Tag: Dress

GBVS Newport Weekend 2023

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Just as with my post about the 2022 Greater Boston Vintage Society Newport Weekend, I’m posting about an event from last summer in the middle of winter. Sometimes it takes awhile to get to posting! Well, as before, late is better than never.

This year the weather was not as cooperative as in the past. It was raining on Saturday, the only full day of the event. Nevertheless, we made the best of it, choosing to still picnic outside, but in the covered areas of the porch.

It was a bit cooler than summer usually is, also due to the rain, so we added hot tea to our picnic spread. Yum!

Who doesn’t carry around a teapot in a picnic basket?

There was a break in the rain long enough for a few outfit photos. For Saturday I chose to wear my 1928 Egyptomania Inspired Dress and American Duchess/Royal Vintage Ginger shoes. The pop of color was nice on the rainy day.

I also added my 1917 Knitted Sweater of Angorina while sitting still. You can see it in the first photo of this post.

For the Saturday evening ball, I wore my 1927 Blush Sparkle Evening Gown and black American Duchess Seaburies. It’s always neat to wear these shoes in Newport — they are designed based on shoes in the collection of the Newport Historical Society!

On Sunday, I decided to go to a behind-the-scenes tour of The Elms. As with all of the Newport mansions, this one has a grand facade and all sorts of interesting (and expensive!) details to learn about.

For example, the rounded area of greenery (below) actually conceals a sloping driveway to the basement and servants’ entrance. This is where deliveries were dropped off, as well. With the greenery growing on a lattice above this area the family could carry on without needing to see the servants or delivery people come and go.

The servants had very nice quarters on the top floor of the house. They also had access to roof space that ran around the entire house — but of course this was concealed by a parapet. Just as with the servants’ entrance, the family wouldn’t want to see the servants taking leisure time on the roof.

For modern tours, there is a platform that lifts you above the level of the parapet so you can see the view of the grounds and harbor. It’s quite lovely!

Back at the entrance, I was very amused by the shaped trees. They reminded me of mushrooms!

So instead of the usual outfit photos, I chose to take some highlighting the trees and pretending to be a mushroom! The weather had completely changed from the rain the day before! It was warm, and I chose to wear my 1953 Dot Dress with comfy Crocs flats.

In addition to the servants’ area in the basement and on the upper floor, we also toured the boiler room in the house. It’s massive, with multiple boilers! Well, I guess it is a huge house!

Along the lines of the concealed delivery entrance I already shared, this house also has a tunnel that runs from a side street to the boiler room in order to move coal without the family seeing. This is the entrance to the tunnel in the boiler room. Look at the floor! They had ways to turn the carts around and everything!

Finally, after lots of walking around the house and up and down stairs, I finished the trip with a picnic lunch by the water in a new-to-me area in Benton Point State Park. It was lovely, breezy, and the geologic formations in the rocks are beautiful.

And that’s it! After that it was time to head home to await another future adventure.

An Elegant Outing For My 1950 Baroness Dress

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An elegant outing… to my cherished, oldest (as in, we’ve been friends since we were 5 years old) friend’s vintage-themed wedding in 2022. I’m slow at posting about it!

This is the sort of friend for whom I would have dropped everything for to be present at her wedding. And, I was!

She chose a lovely space built in the 1920s, with a view overlooking Paris, and requested that it would be great if I wore one of my historical dresses. I decided not to stick exactly with the 1920s theme and chose my 1950s Baroness Dress (first posted about in 2014… that seems like ages ago!) instead.

Honestly, the fabulous red Baroness dress gets worn quite a bit, for all sorts of vintage and modern semi-formal events. I love the dramatic color and unusual details that would be difficult to find in a store-bought dress. (And, while I knew it wasn’t a 1920s dress, no one else did! It had sufficient vintage charm, regardless.)

For this wedding, and other occasions where I’ve worn this dress, I chose to wear my silver American Duchess Seabury shoes. For jewelry, I figured the red dress was statement making enough and decided on small dangle crystal earrings.

Both my friend and her husband love silliness and fun, which led to decisions for their photos (see below) as well as for their wedding. They mixed French and American guests and traditions in a charming way, creating a lovely wedding and reception full of personal touches. I was so grateful to be able to celebrate with them in person!

This friend was my maid of honor in 2015, and she and her now-husband were inspired by my unique wedding choices as they planned their celebration. I appreciated being able to return the favor of being supported at my wedding by supporting them at theirs!

It’s funny to me that on both occasions I’m wearing a halter dress style and my friend is wearing an illusion bodice dress style. I guess we both have styles we feel are flattering to us!

1830s Holiday Cheer

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For the holidays last year, friends and I decided to have an 1830s-clothed dinner at a local historical inn. We had a lovely meal, enjoyed the company, and had fun looking around at all of the lovely seasonal decorations!

There were new vignettes around every corner, with everything from human-sized nutcrackers to animals and greenery. These owls, perched up on a rafter, amused me very much!

In another, more modern part of the building, we paused to take photos with a tree whose decorations matched my 1832 Velvet Gown and 12 Days Of Christmas bells & berries hair accessory. This dress is always fun to wear–lightweight, despite the velvet, and with a silhouette that is always entertaining.

I hope your holidays are full of joy, friendship, and gratitude!

A Glamorous 1950s Outing

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Earlier this year, I was able to attend a Greater Boston Vintage Society event held at the Larz Anderson Auto Museum. I chose to wear my 1955 Evening Dress dress with dramatic accessories to fit the 1950s/1960s Casino Royale theme.

The accessories included long black gloves and my oft-worn black American Duchess Seabury shoes as well as a lustrous pale yellow collet necklace and earring set from In The Long Run Designs. This dress, with my giant fluffy petticoat, is always fun to wear and was particularly enjoyable with these new-to-this outfit accessories.

As you can see, the museum really is just that–not only is there a rotating exhibit where these photos were taken, but there is also a standing exhibit of early 20th century vehicles as well. It’s always a treat to see them and imagine traveling or going for a spin in old car style!

The gallery wall in the photo below shows the sorts of vehicles that are on permanent display, as well as glamorously dressed friends. We didn’t coordinate our outfits, but it certainly looks like we might have!

I chose to take most of my outfit photos in front of a 1956 Ferrari 410 Superamerica Series I Coupe. It matched my dress! And wouldn’t it have been fabulous to have arrived at the event in one of these?

I do enjoy cars, but not enough to have remembered the full name of this one! I took a photo of the information about the car in order to reference, and to provide some extra context.

It was fun, as always, to have a reason to wear fancier-than-usual dress and hang out with friends while listening to great music in an unusual and interesting setting!

Another Update To The 1933 Dramatic Evening Dress

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I didn’t make a new dress… but I did update an old one! In fact, this is the second round of major updates to this dress! The first round, pictured below, is explained in this past post from 2017.

While the dress with the first round of updates was certainly better than it had been in its initial form, I still wasn’t super pleased with the fit. Despite that, it has come in handy for a number of events and just keeps getting worn. So, for an event late last year I decided to do even more updates to the dress to try to feel happier about how it looks on me.

Here is a rundown of the most recent alterations:

  • Maxed out the hem, using 3 different bits of vintage lace hem tape in various shades of ‘navy’ blue that were gifted to me over the years. It’s so nice to be able to use these gifted vintage finds. I appreciate seeing the prices on the packaging changing over the years!

  • Stiffened the hem of the back velvet drape with horsehair hidden under a facing of leftover velvet scraps (during and after photos, below).

  • Added small horizontal tucks at the sides to try to get the hem to be a little more of an A-line shape.
  • Took in the sides under the arms even more than I had previously and tacked down all of the flapping bits.

  • Added a 1″ belt, made from scraps of the fabric, with a rhinestone buckle at the center to help create more of a 1930s and less of a modern look.
  • Opened center front between the two bust pieces to create a deeper V neckline.
  • Added bra cups, covered with scrap fabric and tacked inside.

  • Added tacks as well as hooks and bars to the back velvet drape to help it hang nicely.

I hope to wear this again later this year and get photos of this second iteration of updates!

1875 Reception Dress Photo Shoot

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I was really excited to spend lots of time working on and finally completing this dress during the summer of 2020.

At that time, there was no option of finding a fabulous indoor place to take photos, so I had to make do with the outdoors. Don’t get me wrong, I have lovely photos from that short outing, but they didn’t have as much background ambiance as I was hoping to find, someday.

But last year, I had the opportunity to actually wear this dress for an activity! And I was able to convince friends to take oodles of photos so I could better document the dress in appropriate surroundings for its reception status. So now, I present many photos of this dress.

There are dramatic back views, of course.

And front views showing the bust, waist, hip dimensions I worked very hard at in the patterning stages. This is created/augmented with padding. You can read more about that in this past post.

There are also views trying to show both the front and back. A side front view, if you will. This also captures the hat very well. I wrote a detailed post about making it, which you can read here.

And a few more sitting photos, as well. These are great for showing off the train and the layers that support it (this is my past post about constructing the skirt and this is about the balayeuse that supports the skirt, if you’d like to know more).

It was hard to choose favorites! I’m very pleased to have so many photos that capture the glory of this dress in an appropriate location.

Gilded Age Weekend Portraits

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As I shared in my last post, friends and I planned a historical weekend away that had a Gilded Age theme. Part of the idea was to document some of our older and recently made clothing in a fabulous setting. To that end, I have many photos of our outfits that I would like to share!

To start, some daytime outfits, worn for afternoon tea and amusements.

So much detail! Fabulous fabrics, beautiful trims, eye catching hats and hair ornaments… the list goes on and on!

And to follow that, a few of our evening outfits.

Thanks for appreciating and enjoying these with me!

Gilded Age Weekend Highlights

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Last year, friends and I decided to treat ourselves to a historical weekend away. With a number of bustle (1870s and 1880s) and 1890s dresses languishing in our closets, the chosen theme was the Gilded Age. We planned a very busy weekend of parlour games, afternoon tea and amusements, informal dance practice, and a formal ball.

Regular blog readers already saw a hint of this event in my last post, When The Dress No Longer Fits (1896 Evening Gown), but I have a few more posts to share, as well. Today’s post captures some of the amusing highlights from the various weekend activities.

To start, a behind the scenes shot of partially completed hair for my 1875 dress (which you can see in the photo after the one below). The photo below also shows off My Favorite Winter Things Skirt! Yes, I continue to wear this during the winter. The penguins, polar bears, and foxes participating in winter activities–skiing, ice skating, sledding, etc–continues to bring me amusement and joy.

And here, a still of theatre-adjacent people trying to create an amusing atmosphere while not making absolutely ridiculous faces. It brings me such joy to have well dressed friends!

Friends who also enjoy creative pursuits, such as creating homemade tabletop croquet! Not only is this absolutely adorable, but it’s also playable!

Our afternoon amusements also included a stereoscope.

Here is another view of the lovely ensembles at the ball.

I wore my 1896 dress, as you can see in the photo below. This is a classic for us. Moose pose!

And, to wrap it up, this is the bronze 1896 skirt after being stepped out of. The canvas is so stiff it literally stands up on its own, a fact which I’ve found to be amusing ever since I first made this over 10 years ago.

Thanks for joining me in the adventure!

There are more photos to come… a selection of outfit portraits and better-than-my-backyard documentation of my 1875 Reception Ensemble.

When The Dress No Longer Fits (1893 Evening Gown)

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Way back in 2012, I made a Bronze and Pink 1893 evening gown. The original construction information can be found in the original post. I updated it in 2013 (documented in this past post) and continued to wear it for a number of years. Then my shape changed, and in 2016 I made my 1899 Elusive Blue dress, which was a fun new thing to wear from a similar period.

And so, my 1893 dress languished in the closet. For an event last year, however, I decided to pull it out instead of wearing the Elusive Blue dress. Below, successful re-wearing of my now-eleven-year-old 1893 dress.

After initially trying the dress on, it was clear that my change in shape meant that the original dress would no longer fit, but I decided to persevere and update the dress to make it wearable again. This involved:

  • Adding a panel to the back to extend the circumference of the bodice (saving fabric extras pays off!)
  • Adjusting the circumference of the pink sash to match the new width in the bodice

The skirt closure didn’t need an adjustment, as I had originally made it with two sets of hooks and bars and was able to simply hook the closure on the looser bar for the updated wearing

Below, a photo of the updated dress from the back, where the additional back panel is visible.

While the dress was wearable and I was pleased with my updated accessories, I was not as pleased with the dress as I was when I first made it, nor was I as happy with it as I am with my 1899 dress. I’d like to update it a bit more some day and see if it brings me more joy for a future wearing. Specifically:

  • I’d like to add net and gold sequin trim to the back neckline to help add interest and distract from the added panel (the original in Patterns of Fashion is unadorned and makes an elegant V, as mine originally did, but I like the plain look less with the size adjustment)
  • The tall section of canvas I’d added to them hem of the skirt when I originally made the dress made sense at the time to add stiffness, but over the years I’ve realized that it’s also heavy and actually reduces the size of the silhouette. I think I’d like to remove the canvas (or drastically reduce its height)
  • I’d want to wear my chemise tucked lower! I’m sad that it’s poking out in the photos

Despite some quibbles, I am pleased overall with the fact that I was able to update this dress to make it fit again.

GBVS Newport Weekend 2022, Part I (Overview)

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It’s 2023 now, so that alone is an indication that is post is belated. It will seem even more belated when I share that this event happened in Summer of 2022. Better late than never, though, and I am actually quite excited to share my adventures at this event hosted by the Greater Boston Vintage Society.

To start, a short post sharing some outfits and a brief overview of the weekend’s events. The next post I’ll devote to Newport mansion tour highlights.

The Newport Weekend is a recurring event that takes place in Newport, Rhode Island. In 2022, participants could choose to attend for a single day or stay overnight in the dorms at Salve Regina University. I chose to stay overnight, which allowed for a lengthier stay and therefore more adventures.

On Saturday, I wore my 1925 Blue Coral Dress, a tried and true favorite for hot summer days. Being made of opaque lightweight cotton that doesn’t show wrinkles, it’s an excellent choice for lounging, picnicking, dancing, and being swept about in the occasional breeze. With this dress I wore my Royal Vintage/American Duchess Ginger shoes and 1920s Wide Brim Hat. It’s been awhile since I wore any of these things and the hat, in particular. The large brim is dramatic and enjoyable!

These photos were taken inside and outside the Fairlawn Estate at Salve Regina, which was built in 1852-1853. You can read more about it at the Salve Regina Library site, here.

After various hijinks and shenanigans during the day, I changed into my 1950 Baroness Dress for the evening ball, which I accessorized with sparkly silver jewelry and my silver American Duchess Seabury shoes. I love the dramatic color and massive bow feature on this dress! It was fun to get it out of the closet and wear it again!

Sunday had a bit of picnicking as well as Newport mansion tours. It’s been years since I toured The Breakers, pictured below, so that was fun to do again. The immense expense of Newport ‘cottages’ is jaw dropping, every time. I also chose to visit some of the other mansions that I haven’t visited before. I’ll share photos of those in a separate post.

For now,  here’s an outfit photo as though I’m ‘visiting’ The Breakers. I wore my 1930s vintage-inspired Plum Pants with Pointed Pockets, paired with a modern blouse and my Gingers, again. I’ll admit that it was a lot of walking for heels, even comfortable ones… but, they go so well with my outfit that I couldn’t resist!

And that was the weekend! It was fun to see old friends, meet new acquaintances, and make new memories with everyone. Plus, fabulous locations and historical clothes!