Lady Hobbit Costume ~ Finished! At Last!

We had a wonderful day yesterday celebrating the 75th anniversary of the publication of "The Hobbit"!

A friend reminded me that September 22nd is also the birthday of Frodo and Bilbo Baggins so there was extra reason to celebrate. I hope to have a post up soon about our breakfast and the Magical Fall Festival we went to last evening but in the meantime, here are some pics of the finished hobbit outfit. Note: It was really terribly windy yesterday so these didn't come out as well as I would have wished but hopefully they will do!

Oh and yes. I did my hair especially for the day by putting it up in pin curls. I learned from my mistake last year when we attended the colonial faire and so did NOT use a million pounds of pomade to make my hair stay in place. Instead, I just let it damp-dry after I showered in the morning and ran some hair oil through it (you can get it in the ethnic hair section at Wal Mart for a few dollars - I love the stuff and use it often). I coiled (around a crayola marker - hey, it was perfect!) and pinned tiny lengths of hair all over my head and then let the hair dry the rest of the way (about 4 hours or so). Here is my hair before taking the pins out:

All unpinned!

To get it really curly and wild looking it was just a (lengthy) matter of carefully pulling all the curls apart. It's quite a weird sensation to walk about and have your hair jiggle like jello, but that is what it did! Judah told me first my hair looked like it was electrocuted and then later informed me I looked like batman. (?) Maybe next time I will spring for some sleek banana curls instead?

I really like this costume. It is odd to do something that is not historical and yet not modern. I really enjoyed working on this outfit and it is definitely fun to wear! If I dared, I'd dress like this every day, I think.

But not necessarily would I do my hair like this every day. Yikes.

I may go back and add more lacing holes. These worked to keep the bodice shut but if I add more the X's will be smaller and the look will be better. I will try to do that before the premiere of The Hobbit later this year.

For the pics I have the corners of the apron tucked up into the waistband to form a pocket. My necklace is a brown flat shoestring and my copper brooch. I don't have real hobbit ears yet but my hair covered my ears anyway so it was all good.

To finish the outfit I would like to make a kerchief at some point to add a bit more coverage. I was able to nurse the baby in this without any problems but the neckline is a tad low for total comfort. I have some lightweight windowpane cotton in a sagey green color that would work well for a neckerchief.

I'm already daydreaming about making a "party" bodice in brighter colors (maybe plaid or stripey!) with a cut out "keyhole" on the bodice. Since the elements of the outfit are all separate and can be mixed n' matched there is so much you can do with just a few things! Hobbit costuming just may be slightly addicting!

Edit: 7-30-2013

Here are some new photos of the outfit, without the apron and with my baby daughter in her own hobbit dress - which is finally fitting her well 8 months after I originally made it! Hair in these photos: front hair pin curled (not brushed out or pulled apart, just messily arranged) and back hair in a low ponytail. I like this style much better!

Love,
Sarah

Happy Hobbit Day!

I put the last stitches early this morning, people. So of course, I had to try everything on, unshowered and messy-haired as I was. And yeah, the apron is horribly wrinkled so excuse that. I'm sure we'll get tons more pics tomorrow at the festival but for now, a sneak peek!

I feel short and fat when I wear this but isn't that kind of the point? Hobbits are supposed to be.

Love,
Sarah

Planning Second Breakfast

~ Apple Tart
~ Homemade Bread with Raspberry Jam
~ Cheese
~ Mushrooms and Sausage
~ Eggs (made to everyone's individual preferences)
~ Seed Cake (lemon poppyseed, since I know the children will eat it)
~ Pumpkin Pie (from our own pumpkins!)

Tea and coffee and milk should round things out quite nicely. I think we shall pass on the ale.

To top off our festivities, guess what? I found out that on the same day a nearby town will be hosting a festival that focuses on, among other magical worlds, Middle-Earth. (Narnia as well!) So we will be able to don our hobbity attire and have fun visiting with other like-minded people who enjoy the wonderful world of Tolkien. The only downside is that the festival takes place out of doors in the evening and the high is only supposed to be 60 degrees. Quite chilly, especially for little people. But I think we can manage costumes that will give a somewhat decent look, using items they have for 1860's reenacting. (short trousers, long sleeved dress shirts with rolled up sleeves, suspenders and woolen coats? That will work!) David will wear his regency breeches, shirt and waistcoat and either his green corderoy sack coat (similar in cut to some hobbit men's coats in LOTR) or his black wool frock coat.

Baby Girl looks darling in anything. But an undershirt and "jumper" (strapped petticoat from 1860's clothes) and a little coat (stripey red and white one) should keep her in appropriate look and a cap and big fluffy shawl to wrap her up in to keep night chills away will work beautifully.

Love,
Sarah

More Hobbit Bodice Progress. Almost There.

Bit by bit the bodice is getting there. As of today it is *almost* done. I just need to attach the lining and bind the thing off. Maybe it will be done by tomorrow? Maybe? Hopefully. I still have no clue what I will use for a lacing cord. Maybe I will have to fall back on my old stand-by; an extra long shoelace.

After my last update, I sewed the back bodice pieces to the front bodice pieces at the sides and shoulders. The side seams are piped with the same green fabric as the center front panel. Here is the bodice all sewn together and ready for boning:

I use cable ties for almost all of my boning needs. They are cheap, local and can be cut to any length. And they work brilliantly! Here is my pile of cable ties all snipped to the right size and ready for melting:

Melting, you say? Well, I have learned (the hard way) that snipping my cable ties leaves sharp edges. The sharp edges can scratch skin in sensitive places. It also tears through labor-intensive binding jobs and can be a cause of frustration and unladylike language. So now I melt the tips of the snipped ends just til they round out and soften:

And then once they harden up again, I have a smooth, rounded edge on my cable tie bone instead of a sharp pricky edge. (and it's cool to melt things in a candle flame. Yes. It is.)

Then they just slip right into the little boning channels and there is your boning job all nicely done.

The next thing to do was to slip stitch the seam allowances to the interlining. This keeps the seams nice and flat. Because there are so many layers in the seams they were really bulky until I finally just stitched them down. The stitches are large and sloppy but they do the job and no one will ever see them once the lining is in.

Next I sewed the eyelets. I finished the back edge by sewing on a narrow strip of fabric as a facing and then made the eyelets that will lace the bodice shut.

And after that, I cut the lining and sewed it together. I decided to use the rest of the old sheet I made one of the hobbit skirts from. It works quite nicely and is a very smooth and tight fabric, which will help prevent the bodice from stretching much when it is worn. Here it is all pinned in to the bodice:

The folded under edge of the lining at the center back covers the raw edge of the facing strip. This will make it easy to take out and replace the lining if that becomes necessary. (Since I won't be wearing this often I do not foresee the need to have a replacable lining, but one never knows.)

And here it is as of now! Binding can take kinda a long time. So, I hope to be able to finish the job tomorrow. If not, at least by Saturday, which is the day we will be having Second Breakfast since hubby will be able to be home with us to share in it. ;)

Love,
Sarah

Hobbit Bodice, Progress Is Made!

This little thing is coming together well! I was able to make some good progress yesterday afternoon. David was home earlier in the day than usual and the baby napped more than usual and the boys had new watercolors to paint with so. . .sewing time was achieved!

First, I traced the pattern pieces from last mock up onto brown paper. (I ALWAYS do this - I have learned the hard way to ALWAYS make paper copies of your last, nicely fitted mock up!)

Then I cut three layers for the interlining. The top layer is cut from a striped cotton pillow slip. The fabric is tightly woven and does not have much stretch so I thought it would be good to retain the shape of the pattern pieces. The middle layer is cotton batting and the bottom layer is a light cotton flannel.

The stripes on the fabric made great ready-made guides for quilting. I just stitched along the edges of each pink stripe, after first stitching the boning casing lines (one at each seam).

Instead of stitching the interlining and outer layer separately I decided to stitch them together as one layer. This way the outer layer won't shift over the interlining - it will be firmly attached at all the seam points. First, I had to decide whether or not to decorate the center front panel of the bodice. In the movie it seems a lot of  the hobbit bodices did have some sort of decorative trim on the center front panel. I decided to go with a very simple trim of some antique lace that was given to me by the lovely Natalie from A Frolic Through Time. The lace is a bit yellowed from age but I decided to just leave it that way instead of attempting to (gently) wash it. I think the "old" look of it adds to the overall Hobbity-ness.

I then laid the outer layers of fabric onto the interlining pieces and sewed the front bodice pieces together. The side bodice pieces are of dark blue wool (not quite as bright a blue as the photo makes it appear).

The seams are pressed open. After the boning is inserted into the interlining the lining will be sewn up separately and attached to the inside of the bodice. I'm still not sure what to use for lining. . .plain white linen? I have a lot of cheery bright green linen too. . .or maybe black polished cotton. . .(but that tends to bleed if it gets wet).

Love,
Sarah

The Hobbit Bodice, Pt. 1

I really think that I am very bad at scheduling, organizing and carrying through with my sewing projects. Lately it seems nothing gets done unless I have a deadline. Deadlines always motivate me. There is some sort of adrenaline-pumping pleasure I get out of beating a deadline. But when there is no deadline, unless I am really, really, really in love with a project, it usually lingers on my sewing table for a long, long time. I'm especially bad about finishing details. Like sewing on hook and eyes. Or doing a hem. It's like I get almost done with something and then my steam runs out. And besides, I have a very cute distraction from the sewing room. Sometimes it's a lot more fun to sit and cuddle a baby, trying to coax out a smile, than it is to work on stitchery.

7 weeks old!

So that is why the hobbit bodice still isn't done. Last week I half heartedly cut out two woolen 14th century style cotes for the older boys. I pulled out David's 1840's fall front trousers (which should have been finished before Christmas last year and lack only a waistband and hem and buttons to be complete) and I spent a day or two going through my stash, organizing things and trying to get inspired. Then I found out about the soon-upcoming Second Breakfast day and I got inspired. Not to finish the cotes or the 1840's trousers, but to make the hobbit bodice!

So far all I have been able to do is to make a mock up and refine it and make a second mock up. The second mock up works pretty well but I need to add a little bit of length around the sides and back, I think. Just an inch or inch and a half.

I started with my 1780's bodice pattern and cut the point off the front. It fit okay, but since I am not wearing stays with the bodice I had to take in the front under the bustline. This actually improved the look a lot and made the bodice look more like the ones in the movies since it created some princess seam shaping. Then I had to take in the waist a bit (since my stays actually make my waist bigger when I wear them!) and take out some extra flappy material at the front armscye. The cut of the neckline is a lot lower than the bodices in the movie but this is for nursing purposes. I can do my usual "lift, flop, feed" method with a lower neckline and that is a lot easier than having to make a tight fitting, front-opening garment.

I added a side seam and eliminated the curved side back seam. The fit is tight. It is a "negative ease" garment, because I want this to be a supportive garment. I don't want to have to wear modern undergarments underneath it since I don't think hobbits had bras. ;) The cut of the bodice and the fabric will shape my body and the boning will support the fabric so it won't buckle (the wrinkles you see here are, I think, mostly stress lines, not a result of fitting problems). I will lightly bone the bodice at each seam and then at the center back to support the lacing.

The back looks pretty messy here. Mainly because I automatically cut the bodice to have a few inches of gap in the back because of the lacing. (corseting habit). Then I realized that the bodice ought to lace shut in the back, so I sewed on an extra strip of cloth to close the gap. I left the bodice unsewn for a few inches at the back waist so I could wiggle into it to check the fit, thus the messy look. . .I know that when the bodice is finished and laced properly there will be no gap.

My plan is to create a stiffened interlining using quilted fabric that is boned at the seams. I will probably quilt the interlining with cotton flannel and cotton twill. Then the outer layer will be mounted on top and then the lining stitched to the inside before the top and bottom is bound off and finished. That at least is the plan at the moment. It may change as I make progress. We'll see! It must be finished before Second Breakfast day so I hope to make good progress on it this week.

Love,
Sarah

August Regency Project - Drawstring Gown, Finished!

I finished the gown yesterday! I feel bad that I have no more photos of it during the construction process but our camera batteries were dead and I just had to plunge ahead anyway and sew since I had a deadline to meet. For those among you who are interested in the construction details, this is what I did:

1. Finish the neckline. I finished the straps with a straight binding piece. The front neckline of the dress was finished by plain hemming. I put a drawstring in the front neckline (the drawstring is sewn to where the strap meets the bodice, then emerges from a small eyelet near the center front edge of each bodice piece).
2. Sew the skirts to the bodice. The skirt is 3 panels of 45" fabric. The majority of the skirt is in the back, taken up in deep pleats. The rest of the skirt is sewn flat to the bodice. I finished the seam between the skirt and bodice with a casing and a drawstring draws up the front of the skirt/bottom of the bodice and ties shut in front. The bottom of the skirt is finished with a 1.5" hem.
3. Pattern and make the sleeves. The most annoying part of the construction! I measured my arm and the armhole of the dress. I drew a shape I thought would work. I made a few mock ups, tweaked the fit and ended up with what you see in the pics. The sleeves don't fit smoothly into the armhole but have a few pleats at the back armscye to take in the fullness but this was the only way I could make the sleeve fit without being too tight.

David took some pics for me last night. The first rainfall from Hurricane Isaac was just beginning to arrive here in central IL. I am really happy with how this dress came out. Of all the regency gowns I've made I think this one is definitely my favorite! It's simple and plain and comfortable and I feel at ease in it.

Yeah, David needs to mow our grass. . .

Oh, and one other very awesome thing about this dress is that, due to the lining flaps, I can wear it just as well WITHOUT stays as with stays. The lining flaps don't give as rigid a support as the boned and corded stays, but definitely ample support, kinda a sports bra sort of support. That is nice for nursing since although nursing is definitely possible in stays, Anne does not approve of nursing in stays. She gets very frustrated with it.

Baby Anne is wearing her 18th century baby undies that I made for her way, way back late last December. Or at least her shirt, cap and linen diaper. The shirt barely fits her, poor darling. It's hard to believe she is six weeks old today and already she is outgrowing her first size clothing.

Sorry there are so many pics but since it is difficult to see the details of the dress, due to the fabric and the lighting, that I thought all of the pictures sort of collectively show the style. I love the small back as it gives a huge range of motion to the arm. It is a good style for physical labor and is still fashionable at the same time.

The width of the skirts is also good for active work. I do need to hem up my petticoat a tad, though! It kept peeking out from under the dress.

And the standard front, back and side view pics:

While I was working on this dress I found my patterns for my 18th c. stays and the 1780's gown I made last fall. I hope to get the mock up fitted for the Hobbit bodice today. I started the Silmarillion this week and now am in a great state of delight concerning Middle Earth. I am inspired even more to get my Hobbit outfit completed.

Love,
Sarah

August Regency Project - Drawstring Gown, Pt. 2

With just a few days to finish this dress before the deadline, I dove headlong into making this gown yesterday. I didn't get very far. I thought that patterning the bodice would be pretty easy. I was wrong.
I started out with the pattern I made for the bodice of the bodiced petticoat. I thought I could redraw the seams a bit and have something workable. But for some reason it didn't work out that way. I had to go through four or five mock ups before I had a pattern that fit me how I wanted it to.

So last night all I was really able to do was to cut out the pieces of the bodice. I decided, as you may have noticed, to NOT use the white linen blend fabric. It just seemed a tad heavy to me so I decided to use the rest of the fabric left from my Hobbit shift. There was an entire nine yard length of fabric when I purchased it so there was plenty left to make a regency gown!

The only thing I don't like about this fabric is that it is a crinkly gauzy fabric. When I press it with starch it flattens out nicely but still, I think the finished dress will have a "rustic" quality. But it's better than the heavier linen blend stuff, I think, and will make very nice drawstring channels. :)

Today I have been able to sew the bodice together. I cut the lining of white cotton (a white cotton sheet, actually!) and treated the layers as one for the back and sides. The seam allowances were turned over and slip stitched down for a firm finish. Then the lining at the front was hemmed at top and bottom and front opening and is left loose from the outer bodice since it will close seperately.

The outer bodice front pieces are cut extra long and will be drawn up with a drawstring. Here you can see where I've pinned it to approximate the look it will have when drawn up. And excuse the red scratch on my neck. That is what comes of fitting onself and wiggling in and out of mock ups held together with pins. :P

The lining flaps look super tight here but I intend to close them edge-to-edge with hook and eyes (pins are probably more period correct, but since I have a nursing infant I want to avoid poking her when I hold her!)

I am really happy with how it is coming out so far! I hope I can find time this afternoon to finish the neckline around the straps (the straps form the back neckline as well, and sadly I have no picture to share of the uber-cool diamond back since my camera batteries died a sudden and dismal death). Then the skirt will be next, full pleated in the back and stitched flat in the front, which will be drawn up with drawstrings for a little fullness there.

I will save the sleeves for last. Those will probably be the most difficult part of this dress due to the cut of the back armscye.

Love,
Sarah

August Regency Project - Linen Gown, Pt. 1

I felt vaguely guilty last month for missing the monthly regency project challenge. I had my newborn baby girl on my hands so I thought that was good enough excuse to miss it. But I didn't want to miss the August challenge. And now I am realizing with a jolt that August is very nearly over and I still have not even really thought about a regency project for this month.

Judah expresses shock and horror that I haven't started my regency project for this month yet.
(Okay, not really, he was just being dramatic and silly during our (very wet and muddy) living history event this weekend. )

That must be remedied. This months project won't be fancy or involve too much work but it will get done. After looking back on the list of projects I so enthusiastically wrote out earlier this spring of things I wanted to make for the regency costume challenge I was feeling quite uninspired by every thing I have left on that list. So I decided to make the dress since when all else fails, a new dress still makes me feel good when I put it on.

It won't be the filmy, floaty, sheer white gown I envisioned back in the merry month of May. I haven't purchased fabric for that and there is no time to order it for this month. I will still likely make the filmy dress someday but this month I am going for something more practical. After all, the items I planned to make were to represent what an average woman of average means may have worn day to day during the early 19th century in this pioneering area of the country.

Filmy white gown from V & A

For that, I plan to change up the style slightly. Instead of the V&A dress style (which I still adore!) I will make something more along the lines of the Past Patterns Lewis and Clark gown. The front opening will be perfect for nursing and this dress is just adorable. I have seen the pattern made up several times and it always look great on the person wearing it! The cut of the back is just pure awesomeness. And so practical for doing work! The cut of the sleeve is great for that.

I love the bonnet in this illustration for the Lewis and Clark gown. Maybe I will make one like it for next month.

The fabric I am using is a medium weight linen blend fabric I got at the thrift store over a year ago. I suspect it is a blend since it doesn't wrinkle as easily as pure linen. Maybe a linen/rayon blend? It is more drapey than a linen/cotton blend. It feels very much like the linen/rayon blends that Jo Anns sells. It is not pure white but is more of a cream or eggshell color. It has a woven stripe in it. I feel vaguely guilty about using a linen blend instead of pure linen but because time is short and money is tight I am going to just use it anyway. . .after all, it will look good and honestly, who is going to cut a piece of fabric off my dress and burn it to discern the fiber content?

My only concern is the drawstring closure. I like tidy, neat little drawstring channels and cords. Bulky drawstring channels are nasty. Because the fabric is not super lightweight I am afraid the the drawstring channels will bunch up unattractively. Do I live with it and use drawstrings anyway? Or should I make a fitted waistband for the dress instead and gather the neckline to a bound edge and close the front of the dress with either pins or hook and eyes?

Of course, if I make the bodice with minimal gathers and making the channels fit rather tight to the drawstring cord the drawstring method of closure may work well too. I will have to experiment.

Love,
Sarah