As you may recall, I have written that when I was about 16 years old I sat down at my sewing machine (a Singer treadle passed down from my grandmother), with a bundle of polyester material that fell out of the back of a truck and got stuck under my mother’s car and a photograph of my Great Grandparents. I was going to create a dress like my Great Grandmother was wearing. I had no pattern and absolutely no experience sewing historical clothing and had done no research. I didn’t even have a dress form and basically draped the material over me and figured out how it should go so it would be like my Great Grandmother’s wedding dress. I couldn’t see all of the skirt so I made it up. Really, when I think about it, I am amazed at my audacity. The draping alone boggles my mind! Heavens, I’d never try that now! Sometimes it is glorious to see the lack of fear that comes from youth and ignorance!
Monthly Archives: January 2012
No adjustments needed.
I tried on my hoops, petticoat and flat shoes to see if the petticoat was too long. I think it is fine.
It could be a hair shorter but I may, on occasion, wear it with heels and I don’t want to be thinking it is too short. Maybe, after I get the skirt done, I might find it too long (ie hanging out under the skirt). If that be the case I will shorten it then. But, for now I think I will hold off.
We interrupt our regularly scheduled programing….
Victoria was Established in 1843 as a fort for the Hudson’s Bay Company. Victoria celebrates its British ancestry with double-decker buses, horse-drawn carriages, formal gardens, and tea rooms.
I’ve been to Victoria many times and I LOVE it. I want to do like my mother does and spend the winters of my retirement years there. Every time I go there are a few things I must do. I absolutely must go feed the seals at the marina. The bait and tackle shop sells bags of fish that you can feed the semi wild seals that hang out there. They are so cute! And I must go and see Craigdarroch Castle. It is a Victorian dream….Sigh.
Craigdarroch was built between 1887-1890 for Robert Dunsmuir, a Scottish immigrant who made his fortune from Vancouver Island coal. The son, James, had some “issues” with his mother and didn’t get the house after she died. He didn’t suffer though. He built this….
Hatley Park was built in 1908 and was a 40 room mansion. I have never been Hatley Park so it is on my to-do list for this trip. It only has a few of the rooms open to the public so it shouldn’t take long. Also on my to-do list. Merchies (a coffee dessert place that is to DIE FOR). Buchart Gardens…I haven’t been there yet either but I have been meaning to. I’d like to do high tea at the Empress Hotel but that may be out. To much culture and too much money may send Mr Victorian (the name is a misnomer. He is Mr Contemporary really) over the deep end. This lady is highly excited!
Replaced lost fan…
I had this lovely feather fan that I wanted to use with my 1895 dinner gown but it got lost in the vortex that is my home…likely my car keys with the command start is right next to it. They haven’t turned up and so I decided to go out and buy a new fan at least. (I wish a command start fob was as easy to replace as a fan.)
I didn’t find a feather fan but I found a package of paper fans (four in all). The paper got all warped so they don’t close well but I don’t like the paper any way. I’m thinking I will rip that paper off and put on some other paper. You know what would be awesome? Find a lovely fan at the Met site ( like the one below) and try to get it to print out full size and use that.
Anyway, with there being four in the package I can try my hand at a few and it wont be a loss if they bomb. It was only a couple of dollars for the whole package.
As a back up for my current project, I thought I should have a sure thing, so I invested a few more dollars and bought this one…
The fabric is a nasty polyester but the plastic part tries to be pretty. May be if I have success replacing the paper on the other fans I will get brave and try replacing the fabric on this one. In the mean time…if you don’t look too close, the colors are good.
My patterns didn’t come. Poopy. So, this weekend, the plan is to try on my new corset, hoops, shoes, and petticoat to see if I need to shorten the petticoat. I’m planning on digging out some facts about my great grand parents so I can do a post about the photo I used as inspiration for the dress I made when I was 16. I’m also toying with the idea of digging that dress out and getting some photos of it. Egads… big job. I might like to go to my favorite Victorian museum…I’ve been toying with volunteering there…if they’ll take someone who doesn’t speak French (English and French are our national languages so many places require that you speak both.) And finally, I have a half a plan to dismantle my first underbust corset and make it smaller. It is better made than the one I have that currently fits. The trouble is I can lace it grommet to grommet and by mearly sucking in I can spin it back to front. That is too loose. I’d like to pitch the one I am currently using. It was cheaply made and the bones are working their way through the fabric and attempting to disembowel me. A poorly made corset is just as uncomfortable as a poorly made bra!
Petticoat done…I think.
I’ve got my petticoat done now. There is a possibility it is too long. I’ll put it and my hoops on and try a couple of pairs of shoes and see. If it is to long I will sew in a fold/ruffle thus getting the right length and perhaps adding to the poof of the skirt. I used Truly Victorian’s free downloadable pattern.
I cut my material per instructions…except I forgot to measure if my material was as wide as the instructions and ended up with one piece I did not need…Unless I grew to 7 feet tall. Anyway, I’ll use that piece for something else. I sewed all the pieces into tubes.
Then I pinned the lower tier on with lots of little pleats and sewed it down.
Then I added on the waist band which I had sewed so there would be a hole for the string.
Once the band was on, I whip stitched the inside seam, pressed it, added on the string and put it on Trudy.
Not a great photo…lots of shadows that makes it looks like it isn’t in the correct bell shape. You’ll have to take my word for it.
Chinese New Years….
Let me down gently.
So I planned on this mega extravaganza detailing my fabulous new-to-me buttonholer.
Meh.
When reading the manual all looked like a perfect match then I began assembly….
Have no fear…the hubby is a horder of such things and we found an adequate substitute. But, then…
Note fancy red pen pointing to annoying problem…sigh. So no button holes for me.
On the upside…the corset fits over the girls. I think my next one will be a size smaller because the lacing is done up grommet to grommet. But, for now I’m happy with it. I’m not sure I want to do this…
The new old….
With me and WordPress being on two different timezones I don’t know if I missed a day or not. Let us just say I’m 12s later with my post than I usually am.
While I was dealing with life two new old things showed up. (What I mean by that is reproductions or new to me.) First, my new corset arrived! Yeah, I haven’t tried it on yet but that is the plan in the next couple of hours. (Please God…let the girls fit in there!)
Only difference is mine has polka dots. It will remain to be seen if I dare taking a photo of me in it. Perhaps, once I have all the proper undies sewn I will.
And I got this link from Truly Victorian sharing info on their new pattern for an 1861 evening gown. I like it but I don’t know if my middle-aged arms could pull the little puff sleeves off. I may have to just enjoy seeing it on younger slimmer girls!
http://www.trulyvictorian.net/tvxcart/product.php?productid=117&cat=1&page=1
Well, there’s my better late than never post. I’ll be back later for my regularly scheduled post. I’m hoping I will have had a good practice run with my old new buttonholer.
Finished my 1850s mitts
My project for the weekend was a set of mitts. I used the pattern from Butterick. See the link for information. http://butterick.mccall.com/b5370-products-10285.php?page_id=916&search_control=display&list=search
I chose view A which is a fingerless mitt. I followed the pattern exactly except I shortened them. I seemed the pattern would make mitts that go half way up the arm and I wanted them to stop just past the wrist.
My material was a find at the second-hand store I mentioned yesterday.
It is definitely synthetic fibers but I liked the weight and thickness better than any natural fiber laces I had seen. So the next step was to cut out the pieces with the shortening I mentioned before.
It was “done” but it wasn’t exciting. The length up the arm was fine so my decision to shorten the pattern was good but the length from the thumb to the fingers was too short. And dare I say the whole thing was boring.
TREASURES!
I love garage sales, flea markets and thrift shops. (Yet another joy I learned from my Grandma.) Today I stopped off at one of my favorites because I needed a winter hat. I found the hat and two shirts and I also scored some good costuming loot! I was careful to only pick up what I needed for my current project…my 1850s Victoria Day Tea Dress.
I have no idea of fiber content but it looks and feels right!
I haven’t decided about the cap. In my mind, I am going to tea at someone elses home. That means I would be dressing for the carriage ride to the other home. Shawl, reticule, parasol and bonnet. Once I got to the home those things would get taken by the butler or the maid. Now what is on my head? Would I put on a cap? Would I have the cap under the bonnet…that doesn’t seem right. Would it just be my hair with some ribbons? Would a woman in the 1850s go to a tea with a shawl, reticule, parasol and CAP and no bonnet? Anyone out there know for sure? I’m thinking the correct thing for that type of occasion is a bonnet with hair done up with ribbons underneath.
Anyway I do know I’d have some little mitts at least.
When I saw this I thought what an awesome petticoat or under skirt that will be! There isn’t enough for an 1850’s skirt but it would be for an 1890-1910 sized skirt. I just saw all that embroidery and I had to have it!
And finally, I kind of need this but kind of don’t…
It looks like it has all its parts and the instruction book and original box came with it. The original price is on there too…$11.00. I paid $3.00. I’m hoping that it will fit on my 1950s Singer and that it works. (Crossing fingers). You know I seem to remember using one of these before. I bet dear old granny had one…or may be mom did.