A new chemisette

Two posts in one week, what's come over me?

I made this chemisette earlier this autumn but haven't got around writing about it. It's very similar to the other chemisette I have but I chose to make a double gathered collar rather than a pleated one and I also played a little with the pleating on the front pieces. The fabric is silk-viscose blend and very nice to sew. Everything is handsewn and the pattern came from Janet Arnold's book, I think.

Busy

... hence no posts for a long time! I'm working on stuff, I swear. I've been busy with work, dance training and other dance related stuff. My ceili team is going to the Mainland Europe qualifiers this weekend and I'm also doing solos there so it's been a very dance-filled autumn. I also had the team dresses (8 of them all together) over at my place for a quick makeover because the original seamstress had no time to finish them... Also, I'm working full time with my PhD. dissertation and did I mention the dancing already? :)

But. The Vernet dress. I'm fairly confident I can finish it in time for the December deadline because everything is cut and nearly sewn and I just need to assemble everything. The hem looks like this at the moment, though minus the pins, because I did sew the first bubble-frill on after taking the photo.

Because I apparently can't write a coherent post concentrating on just one topic, here's another random post on shoes. Take a look at these beauties that I got recently:

I fell in love with them earlier this year and have been hunting for a good deal for them as their regular price was a bit too steep for my taste. As luck would have it, I found one and got the shoes. They're super comfortable, ridiculously pretty and pink. What more could you ask?

Update on the Vernet project and other random Regency stuff

I've been insanely busy since the last post in early September with work and travelling and playing tunes and dancing and more dancing and... so there's not much to post. However, I have made a little progress on the Vernet project dress and I'm fairly confident  that I get the whole thing done by the deadline which is set in early December.

I have all the bigger pieces sewn up and the next thing would be to sew them together and add the frills. I still need to order cotton organdy for backing the bits in the dress decoration that need a bit more body to keep the intended shape. Other than that, the dress in my Vernet fashion plate is pretty unfussy and I've luckily made the hat already, so everything is chugging along nicely. A couple of photos below of the bodice I put on today to ascertain the fit and pin the bust darts:

I didn't iron the seams and the whole thing is just pinned on, hence the wonkiness.

This might be the plainest bodice ever. It has a certain strait jackety air.

I recently managed to find some Regencyesque accessories from normal, high street shops so I thought to share.

There's this paisley shawl, not exactly a period pattern, but close enough and I like the colours and the price was ok. Of course there are several places online where to find these too.

The shawl measures ca. 70cm x 220cm

The reverse side

I found these shoes when I was in Bath for the Jane Austen Festival in September. I don't really follow fashion trends that much but apparently this style has been a summer hit or something because there were several variations of this style on the reduced price shelf. These shoes have a zipper at the back, but I'm going to cover that up with a bit of tape since the front lacing is functional and I can put the shoes on by opening the laces.

La Fée Verte dress

Phew. Finally finished what must have been the fiddliest dress I've made so far. I began this Regency evening dress in the spring (I think, can't remember anymore, it's been on the back burner for such a long time) and now it's finally done.

This dress is another sari dress, and I really like the embroidery on it. The mint green colour is a bit unusual but there are several mint green extant pieces from the 18th century already, so I suppose we can assume that it was an available colour also during the early part of the 19th century. The colour doesn't photograph right, it's really quite a bit greener than what it looks like here.

I wanted to do something different with the bodice and the sleeves for a change, so I chose to make a false crossover bodice and sleeves with a gathered oversleeve. One word for all that: fiddly. The fabric, though it drapes nicely has a lovely fall and and is light and fluid to wear was very annoying to sew. I seem to remember I've done something similar before... 

But now I have a new pretty dress for Bath. Hooray!

Pictures? I thought so too :)

I need to add one more pair of hooks and eyes to the back. The white thing on the right side of the neckline is the strap of the petticoat, I couldn't bend my arms enough to tuck it in.

Please excuse the plain hairdo, didn't have time to do anything elaborate.

Seeing the back like this it looks like I could've adjusted the pleating of the hem. Ah well.

Flower print jacket and a take on 18th century styling

I made a new 18th century jacket this week, mainly because I wanted to have something new to wear at Isokyrö 18th century fair. I finished the piece just in time (read: stayed up until 3 a.m. on Friday night to put last stitches on it...) and it was a joy to wear. There were plenty of good reenactor photographers at the fair yesterday so I expect to get some nice pics of the whole get-up in action soonish, but meanwhile here are some I took today.

The jacket is a modified version of my earlier black swallowtail jacket. I made the petticoat this week too. I might embroider the hem later.

I changed the shape of the hem for this one, making it round rather than pointy

The fabric is the same Ikea bed sheet I used for my flowery anglaise. I still have heaps of it left...

The jacket is pinned close and it has a separate stomacher with ribbon decoration.

Since I dressed up for photos of the jacket I wanted to try some different styles with it. Here's what I came up with:

My Parisian chic

Party version of the anglaise

The anglaise doesn't have proper ribbons to pull the hem up, here it's just pinned and looks a bit strange.

Don't look at the hair too closely. I just threw some pins and hair rats at it and didn't style it properly.

Gustavian day picnic

Earlier in the spring I and Sanna of Rococo Atelier started talking that it'd be nice to have a summer event of some kind that wouldn't require too much arranging, venue reservations or the like. We agreed that a picnic would be good and I proposed that we could have it as an open to all public event in the garden of the Museum of Old Vaasa in my home town.
The picnic was named Gustavian day so that people could wear either 18th century or early 19th century (i.e. Regency) clothes if they'd be so inclined. As always, the weather was the only variable we couldn't really control and over the week before the event the forecast changed a dozen times but in the end the weather yesterday was lovely, not too hot and it didn't rain, so for once we were in luck.

I'm so happy that the first event I arranged went so swimmingly and that so many friends took the trouble of travelling over for the day. There is a massive pile of photos, proceed with care.

Playing graces

Posing on the old well

We were trying to look like we were admiring the sights, the trees and the weather, hence the silly faces :)

One period engraving of paille-malle depicted this kind of stance, I swear.

Couture Mayah playing a very elegant game of croquet.

Bring it on :)

 

My non-costuming friend borrowed one of my dresses for the event and we were unintentionally colour-coordinated.

More silliness

The obligatory wedgie photo :)

Visiting the Museum of Old Vaasa. The house is the only private house from the 18th century left standing after the fire that destroyed Vaasa in 1852.

The first floor of the house was decorated in the Empire style. Observe the clavier piano.

Mia and the fabulous fireplace

Not touching, can't get mad.

Admiring the king's likeness in the dining room.

Sanna in her absolutely lovely Regency dress. She looked so perfect.

There was another piano in the second floor dining room. I believe this is a clavichord.

I really like this photo, the room was very quiet in colour, the walls were grey and the chest of drawers too. My red hat and shoes stand out wonderfully here.

Mia did wonders with my hair for the day

Mia and myself posing with the coat of arms of Vaasa

There were a lot of stairs in that house...

We also dropped by the former adminstrative court house of Vaasa, now a church, that was nearby. This is the only other house from the 18th century that didn't burn down. It's massive, spectacular and really quite beautiful. There was a wedding under way, so we couldn't go in.

Since we had people in both 18th century clothes and in Regency, we tried to re-enact this 1797 satirical print from the British Museum. "Ah, quelle antiquité!" - "Oh, quelle folie que la nouveauté..."

Pose, pose, pose

I was very happy with my clothes for the day. The good old fern dress never fails and the hat proved to be a good one.

Intercentury croquet match

All the empire dresses