mandie_rw | Costume year in review: 2013 (Reply)

The year of unfinished costumes! Can I count the stuff I lost interest in halfway through and stuffed in a bin of UFOs? No? Damn.

I enjoyed watching everyone else finish Historical Sew Fortnightly projects on Facebook and blogs, and I did a couple of challenges myself, but sewing for someone else's deadlines clearly doesn't work out too well. Or my own, frankly.

Let's see, what did I actually do?

I made an early nineteen-teens dress and coat to visit the Franklin Institute's Titanic exhibit with a few friends. And hat. Cannot forget that hat. Also, I learned just how much fun those teens dress closures can be. And the sleeves on this dress are uneven. Exciting! And that's totally me pimp coat.

Beaded the front half of the skirt of the 1920s gold and white dress. And that's all it's getting, because the fabric is quite frankly a piece of crap. There's a hole in the back of the skirt already where the fabric's just unraveled itself, it's so loosely woven. Annoying.

Then there was probably my favorite outfit I've made this year, the "breakfast outfit" to wear the morning after the Francaise Dinner. Yes, I needed a new outfit to wear for the twenty minutes it took to eat breakfast! I also wore it to drive home and most of the day afterward, Just Because. Comfy and pretty! And all that trim. Whooooo, I forgot about the trim...

And this was a lot of fun; Robin, Alice, and my 1780s version of a Dress In a Day! Mostly in a day. And all my fault, because of that trim! Hopefully we'll get a chance to do another one this coming year. For someone else this time! And I'd like to actually wear this to an event, because I haven't yet. Hmm.

I made a block-print cotton 1810ish dress for a Regency lawn party in May, because I always need a new Regency dress. Always. I'd still like to make long sleeves to go with it, but it was warm enough that I didn't need them then, thus they haven't been made yet!

Then I fell in love with an absurdly puffy dress in an 1862 fashion plate, and Had To Have It - and all my friends had to suffer along with my crinoline madness! Some didn't mind, though. Or perhaps were just humoring me. Either way, much appreciated. That was a lot of organdy and a lot of silk ribbon.

O hey, forgot this one. Edit post!
Finished the chemise gown! It just needed a hem and sleeves, from where I left off in 2012. Not my favorite style, but everyone who loves late 18thc needs a chemise gown of some sort, and I am no exception! And it's relatively comfy to wear in the summer heat, compared to the fitted gowns. Even with the wig...

Another FINALLY - made the pompom spencer to go with the jumper I made last year. Naturally wasn't able to make it to the event this year, but it is made and it is be-pom-pommed and it is done! Also finished the rather spiff bonnet to go with. I like that bonnet!

I made a new 1860s corset for Gettysburg. Wasn't thrilled with it initially, but after a weekend of wearing, I can say I'm reasonably pleased with it - and am very very glad I replaced my old one, which wasn't nearly as comfortable! I may still go back and floss the bones/put a bit of lace at the top. Y'know. Someday. And I didn't take any pictures of it on or finished - but this one of everyone lacing up on the night of the ball does contain me wearing said corset, even if you can't really see it! Plus I love this picture.

Also for Gettysburg, I trimmed my old red bonnet FINALLY, and made two others, seen here on my victims. I'm far from an expert, but I really do enjoy millinery!

And I (also FINALLY) fixed the sleeves on the green and gold c1815 evening dress that I made for the card party in February.
Original wearing:

And now with finished floppy sleeves:

Now let's examine last year's list...
Things I want To Sew in the New Year But Probably Won't (2013 edition)
~~- 1913 day dress & coat for Titanic exhibit in January~~ yes!
- 18thc European interpretation of Ottoman Turkish dress for lounging after the Francaise dinner - not yet. I'll leave it on the list for this year because I really would like to finish this!
~~- Regency evening dress for the Card Party~~ - yes!
- Lots of things for the Francaise dinner, including a new dress - the new dress got about 90% finished before I hit a time-sucking snag. I don't like my previous trim idea so I have a bit of backtracking and fixing to do if I want it for this year
- a Natural Form bustle gown - er, no. I made the petticoat, most of the corset, combinations, and skirt though! And I'm now too fat for my old early bustle gown so I need to finish this if I ever want to go to another Victorian day event...
- finish AT LEAST three outfits/dresses that are currently lurking in the UFO bin. Smaller UFOs good too, but that bin is out of control. FIX THAT. - Haaaah. Well actually the pompom outfit was a UFO. Need to get on that. Or at least STOP adding to it!
~~- the curtain-along 1780s dress~~ - yes! And I even got other people to make it for me. Aren't I sneaky? ;)
- Napoleonic Court gown for Dress U - no. Mostly because I ended up not going to Dress U. I did buy the tiara though, so this is going to the Someday list. I really want an elaborate court gown, but that would be a real investment of time and money, to make something I'd really be happy with.

So. Things I Want to Sew in the New Year But Probably Won't (2014 edition)
- 18thc European interpretation of Ottoman Turkish dress for lounging after the Francaise dinner
- New 1760s sack gown for the francaise dinner
- a Natural Form bustle gown, preferably the cotton one I've already started
- Blue pelisse for my Regency birthday outing
- Wool dress for the same
- UFOs. So many UFOs, such a small attention span. I have a few specific ones in mind though.