Inside the Navy Wool Habit

As I mentioned in my last post, the habit jacket and waistcoat are patterned from J.P. Ryan's riding habit pattern. Fitting this habit was one of the classes I took at Costume College this year. The jacket is barely changed, with only some modification to the lapels. The waistcoats use the pattern as a base, and are modified from there, for style.

A Navy Wool Riding Habit

Being that I ride horses almost every day of the week, it's amazing to me that it has taken this long for me to actually make a riding habit! 

This habit started out as one of my classes at Costume College this year. I took a riding habit fitting workshop with J.P Ryan and Feather Tippets, which was great, because I came home and had a pattern to get started with right away. The jacket is mostly unaltered from the J.P. Ryan pattern. If I remember correctly, I think I changed the lapels a little. Also, I opted not to add hooks/eyes all the way down the front. The two waistcoats are modified from the waistcoat that came in the pattern.

For years, on my to do list, was the idea of a riding habit done in the style of George Washington's uniform at the Smithsonian. Navy with buff lapels and cuffs, and buff waistcoat patterned after a man's. I started this out with that plan in mind. As I moved further along with the project, I changed my mind and decided to keep the jacket one fabric. That way, in the future, I could make and wear any waistcoat I wanted, and the outfit would be more versatile. I tried to keep the habit in the style of the 1770's.

The Countess of Provence Gown

In the last couple months, I've had a chance to finish up some things that have been languishing on the "almost finished" pile. When I have no deadline, I have a terrible habit of getting 99% of the way through a project... and then stopping. I have no idea why! And there a garment will sit, and sit, and sit.

On the bright side, this means that when I finally get around to resuming, the project is almost done!

My most recent ensemble to be completed is a similar gown to the one worn by Marie Josephine of Savoy, Countess of Provence, in the following portrait. I love the gown. I love pretty much anything white. And that cap, pouf, whatever it is... is just wild!

Painting by Alexander Kucharsky, circa 1790.

The Remade Chintz Gown

This dress started life back in 2012. I wore it for a 4th of July Parade. It was fun, but it was also all kinds of wrong. Machine sewn, modern pattern, petticoat too short, weird cotton lining, zig zag stitching, panniers.... Yikes. I mean, the list went on. I was never, ever going to wear that dress again.

But, the fabric was worth saving. A lovely, printed cotton chintz.

In 2014 I decided to rip it all apart and reuse the material. I'm embarrassed to say it took three years to get around to finishing it. 

So, apart came every seam, and eventually it became a dress again. A better dress. I reassembled the pieces, reshaping and refitting where necessary and hand stitching them back together as one would construct a gown using 18th century methods. 

I also remade the petticoat. Luckily, I still had fabric left over and was able to recut the whole thing. I saved the old petticoat to use for something else someday. Long sleeves maybe...

 

So bottom line, it's not a new concept, but always buy the best fabric you can. Even if you're skills and knowledge aren't up to it at the time, there is always the future!

Well, it started as a square...

For April's Historical Sew Monthly's challenge (circles, squares and rectangles), I decided a finishing up a fichu was a good (and easy) idea. And it went toward finishing with one of my current outfits. I like using the challenges as inspiration to get things finished that I have left lying around.

It all started easily enough as a nice square, but because of the body and crispness of the silk gauze,  when it was doubled and put around my neck, it was like huuuuuuuge. Way too much of a good thing. So, I cut it in half, and then kept trying on and trimming until it looked ok. It ended up resembling one of the shaped-neckline kerchiefs, like this one, from the Manchester Art Gallery.

So, this is happening...

It may take years, but hey, gotta start sometime! It's one of my favorite gowns and I thought, hey, why the hell not?!

Metropolitan Museum of Art
1991.204a, b

Ah, sigh. I can't wait!

A Golden Gown

Ah, another UFO down. Feeling satisfied!

I started this one last summer. I had just gotten the At the Sign of the Golden Scissors pattern for an English Gown. I grabbed some silk and got moving. Returning to this, almost a year later, I realized I only ever had six yards of the silk. I don't know how I eeked a fully trimmed, matching-striped gown and petticoat out of only six yards. 

Oh, wait, yes I do. I pieced the crap out of it. But I love that, so it's fine :)

As per usual, I started by following the pattern, and then swiftly detoured away. I made it a closed front. I added cuffs from another pattern, I never checked if the pattern showed a polonaise option, but I did that, too. The pattern instructions were great for reference and information, though. I also referenced some extant gowns I have in my collection. That was extremely helpful! If I have learned anything from extant pieces, it's that they're generally put together much messier than I would want for my own sewing. It seemed like the faster I tried to put together the dress, the better it looked. The imperfections added charm.

All in all, I'm rather jazzed by it. And extremely jazzed that I got it out of only six yards (part of the petticoat was sacrificed for this). I wasn't originally planning on trimming it, because I liked the back neckline, but nearing the end of the fabric, I was curious to see just how far the yardage would go. I was able to trim it, by cutting up the leftover cabbage. Some pieces were only about two inches long!

And here's all that's left. I was so tempted to use the rest, but I couldn't think how to do it in good taste. 

So, if I don't finish the gown I really want for the gala next month, I have a pretty good back up! Yay!

UFO's off the pile!

A couple weeks ago I got my limited class list from Costume College, and was lucky enough to get the class I wanted. Woot woot! And then I read, at the bottom of the page, that I needed to come wearing stays, shift and petticoat...

Let me confess, I haven't sewn anything since like February.

Reading that got me all excited, though, and lit a well needed fire under my bum roll.

And what did I have festering in the UFO pile, but some almost done stays and a shift! Perfect! I got cracking and finished them up. And a dress, too! But that's for another post :)

The shift pattern was from At the Sign of the Golden Scissors. Actually, it wasn't a pattern, it was a pre-cut kit, which was supposed to make this a fast project. 

I started it in 2013... Whoops!

It went together really well. The instructions were helpful and I tried to keep to them. I do wish the linen was a little softer, but being the weight that it is, it will be perfect for keeping boobs tidy while trying to drape patterns in public.

The stays were started, I think, about two years ago. I thought my yellow linen stays never fit quite right in the bust. Too small. So I drafted this pattern on top of my old stays. They are blue worsted wool, with reed boning, and edged with leather. I only cheated with the machine on the channels. At the time, as in two years ago, I just didn't have it in me. These pictures were from the final fitting, before I closed them up on the bottom.

I'm sure a theme can be sensed here: I needed new undies so no wardrobe malfunctions mid-class :) Maybe I need a bedgown, too...

My favorite part was cross stitching my initials into the shift. Sometimes it's the little details make the most mundane of projects exciting. 

And, nope, they're not lined. Yet. I'm sure I'll have time soon, but I sacrificed the lining to work on more fun, exciting things :)

2015 In Review

Oh, and it started off so strong! Unfortunately, only a few things were actually completed last year, but here they are!

Haha first was a tea cozy. It's very handy!

Then, the only complete outfit of the year: my costume de ball for the Jane Austen Evening, in Pasadena. I made a sleeveless shift, a bodiced petticoat and a gown. I also repaired an antique tiara for the outfit.

Visiting the Roman Baths and the Pump Room

One thing I was very excited to do, while we were in Bath, was to visit the Roman Baths. Now, they have been there since Roman times (hence the name, of course!), and have been enjoyed throughout history, but, as I have more of an interest in Georgian history, I know of the baths as the place that Georgians would go to, to "take the waters" for their health. Very fashionable!

 

A Visit to the Bath Fashion Museum

Happy New Year!!

For a moment, let's ignore that I have been seriously slacking when it comes to sewing, and let's take a little trip to Bath, England and visit the Fashion Museum and Assembly Rooms.

My husband and I recently got back from a seriously awesome trip to Europe, and I thought sharing some of the wonderful, historic locations we visited would get me back blogging. And hopefully sewing... Which has been hard, since 90% of my sewing room is packed up in storage. Sigh.

Anyway, off to Bath!

The fashion museum had a special Georgian exhibit on. Yay! 

Adventures in Draping

Headless got a makeover! 

I've had the same dress form for about ten years. She was really getting sad and broken, so I finally ordered a new one. While waiting for it,  I had the brilliant idea to experiment and take the duct tape mannequin concept to new lengths. 

Draping 18th century garments on yourself is hard. Really hard. Draping on a dress form only goes so far. Patterns are great, but it's still not really the experience of draping.

So, I put on my stays and enlisted my very jet lagged mom (thanks, mom!) to wrap me up in duct tape.

The Polonaise and Some New Accessories

On Friday I had the good fortune of finding out my local group was doing a timeline event this weekend. Super short notice, but as I have been out of town for everything since last October, I was thrilled to have an excuse to get dressed up. And the timeline events are especially fun because you can represent any era you wish to talk about. Those are WWII tents behind me!

I haven't sewn anything new in months, but I did have quite a few things that have never been worn out, so I thought this was the perfect excuse. I wore my new polonaise jacket/petticoat outfit, my Christmas-present-to-myself Sarah Juniper shoes, a black silk bonnet made from the Larkin & Smith pattern, and I also brought out my linen/chintz mitts to protect from the sun. It was hot!

I mostly finished this Polonaise last year. I still want to trim it. That'll happen someday! It's very lightweight cotton with a woven stripe. The bodice is cut so the lining and front section are fitted to the body, but the fashion fabric layer comes away from the body, in the polonaise style, where the back seams let out into pleats.  

I also accessorized with a voile apron, a breast knot, my trusty sun-battling umbrella and a kerchief and cap I bought on my last trip to Virginia.

I always think the pile left from undressing is so pretty! 

And the shoes!! I have wanted to order a pair of Sarah Juniper shoes for years. I always thought it would be so complex and tedious, since Ms. Juniper is in England, but actually it was very easy. I just traced my feet, filled out her paperwork and sent the paper and fabric to her.

In no time at all, they came in the mail and they are beautiful! These are dark green glazed wool. Super comfy! And they look great with my American Duchess buckles.

Stitch, stitch, stitch... Ahh...

What a nice feeling. I missed sewing!

My husband and I have been fixing up a house and we've been staying there for about a month now. It's been totally fun, but I started to really, really miss my sewing room. I finally went and got some UFO's to work on.

Most of last year was spent in the 19th and 20th centuries, so, it's been a while since I've been in the 1700's, and I really missed it!

I took some time today to get moving on my chintz dress remake. It's coming along!

The sleeves are pinned and ready to be attached and the shoulders fitted. The fronts are basted and ready to be stitched, and the skirt panels are hemmed, ready to be stitched to the bodice. They still have the pleats from before, so hopefully I can easily adjust them to fit the remade bodice. 

Is it bad that I kind of hate the fabric now? It's a little too... bold? I dunno... I will finish it, though!

HSF #15: The Great Outdoors

For this challenge I knocked an 18th century habit shirt off my to-do list. Yay!

The Challenge: #15, The Great Outdoors

Fabric: Handkerchief weight linen

Pattern: Kannik's Korner men's shirt 1750-1800, modified for a ladies' shirt, using information from Cunnington's "History of Underclothes."

Year: Later 18th century

Notions: 60/2 linen thread, 16/2 linen thread for buttons, cotton tape for waistband.

How historically accurate is it? As close as possible.

Hours to complete: Took about four days, sewing in the afternoons and evenings.

First worn: Not yet!

Total cost: The linen cost $22/yd, but I'm not sure how much I ended up using. Maybe a yard or so.

...

The shirt was very simple, if time consuming, to make. Tiny stitches! The instructions on the Kannick's Korner pattern were very helpful. I also referenced the man's shirt in "Costume Close Up." I will probably add ruffles to the shirt when I decide on what particular habit to make. 

Shirt construction is so interesting! With all the little reinforcements and gussets. Very fun to put together.

I chose thread buttons for the collar so they would be soft under the cravat. Next up, a cravat, I guess.

I thread a tape through a channel on the back hem, putting eyelets in the ends of the channel.

I love a good button hole :)

I'm really jazzed about my sleeve links! I copied Georgian examples with bits from the jewelry section and some "paste" buttons. There's currently some on eBay that inspired me. I don't know, for sure, if ladies wore sleeve links with habit shirts, but I know they wore them on shift's sleeves and I know habit shirts were basically like men's shirts, so I figured why not!

The sleeve links were so easy to make. I'll be keeping an eye out for good buttons from now on. Oh the possibilities!