold's book                                          My UFO

2. Basque for UFO 1878 Day Dress

- A Day Dress as shown in "De Gracieuse" in 1879.  Bottom left dress
I finished the skirt already, but since my body measurements are not really "steady" I didn't dare make any close fitting garments... Maybe I will finally achieve a final figure and then start sewing lots of those...

Original dress. Here from Grimble's                                   My UFO
"Fashions of the Gilded Age Vol. 1"

 

3. 1839 Wedding Dress/ Day Dress

- A Dress displayed in Cincinnati Art Museum and pictured in Cynthia Amnéus' book
"Wedded Perfection - two centuries of wedding gowns"
I've got 6 metres of light green cotton satin in my stash and if I am fortunate this will be enough for this lovely dress...

4. 1898 Afternoon Dress

- An Afternoon Dress from "Patterns of Fashion 2".
I want to make this dress entirely black using black poplin, chiffon and taffetta from my stash. I am also planning on making a matching hat.

 Original dress in Arnold's book                                        1898 Hat inspiration from C. Willet Cunnington's
                                                                                  "English Women's Clothing in the Nineteenth Century"

 

5. A Dolman or Mantle or Wrap

Every Woman needs Jackets and Outer Wear and since I have 20 metres of grey cashmere in my stash I need to make one of those in a matter of urgency! I am not sure what kind of Outer wear I will end up with, but this is what I like:

1879 Mantles                                                                  1882 Worth Mantle

 

1885 Short Wrap

I also fancy a 1883 evening Dolman I have a pattern from, but no picture...











6. A huge dress

Awww! look at this one!
I have found this picture in " Fashions and Costumes from Godey's Lady's Book" from Stella Blum. An open dress in grey poplin with a scarlet petticoat, belt, collar, cuffs all trimmed with black velvet ribbons.
Simple and stunning...

7. Something from my "Journal des Dames et des Demoiselles"pattern

8. Lots of Underwear - such as:

- a natural form corset from "De Gracieuse". Bottom left corset
- a corded petticoat to fit under the 1839 dress
- a romantic era corset for the same dress - I'll use the same pattern as for my short stays
- combinations to go with the 1898 dress
- stockings
- and a lot more....

Is it too much????