mandie_rw | Entries tagged with bits and bobs:19thc

Have decided that the best way to deal with my exploding bodice front is to not deal with it.

koshka_the_cat reassured me that maybe it's not actually exploding (or that it mightn't explode further), so I'm forging ahead anyway. Forging-ish. All I did today was pin and repin and swear at the bertha, and get one half actually sewn into place. Tomorrow's my last day off before Gettysburg so I really really need to take advantage of that!

And finished Robin's "Unfrortunate Biggins" nightcap, which is how I shall forever refer to it. Thanks, Drunk Me. Machine sewn, which I am positive she'll be completely horrified by. Hey, I hand sewed the edging and ties on?

She told me I look like a sad Pilgrim, which...yeah, okay. It's very entertaining to me how very 16thc this mid-19thc cap is! It's directly taken (well, slightly enlarged, as I don't see the point of a winter nightcap that doesn't cover one's ears) from one of the three mid-19thc cap patterns easily findable online. I forget which magazine, but I know it's 1859 (look it up? nevah! well, not right now. maybe in the proper writeup). I have one for myself, too, but mine's linen and hand sewn, with different lace. Which I ought to be sewing ties on right now. Let me go do that...

Current Mood: amused

Last night I *did* make myself sew in the placket, and pleat up a quarter of the ballgown's skirt flounce. Today: finished pleating and sewed the flounce to the skirt. One of the quarters I pleated to within an inch of the correct measurement, just by eyeballing it, and was immensely pleased with myself! It wasn't a fluke, I am just that awesome! (It was a fluke. The other two weren't even close, haha.)

Tonight I need to sew on the narrow lace to cover the top of the flounce, and then I will have a wearable skirt! It still wants two more lines of wide lace to follow the design, but the sewing of those is relegated to after the bodice is finished. Might start stitching the paletot lining in tonight, too, depending on how long the lace takes.

And I got picture proof of the existance of the totally unnecessary caplet! I would have been even more pleased with a hood, but there was no way I was getting a hood AND a capelet out of 1 1/8yd. And for something this unnecessary...I figured I'd be content with no hood!

Yup, I do just leave Mabel in her 18thc stays. Doesn't everyone's dressform always wear stays? Is that weird? ;)

Once I'd gathered up the neck, I realized I had no clue how to finish it if I wasn't putting a hood on. Doofy collar to the rescue! I had the vague idea of keeping my neck warm...while of course having managed to construct the body of the actual garment to let some serious breezes into the boobular area. *nods* Def need that collar to keep my neck warm, though. I AM GENIUS.

The striped fabric is silk taffeta, interlined with cotton flannel, and lined in (more poop brown) linen-cotton. The trim is 7 million inches (approx. figure) of bias tape I made from the ugliest silk taffeta I've ever had the misfortune to purchase. (I bought it a long time ago for a Regency hat, and when it showed up, I gave it some serious side-eye, said "You looked really different in your picture online", and put it in the stash.) It's purple and golden yellow shot (online it looked much more purple!) which mostly reads as a yellowy-poopy-brown.

I happen to think it's very Victorian ugly, though, and in this context, actually rather like it. Seems like the revolting sort of color they'd have liked in period! And, despite having to cut and iron those 7 million inches of bias out, it was my easiest trim option. Machine sew that sucker down! (Despite the impossibility of matching thread to it, so that's a Look.) Dark brown marabou was also contemplated, but 1/ that would have taken longer to hand sew on, and 2/ I may as well use my Victorian Ugly silk where I can!

Current Mood: awake

I keep forgetting to buy that second boa at work so I can finish the pink hood. Faaaaaaail! Only thing I did today was make a new collar for my candy stripe plaid dress. Vast improvement over the last one! Much less wonky. I edged it in a wee lace, and only had to re-sew it three times because I kept missing lengths of it. *nods* At least that's a Thing I can cross off my Gettysburg list? I feel very accomplished. ;)

Current Mood: cheerful
Current Music: Good King Wentzelschnitzel

Okay, okay, I give - if my hopping around to other projects this week wasn't enough of a clue - I'm not going to finish Katherine Parr in time for ren faire. I have to refit the gown bodice, and I just cannot do that right now. I need a break. I'm sorry to let down my fellow wifeys, but in the end I'm supposed to be sewing for a fun hobby, right? Not something that makes me want to spoon out my own eyeballs.

Slight exaggeration. But I do need a break from it! I promise to go back to it, though. I bought a bunch of jewelry and Really Expensive Fabric for it, so I damn well better!

(Will still be going to ren faire! May wear the amazingly-still-fitting-Venetian, or the extremely dodgy late-century jacket [made of wool crepe, don't judge me] or maybe it would be funny to be a time-traveller. Am open to suggestions.)

So, if I've not been sewing on K Parr, what have I been doing? Besides painting tiaras. Well, not necessarily in chronological order,( Read more... )

Current Mood: sleepy

I mean really. Those ruffles.

I ended up being busier than I thought on Monday, and then I decided I wanted to edge the ruffles with lace, and then I got lost on ebay for hours looking for francaise-dinner-appropriate jewelry for

hiraimi, so I didn't quite finish the chemisette that day. And then today I wanted to take pics of it with the bodice of the dress, but I'm still not quite done attaching the neck ruffle on that, so I thought I'd better post the chemisette now anyway! When I go too many days between posts I just get out of the habit and stop altogether.

You may notice an interesting difference in opacity between the body of the chemisette and its ruffles - that's because this is a UFO, and I started it two years ago, and I don't have any more of the voile I used for the base. Clever me! But it's both a completed UFO and something I actually need soon, so I think I can live with it.

(As regards my overflowing bin of UFOs, I don't think I've mentioned my new Plan to Conquer the UFOs that I came up with recently...quite simple, just complete an average of one UFO a month, for twelve by the end of the year. Reasonable I think, and allows me a bit of leeway. This is for January; starting off nice and simple!)

Current Mood: sleepy

Today was, as the post title might clue you in, a Sewing Day. I brought two ruffles to hem and gather up for a new chemisette (wanted one with Bigger and More Impressive ruffles for this outfit). Ruffles got hemmed and one got gathered, and tonight after DA and Sherlock I finished gathering the other one.

Now I just have to dig out the body of the chemisette I made ages ago -- I hemmed it all up, apart from the neck ruffles, and then realized it was just a tiny bit too small to stay put under the rather wide neckline of my spotted sari dress. It'll definitely work for a high neckline like this though!

So I can almost definitely promise a (probably poorly-lit) picture tomorrow. :)

Current Mood: sleepy

"I probably won't be posting much..." Or, maybe I will. Gotta report every little inch of progress, right?

Bonnets - Alice's bonnet is finished, woop woop! And I'm rather pleased with it, I must say.

( Bonnet! )

And the World's Ugliest Nightgown, because I guess that's something I want to show off? (Hey, it's another FINISHED thing, so, yes!)

Bonus points for making it too short, too. I think I'll put a piece in it for next time around but not now. Don't care enough!

Current Mood: okay
Current Music: Saint-Saens; Carnival of the Animals

This morning I went to see 12 Years A Slave, because I really wanted to see it, and was tired of waiting around for somebody to accompany me! (Big girl, can see movies by self, right.) And it's an excellent movie - hard to watch at times, but considering the subject matter...that's not exactly a surprise.( Cut for delicate sensibilities...or those who aren't interested in my Opinions On Movies! )

Anyhow, while it's so good, it's a little distracting...somehow the whole thing kept invading my thoughts all day, which made it really hard to focus on the World's Frumpiest Nightgown! I love thought-provoking films, but they aren't especially helpful when I'm trying to marathon-sew!

Since today was supposed to be paletot-sewing day, it's officially been bumped down to the bottom of the queue. I know I've already put quite a good amount of work into it, but I don't need it as much as I need, well, pretty much everything else. I have multiple shawls, and if it's as cold as it's been the last couple days, I have my 1840s mantle, duh. I didn't actually think of that til yesterday. It would be rather unfashionable for 1863 (because somehow it's got in my head since that's the year we're commemorating...all clothing must act accordingly), but I like it, and have only worn it once, so that's okay. My bonnet's a tad outdated too, if it comes down to it.

ANYWAY. Today, despite distractions, I finished off the World's Frumpiest Nightgown apart from two buttons and buttonholes, which I just could not bring myself to do. Slacking slacker. And now I'm binding Alice's bonnet, which really doesn't appreciate the effort.

Current Mood: thoughtful

First snow flurries of the season this morning! I rather gleefully took a walk to the mailbox in it, because I'm twelve and snow still makes me happy. I do like winter!

I laced the corset up and tried it on before work, and the fit in the bust and waist is quite good. The less said about the rest of it the better *grumble grumble grump* but it's potentially fixable if I want to take it apart after Gettysburg. SO not worrying about it now, because it doesn't matter how my corset fits in the hip...let's all give a cheer for hoops!

And tonight it's cold in the sewing room, which could have something to do with the fact I decided to start my nightgown tonight. Cotton flannel; o fuzzy happiness! (Yes, wool would technically be warmer, but I don't own any wool I want to sacrifice for a nightgown. Cotton flannel I paid less than $1.50/yd for, sure.) It's natural-colored flannel, because I don't have any white, and I couldn't really allow myself to buy any white flannel when I have this perfectly good 18-yard bolt of natural just sitting there!

(Did I mention some of us in the cabin decided it would be fun to have the weekend be All 1860s, All The Time? Hence the 1860s nightgown. Not hard at all; I'm just ripping rectangles, gathering things, and sewing them together! But not exciting enough for pictures til it's finished.)

Current Mood: cold
Current Music: George Harrison; What Is Life

So, what have I been up to? Finally completed enough little things in the past couple days to post about them, and somehow I'm not too far behind in my ambitious schedule to Finish ALL the Gettysburg Things.

First - a bumpad, which I've needed since I first got my hoop! I find my hoop tends to push forward a bit under the weight of skirts and petticoats, so some kind of little pad was in order. It's way exciting. This is version 2, by the way - when your method is cut, sew, stuff, you rarely get things thr right size on the first try! Number 1 was too small.

Next - I finally trimmed my own bonnet! I only made it two years ago! ...Yeah, really. It's a bit simply trimmed, I think - I was wavering about putting some flowers on the outside as well, but I'm not very into the frou-frou, so I'll leave it for now.