Tag Archives: truly victorian

Finished Project: The Tissot Dress

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Fair warning- this is a long and picture heavy post!

This dress had been a long time on my wish list.  I’m an ardent fan of James Jacques Tissot’s paintings, and a particular dress that appeared in a few variations in several of his paintings really inspired me.  The dress is not an exact copy, but is inspired by the following paintings.

This was the first one I found, called The Gallery of H.M.S. ‘Calcutta’ (Portsmouth), 1877.  This image is from the Hermitage Collection Connection’s blog.  My good friend is eventually going to make the one in blue so we can go about together in our ensembles :)

 Then I found several more paintings in which this image appears:

Portrait of Miss Lloyd (on left) from loveisspeed.  July (on Right) posted by a friend online.

July: Specimen of a Portrait from Flickr (on left), Fete Day at Brighton from Wikimedia Commons (on right) has different color bows but is the same dress.

  I started this dress in June of last year and actually did wear it to Costume College last year, but only for an hour or two, during which I taught a class.  After Costume College last year I finished it up and meant to take pictures the entire year, but after a bit of thought decided I liked it too much to not wear again, so it made another (longer) appearance this year.  The photos below combination of photos taken at Costume College this year and afterward at a public park.

The skirt was made from the Truly Victorian natural form Fantail Skirt pattern.  I wanted this to be a transitional dress between early bustle and natural form, so I actually tied the back of the skirt looser (it’s on a drawstring) and fit it over my Truly Victorian Petticoat with Wire Bustle, and tied the tapes inside the bustle somewhat loosely to have a smaller bustle shape.  The “polonaise” was made using the basis of Truly Victorian bodice shapes and I compared the cut with several in Francis Grimble’s Fashions of a Gilded Age (I don’t remember if it was book 1 or 2).  Since I am already familiar with the cut of Truly Victorian bodices I found this to be easier than scaling up and fitting a bodice from an original pattern I wasn’t familiar with.

The skirt and polonaise are both accented by pleating that is edged in lace.  The front fastens up the center front with hook and eye tape, and the bows are taffeta cut into bias strips and then tacked on.  The dress is made from a cotton/poly blend.  I was told it was all cotton when I purchased it in the Garment District in LA, but boy- was pleating it a pain!  I used the Perfect Pleater, but since it had poly in it, it did not want to hold the pleats.  In the end I used a combination of vinegar/water to set the pleats- sprayed it heavily and ironed the pleats in until they were well dry.  I waited for it to cool.  I then did a heavy coating of spray starch, gave it a second to set, then ironed it well (too soon after spraying and it would stick!), and then waited for that to cool.  Part way though this project I realized how beneficial a press cloth can be!

Yes, it took FOREVER and is not something I’d like to repeat soon.  I’m actually unsure of the yardage. I just kept going until I ran out of fabric! I’d still like to make the matching jacket but I ran out of fabric.  I just saw it again on the last trip to LA, but forgot why I wanted it.  Of course, now I remember! I hope they still have it whenever I go back- I went on a wild goose chase last year trying to find the darn fabric again with no luck!

At the last minute before Saturday at Costume College I remembered I didn’t have a hat so threw one together very quickly with fabric scraps and hot glue on a straw base bought from Truly Victorian when they sold these.  My husband painted it white for me last summer.

I just posted my favorites here (and I know there’s a lot) but I have several more photos of this dress on Flickr which aren’t in this post.  You can see them here.

This dress feels like a dream to wear. I just adore white dresses from the Victorian and Edwardian eras!  I need more excuses to pull this one out in the future

Finished Project: The 1870s Green Plaid Bustle Dress

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I’m back from Costume College, my good friend is on her way back home to Texas, and it’s time to get back to real life. Woe!  But I have some fun photos to share coming up, and the first of which I want to share is the 1870s plaid bustle dress project I posted about previously.

I finished it all up for the most part by the time my friend arrived, but since she had some extra sewing to do I started doing trimming.  And more trimming.  And more trimming.  Someone on the American Duchess Facebook album of Costume College photos said it looked similar to old fashioned ribbon candy- and you know, I have to agree!

This one was lots of fun to trim.  I love this time period.  I can trim, and trim the trims, then trim the trim with trims.  In this case the most fun things to make for trimming were the ruffles which were finished with a bias binding in the peach. Over the top of the ruffles at the side I ran a braid which was made of three tubes of bias made into cording and then braided.  The bows that are accented with tassels at the end were lots of fun to make, too.

This outfit was made using Truly Victorian patterns.  The bodice was made with Heather’s new 1872 Vested Bodice Pattern, TV403.  The skirt was made with the 1875 Parisian Trained Skirt Pattern, TV216 (you can see my previous version of the skirt in their website photo).  I’m a huge fan of Truly Victorian patterns- they make these Victorian patterns so accessible, and they make up really well!  I documented working on this bodice in prior posts here, here, and here.

Capturing the correct colors of this outfit has proved quite difficult.  In reality it’s probably a combination of the photos here in front of a blank background and the photos above.

The hat is actually a 1930s hat I had in my vintage collection.  At the last minute I remembered I didn’t have appropriate headwear so I pulled out this one, which just so happened to match perfectly.  I pinned little accents of the green onto the hat, added a pink feather and a few dress clips, and it suddenly became passable for 1870s.  The entire dress was made from polyester taffeta (gasp!) but the fabrics looked so much like authentic silk taffeta, even in person, and had the same hand to the touch, that I was able to make the dress look passable on a much better budget than by using a more authentic silk.  For a dress I’ll only wear on occasion, I decided it was a good sacrifice for me to make and it helped out my pocketbook ;)

That wraps up this project!  The End ;)

TV403- We Can Have Buttons!

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Last night I finished up my facings, made my buttonholes and sewed on my buttons. It’s just about wearable now, but I still want to add more trim if I have time.

The buttons are vintage or antique ones I picked up at The Vintage Marketplace, a shabby chic/vintage flea market that happens a few times a year where I have a booth.  Luckily there are a lot of buttons, because I still need to make two more buttonholes and buttons!

Next up: hem the skirt and add trim.  I most likely will not be posting more pictures of this until after the event, but you won’t have to wait long as it’s less than a week away!

TV403 Bodice Progress

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I’m plugging along on this bodice! This is Truly Victorian 403, the new 1872 bodice.

I am crazy and picked a giant plaid, which has made things more difficult than they needed to be.  But I’m pretty happy with it so far!  I am different proportions than my dress form, and the sleeve hangs differently on my body, but you’ll  just have to take my word for it- it fits me better than it does my form.

The sleeves were such a pain! For some reason I always have problems getting the sleeves of Truly Victorian patterns to fit me (though I absolutely adore Heather’s patterns), so I had to alter them significantly.  But also, figuring out the cut of the plaid was difficult. And then there was actually sewing the things! I ended up machine sewing the underarm, then putting it on my dress form and pinning the sleeve to place, then hand sewing the sleeve caps in so I could get the pattern to match up how I wanted it to.

On to the next steps! I’ve got to finish the bodice facings and hem, then on to fastenings!

Busy, Busy, Busy- and Lots of Sewing

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I’ve been a bad little blogger! I’m around, but I’ve been frantically working on some projects!

First of all, I finished up one of the two vintage gowns I’m making that I spoke about in the Hollywood Inspiration post.  The other one is all finished except for some trim.

Then I madly started making the new Truly Victorian bodice, TV403, the 1872 Vested Bodice.

And because I’m just *that* crazy, I am making it out of a giant plaid.  But check out my skills of a plaid matcher- that’s a front with two darts, a side piece, a side back piece, and a center back piece with a seam down the center. Next up is cutting the two piece sleeve.

I’ve also been doing crazy things like making neat little handstitches on things that will never be seen (not even by me) because it’s sandwiched between two layers of fabric!

Here’s hoping it actually gets done in time.  I’ve still got work on my classes I’m teaching to do, too! Eep!

Bustles, Books, and Gardens

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Hello!

I’ve been puttering away on an 1870s bustle ensemble using green, peach, and plaid.  Here’s a little peek- the ruffles and trim are just pinned on right now. I’m using the Truly Victorian Parisian Trained Skirt pattern. I’ve made a skirt from this pattern once before and really love it.

I’ve been spending some time outside playing with flowers and reading.  I’m still making it through the Anne of Green Gables books and am about halfway done with Rainbow Valley.  I love L.M. Montgomery’s books. Reading them is like visiting with old friends.

The Aloha rose is a new addition to our garden. I’m waiting impatiently for the bloom to open!

Hope you are having a beautiful week.

Finished Project: 1880s Bustle Dress and Hat

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My husband and I finally took proper pictures of this dress I finished last year!  This was my favorite dress I made last year, and it’s my first dress from the 1880s that I’ve made that I’ve been happy with.

I posted previously about making this dress here, here, here, here, here, and here.  I also posted the hat here.   This was one of the largest personal projects I tackled this year, second only to the white Tissot inspired dress that I’m hoping to take pictures of tomorrow (or soon, anyways).

To recap on patterns:  I used the Truly Victorian Wash Overskirt pattern, the 1885 Truly Victorian Four Gore Underskirt pattern, and I kind of miss-mashed several different Truly Victorian bodice patterns to make the bodice.  Of course, the patterns were modified to suit what I wanted to do. The underskirt pattern was shortened and then made to have the points and I attached the pleating under that- but I think I wrote about that more in previous posts.

The excuse to make this outfit was to wear to Costume College, an annual costuming convention held in the Los Angeles area.  I’m glad I had the excuse, as I always am most happy with the historical sewing projects I make during the year, and I don’t always attend enough events or do any flitting around the house in 19th century attire.  The dress was a combination of a bunch of fabrics, all from out of my stash and bought as remnants here and there, aside from the silk that the skirt was made from which I found for a shocking $3 a yard in the garment district in LA!  My big splurge on this was the blue striped silk taffeta, which was a whopping $5 a yard.  The dress just kind of came together after all the fabrics had a few years to mingle together in the stash and inspiration decided to strike.

This hat is SO much fun to wear, but it is an awful bear.  It makes me stand up tall in order to keep it on my head! lol!  I still need to fine tune my millinery skills- I have a tendency to make hats a little too small in circumference- especially after I add a period hairstyle or wig.   I know it’s a little big and a little over the top, but it’s FUN.  I like big hats with lots of stuff on them.

 

We had so much fun taking the pictures! The dress is so fun to wear and makes me feel pretty and fancy- like a heroine in a BBC period drama :)   So, of course, I’ve got to add some silly shots to the end here of my oh so period correct socks, and just being silly.

Ta Da! My 1880s Bustle ensemble.  On to more costuming adventures! I may have possibly started sewing an 1869 underskirt last night to go with an ensemble I started over 5 years ago. ;)

 

Finished Project: Natural Form Mourning Gown

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First off- I absoultely LOVED reading all of your comments on my last post about what goodies you’ve found in your vintage patterns! So fun! Thanks for sharing your stories and finds :)

I realized I never got around to posting this outfit! Whoops?  This was another dress I made for Costume College, the annual costuming convention in California. I have a few more Victorian costumes I made for this event and I still haven’t taken proper pictures of them.

Actually, the theme of Costume College this coming year might be of interest to a lot of you.  The theme is the Golden Age of Hollywood: 1930-1955.  The bonus track will be focused on that time span, but there will still be a lot of classes focused on a variety of costuming interest, including historical costume.

This costume was made from Truly Victorian patterns. The bodice was a combination of a few of their patterns. Although I made this  a while ago and I don’t remember my exact changes, I believe I combined the 1880 Jacket Bodice pattern with the 1879 Curaiss Bodice pattern and lengthened the sleeves to long sleeves.

The overskirt was made with the 1880 Hermione Overskirt pattern and the underskirt was made from the 1878 Fantail Skirt pattern.
I started this project several years ago and got disgusted with the way it was turning out, so put it away in my closet and completely forgot about it until about a month before Costume College. I pulled it out and tried it on. At that time it was untrimmed and I needed to fix a few fitting concerns. It is trimmed with several antique black trims I had in my stash, including the fringe and the beaded appliques. The rest of the trims, including the looped edging and the velvet ribbon bands on the underskirt are new. The bodice and overskirt are made of silk dupioni. The underskirt is made of a faux silk taffeta. The buttons up the front are vintage. The revers on the bodice and the faux cuffs are stitched down accents from black velvet.
The hat, veil, and purse are antique.  I wore this over a very small bustle because I wanted the silhouette to be of the transitional period between early bustle and natural form.

In the end, I actually liked the way it turned out and I’m glad I revisited this project instead of just giving up on it and starting new :)

Have a wonderful weekend!

>Bustle Dress Progress- Working on the Bodice

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>I spent some of the weekend sewing on the Bustle dress! I had neglected it a bit last week, so it was nice to pick it up again.
I did have to make several new changes to the pattern, especially since I realized I hadn’t sewn a Victorian gown in several years so I did have some different fitting issues than I remember having previously.  I transferred the bodice with changes to manila papers it will be easier to make new versions and adaptions in the future by using it as a block.

Playing with the stripes to make them not too much of a headache was a bit of a challenge.  The space between the stripes is somewhat large, so figuring out how and where to place the stripes to make it not look strange or make them seem odd was a challenge, especially when considering how the skirt flares at different points because of the skirt and bustle.  With more stripes it would probably be fine, but because there’s so few I was afraid it would just look odd and unevenly spaced unless I made it more simplistic.  In the end I just took the easy way out- I cut the stripes to where they would make construction easiest on the front, cut the two side pieces without stripes, and used the back for creativity by placing a chevron.  This is all interlined in brown cotton, so you can see that peeking through at where the lapel will be.  Since the back is not cut on straight of grain I cut the interlining from straight of grain to keep it on track.  Also, that stripe at center front may not show when it’s finished as I added extra seam allowance and that’s just where the pattern decided to line up.
You can also see the line I decided to use for the bottom of the bodice.  The previous version in muslin is here.
The form and I are not proportioned the same, but you get the idea :)
Next up I’ve got to finish all those inside seams since this will be unlined, put in my boning, and fit it again before I can add the collar and facings.

>Bustle Dress Progress- We Have Pleats!

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>The underskirt and overskirt are nearly done! All they really need are hooks and eyes and button on the inside (and pressing, which I didn’t really do before taking these pictures).  Then on to the bodice!

I had a bit of a problem with my pleats.  Initially I wanted to double them up, so the foldline would be the hem and then it would be weightier, since the fabric is very light.  I pulled out my Perfect Pleater, but the pleats just would not take! Woe!  So I ended up giving it 1/2″ hem allowance and using black lace seam tape.  The pleats took just fine after that with a mixture of vinegar/water for spray, the Perfect Pleater, and a scrap of muslin for pressing.  They’re now nice and crisp :) .  I found the secret to getting mine to hold better is to wait until they’re completely cool before removing them and going on to the next length.  It took quite a while, but I just spaced it out over a day and it worked out fine.

To attach the pleats I first bound the edge of them with bias tape, then pinned around the length of the skirt, put it on the form and checked the length, then hand sewed them to the skirt.  The row of stripe for trim is covering where they were attached, so you can’t see through on the outside.  A plus to doing it this way, as I thought of afterward, is that if I ever need to change out the pleat (if it’s stained or dirty or I want to make this work for another gown), all I have to do is make another set of pleats or ruffles and remove my hand stitches and put another one in it’s place.  Nifty, huh?
The bodice is next! But first I have to concrete what I want to do!  I only have a few strips left of the brown, maybe 1/2 yard of the stripe, and maybe a yard of so of the blue so it’s time to get creative.  Right now I’m thinking of combining the front of this Truly Victorian bodice with the back of this Truly Victorian bodice, neither of which are from the Late Bustle period, but I won’t let that stop me. Hehe.  I’ll have to get the patterns out and see if it would work or if it will be a lot of hassle (and if I would have enough fabric) before I make up my mind.  Then it’s time for a mock up!
Is anyone else ridiculously excited for the Royal Wedding tomorrow?