I had a spur of the moment wave of inspiration last night and made up a new dress for myself.
This one is an Elizabethan type, based on the corset pattern I drafted up in the last post. I settled on the gathered kirtle, purely out of need for fabric economy. I squeezed it out of about three yards of upholstery fabric I picked up at Wally World last year. I'll post more details on construction at some point when it is all finished up. You'll see in the pictures that I still need to hem this, and finish sewing the shoulder straps, and finish the side skirt opening.
I'm also going to modify my linen tunic to wear with this by cutting the neckline to a square.
A slideshow of pics of my new dress!
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Lets forget about my confused tunic
Just for a little while we're forgetting about the tunic that was a simple men's, then wanted to be Irish, and now will be neither.
I've been working on something much more exciting. I'm trying an Elizabethan corset.
Why? Well because I really like the support of a bra, but I'm tired of wearing modern undergarments with my somewhat historical clothing. I realize this isn't the right undergarment for any of the clothing items I currently have, but maybe it will be eventually.
I have to say I have a huge crush on Drea Leed and her Elizabethan Costuming website (http://www.elizabethancostume.net/). Her website has a great generator for a corset pattern by your measurements, you put in your measurements here and get illustrated instructions that walk you through drafting out your own customized pattern.
So I am working on a modified mockup of the boned tabbed version. It will be faced and lined with fabric from a striped cotton bedsheet, though I do intend to wear this for awhile before I move on to a better constructed one it is still just a mockup.
This mockup will also serve another purpose. By making up the corset and noting any modifications I need to make, I will also be able to draft out a bodice pattern from the same lines that the corset pattern gives me.
I think I'm going to make the Gored Kirtle, but I might go with the Gathered Kirtle
I've been working on something much more exciting. I'm trying an Elizabethan corset.
Why? Well because I really like the support of a bra, but I'm tired of wearing modern undergarments with my somewhat historical clothing. I realize this isn't the right undergarment for any of the clothing items I currently have, but maybe it will be eventually.
I have to say I have a huge crush on Drea Leed and her Elizabethan Costuming website (http://www.elizabethancostume.net/). Her website has a great generator for a corset pattern by your measurements, you put in your measurements here and get illustrated instructions that walk you through drafting out your own customized pattern.
So I am working on a modified mockup of the boned tabbed version. It will be faced and lined with fabric from a striped cotton bedsheet, though I do intend to wear this for awhile before I move on to a better constructed one it is still just a mockup.
This mockup will also serve another purpose. By making up the corset and noting any modifications I need to make, I will also be able to draft out a bodice pattern from the same lines that the corset pattern gives me.
I think I'm going to make the Gored Kirtle, but I might go with the Gathered Kirtle
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| Gored Kirtle from www.elizabethancostume.net |
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| Boned Tabbed Corset from www.elizabethancostume.net |
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
A Sideless Surcoat
And now we come to my last completed garment, my sideless surcoat.
This is probably the most appropriate outfit for me to be wearing with the hair style I have in my picture. I made up this in a few hours one day so that I'd have something 'nice' to wear. It only took 1.5 yards too! Or rather I was limited to the 1.5 yards of this fabric that I had available. I think I'm going to sew up a gothic fitted kirtle to wear as my standard layer under this. I have some woven silk fabric in mind for it in a deep red with black warp threads. It'll look dangerously regal, but the SCA doesn't have sumptuary laws for colors of garments.
If you want a better look at the fabric I used for this, look at the background I put up here! Thats the fabric I used. It's at least partially cotton, and likely 100% cotton, but it has a perfect look to it. Because I constructed this in a hurry, I used the sewing machine, but that allowed me to be super quick about it. I do need to go back and bind the inside seams, I left them unfinished to allow a little more ease over my hips and out of lack of time. This was also my first adventure in making bias tape, and even though it was a lot of work, I love the result. Bias tape is a dream to work with, it went around the curves of the arm holes like a dream. At some point I do need to take off the bias tape and re-apply it with hand stitches. I might adjust the shape to dip in narrower at the waist as well.
And now I'm at the end of my constructed garments. I think I'll give an update on my linen under-tunic next.
This is probably the most appropriate outfit for me to be wearing with the hair style I have in my picture. I made up this in a few hours one day so that I'd have something 'nice' to wear. It only took 1.5 yards too! Or rather I was limited to the 1.5 yards of this fabric that I had available. I think I'm going to sew up a gothic fitted kirtle to wear as my standard layer under this. I have some woven silk fabric in mind for it in a deep red with black warp threads. It'll look dangerously regal, but the SCA doesn't have sumptuary laws for colors of garments.
If you want a better look at the fabric I used for this, look at the background I put up here! Thats the fabric I used. It's at least partially cotton, and likely 100% cotton, but it has a perfect look to it. Because I constructed this in a hurry, I used the sewing machine, but that allowed me to be super quick about it. I do need to go back and bind the inside seams, I left them unfinished to allow a little more ease over my hips and out of lack of time. This was also my first adventure in making bias tape, and even though it was a lot of work, I love the result. Bias tape is a dream to work with, it went around the curves of the arm holes like a dream. At some point I do need to take off the bias tape and re-apply it with hand stitches. I might adjust the shape to dip in narrower at the waist as well.
And now I'm at the end of my constructed garments. I think I'll give an update on my linen under-tunic next.
Monday, May 2, 2011
The overdue viking dress
What can I say? I'm horrible at keeping up with regular postings. So, without further ado here in my viking apron dress:
The style I chose for my dress is the tube dress that flares from the hips. I'd really love to make the other more accurate style of two overlapping free panels or of one long overlapping panel next time. This time I decided to stay with a well loved and prevalent method so that I could be ensured great results without making up a muslin. Here is a diagram of the cutting method I used:
I cut this out of a cotton blanket that I picked up at a resale shop on the cheap. Cotton? You ask. Yes, but it looks like herringbone wool from a two foot distance. It's not until you get your eyes right in there all close and personal and maybe give it a good feel that you realize that it's not wool. I think this is going to make it a life saver during the three weeks in August that everyone tells me get extremely hot out here.
Two things I did just a little differently were that I decided to waste just a little fabric and eliminate the halved pieces. I just moved over my cutting diagram and made them whole. This is because I had more fabric than needed for this project, but not enough left over to make another project out of, I was going to have fabric waste either way. I also eliminated the bottom band to make this calf length after hemming. I might have lengthened the entire pattern by just a few inches instead, but I honestly can't remember. Instead of hemming the top edge I cut off the top band on the blanket and used that to finish my top edge. This keeps the top from stretching out and I think it gives it a very finished look.
The straps are pieces of the edge binding of the blanket. In the front are two short loops and coming from the back are two long loops. These are meant to be held together by big ornate shield brooches. These are something I am going to have to wait a bit for, but I should be able to find some through a SCA merchant at some event this summer. Something I did already own was a festoon of beads:
I made this at a workshop during an event from 18 gauge wire strung with glass and metal beads. The danglies might not be accurate.
For anyone looking for more inspiration, here is a handout that I found on the internet that gives more information and cutting diagrams and instructions for another version of the apron dress and for a better under-tunic.
Next up will be my sideless surcoat.
The style I chose for my dress is the tube dress that flares from the hips. I'd really love to make the other more accurate style of two overlapping free panels or of one long overlapping panel next time. This time I decided to stay with a well loved and prevalent method so that I could be ensured great results without making up a muslin. Here is a diagram of the cutting method I used:
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| This is a design by eqos on deviantart.com, http://eqos.deviantart.com |
Two things I did just a little differently were that I decided to waste just a little fabric and eliminate the halved pieces. I just moved over my cutting diagram and made them whole. This is because I had more fabric than needed for this project, but not enough left over to make another project out of, I was going to have fabric waste either way. I also eliminated the bottom band to make this calf length after hemming. I might have lengthened the entire pattern by just a few inches instead, but I honestly can't remember. Instead of hemming the top edge I cut off the top band on the blanket and used that to finish my top edge. This keeps the top from stretching out and I think it gives it a very finished look.
The straps are pieces of the edge binding of the blanket. In the front are two short loops and coming from the back are two long loops. These are meant to be held together by big ornate shield brooches. These are something I am going to have to wait a bit for, but I should be able to find some through a SCA merchant at some event this summer. Something I did already own was a festoon of beads:
I made this at a workshop during an event from 18 gauge wire strung with glass and metal beads. The danglies might not be accurate.
For anyone looking for more inspiration, here is a handout that I found on the internet that gives more information and cutting diagrams and instructions for another version of the apron dress and for a better under-tunic.
Next up will be my sideless surcoat.
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