Get Your Glad Rags On

SHINY!

It's funny, I've made rather a lot of clothes for myself over the years, but the only fancy frocks have been late-period Italianate stuff--the quattrocento PURPLE!~ gamurra I made for Kamilla's Laureling, and the bronze-and-green Bronzino-ish sixteenth-century job I made for Kasia's Laureling.  I don't actually have anything north of really nice wool in my own chosen time period.  It is really time to correct that.

As previously noted, I have some heavenly blue silk for the underdress, and some cream-and-gold silk brocade for the overdress (which has just arrived safely, after hurricane delays[1]).  The pattern I used for my new pink linen dress this summer is close enough for jazz, and I can get help tweaking it further this weekend.  However!  I want to actually plan this out for a change, instead of just plowing forward, getting halfway through, and going "...oooer hadn't thought of that, herp derp".

Some topics currently in my thoughts:

• Will I ever want to wear the blue dress by itself, i.e. without the (or an) overgown? 
• this informs its closures and, potentially, ornamentation
• presently thinking: no
• Elbow or full sleeves for the overgown?
• presently thinking: elbow, so one can see the blue underneath
• Embellishments for the overgown?
• pearls, gems, etc.  There's some evidence for that which we saw in the Opus Anglicanum exhibit, though that might have been associated with the embroideries, not underlying brocade patterns?
• presently thinking: research it more
• How to close the overgown?  Lacing, fabric buttons, metal buttons?
• presently thinking: buttons, inclining towards fabric
• ugh ugh ugh
• Line both, neither, or either dress?
• To be 100% accurate, the overgown and probably the underdress too would be fur-lined.  Not doin' that.
• presently thinking: neither.  That much silk is going to be sweltering enough as it is, thanks.
• How much matching up of the brocade do I need to do?
• presently thinking: across center front and center back; and keep directionality on the gores; everything else is probably gravy
• Tippets, Y/N?
• presently thinking: research it more
• Include machine stitching or do it all by hand?   *record scratch*
• oooeee.  This enters the misty land of "done" vs "best".  I have clear delineations in other projects--if I'm making something for display, I'll hand-sew it all; if I just need basic clothes to cover one's fleshy bits, I'm fine to machine-stitch where possible--but this is neither the one nor the other. 
• presently thinking: do it by hand.  But this could change if I suddenly grow a deadline.

And then there's the general need to up my accessories game: hair, veil, possibly belt, etc.  (Though I'm suddenly feeling that in a lot of images of super-fancy ladies, they aren't wearing belts?  Let's check that.)  And oh god my purse needs replacing, my current one being a "temporary kludge" enacted over ten years ago. 

I haven't lost sight of my main objective, i.e. getting the pourpoint out the door; indeed the left sleeve is now attached and has all its buttons, as well as a whole! three! buttonholes! *sob*; but I can work in parallel, and if I don't get moving on this now it'll never happen.


[1] Please donate if you can:
Hispanic Federation for Puerto Rico's recovery from Hurricane Maria
Global Giving's fund for Texas's recovery from Hurricane Harvey

A Slight Detour Into The Bridal Industry

Motif of ribbon flowers and old lace

I haven't done much historical sewing over the last couple of weeks; partially lack of spoons (the start of semester is always exhausting as all get-out), but chiefly because my needle efforts were concentrated on a Happy Event!  Namely, a wedding dress for a dear friend. 

Let me immediately disclaim any real kudos for this; the artistic genius and much of the execution was in other hands; I was, okay maybe not a plongeur but no higher than a commis, anyways.  But it was exciting and a lot of fun to be part of the project, and the result was not just beautiful in its own right, but completely perfect for the bride in question.  (And, in spite of it being executed entirely in colorways I just can't with, I loved the result.  Magic!)

you have no idea how long the
initial strip of tulle was

The dress is of two parts: an underlayer composed of a corset/longline bra attached to three petticoat layers of tulle (in pink, lavender, and INCREDIBLY SPARKLY GLITTERY silver-grey), and the dress itself of pink/lavender silk with a fine pink net over the bosom and upper arms.  The decorations on the dress were composed of lace motifs cut from the bride's mother's wedding dress and dyed pale grey (both by your humble correspondent); ribbon flowers of various shapes and sizes in pink, lavender, plum, storm grey, and rose, made by the bride herself; and a scattering of pearls, crystal beads, and crystals (grey, purple, and pink).  

In addition to the lace extraction as noted above, my contributions included endless gathering & stitching of miles of deeply annoying tulle; attaching same to the cotton underskirt lining; hemming the underskirt lining; stitching the top of the corset to its lining; a couple other small jobs I'm forgetting; but the most fun was placing and arranging the decorative elements on the dress.  It's all the same kind of fun as decorating a Christmas tree, only more so.
    

part way through the embellishment process
(with designer)

There were some late nights involved, but I didn't caaaaaare.  Everything about the project--the collaboration, the love, the vision, the outcome--was magical.  I'm so happy to have worked on it.

And, of course, the action shot:

happily ever after!