Amphorae

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...

Looking for something to do this weekend in Virginia... Second Sunday Sewing Circle 1pm - Bacon's Castle , Sunday June 8th 465 Bacon's Castle Trail, Surry, VA Grab your latest Regency project and join us for our regularly scheduled sewing circle.  This month's sewing circle will be costumed , meaning that we will be sewing downstairs and participants will need to be in period garb and doing hand sewing (or other period appropriate needlework) .  We welcome those interested in keeping our stitchers company, too!   Please RSVP to info@varegency.org by Friday, June 6 . I, sadly, will not be there as I must attend to other business, but it sounds like fun!

I live! I have not abandoned this blog, though it certainly must seem like it, I've just been horrendously busy. Nor have I forgotten about that Tudor Transitional project, but, like so much else, it has had to take a back seat to more pressing concerns. Now I find myself with an event in July, where it will be much too hot to go in full Tudor/Elizabethan style. What to make instead? Last year I got a serious sunburn, whilst in my Italian renaissance-style outfit. The main problem...no hat. So I racked my brain thinking about what style of Medieval costume would grant me some shade. Veils are all well and good, but they don't shade the face enough and can be sort of hot and clingy themselves. I finally hit upon the solution; early 15th century French, as in the gown worn by the Duc de Berry's bride (see above). Everyone's familiar with this picture from "Les Tres Riches Heures du Duc de Berry" and this gown is one of the prettiest it shows. It's al...

The level of detail still visible is pretty remarkable on this piece of bread which was preserved in that fateful eruption of Mt. Vesuvius. Intrigued? Read more here.

In case anyone was looking for a nice little house... Caverswall Castle should fit the bill.

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 Court of Phillip the Good (I love the variety of styles within the same color-scheme)

What on earth could that title mean? Well, everyone is very familiar with the iconic Tudor style; bell sleeves, triangular skirt with forepart, square neckline, gable or french hood, puffed undersleeves etc... And we're also rather familiar with Elizabethan style; ruffs, little hats or headdresses, higher or filled-in necklines, stiff skirts, padded sleeves, lighter colors etc... But what about something in-between? As a professor, I like having garments for my students to see, and something in a style somewhere between the two would help them to visualize how clothing evolved from one idea into another. With that in mind I present the inspiration.     Elizabeth of Austria, 1570 And now, to find the fabric and start on the chemise!

I admit to having a morbid fascination with historical deaths, as any long time reader of this blog knows, so this video from the producers of Mental Floss was right up my alley. Enjoy!

It's done! I ask your indulgence for the fact that the outfit does not entirely fit the form, as I myself am very small and still need to carve it down a bit to make the form me-sized. Until we have a reliably sunny day (maybe this week?) I won't be able to put it on and take nice photos outside. The project took about 18 days to accomplish and was machine-sewn except for where the stitching would show. The time crunch required it. The pattern was adapted and draped in places, and straight out flat-patterned in some areas. The bodice is corded with hemp cording, which can be found at most craft stores, or even with the garden supplies. The material is linen with some silk taffeta for the sleeves, and a cotton chemise. Future photos of the gown on an actual person will prove that the sleeve doesn't fit half so awkwardly as it appears to in this photo (grrr). As the research images appear to show, the gathered sleeve and the straight sleeve are made as two separate on...

I did manage to get the entire project done in time for the event this past Saturday, and was very pleased with myself for doing so without the customary sewing into any wee hours or hand stitching in the car. The downside to this is that I took very few in-progress photos towards the end, and did not get any pictures of myself in the outfit at the event. Sad panda. While I clean and rephotograph the project for later posting I leave you with just a taste via a few pictures I did manage to take. Bodice mock-up marked for alteration The marked mock-up next to the original pattern pieces Before and after shots of altering the back pattern piece "True-ing" the pattern pieces to ensure that they will work and have all the right markings The new interlining piece cut with seam allowance etc. I used the cording technique to stiffen the bodice just the right amount. This version is couched on. Front and back lined Bodice in progress Gown in p...

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 o...

Volia! As promise, here's the design for the new Italian outfit. I'm currently trying to decide between two pairs of cotton/silk/wool stockings; a cream pair and a blue pair. I like the color of the blue ones and they are lighter for the summer since they are silk, but then the cotton/wool ones could be dyed to a color and don't feature the anachronistic clocking on the heel. Decisions, decisions. The fabric for the gown will be mostly these three:-  The underskirt will be heavily pleated in the grass-green linen, with the simpler sleeve version in the same. The more intricate sleeve will be done in the striped gold and green taffeta with faux chemise puffs between the slashing. The overall fabric of the gown, though, will be the embroidered tan linen (which is why the portraits of the patterned gowns was so important to me). I also have some gold and green trims set aside, but we'll look at those later. And shoes? Well, those are notoriously hard t...