AP 1016 #3

Here are just some quick shots of the last muslin.

I think I've got a good fit in the back. 

The basque now lies smoothly over the bustle. 

It's still fitting down the front. Will need to make some minor changes to the collar.

Ageless Pattern 1016 #2

First off...
Check out this super sweet parasol I got in Gettysburg this weekend! It should be a perfect accessory for the mourning costume.

"Sometimes, even smiling make my face ache!"  - Frankenfurter

This weekend's progress

This weekend, I recopied the bodice pattern pieces so I would have a clean copy with last weekend's alterations. Then I decided to make a more complete muslin that would include everything but the non-functional trim. As I learned recently, it really pays to test the muslin with the sleeves. 

Ageless Patterns only come with the original pattern instructions. And it must be that in 1887, the base sewing knowledge must have been very different. Really, if you are an experienced sewer, the patterns can be reasoned through carefully, but in about every pattern, I have found something that stumps me for a while. 

In this pattern, it was the process of attaching the basque (the hip skirt/peplum-ish bit). The pattern says "Attach the Basque from #7 to #8. Insert the Basque underneath the sides and front. Attach to front from #9 to #10." I found these directions to be insufficient to my needs. After much fiddling, here is the more detailed set of directions I  came up with. 

Bodice without the basque. On the left is the center front false vest, on the left is the  edge of the postilion folded out. 

Step 1: postilion on left, basque on right. Sew Basque to Back Postilion from #7 to #8



Step 2: Iron the basque around the fold near #7 & #8



Step 3: Clip the seam open at #6 about 5/8" to allow the bottom edge of the bodice to turn up.   



Step 4: Fromt the outside, tuck the basque under the bodice edge and fold back over the postilion



Step 5: Pin the basque to the bodice along bodice edge 



Step 6: Clip horizontally to #9



Step 7: From the outside, arrange the baque so that it overlaps the front smoothly & pin in place. Match #10 first.  



Step 8: Sew from the clipped edge near #9 to #10. (view from the inside. Sorry about the overexposed pic.) 



Step 9: Sew the Basque to the bodice. There will still be an opening near the postilion. This will have to be closed by hand later. You may also have a small gap at #9. Hopefully this can be covered by the revers. Finally, from the inside, tuck the basque under the postilion pleat and pin in place just to keep things tidy during the rest of the sewing. 

Other construction notes

The rest of the garment went together smoothly. Here are some pictures of the current muslin. There are some clear fitting problems on the dress form, but I need to try it on me before I get all worried. My shoulders and neck are different than the dress form's. I also need to try it on with the skirt. Right now, it looks like it's gapping in the weird way at my low back, but that room might be required by the GIGANTIC BUSTLE on this skirt. 

Ageless Patterns 1016 #1

Ageless Patterns #1016 is a bodice from 1887. The original pattern size if a 37" bust and 24"waist, so I started by adding 4" just at the waist. 

Then I got help last craft day fitting just the bodice. I had to shorten the waist, like always, but I ended up taking back in much of the extra waist ease. Note to self: I might have to add some back in for multiple layers and boning. 

Here are fitting photos, with the awesome skirt!

I transferred the changes to the paper pattern, so next up: another muslin (this time, with sleeves... oooooohh aaaahhhh)

So. Many. Patterns.

All the patterns I ordered arrived yesterday. Gah!

It's all I can do to stay focused on getting the burgundy underskirt done. I started last night. The pattern is cut out and about 1/2 constructed. I'm going to try to finish it this morning. Then, I'll have to decide what to tackle next. I think I'll stick with skirts for awhile. Those are easier to fit by myself. I'll save the two bodices for when I have help.

Upcoming projects for Steampunk World's Faire 2012

Because, clearly, I don't have enough to wear...

On a recent fabric buying binge, I got fabric for three potential Victorian/Steampunk costumes. I went through my stash yesterday and I was please to see that I had some great accent fabric to compliment the two large bolts that I purchased (at an obscene discount).

First, a mourning outfit.

Yes, I know, I have sworn off all-black costumes, but this one will not be all black. It will be black and the Victorian mid-mourning color of purple. Hopefully, this will be enough of a contrast to sew, show, and photograph better.

Here is the fabric:

I have lots of the purple mystery fabric with the black reverse (which doesn't show up great in the close flash shot... hmm... something to test). It was billed as "antique satin" and I have no idea what that means.

The brighter purple is a double faced silk satin which I have had forever. Surely I can work that in somewhere. I have about 3 yards of that. Then I have I have about 2 yards of black dupioni and about 1/2 yard of silk-backed rayon velvet from another project (which I totally should have documented, but didn't).

For these fabrics, I will make a giant fancy skirt from Truly Victorian with the bolt of purple as the base fabric. This skirt will need to be supported by a bustle.

I'm going to start with the Laughing Moon trained bustle (upper right in the image below) and extend some of the bottom boning into full hoops and attach it to a skirt so that it works like TV's Grand Bustle (second image down). If I can't manage that quickly, I'll just buy the TV bustle pattern.

For the top, I am going to make a jacket from Ageless Patterns. It's got lots of places for extra trimmings, so I should be able to incorporate the four fabrics.

Second, a snazzy day dress

I also wanted to make something that could be worn out of doors, meaning no train. I've got some great tone-on-tone blue striped fabric that I bought on the fabric binge, and it turns out that it goes nicely with the left over burgundy silk from the Airship Hostess costumes from last year's SPWF. Hooray!

The top will primarily the blue with burgundy accents. I will make TV428:

The underskirt will be in the burgundy. I will make TV221, because it works, and I've already made the pattern. This time, I will NOT be adding the ruffle. It was much more difficult than it had any right to be last time.

Lastly, I will be making TV326 for the over skirt from the blue stripe (yes, stripe). I am hoping that I can get the stripes arranged so that they are not dizzying to look at. If the ARE dizzying to look at, I will start/join an Ivy Hissplepenny society and figure out how loud I can make a "matching" hat.

This outfit does not require a giant bustle, but I will probably use a bustle pad to support the heavy over skirt.

Sooooo... I should be busy between now and May.

Ageless Patterns 1912 Evening Gown #1362 -- Update #2

Fittings, and fittings, and fittings, and fittings...

I had my first fitting with a friend about 2 weeks ago (an forgot to take pictures, of course). The first finding was that the top fit pretty well. With just a few minor adjustments at the bust to correct for the fact that I was not wearing an Edwardian corset that tips the chest forward, I was satisfied. The shoulders fit surprisingly well, and I was concerned because this is sometimes a problem area for me.

On the other hand, the skirt is just a subtle disaster. It is cut an a fairly dramatic A-line, which was surprising, given how columnar the design sketch was. I have regraded hips on skirts before, but this correction is eluding me. Let's just say that I have now made the skirt 4 times. Bah! I have decided to wait to work on this any more until my mom comes for a visit and we can muddle through the problem together.

Here's the basic problem:

1) the hips are too wide and the flair of the skirt is too dramatic

2) when I pin out the excess, the changes to the draft lines look so strange and unwieldy that I become convinces they can't be right

The skirt should fall more or less straight down from the hips, with only a gently angle for walking ease. My redrafted lines seem to want to nip in too far, creating a trumpet skirt shape.

Just this morning, I took a close look at the lines from the Laughing Moon Titanic pattern, which actually does this, so maybe I'm not too crazy.

At this point, I just want to be sure that I am doing the right thing so I don't screw up the very expensive fabric that the final version will be made with.

And another thing...

And then we come to the skirt overlay. I am making my skirt overlay out of silk organza, which is sheer, but sturdy enough to support the trim; however, it is incredibly "springy" when gathered.

I was suspicious of the gathered over layer because gathers anywhere above my hips tend to give me a lumpy, dowdy look. This "stuffed potato" look tends to distract from the long sleek line of this dress.

I pinned on an over layer because I thought it might change the way the skirt was hanging and explain the overfull lines of the skirt.

The over layer does seem to keep the under layer more controlled, but the gathers were doing me no favors at all. In the picture above, I was on draft #2 of the skirt. Shortened in the hem was a good step, but I decided to go back to the original lines because I was convinced that I had done something wrong.

I had to use some slightly heavier scrap fabric because it was wide enough for the back skirt pattern.

WTF?!?! With the heavier fabric, most of the excess fullness was pulled to the back and the hip lines were waaaaay better. There was nothing for it. I finally had to admit that I was not going to get very far with this unexpectedly tricky alteration if I was working in fabric that had a significantly different drape than my final silk georgette. I rooted around in my stash until I found some left over silk from the Bat Costume. Since I have sworn off all-black costumes, I figured that I was safe to use this. As you can see in the photo below, the drape is pretty similar.

The hips were still too wide, but I decided to tack on the over layer to see if I really needed to bother with alterations. I used some silk organza for the over layer and tacked some heavy trim to the bottom to see if having some weight on the organza was enough to pull out some of the ballooning effect.

Looks like that's a no. The whole circumference that the high hip is still too much. I took out the excess and this is what we got:

This is looking better, but the under skirt may still be too full. Also, I kind of like the train effect at the back, I may keep it.

I too the trim off and did a little more smoothing of the over layer and got it looking pretty good:

This is when I tried adjusting the under layer again and chickened out, again. There are some good ideas in the works, but I will just have to wait for a second pair of trained eyes and hands to help me. Mom gets here in two weeks or so. More updates then.

Ageless Patterns 1912 Evening Gown #1362 -- Update #1

And so it begins...

Last night I decided it was time to start sewing the muslin. I had just gotten Coco Before Chanel in the mail from Netflix and decided that it was just the inspiration I needed to get started. Man, oh man, what a gorgeous movie for costumes from this era. Almost all of the movie focuses on the 1910's. Also a beautiful story and excellent acting. I recommend it.

So in my last post, I said that I was a little concerned about the directions that come with the pattern. They are translations from the original French, but it also seems that some new lining pieces have been drafted to the original pattern numbers referenced in the instructions no longer apply, so I've been winging it.

I made up the lining pieces first because those need to be fit before anything else can be fit over them. Fine.

There are three bodice lining pieces: a front with two deep darts, a side back, and a back. All pretty straight forward. I pieced them together, but they do not even come close to meeting in the center front. I was expecting this at the waist, but I am a very close match at the bust.

oddly enough, the back pieces are an almost perfect fit.

I fretted for awhile. Then I read the directions again and found this:

"THE BODICE IS LINED WITH FIGURES 1-3 AND ONE APPLIES TO THE FRONT LINING PIECE IN EMBROIDERED SILK AND ONE SEWS THE SLEEVE SEAMS"

oooookay...

Then it occurs to me that the bodice front piece (#12) is cut straight (presumably to accomodate the edge design on the original edged tulle. Anyway, I think, I wonder if the lining opening is meant to match up with straight bodice piece.

Oh... so that's not going to work:

Then I start to wonder if I need to lining bodice at all. I mean, by the time one adds the lapels and the front and back "plastrons" (the triangles in the front and back), the bodice should be pretty well covered.

If those 4 pieces were lined with the golden georgette and the lining fabric, there shouldn't be any real concern in terms of coverage. Here's the lapel piece pinned on top of the bodice.

A final concern

So my last concern is that there is no clear indication about how to handle openings for this garment. There is a slit in the skirt at the back waist, but there is nothing in the pattern instructions about how to attach the cross-over bodice pieces to the skirt to accomodate the opening.

I think that the closure is going to have to be handled with snaps or buttons at the back waist. Remember that the whole high waist area is going to be covered with some kind of belt. That belt can be used to cover a multitude of sins, but may also require some engineering.

The new plan

My new plan it to make this without the bodice lining pieces. The more I think about it, the most I think that they were added later. It may well happen that I soon find out why they were added, but for now, I'm going to see how things go without them.

Here is how I think the original pattern pieces were labeled:

Current piece Original Piece

12 (bodice) 1

9 & 10 (plastrons) 2 & 3

7 (skirt back) 4

6 (skirt front) 5

11 (lapel) 6

13 (cuffs) 7

8 (over skirt) 8

The additional pieces ( 3 lining bodice pieces, 2 lining sleeve pieces, 1 bodice under sleeve) seem to have been added later.

Let's see how far I can get with just the original pieces.