Sew sew, cut cut, stitch stich

I was so busy frantically sewing all things before my trip to Bath that I had no time to write about the new things I made. I don't think I've ever been that last minute with sewing before. Of course, I have a fairly substantial Regency wardrobe already, but you know, it was nice to have something new too, and it was Bath, after all, so you'd wanted to be fashionable...

Ergo, two new spencers (I swear I didn't plan them, they just happened!), a turban hat (because apparently any hat with a brim just makes me look idiotic) and a new block printed day gown.

Let's start with the gown. I've made one block printed gown before, but I wanted a long-sleeved day dress, and something dark with white print. The gown is a slightly improved version of my earlier drop-front dress; I think the original pattern came from Jean Hunnisett's book. I cut the pattern pieces out first, then printed them with my Indian block prints, using white fabric paint. As before, I printed the bodice pieces, the sleeves and one hem piece over one weekend and then procrastinated about a week before taking up the other hem piece. The fabric is blue cotton and I lined the bodice with black batiste.

The spencers were a stash/budget project. I originally wanted to have a bright red spencer to wear with the blue dress, but I couldn't find fabric. Then I got the idea to visit some flea markets and look for 2nd hand jackets in suitable colour and fabric that I could take apart and remake as spencers. I didn't find anything in red, but I did score a rather ugly, if good quality, white linen-silk blend jacket (under 10€ to boot!) that I completely ripped apart and cut again using my trusty spencer pattern. Luckily the sleeves worked as they were, since I would not have had enough fabric for new sleeves. I added three more buttonholes on each cuff and made funny fabric buttons for them. The spencer is trimmed with lucet braid I made myself using cotton yarn. The inspiration for the trimmings of this spencer came from this extant piece in the Met Museum Collections; I took the initial idea and sort of ran with it. :)

The second spencer is a stash project; I've had the yellow velvet for years and I've tried to make things out of it several times (a chair cover, an 18th century pierrot, a knee-length Regency pelisse) but none of the previous attempts really worked that well. This time the spencer seemed to be the right choice and I managed to put together a nice little jacket, even if I say so myself. I was able to recycle the bodice from the doomed pelisse project and I also managed to fix the earlier bothersome sleeves by adding a gore to the sleeve cap end of the seam. The sleeves were originally a remnant from my early attempts in historical costume, when I didn't realise that different time periods had different styles in sleeves and their patterns. Oh well. At least I fixed it and was able to use those sleeves for something, finally! I made a wide collar for the spencer and trimmed the whole thing with cream pompom trim, because I wanted something fun and a little whimsical to decorate the jacket. Also, as time was scarce, I abandoned my original idea of hussar style soutache trim.

After looking at tons of fashion plates and despairing over the fact that any brimmed hat, especially bonnets, look stupid on my head I made the turban hat after the instructions of Festive Attyre. It was the nicest project; it's not often in this line of hobby that you have clear instructions of what to do, so making this hat was very relaxing in the middle of all the sewing madness.

I didn't actually wear the yellow things at all while I was in Bath; I have no idea why. I kept liking the white spencer and anyway, I might have to adjust the yellow spencer a little; in the general haste of trying to get everything done I may have made it the teensiest bit too small as there's an annoying gap at the centre front.

I did take some photos of the new things and my other Regency clothes, want to see? :)