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17th C. Gown--Bodice Making in Action
Jul. 15th, 2009 12:01 amToday I finalized fit on the bodice, which is probably going to be the most complicated element of this gown. Right now, I don't have photos, mostly since I've misplaced the recharger for my camera battery (dead) and don't want to spare time to hunt it down. But come the weekend, I will try to get some pics up...
Mainly, I've achieved the fit by the following process:
1. I cut the pieces to the size closest resembling my size--then I scaled up, just to be safe.
2. After sewing boning channels according to the pattern, I machine basted the pieces together with a very slight (1/4") seam allowance.
3. I machine basted two rows of "eye" tape from hook and eye tape to the edge that I will lace up later with sewn eyelets. This gives me a temporary lacing edge.
4. I laced it up and tried it on inside out, threading cord through the eyelets I've basted in.
5. Pinching in with pins, I approximated a fit, then take the item off, trace a seam with chalk, and machine basted it in. After two tries, I got a good fit.
6. Once I finalized the fit, I oversewed the basting lines with a tight stitch and rip out as much of the basting as possible (but frankly, did't stress over what I can't remove).
So...now I have the piece sewn together. Now I'm in the painful process of boning this sucker. I used to teach a stay making classes at G Street Fabrics, up until they cancelled a class the night before it was scheduled (due to a corporate reorganization). That left me with loads of reeds. Slowly I'm using them up, but I still have an adequate stash on hand...That said, boning this is very tedious. Exceptionally tedious. I'm leaving a good seam allowance for binding, mostly since I want to bind this off really fast and not waste time with it. Hopefully, I'll finish it by tomorrow night.
My preference would have been to skip binding and merely to machine off the edges to save time (a cheat I'll do when corsetry won't be seen and I don't have time to be picky). However, that isn't a possibility with this, as I learned when I found a photo of a period gown that resembles what I'm aiming for. The Costume Museum in Bath has a 1760s gown in entirety--and it was once placed on a dummy and photographed. I found photographs in Ribiero's "Fashion and Fiction" (the best fashion reference I've found on this era). On that gown, the attachment of the petticoat and bodice is clear: the binding is almost complety visible...so I feel I must bind with leather...fortunately, I do have a stash of that, too.
During this era, there were two kinds of sleeves that overlapped in popularity. Earlier, short poufy sleeves (with longer hanging shift sleeves underneath) prevailed, whereas later, the sleeves lost pouf and hung longer, considerably past the elbow. I wasn't sure which style sleeve came with the pattern, so I emailed Kass, the owner of Reconstructing History (this is pattern 707) to sort out this detail. To my delight, it was the shorter sleeve--just perfect, since I portray one of Charles II's earlier mistresses, Catherine Pegge (fwiw, it's fairly easy to alter it to the longer sleeve).
Catherine was the daughter of one of the exiled cavaliers who served as his mistress for a prolonged time over the 1660s. This was during the era after the Roundheads executed Charles I (his father), Cromwell took over and Charles went into exile, traveling through several European countries with his court. It is likely that Anne wasn't from predominate wealth, although she was favored by Charles II for an extended time, bringing prosperity and titles to her family (and two kids). Though she was said to have been portrayed in several paintings, none are known to survive at this time. That said, there are portrayals of the court in exile (like this one of Charles dancing with his sister at the Hague). While that painting doesn't define Catherine's exact image, it does give a general idea of the look of the era when she was favored...so I will go for that portrayal.
Mainly, I've achieved the fit by the following process:
1. I cut the pieces to the size closest resembling my size--then I scaled up, just to be safe.
2. After sewing boning channels according to the pattern, I machine basted the pieces together with a very slight (1/4") seam allowance.
3. I machine basted two rows of "eye" tape from hook and eye tape to the edge that I will lace up later with sewn eyelets. This gives me a temporary lacing edge.
4. I laced it up and tried it on inside out, threading cord through the eyelets I've basted in.
5. Pinching in with pins, I approximated a fit, then take the item off, trace a seam with chalk, and machine basted it in. After two tries, I got a good fit.
6. Once I finalized the fit, I oversewed the basting lines with a tight stitch and rip out as much of the basting as possible (but frankly, did't stress over what I can't remove).
So...now I have the piece sewn together. Now I'm in the painful process of boning this sucker. I used to teach a stay making classes at G Street Fabrics, up until they cancelled a class the night before it was scheduled (due to a corporate reorganization). That left me with loads of reeds. Slowly I'm using them up, but I still have an adequate stash on hand...That said, boning this is very tedious. Exceptionally tedious. I'm leaving a good seam allowance for binding, mostly since I want to bind this off really fast and not waste time with it. Hopefully, I'll finish it by tomorrow night.
My preference would have been to skip binding and merely to machine off the edges to save time (a cheat I'll do when corsetry won't be seen and I don't have time to be picky). However, that isn't a possibility with this, as I learned when I found a photo of a period gown that resembles what I'm aiming for. The Costume Museum in Bath has a 1760s gown in entirety--and it was once placed on a dummy and photographed. I found photographs in Ribiero's "Fashion and Fiction" (the best fashion reference I've found on this era). On that gown, the attachment of the petticoat and bodice is clear: the binding is almost complety visible...so I feel I must bind with leather...fortunately, I do have a stash of that, too.
During this era, there were two kinds of sleeves that overlapped in popularity. Earlier, short poufy sleeves (with longer hanging shift sleeves underneath) prevailed, whereas later, the sleeves lost pouf and hung longer, considerably past the elbow. I wasn't sure which style sleeve came with the pattern, so I emailed Kass, the owner of Reconstructing History (this is pattern 707) to sort out this detail. To my delight, it was the shorter sleeve--just perfect, since I portray one of Charles II's earlier mistresses, Catherine Pegge (fwiw, it's fairly easy to alter it to the longer sleeve). Catherine was the daughter of one of the exiled cavaliers who served as his mistress for a prolonged time over the 1660s. This was during the era after the Roundheads executed Charles I (his father), Cromwell took over and Charles went into exile, traveling through several European countries with his court. It is likely that Anne wasn't from predominate wealth, although she was favored by Charles II for an extended time, bringing prosperity and titles to her family (and two kids). Though she was said to have been portrayed in several paintings, none are known to survive at this time. That said, there are portrayals of the court in exile (like this one of Charles dancing with his sister at the Hague). While that painting doesn't define Catherine's exact image, it does give a general idea of the look of the era when she was favored...so I will go for that portrayal.
