I want to be frivolous too!

I’m rather busy stitching the boning channels on my stays, but though time-consuming it isn’t especially hard, so it leaves me time to dream and plan. I totally blame Fru Aleydis and Lithia Black and the burlesque costumes they’ve made, that I find myself wanting one myself. I’m not altogether sure if I have the guts to actually wear one, but I think it would be tons of fun to make it. And I do need to practice my skills in making other kinds of corsets than 18th century stays.

I recently watched The River of No Return with Marilyn Monroe and thought it could be fun to make something similar to what she is wearing. Fru Aleydis mentioned being inspired by the salon girls in Lucky Luke, and I think Monroe’s costume has that feeling as well. They’re not historically accurate, but they give an air of it, and they are certainly frivolous!

I did a google on Marilyn Monroe to try to find pictures, which I did. I also found this one, and I was suddenly five years old again.

It’s Marilyn posing as Lillian Russell. My parents had a book about Marilyn and I loved to look at the pictures. And this was my favourite of them all! I thought she was so pretty and her clothes as well. I wanted it then, and now I realize I can make it. Well, perhaps not exactly, but something that makes me feel that way. I have tons of violet cotton-sateen that I think would work very well. I want a skirt; even if it’s a short one, and I’m thinking it could be fun to make it as a mini-bustle. I also need something to contrast the violet colour with. Black seems the obvious (and easy) choice, but it would be fun with a colour. Any suggestion? And I want a large hat to go with it.!



And here are the other pictures I found.












I was a bit surprised that the Lillian Russell-portrait was part of a series where Marilyn poses as Clara Bow, Theda Bara, Marilyn Dietrich and Jean Harlow.

lamodeillustree does it again

You know, I kind of need some 1790's outerwear, don't I? Especially after this post:

http://community.livejournal.com/lamodeillustree/269259.html?view=994251#t994251

I'm not quite sure about the giant muff, but I do love the coat. What do you think about the collar? My interpretation is that it's sewn to the coat down to the waist and then it's hanging free.

Nothing perks you up better than thinking about clothes

I’m going to change how I post about ongoing projects. As I tend to let things rest, a project can take very long time to complete and posts about progress are irregular, and also, I think a bit boring to try to follow. I’m going to make them filtered posts at my Livejournal- I don’t seem to be able to do that here. If you want to read them, then you need to friend me there, sorry. Then, when I’m done, I will put my previous posts together (with appropriate editing) as I did on my 12th Night outfit. I imagine that will make for much more interesting posts about my clothes. Those posts will be public, of course, as will my general costume bleating. And if I need advice, of course.

I can as well mention, that if you want to read entries on my life apart from sewing, then those are at Livejournal as well. My personal life isn’t that exiting, anyway. Anyway, my LJ-profile can be found here:

http://isiswardrobe.livejournal.com/profile

My immediate costume plans at the moment are underwear. My stays are now a little bit loose when laced shut, so new 18th century stays are needed before I make anything 18th century. I also need new shifts, both 18th century and medieval. And, lucky me, when I went through a box of fabric fro weeding, I found 5 metres of white linen, perfect for shifts. I had no idea I had it!

I have a card-system for my fabrics. I put a sample on a card, notes how much it is and in which box a put it. I find it very useful! Well, this linen slipped through the system- probably because I felt that I couldn’t possibly forget about all that fabric… Obviously I could, which made for a very nice surprise. I’m glad I found it before I bought new linen, though!

Several of you suggested making a very fitted medieval shift for support. I think that’s a good idea. I need something instead of a bra, or there won’t be any medieval clothes for me, and a fitted shift sounds like it could fit the bill.

As for a medieval gown… At first I though about going as simple as possible, “just to have something” and as I quite like the 12th century, a gown from that period seemed like a good and rather speedy solution. However, then bookwyrm linked to pictures of the Moy bog gown and I kind of fell in love.

http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/cloth/moy3.html

https://www.reconstructinghistory.com/irish.php?s=&c=8&d=100&e=&f=&g=&a=200&w=2

http://matildalazouche.livejournal.com/3658.html

It’s something about all those buttons that speaks to me. So at the moment, that is what I planned to do. I’m NOT going to buy fabric for it until the shift is done, but I can dream. Wool definitely and probably blue. I like blue, especially the blue you get from woad.

The makings of a 1790's outfit

Most in this entry have been posted before, I just wanted an entry with the project from start to finish. What inspired me and how I went through it. I attended an 18th century 12th Night ball last week and hadn't really planned to make new clothes. I don't like working against a deadline and I had something to wear anyway. Then I saw a painting from 1796 posted atlamodeillustree and I fell hard and completely.


I actually liked both outfits, but it was the one in pink and blue that caught my eye. I don't know why, really, because it's a fairly simple outfit. And not that easy to make out either. Is it a small jacket she's wearing and how is it closed?Of course, it also gave me freedom to make an interpretation. After looking at jackets and pierrots from the 1790's, they all seemed to have a short peplum in the back, even if they stopped at the waist, or just above. I decided to make my jacket like that, even if no peplum shows and she's wearing a sash on the painting. It will make the jacket more versatile for me, tucking it inside (were it helps to give the skirt oomph) and with the sash, or with the peplum showing.

I also needed to think about fabric choice. The petticoat was easy, I had plenty of silk taffeta in my stash in a colour very close to the painting. However, this being in the months before Christmas and with all other purchases I didn't want to buy more material than I had to. So I dug around in my stash a little more and found a nice blue velvet that had been lying around for 20 years. Definitely time to put it to a good use. All in all I only did very few purchases for the whole thing and the biggest of those was half a metre of silk taffeta for the sash.

The petticoat was very easy. About 50 centimetres of the back was cartridgepleated down to 5 centimetres. The front was left unpleased and the remaining fabric just pleated into one centimetre wide pleats. It also has a short train. I didn't really used a pattern, but looked at other patterns for 1790's petticoats and used them as guidelines for the pleats the the length of the train. What I didn't do was the pleated trim, due to time constraint, but I have plenty of fabric left, so I'll trim it later.

The sash was very easy as well. I wanted it pink and found a very nice two-toned taffeta I liked. It photographs a bit more yellow that it appears for the eye. On the portrait the sash seem to have a little peak in the back, which worried me a little, as I felt that the peak would easily fold down. So I decided to put a bone to support it and that seem to work very well. I also wanted the sash to end with a fringe. I just made a row of backstitches at the point were I wanted the fringe to start and then simply removed the bright pink threads in the silk, leaving only the yellow ones.

The biggest challenge was the jacket. What pattern to use? I draft my patterns myself rather than enlarging, but I use existing patterns as guide for proportions and seam placements. I have an 1780's pierrot and first I thought I could use that pattern.

But I'm not altogether pleased with the fit, the neckline is too wide in the front and I felt that the peplum was too wide and too long. However, the bodice on the 1797's gown I made earlier in the Autumn, fits perfectly.

The back, of course, has no peplum, so back to the books I went and I found what I wanted in Janet Arnold, in the riding habit dated 1795-1805. I also felt a bit unsure on how to do the front of the jacket. After having done two bodices with drawstring front, I didn't want to do that again. Besides, I don't think velvet lends itself to that type anyway. While I was thinking on front closure I made up the lining. Following through with finds in my stash, the lining is made by very un-18th century printed cotton, interlined with a heavier cotton and with two plastic whalebones in the front. I decided to lace the lining shut, and for the time being pin the front closed.
In time I want to have a buttonclosure, but I haven't found the buttons yet. After making all the decisions, the assembling of the jacket went quickly and easily. I was quite amazed.

So easy in fact, that I had time to make a reticule. Digging around the net I found this one, dated to the late 18th century.

The measurements was kindly provided, so it was an easy task to make a patterns. I've recently learned ribbon embroidered and have looked around for a small project to try it out. So I designed a border I felt I could handle, rosebuds on stems and a bigger rose. I did have to buy some pink and green silk ribbons for that, but not much, as it was such a small project. As I had plenty of velvet left, I decided to make the reticule out of it and line it with the pink silk I used for the sash. I had no trouble at all with the embroideries, but then I decided that I wanted to border it with silver spangles. I have never used spangles before... Practice makes perfect, I guess, and so my spangles are not perfect... And, rather to my surprise, assembling the reticule was the most troublesome part of the whole outfit! For some reason the velvet, who had behaved so nicely when I made the jacket, decided to fray like madly. Then I put in the lining wrong. Twice! And I did the same stupid mistake both times. When it was finally in, I realised that that I had sewn shut the openings for the ribbon channel by mistake. I grumbled a bit over that, but luckily it's also period to sew little rings around the opening to make a closure, so I went with that. I didn't have any ribbons with the right colour, but I had plenty of silk cord. I crocheted it to make it thicker, which I'm fairly certain is not period at all, but was a quick solution. The original had tassels and I have made three tassels that match the fringe of the sash, but I plain forgot to sew them on...

All in all, I'm very pleased with my outfit. There are details that needs to be fixed, but I like the overall impression. I wore it over a cotton petticoat and a small bustlepad and, of course, stays. My stays are earlier than the 1790's, but as I'm very highwaisted I don't really feel the need for a special pair of stays that would just be marginally shorter than the one I have. I would have loved to have a pair of gloves too, and I think I need a long pair anyway, so that is definitely on my list now.


I had a great time at the ball, more pictures can be seen here.

Sources of inspiration
lamodeillustree
Tidens Toj
Janet Arnold Patterns of Fashion>
Britta Hammar & Pernilla Rasmussen Kvinnligt mode under två sekel

Materials
1 ½ metres of blue velvet, single width+the same amount for the lining
2 ½ metres of blue silk taffeta, double width
½ metre pink silk taffeta
Silk ribbons
Silver spangles
A few plastic whale bones
A few silver metal rings and some silk cord

I used my sewing machine for all long assembling seams, but all details, including putting in the sleeves, were made by hand.

12th Night ball

The ball was great fun; I enjoyed every bit of it, apart from those moments in the play where I forgot my lines. I knew I was supposed to say something, but had not idea of what. But evidently no one noticed but us on the scene. And I’m really very pleased with my outfit!




I plain forgot to put the tassels on the bag, but I liked it very much anyway.

It was a masked ball, and there were some rather awesome costumes. I’m very annoyed that I missed Anna, who evidently had been abducted from a seraglio and brought to cold Sweden. I did have a masque, but I removed it when we did the play, and then it never went on again.

Annali took her profession back in time and went as an 18th century shoemaker.

Madeleine as a lovely maid.

The glorious sun, embodied by Carina.

Captain Lejon with his parrot, Polly Sture. The bird had evidently much in common with the one in Monty Python and kept trying to fall off.




Lithia Black in the stairways. We took our coffee there, to the annoyance of those who wanted to use it for its actual purpose. For some odd reasons more people went downstairs than up, and we sat there for some time…



This is a very bad pic, but I wanted to show it anyway, as it’s another version of Gustaf III’s national gown. This version was worn at the castle Ekolsund and as you can see it’s a riding habit, and not a gown.

You can also see that it borrows some elements from the men’s suit:



Looking lovely by the Christmas tree.

Sneak peak on the 12th Night ball-outfit.

On my dress dummy, which make sit look very ill-fitting. It looks much better on me.

The petticoat is sewn in the same way as the skirt on the 1797’s gown. Unpleated in the front, pleated at the sides and a long section cartridgepleated at the small of the back. It has a short train. It’s worn over a small bustle-pad, and the peplum on the jacket helps with holding out the petticoat as well... The sash has boning at the centre back so the point won’t fold down.


It can also be worn with the peplum showing, which I really like as well. I can wear it with the petticoat, or I can wear it with the white 1797’s gown. I like versatile garments.

The end of the sash. The fringe is simply the end of the fabric with the cerise threads removed. It didn’t photograph well- the fabric is much pinker in reality.

I’ve had huge problems with the reticule, which is silly, as it’s such a small project. I found the spangles a real hassle to attach and I’ve managed to sew in the lining wrong twice- and did the same mistake both times! Now it’s mostly done, it just needs three small pom-poms sewn on. I couldn’t take any decent pic with my camera, but will try again on the ball. Here is, at least, a very bad pic of the finished embroidery.

What I didn’t get to was the pleated trim on the petticoat, but I have plenty of fabric left, to do that with.

Tomorrow is the ball, and I look forward to it! I just have to do a few stitches on the reticule and iron and pack my stuff, and rehearse my lines… You see, I’ve been drafted to be in a play for the evening’s entertainment. It’s called Kapten Puff and was written in the late 18th century by Olof Kexél. It’s a short and simple story. A captain called Puff (which means pouf, more or less) talks so much gibberish that he ends up without both promotion and girl. It’s quite funny, actually. My part is very small, about ten lines. I’m a lady who is very good at talking herself, and gets affronted when Puff talks so much that she can’t. But I haven’t acted in 16 years, so I’m a bit nervous. And I’m not much on an actress either. Still, it has been fun rehearsing.

Better pics will come after the ball.