Impromptu Trip to the 1830's

We had no plans for the weekend other than doing some yard and garden work but a spur of the moment idea yesterday had us heading about an hour south to visit the tomb of Abraham Lincoln. The remainder of the afternoon was spent at Lincoln's New Salem and we came home happy and exhausted and very inspired by our little daytrip.

I just love trips like this - somehow, they seem more intimate and fun than trips that have been long in the planning. There is no time to have to plan things out, stress over getting things done. You just go. You just do it. It usually works out pretty well.

We were blessed with an absolutely beautiful day. Of course, to get more "into" the feeling of the trip we dressed  in our historic attire. I was the only one with an outfit made purposely for the late 1820's/early 1830's period but we all had fun and the guys looked very handsome, I thought. :)

The boys were often stopped and people exclaimed over how cute they looked. The boys were curious about simply everything and had a grand time peering into the cabins, seeing the smithy at work over his fire, watching the shoe maker, seeing the ladies dye yarn and, of course, looking at the animals. And gathering sticks, rocks and "flowers" (clover) which entertained them the entire time they were there as well as the drive home since they insisted on bringing their collections home with them. . .

The last time we were here was three years ago and as it was very early spring at the time, the village seemed rather dead. David was not impressed. This time, he was intrigued by all the demonstrations and of course fell completely in love with the various gardens. Being quite a good gardener in his own right, he noted ideas for future garden plans and different plants and herbs we should incorporate into ours.

And me? I was just thrilled to be here! I was 12 years old when I visited New Salem for the first time and ever since then have harbored a secret little dream to walk the curving, tree-shaded pathways of this sweet village in a historic dress. Yesterday, that 13-year old dream came to fruition and I was just as happy and excited as I would have been when I was 12 years old. :) A girl never gets too old for dress up, now, does she?

We met some really lovely people who volunteer here and were asked some rather bizarre questions by the visiting public. One really stood out to me - a gentleman approached David and asked him "Sir, if I may ask, how old is your wife?" He then proceeded to ask about marriage customs of the day, and wondered if I was telling the truth when I told him that yes, I really was married at age 19 and yes, I am really 25!

It was quite a nice break from modern life to get away to this quiet little town for a bit. I hope more trips to this destination will be in our near future - I think they might!

I have more photos at my facebook album, here: Lincoln's Tomb and New Salem 

Love,
Sarah

Regency Day Dress Progress Update #2

My dress is nearly done! I am glad, since it's just hit me that I only have a few more weeks to finish getting our stuff ready for the JA festival. Time is running short! Alas! I don't have that much more to do but I am going to have to speed up production a few notches. It was relaxing taking my lethargic time making bits and pieces of our regency attire since winter, but, the time for lethargic behaviour is over.

Anyway, the dress was really insanely simple. . .a lot like putting together a childs dress from the 1860's era. Similar style of gathered bodice, waistband, sleeves, etc. So it went together really fast. There is no lining in the dress but I did put a covering waistband on the inside, to hide the seam allowances and make everything look tidy. Here is an inside view of the bodice:

The dress was constructed with the short sleeves and the armscyes trimmed and bound. The undersleeves are simply basted into the armscye, attaching to the binding, and can easily be removed the short sleeved version of the dress is preferred. This is a nifty way to get two looks out of one garment. I really like it. :)

You may note the undersleeves do NOT match the dress fabric. They were originally intended to match, but I realized my fabric was only 36" wide when I was cutting out the skirt, so I had to use the fabric I was originally going to make the undersleeves with to piece together a panel to make my skirt wider. (2 panels of 36" fabric just wasn't going to cut it, as it seems a normal width for skirts of this period is around 100" or so). I have seen what appears to be contrasting undersleeves in fashion plates of the era - there is one good example in Napoleon and the Empire of Fashion - and ladies more knowledgeable than I about this period of fashion thought that using a contrasting fabric would be fine. So, the undersleeves are of handkerchief linen. I think they will be deliciously cool to wear in the heat of summer.

Here is the front. . .kind of a boring shot since you all know what the front looks like already! :) The undersleeves look kind of boufy and big here but I think that is because there is no arm in them to give them shape. They are in reality quite closely fitted with a flare at the wrist to go over the hand, ending at about knuckle level.

A closer view of the neckline and sleeves:

And the back. The back closes with covered buttons and hand made buttonholes. There is a slight scorch mark on the neckband that I will have to try to remove. :( My iron is very unreliable right now. I really don't want to throw this dress in the washing machine. Does anyone have any ideas on how to get this out?

A side view. The skirt is not hemmed yet and as it is, it is slightly trained. What think thee, gentle readers? Should I ditch the train and make the skirt even all around or keep it?

And back. The panel that I had to piece I put at the back. You can see the seams between the 3 pieces I had to sew together to make this panel towards the bottom of the skirt but hopefully it won't be terribly noticeable. I do have enough fabric left to make a narrow band I could sew to the skirt to cover this seam, but am afraid a band at this height on the skirt would make it look choppy instead of columnar and graceful. Since I am a bit on the short side, I need all the visual height I can get! ;)

What I still have to do:

Hem the skirt. David has agreed to try to mark it for me if I want an even hem all around. If not, I can just hem it up where it is at right now without having to mark it.

Possibly embroider the undersleeves. I'd love to do this, but don't have floss on hand so can't start on that right away. I may or may not get this done before the festival but I do want to do it eventually.

Remove scorch marks!

Love,
Sarah

Regency Day Dress Progress Update #1

THANK YOU all so much for your positive comments about my little bonnet! :) I'm so pleased you all like it. To be honest, I really did not like the previous bonnet at all and this one is so much better. I felt bad not liking something of my own creation but, well, sometimes that happens! :D Anyway, I was so encouraged by your positive responses! I can't wait to wear it!

I took the plunge and cut into my dress fabric yesterday. Even though my petticoat seemingly needs more adjustments (hem is still longer in the back than in the front and the neckline *may* need to be cut down a bit more) I was sick of working on it. I have learned through past sewing horrors experiences that if I start to get frustrated with something and come to the point where I detest the sight of it and it makes me feel naseaous to handle it, I had better put it away and work on something else and so come back to the problems refreshed and re-inspired.

The plan for this day dress was to make a gown that can be worn for day or evening wear. I am using the 1798-1805 day dress from Patterns of Fashion 1 for the skirt (sans train) and the sleeves and the 1806-1809 gown from the same book for the bodice style. I should say I am more inspired by these two gowns than I am actually copying them. I am not taking the patterns straight from the book and sizing them up but rather altering my own basic patterns for bodice and sleeves to appear like the pattern shapes. This is my usual method for constructing historic garments.

Anyway, I spent a few hours yesterday afternoon puzzling over the bodice construction. Because of the shape of my armscye I could not get my bodice pattern to look exactly like the one in the book, which appears to be a pretty straightforward rectangular piece with scoops cut out for the arms, and the back separate. My bodice pattern has a curved bottom to accomodate my bust, which needs more length where the fabric drapes across each breast than it does at the side and at the center front. So, I had to work with that. Then I had to work with the neckline and figuring out how these flat bands that make the squared neckline were applied. I sweated and fussed and made several mock ups but in the end, ditched the flat bands with the mitered corners and simply made a band to go across the neckline at front and back with separate shoulder straps that attach at the back and then at the front. A similar effect to what I wanted, but not exactly what I had planned. It's a good thing to be flexible with plans, especially when it comes to sewing. ;) Here's my last mock up before I cut into the good fabric. It looks a bit bulky and blousy in this sheet that I cut up to use. The neckline was a tad high here and made the bust look large so I cut down the neckline some before finalizing the pattern for the good fabric.

I then cut out the bodice pieces and sewed them together. I pressed the seams all to one side and sewed them down about 1/4" from the edge. I don't know if this is a period practice but it really helped firm up the seams to prevent them from wiggling and stretching since the fabric is so light and is unlined. I ran gathering stitches at the top and bottom of the front bodice (the back is smoothly fitted - another deviation from the 1806-1809 gown) and added bands to the neckline. Here you can see the bodice laid out with the waistband ready to be attached. Forgive the ugly floor. We need to redo it.

I tried on the bodice with the straps pinned on and had to move them over a bit to hide the neckline of the bodiced petticoat. I went with bias cut bands for the neckline but wasn't happy with how it kind of buckled and wrinkled in places. : ( Still, at least it lays flat against my skin. The straight cut band I used for the mock up buckled and wrinkled to expose the skin below the neckline. At least the bias conforms itself to me.

I sewed the straps on this morning and tried the bodice on one last time before moving on to the sleeves. I'm pretty happy with how it looks! It's almost exactly what I wanted. I really am happy with my stays since I can get a fairly high waistline with them.

Here's a slightly blurry back view. The back is just pinned shut at the top and bottom right now but it gives you an idea of what it will look like. In the finished dress I will have buttons and buttonholes to close the back opening.

The sleeves ought to be fun! I'm doing a short slightly gathered sleeve and then a long undersleeve that will be basted into the armscye but can be removed when needed. It's a style I've never done before so I'm looking forward to playing around with it!

Til then!

Love,
Sarah

Regency Bonnet Attempt #2

I have photos to share -soon!- of our trip to Milwaukee, WI over the weekend to participate in the grand finale of Reclaiming Our Heritage, held on the beautiful grounds of the VA hospital there. I am trying to sort through all the pictures I took. It's a huge task, but one I hope to soon overcome.

Until then, I thought I'd share photos of my most recent attempt at a regency style bonnet. The one I have posted about irritated me for some reason . . .I just could not get it to look right. Without trim, it looked too plain. With trim it looked to costumey. I tried many different trims and still was not satisfied with it so I decided to shelve it for a while.

In passing, you know what I think? I think the poufy sheer white crown just does not go with the straw brim. Both are pretty in and of themselves but together they do not work very well. I think the straw brim would go better with a silk crown in a solid color, and maybe just one pouf instead of the 3, and the poufy white crown would go better with a brim made of the same fabric, perhaps mounted on wire reinforced buckram. Yup. That's what I think. So I'll probably switch them out at some point but in the meantime, I experimented with a straw hat I got at the thrift store for $2.

I have always really liked the look of the bonnets Lydia wears in the 1995 version of Pride and Prejudice.

I decided to cut up my straw hat and try to come up with something similar. I did a lot of google searches and came up with a lot of different instructions people have posted to create a regency style hat out of a straw hat so I gleaned ideas from many sources. I didn't follow any one particular set of instructions but used them mainly for inspiration and did the straw hat makeover my own way.

I cut the brim totally off of the crown, leaving me with a bowl-shaped straw form. I cut a little crescent shaped piece from the edge of this bowl shape to accomodate my neck. I then used the brim pattern from my Timely Tresses Lucia bonnet pattern as a guideline for cutting the brim out the big, floppy brim that was originally attached to this hat. Since it is a woven straw, instead of a coiled braid, I was able to manipulate it into the proper shape with steam and pins. To preserve the shape I sewed wire around the edge of the brim and then sewed the brim to the crown. I bound the edges and there was my bonnet form!

Since the inside of the bonnet was a bit messy from the seam between the brim and crown I put in a brim lining of sheer cotton drawn up on a reed. To cover the seam on the outside, I pleated some of the fabric I used for the binding and lightly stitched it on. Currently both sides of the bonnet are trimmed with pink silk roses and green leaves and I want to make a few ribbon rosettes for the top and center back of the bonnet before all is said and done. I'm not sure if I will add ties or not. I'd like to, but will have to see if I find any ribbon or fabric that works.

I really like this shape a lot. It fits on my head very well without any ties, almost like a hat. I do like this one better than the one I have been posting about the past few weeks and don't feel so self conscious wearing it. I even wore it around the house on Friday morning, just for fun and to give it a trial run. ;) My brim is not as big as Lydia's is, but since I'm shooting for an earlier date (1806) than the movie was depicting (1813), I think a smaller brim is okay with this style.

I finished renovating my bodied petticoat this afternoon and now am ready to tackle the dress. . .I know exactly the style I want but oh! Actually cutting into the fabric? That's another thing! The current plan is to make a day dress from the sheer white striped cotton I've been hoarding with a gathered bodice, plain skirt w/pleats in the back and short sleeves with detachable long sleeves. My dear friend Amy sent me a surprise package of some beautiful sheer white dotted swiss cotton last week so that one will be used for a dress for the Grand Ball. :) For that one, I am planning to copy a very simple dress style from an 1806 dress in Napoleon and the Empire of Fashion.

Love,
Sarah

Regency Shift

The past weekend was full and busy and fun. The only bit of sewing I did was cutting out my regency shift and taking the big black feather off of my regency bonnet. I swapped it out for smaller white feathers and a row of pink paper flowers across the front.

I saw some similar trim arrangements on bonnets in my new book so I felt it was a safe and accurate choice. I would have preferred silk flowers but I could not find anything remotely real looking in either Jo Anns, Hobby Lobby or Wal Mart. The whole effect is much fluffier and girlish (as in, little-girlish) and Little Bo Peep-ish but I do not feel so starkly obvious now that the tall black feather is gone. I do still have it. I even made a red velvet ribbon rosette to pair with it which looked stunning, if I do say so myself. Black and red are very magnificent colors. But, it was just not me. Not right now, anyway. If you think it looks horrible just tell me as I am open to any and all suggestions. I keep trying to trim it like an 1860's bonnet but every time I go back to look at fashion plates and paintings and drawings from the early 1800's I realize how very, very different bonnet shapes, styles and trimmings were!

Maybe I could pair the rosette and ostrich plume with my red slippers and white gown for the ball.

Anyway, no white gowns can be in my future until I first have my proper undergarments. I have my stays and a bodiced petticoat (although I think the petticoat needs some work to make it less bulky) but I have not a proper shift. I finally finished this one today after 4 days of lethargic sewing. It is square cut, boring and I have no idea why it took me so long to make.

Despite it being an unfancy garment it has already seen its share of adventure. This morning I awoke at 5 a.m. to a horrendous yowling and screeching beneath the window our bed is next to. Peeping out I saw Cat facing off a strange calico, pale-faced feline and just behind Cat sat the large bunny cage. Since last night was so warm, we kept Milo and Otis outdoors and thought little of it. Apparently, the Strange Cat had advanced with evil thoughts upon the two terrified and helpless bunnies and Cat sprang to the rescue to defend them. Little tufts of white fur bore witness to his heroic defenses. I threw open the window and tried to scare the strange cat away but it would not go and gazed at me balefully.

So then my yet-unfinished shift came into play. I threw it on and ran outside to chase the strange cat off. It went very slowly and very unwillingly back to an outbuilding on the property with Cat in close pursuit. After trying in vain to get Cat to come inside with me I scooped up the bunnies and brought them in. I now have gray and white bunny-fur speckles on my shift. Cat returned home later this morning, a little grungy looking and with some fur missing from his backside but seemingly very well pleased with himself. He is now sunning himself on the carpet in the boys playroom. The Strange Cat is nowhere to be seen.

If I get motivated I will attempt to refurbish my bodiced petticoat this afternoon so that I can start on my gown and David's tailcoat as soon as possible. Registration for the Jane Austen festival begins today!

Edited: Okay, here is a photo of my undies; shift, stays and bodiced petticoat. The petticoat bodice is made of one layer of white cotton lined (I probably should NOT have lined it!) with pale pink cotton since I was out of white cotton at the time I was making this. : / It has a drawstring to adjust the waist which seems to work okay, but there is also a drawstring at the neckline that ties at center back and the back just does NOT overlap and the fabric at the neckline creeps up on the drawstring, so you can see my stays if that makes sense. Also, I think the neckline of the bodiced petticoat looks a tad high. This is about how I want my dress neckline cut so I think the bodiced petticoat neckline should be lower/wider than the dress. Also, the straps on the petticoat seem to be really almost off the shoulder instead of high up on the shoulder. Should I cut it down? Make a new bodice for the petticoat? Could I salvage this one by taking off the bodice, removing the lining, cutting down the bodice a tad bit at the neck and armscyes and then finish and reattach it to the skirt? And maybe make the back button closed instead of tie? (I could still keep the tie at the waistline since it is a bit adjustable. . .)

Love,
Sarah

Timely Tress ~ Lucia Regency Bonnet ~ Update #2!

I finished my bonnet today! Or, at least, the basic form of it. Now the fun and endless possibilities of various trims looms before me.

For now, I have a black ostrich feather. I wanted a white one, but black seemed to go with this better for some reason. I think a white one would really just blend in with the fabric too much.

Or I could wear it plain without the feather. I like both looks. The one without the feather is more "me". But if I don't go with the feather, I will need to go with something else!

I do want to find something red to wear on the bonnet. A flower, a rosette, something. My shoes are red leather pointy toe slippers and my shawl has threads of red in it and I plan to make the reticule either white, dark blue or red. (I think a red one may be too matchy-matchy though?)

I really, really recommend this pattern from Timely Tresses. As usual, it was easy to work with and the finished result looks just like the photos on the pattern cover. The only thing I had a bit of a problem with was the markings on the lining pieces to which you are supposed to match the gathering for the "poufs" on the outer fabric. I couldn't figure out just how to do that easily, so I did the easiest thing of all - I eyeballed it ;) - and it seemed to come out fine. I think I could have more evenly distributed the gathers, but will do that next time! I love how this pattern is SO versatile - you could make a more tailored style with using the lining pattern as the outer crown, or you could make a plain gathered circle for a simpler style. Plus there are 3 brim variations/sizes so there are quite a few options, really!

It's been very nice for me to have this project to work on. It has been a very hard week for me so far as I found out on Sunday night that two people I knew were in an accident and did not survive. Working with your hands to create something useful and pretty is very soothing and I emerge from this project feeling far more cheerful than I did when I went in.

Love,
Sarah

Timely Tresses ~ Lucia Regency Bonnet ~ Progress Update #1

In my costuming world I flit from one thing to another. Whenever I get bored with a project, I will finish it as quickly as possible and move on to something I find more interesting. With our first 1860's reenactment conveniently under my belt and full wardrobes functional and proper for all of us I can turn to more interesting things.

Last week, I got my birthday present from David in the mail, a copy of Napoleon and the Empire of Fashion by Christina Barretto. Yes, it is a birthday present I picked out for myself. David would not have thought of it on his own since he did not understand how badly I needed it. He thought I should get a waffle iron or food processor or something useful. But when I assured him I'd love him forever and ever if he got me this book he humored me and ordered it. And I love it. It's a fantastic resource.

That book has put me in the mood to work more on my regency ensemble for the Jane Austen festival that is now only a few short weeks away. David's outfit is very nearly complete so I felt no guilt in postponing starting his coat so I can work on some fun, small projects for myself.

I have my shawl almost finished and so yesterday started my bonnet. I ordered the Lucia pattern from Timely Tresses quite a while ago and have been looking forward to making it up. I bought buckram for a covered bonnet but when Malachi took a huge bite out of the brim of a very pretty Amish straw hat we found at the thrift shop, I decided I needed to salvage the straw braid so I took the entire hat apart and picked out the fishing thread it had been sewn with and remade the straw into the brim for my bonnet.

After the brim was done I realized that I don't know if a straw brim with a fabric crown is period correct. : / I've seen what appears to be a straw brim with a fabric crown in fashion plates but perhaps I am interpreting it incorrectly and the reality is a full straw bonnet then with the crown covered in fabric. Oh well. It's too late and I don't have enough straw to make a whole bonnet.

For the brim, I traced the shape of the paper brim onto cardboard and then pinned the first row of straw into place along the back edge. I overlapped the second row of straw onto the first row and sewed them together using a backstitch that was long on the inside and short on the outside as you can see in the photo below. It went rather quickly and I finished the brim with three rows of straw sewed all around the front edge to make a nice border.

Today I assembled the lining from natural undyed linen. The lining is rather fitted to the head so I will need to wear a simple hairstyle with this bonnet, I think. It is made of 8 triangular shaped sections with a circle sewn in the middle.

The outer layer of the crown will be a big poufy circle of white windowpane checked sheer cotton voile with gathers  across the top so there will be 3 poufy sections down the head, which kind of reminds me of a lobster body. So far I'm really happy with the shape and the fact that the brim offers some sun protection! This is Brim 2 and there is a deeper brim included in the pattern which is even larger and shadier. I may try a bonnet in that style if I have time before the festival!

I went to the thrift store today and found some really pretty gold metallic trim that I might try to use to make a headdress or something for the ball. I will need to do some more research to see if it would be appropriate to use or not. Does anyone know? I thought it was too pretty to pass up for $1! The ugly chunky metallic gold piping that came with it can be tossed though. Ick. It's nasty stuff.

Alas! Off to make supper. We may get some severe weather later too. A stormy warm evening is always exciting!

Love,
Sarah

Naper Settlement Civil War Reenactment 2011

This past weekend we headed a few hours north to spend the weekend in the picturesque historic village of Naper Settlement. Despite it being located in the heart of a big city, it is a very pleasant place and it is amazing how you can go from fast-paced 21st century life and fast food restaurants and bars to tranquil 19th century rural village in a few yards of sidewalk.

The weather was very nearly perfect. Despite the forecast calling for cold temperatures and rain the weekend passed with warm days and nights and only a light sprinkling a few times - nothing at all like we had prepared ourselves for.

Good company and pleasant scenery made for an enjoyable weekend. Here are some photos from the event; for more, please visit my facebook album here: Naper Settlement 2011

Chesnut Light Artillery - these guys (and Monica!) really know what they are doing. They are a great looking unit and on the field move like clockwork. It is poetry in motion, truly. :) I am not "into" military stuff all that much but I am VERY proud of these guys! It is an honor to be associated with them.

Judah watches other children at play on Saturday before the battle. He wasn't feeling too great this weekend and is going through a shy stage, but he definitely liked watching the other kids run around.

And David. I'm so thankful their tunics from last year are still fitting well this year. Praise! Joy!

Mr. Malachi climbing on the doors to a cellar on one of historic buildings.

My friend Laura sews with her little girl.

Another friend, Anna, livens up the camp life with some fabulous banjo picking.

Malachi and I by the church (aren't these bushes gorgeous? We got to look at them all weekend since our camp was right behind the church).

Inside the church for Sunday services. I always love going to services at reenactments. There is a comraderie and family feeling that is not often felt other places. The strong voices raised in worship, singing the dear old hymns, is a beautiful sound. A beautiful 90 year old woman, still reenacting (!) was honored at this service. It was a joyful time.

Malachi fights tiredness on Sunday afternoon.

Laura in the garden. I just love this picture of her. She looks so perfect and romantic. :)

My only regret is that it was not cold enough for me to wear my new paletot! Oh well, at least I now have it all ready for fall. I'm sure it will see plenty of use before the year is out!

After all that 1860's sewing I'm ready to dive back into our regency stuff. The festival is in about six weeks! Yikes!! So much to do still!

Love,
Sarah

A Teeny Little Post Before I Creep Back Into My Blog-free Break

I know I wasn't going to post til after our first CW event, but, then, I wasn't going to sew either. And I did.

I just want to thank you all so much for your advice, suggestions and encouragement. What great cheer leaders you all are! When I wrote my last post I felt miserably discouraged with David's regency outfit and was ready to give up. But thanks to you all, who contacted me both here and via email, I was inspired to try again. David's stuff is still not perfect, but it's a lot better than it was, I think! Now I feel like I can take a deep breath and move on. You all are AWESOME.

So here are his breeches, newly refitted. I took quite a bit of width out of the crotch and also the inner leg, on the fronts. The back I left pretty much alone. David tried these on at least a dozen times last night while I fitted and finnagled and fretted with the seams. At last I got them to where I was much happier, and he wasn't complaining about them being too snug anywhere. Actually, he freaked out a bit last night when I snugged up the center seam and we got that nice supported rounded shape starting to go on.

"They're touching me!" he exclaimed, horrified.

"Um, David, they're supposed to!"

A side view:

A butt shot:

For Jenni - here's what I did with the leg placket. I don't know if this is how it was done as I was working from the Cut of Men's Clothes and there are really no instructions that come with the diagrams. Just a basic buttoned placket with a buttoned band at the knee instead of a buckle. I think I could have made the placket a bit taller and used 4 buttons instead of 3, but these should work.

Here's his new shirt. Yes, he is being silly and indecent not buttoning it up. :P Do not Fear. The Cravat and Waistcoat are next on the list and he will NOT be seen in public places (except blogger) in this attire.

And just for comparison purposes, here is a pic of the breeches and the old shirt taken last week, that left me so discouraged:

Yes, despite the imperfections of the current version, I think it is MUCH better.
Love,
Sarah