I’ve been super slow at posting about the inside of my 1813 red gown, but the time has finally come! Here are the insides of the gown, and as usual with me, the inside is meticulously finished.
Inside The 1813 Red Gown
Category: Regency Clothing
HSF #5 & MpRSW #1: Blue Under Dress
The HSF #5 Challenge: Peasants and Pioneers. The MpRSW #1 Goal: Under Wear. This recently completed garment fits both!
Now remember, and don’t judge me, that this project is one of those “I just want this to be done quickly and no one will be able to see the details” projects.
First, the facts:
Fabric: Cotton-poly blend.
Pattern: The exact same as my 1812 white striped gown from last summer, which is adjusted from a gown in Janet Arnold’s Patterns of Fashion 1.
Year: 1812.
Notions: About 2 yds of 1/4″ cotton twill tape.
How historically accurate?: Accurate pattern, almost totally inaccurate fabric (that cotton counts for something, right?), and entirely machine sewn (not a single hand stitch, which for me is a rather unusual accomplishment). I give this one a 60% on historically accuracy. I think the pattern goes a long way towards being a saving grace. Ok, maybe a 65% if I count the cotton…
Hours to complete: Let’s say 16. All that gathering does add some time.
First worn: Not yet, but will be worn in April.
Total cost: Between $9-$12 (I can’t remember exactly how many yards I bought…)
How does this fit the HSF challenge? The simplicity of the fabric and style of the dress and lack of extra trimmings, puts this in the category of basic Regency clothing that could be worn by a pioneer-type. It’s probably still a little fancy for a peasant. It’s hard to make plain and simple clothing!
A few more pictures, then a little more explanation.
Explanation time. I actually don’t like this color much on its own. In fact, I think it does absolutely nothing for my complexion. Actually, it just looks bad on me. So why did I pick it, you ask? Well, this is intended to be an under dress, not something I ever plan to wear by itself. I was at the fabric store looking for colors that worked under my 1812 striped square neck gown, and this is the one! The other colors looked too much like skin, or just awful pastel shades of ew. Also, I was probably influenced by this next picture. I couldn’t stop looking at the blues.
Anyway, given how much I don’t like the color/am amused by the scrub-like quality of it and don’t plan for this to be really seen, I just wanted it to be done, quickly and without fuss. That’s why it’s totally machine sewn. Granted, I did do a nice machine sew job, so I suppose it might one day be worn without the over dress, but I don’t see that as a likely option, at least on my body. Funny contrast is that the white dress is entirely hand sewn, with not a machine stitch to be found.
Voila! One over dress, two different looks! One of the comments awhile ago mentioned the idea of the Regency LWD: Little White Dress. That’s been on my brain while I’ve been making this blue under dress. With different under options this LWD becomes more versatile and can change looks for different events. Nice!
Also, and this is really cool, my blue under dress is incredibly similar to this “slip” at the Met! The cool part is that I came across the slip in January, months after I had made the plan for my under dress. But look at the gathers on the sleeve at the sleeve band and at the crown, and at the shoulder strap construction of the bodice, and at the gathered top and bottom center front panel. It’s kind of uncanny, because this is not the dress that Janet Arnold based her pattern off of. Just goes to show that this construction style was used on more than one dress in the Regency period. Cool!
As I dressed Squishy I realized that when I go to wear this blue under dress it would probably save me some fussing if I baste the shoulder straps of the two dresses together so the blue doesn’t poke out where I don’t want it it. That’s an easy thing to then take out again later. I’ll have to get on that before April!
Introducing the “Mar-pril Regency Sew Weekly”
What is that, you ask? It’s a group sew along!
Why? Well, you see, in April my friends and I will be participating in a Regency Intensive Dance Weekend hosted by the Commonwealth Vintage Dancers. There will be lots of dance classes in modern clothes, but also balls and day events in Regency clothing! Of course that means new clothes to be sewn during the months of March and April and some of us keep our motivation going better than others. This sew along is intended to encourage and sustain the motivation of all of us (and anyone else who is interested in participating!).
What do you have to do? Sew! Really, though, that’s it. You can make your goals as small or large as you need to. All you have to do is complete the goals as they come up, and then share your progress. That will keep you accountable, and hopefully encourage you to stay motivated.
Goal #1 (due March 18): Under Wear Ideas to complete this goal: make from scratch, finish, or trim something worn under another garment, a petticoat, underdress, shirt, or waistcoat could fall into that category, or maybe this is a great opportunity to trim a finished garment already in your closet.
Goal #2 (due March 25): Evening Wear Ideas to complete this goal: an all new garment (gown, breeches, waistcoat, or tailcoat, for example), finishing a garment in progress, trimming an already finished garment, sewing something to keep you warm while on your way to an evening event, or maybe completing accessories to wear or take with you to an evening event.
Goal #3 (due April 1): Day Wear Ideas to complete this goal: making, finishing, or trimming a dress, a spencer, a pelisse, a tailcoat, or a waistcoat, or perhaps completing accessories to wear or take with you to a day event.
Goal #4 (due April 8): Accessories Ideas to complete this goal: reticules, chemisettes, parasols, bonnets, gloves, hats, shoes, boots, stockings… this is a soft and easy goal so if you didn’t make one of the first three goals, this gives you a great catch-up opportunity!
Goal #5 (due April 12): Anything Left! You know there are always things you hoped to finish earlier but you’re still trying to finish them up at the last minute? Make this a goal to complete whatever it is you didn’t complete before now. Maybe that’s another accessory, or a hem, or some trim, or maybe it’s just gathering your thoughts and your clothes to pack for the weekend.
How do you participate? Take the MpRSW (Mar-pril Regency Sew Weekly) image at the top of this post and add it to your blog, if you have one. Then, as you complete the goals, post about it on your blog. Don’t forget to leave a comment here with a link back to your blog post!
Do you have to participate in all of the challenges to participate? Nope! Pick and choose as you wish. The overall goal is just to inspire creativity and completion of Regency related sewing projects!
Do you have to be attending the Regency Intensive Dance Weekend to participate? Of course not! Again, the goal is just to inspire creativity and completion of sewing projects!
If you’re also participating in the Historical Sew Fortnightly, as I am, then perhaps there will be times where the two sew-alongs overlap for you. I know that my HSF #6: Stripes (due March 25) item will also fit into a MpRSW goal, since it’s a Regency item. Other upcoming HSF challenges include #7: Accessorize (due April 8), which should be easy to use for overlap, since the MpRSW #4 goal: Accessories, is due the same day, and #8: By The Sea (due April 22).
Finally, let me just say that it would be pretty awesome if you’re out there in the blogging world and want to join in! This sew along is smilingly aimed at all of you who might enjoy a helpful hand of motivation to be fully sewn and fully clothed (ahead of time) for the Regency Intensive Dance Weekend, but I hope that doesn’t discourage you from participating, even if you won’t be at that event. Hopefully some of my sewing motivation will be passed on!
Lovely Clothes, Lovely Ball: Part II (Pride and Prejudice Ball 2013)
Last post, I shared pictures of my new 1813 evening dress and other related pretty clothes. This time we’re on to photos during the ball!
Anyway, all things considered it was a lovely evening with lovely people. It was particularly nice to see old friends, but also nice to see usual ball friends. And I thought we all looked pretty smashing, which really does add to the atmosphere. I just wish I hadn’t ripped my dress…
Lovely Clothes, Lovely Ball: Part I (Pride and Prejudice Ball 2013)
Another thing that the Nemo blizzard affected was the Commonwealth Vintage Dancers‘ Pride and Prejudice Ball. Luckily, the ball was able to be rescheduled for this past weekend, which means that I did wind up having an opportunity to wear my new 1813 red gown (my HSF #1 project) after all! And that means pictures! Lots of pictures, in fact. I think I’ll split this into two posts… To start: the clothes!
I thought everyone outdid their Regency selves and looked fantastic! I have to say, though, that not all these pictures are mine. Some are from a friend who caught all sorts of gorgeous moments! Thanks for sharing! More to come soon, with actual dancing and during the ball pictures.
An Excuse For Colored Shoes In The Regency
Isn’t this a cute fashion plate??? My favorite thing about it is her bright red shoes! My second favorite thing is that her bright red shoes match her red bodice! So cute!
First, this makes me want to wear colored shoes to a Regency ball. Often you see black or white in fashion plates, and our dance troupe tends to wear white to perform and also to balls out of habit, so without even thinking about it I usually pull out the neutral colored shoes… BUT! Extant shoes come in all sorts of colors, although maybe not quite as bright as these red ones. You can see some of them on my pinterest page here: Shoes: 1790-1829.
Second, that red bodice reminds me of this one that Natalie Garbett made for the HSF. Is it possible that this red one, like Natalie’s, is a separate piece from the dress? That would allow for more wardrobe options, certainly. I’m going to go on the assumption that it is, and congratulate this young lady in the fashion plate for being so coordinated and versatile in her wardrobe.
So… I’ve got a new dress to wear to an upcoming Regency ball that doesn’t really need a separate bodice to jazz it up. Do we think I can wear I can wear fun colored shoes without a separate bodice? I think probably yes, given that there are lots of extant colored shoes and I know of other images that show colored shoes. And now I have an excuse to wear colored shoes with a white dress! Fun! Maybe I need to make a separate bodice, too?
HSF #1: 1813 Evening Gown
Historical Sew Fortnightly (HSF) Challenge #1 complete! It was actually completed a few days ago, which I am super pleased about. Even better is that it is for a Regency ball in February, and it is entirely complete a full month ahead of time! All the trim, all the closures, everything! All I have to do on the day of the ball is put it on. Wow! Usually when I wear a new dress to a ball I’m furiously sewing right up until the end and often all the trim doesn’t make it on (that’s what happened with my 1820s green dress back in December, remember?).
The facts:
Fabric: 4 yds red and black shot polyester
Pattern: The bodice front was draped, the back was adapted from my 1812 square neck Ikea gown, and the skirt is the same as the 1812 square neck Ikea gown, with the pattern originally from Janet Arnold’s Patterns of Fashion
Year: 1813
Notions: 3 yds metallic gold bobbin lace, hooks, and little brooch bits
How historically accurate?: The silhouette, cut, and style are accurate, as is the interior finishing (all flat felled and bound edges… it’s quite pretty!). The fabric is obviously not accurate and neither is the lace fiber content, though the style of it is. The closure is accurate. The little brooch bits are accurate in style, though not in materials.
Hours to complete: I’m so bad at estimating this. Let’s say 48 hours.
First worn: Hasn’t been worn yet! Its first wear will be in February 2013.
Total cost: Approximately $26
Now for other details!
Well, first, here’s a closeup of the bodice, so you can actually see the details and the little brooch bits. I’m super pleased with them, because I think they really finish off the bodice and add a little extra touch. I got them from New York and Company, actually. They were part of triple drop earrings, which I took apart. I kept the bottom drop and put them on clip backs (so now I have matching earrings for the dress!) which you can see in the picture below. And the best part is that one of the sections had a missing gem, so the cost of the earrings was refunded by NY&Co and so the total cost of the earrings is $0! Awesome! (It worked out perfectly, because I only used 5 sections of the triple drop earrings, so the damaged one wasn’t a problem.) Of course, the materials used in the earrings are not at all historically accurate, but I’m ok with that, for the cost (yay!) and the fact that they do have the right look.
And here’s the back. As you can see, it doesn’t quite fit Squishy in the back, but it shouldn’t have trouble fitting me. I love the drape of the fabric! Now that all the raw edges are enclosed and the polyester can’t fray everywhere, I am totally happy with the fabric choice (bargain!). The photos don’t really do justice to the fabulous gold lace at the hem.
The dress is entirely hand finished and mostly hand sewn. Originally, I was going to make it all by machine, but then I had sewing parties and things that required hand sewing, and I just didn’t feel like lugging out the machine, so I wound up hand sewing a lot of it, which was quite satisfying. There’s one side back seam sewn my machine, I think the long skirt seams are sewn by machine (though I can’t remember, because I started this dress back in October or November), and the waistband was sewn by machine. Actually, it was so much easier to keep the width consistent using the machine than when sewing it by hand.
The only other information to share is my inspiration for the dress.
Clearly, I need a Kashmir shawl to complete the ensemble… I have a pashmina that sort of looks the part, so I’ll have to try that out at the ball. Stay tuned for more pictures of this dress in about a month!
Regency Christmas Party At The Commandant’s House
This past weekend, the Commonwealth Vintage Dancers participated in a Regency Christmas party for a public event at the Charlestown Navy Yard. It’s the same venue as the Guerriere Weekend we participated in a few months ago. I wore the same 1812 hand sewn gown I made for that event, which you can read more about in this post. We danced and played games while the public wandered through, watching and taking pictures, and eating the delicious cookies and punch we provided. We love that space, so of course we enjoyed being there again. I took the opportunity of the Christmas party to try out my red clocked stockings from American Duchess... they were perfectly fitting for the Christmas cheer!
As you can see, it was a fun Christmas gathering. We look forward to participating in more events at the Commandant’s House next year!
Picnic at the Lyman Estate
On the subject of summer picnics… We recently took advantage of a sunny Sunday afternoon to view two of the historic houses in nearby Waltham, Massachusetts: Stonehurst (completed in 1886) and the Lyman Estate (built in 1793). We ended the afternoon with a relaxing picnic on the lawn of the Lyman Estate. Pictures often say more than words, so without further delay… pictures!
Summer Picnic In The Boston Public Garden
Summer is mostly over, here (although we did just have a nice, warm, sunny day that felt like summer…), but I haven’t finished sharing about summer picnics! To bring a little summer to you, here are a few pictures from a Regency picnic in the Boston Public Garden in August. The Boston Public Garden was established in 1837, so we were a little early, in our Regency dresses.
The Quintessential Clothes Pen 