Skip to main content

Italian Project- 3

Based largely on shoes like the ones to the left, I have completed the adaptation of my shoes for the Italian outfit.

I'm pretty pleased with the result, which is not, of course, 100% accurate, but is fairly passable.
I started with the blank shoe...
added elastic loops to the vamp and sides, which I then covered with trim...
tied a ribbon through the loops where they were unsewn at the tops, and finished it off with a cockade made from the same trim I'd used earlier.
C'est finis!

As for the chemise; I ended up taking a shortcut (I know, boo, hiss) to make up for some lost time which occurred when my husband's outfit took longer than expected to finish. His was made to the highest professional standards I could manage, so that's something to be proud of anyhow.

I used an old chemise, cut down the neckline some more, smocked a portion of it in green and yellow embroidery floss, and am hoping that the simplicity will work in harmony with the rest of the outfit.

(I haven't removed the dissolving marker dots yet)
I should also mention that I've managed to complete the underskirt, which I'm pretty pleased with and which will barely be seen at all (naturally).
Now, it's back to work on the gown, which has passed the mock-up stage and is into bodice construction. We ride!

Next time:- The gown, jewelry (and maybe sleeves).

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Italian Renaissance Hairstyles

In keeping with my last post on Italian Renaissance costume I thought we would take a look at something we didn't touch much on; hairstyles. They were extremely varying; up and down, braided, netted, entwined with silks and ribbons, even pearls, and, of course, dyed, bleached, and curled. The only thing in somewhat short supply seems to be hats, and really who would want to cover up what you had spent so much time constructing? "Do you have any idea how long it took me to get the curls placed?!" 1544 Portrait of Laura da Pola by Lotto Occasionally a small cap, or scuffia, was worn either with side curls, or with most of the hair stuffed up underneathe:- 1490 portrait by Ghirlandaio 1502 Betrothal 1510 Portrait by Araldi Another notable hair decoration was the reta, or hairnet. Some of these were beaded, some woven in decorative patterns, and some left very simple. 1505-1508 Siena 1545 Lavinia Under and around these ornamentations, o...

How Our Ancestors Slept

As someone who wakes up during the night feeling frustratingly refreshed...and then struggles to rise in the morning, I found this article to be a kind of vindication. Apparently the way we sleep has changed. For more information you can visit the link here .

The De Berry Project- The Fabric and shoes

As I mentioned last time I am working on a version of the outfit to the left for an event coming up soon in July. I wanted something with a hat to shade my face, and not too hot since we are going to be outside in the middle of a Virginian summer. The fabric gods were not kind, when I went to my local fabric stores. There was really nothing in the right weight, color, pattern, fiber, or amount; especially the amount since I need about 8 yards for the undergown and 10 yards for the overdress. Part of the problem is that there are no waist seams, so each piece has to be cut from a long continuous length of material. Also, those sleeves are about four yards by themselves. I resigned myself to ordering online, which I hate doing because it's so hard to be sure of the color etc without seeing it in person, and by the time the fabric arrives often there just isn't time to send it back and get something else. I went first to an oldie, but a goodie; Thai silks. I knew they would...