Sewing a cotton ribbon on a Regency straw hat

I finally received after a year a cotton ribbon to place on my straw hat, for more safety during windy days on reenactment field.
I opted for grosgrain (which is less rich than satin for a working class woman) in the color white for a summery feeling. 
I secured the ribbon with oversewing stitches, very discreet to the eye. 

Some quick pictures now !

Here's the final result, I admit at this state I didn't finish sewing it but you can see how the final result looks like ! I hope you all liked it :)

Until next time ;)

1940s striped dress - PART 2 : Almost finished

Yes, the 1940s striped dess is almost done ! I am very pleased over all with how it looks and how it falls when I'm wearing it, I think using period pattern makes all the difference ! And I also made a second one from a cotton coupon I used for my regency day gown you can see here .

I just have now to find some beautiful 1940s buttons and also zippers for closure.

This dress was very easy to make, the pattern instructions were very clear and what I like that most is that it is from 1940 so the shape of the dress can't be more accurate. I recommand using period patterns for a total accuracy.

I'll rather be wearing the first one to stay at home, on lazy days. I forgot to take pictures of the belt, but new ones will be done once buttons and zippers are placed.

 A good iron is required but I didn't have the time yet to do so.. that's bad !!!

And my favourite one !! 

That's all so far, hope you all like it ! ;)

Making a 1800 Short Gown

My dress wouldn't be complete without a short gown of the period, so here it is !

I've done research as usual before starting anything, first of all searching for authentic pieces for inspiration. I found these ones I liked :

 Shortgown, 1790s - 1810s.

Amsterdam Museum, 1800s.

 Netherlands, 1800s.

For pattern I sticked with Janet Arnold's "Morning dress c.1798 - 1805", I already used it on my previous gowns which can be seen here  and I modified the front pieces using this pattern found on pinterest : 

I used white heavy cotton fabric, and opted for a front opening tied under the bust and also up the breast. The sleeves are simple and straight, I first wanted to go for curved ones like spencer sleeves, but I admit it I was too lazy to figure out how to make them fit onto this bodice.
Everything is handsewn as always, I didn't get the chance to take my sewing machine with me to Paris so I do it the old way, and it's historically accurate so that's fine for me!

I didn't take pictures of the process, I did this short gown in a hurry because I have less than 20 days to make a French Napoleonic uniform to my boyfriend, and entirely handsewn so I apologize for the lack of "under progress" photos.

Overall I hope you all liked it, I did my best and experienced at the same time, taking risks since it's the first one I ever made.

Until next time !

1795s - 1800s coif

A quick post to update on my 1800s working outfit, today I finish the coif !

It is in thin cotton, and I have used this wondeful tutorial by Art beauty and well-ordered chaos, it has been so helpful and it worked right away! I am very pleased with how the coif turned out.
I now have to add a ribbon, and it's ready for reenacting.

Until next time :)

1940s striped dress - PART 1 : Pattern and fabric.

Spring is here and I have envies of 1940s clothing. I found a pretty coupon of striped fabric in Paris for only 5€ and when I've seen it I instantly imagined an early 40s dress made of it.

I did some research about striped dresses of that period,  to have an idea of how it will look and I found pretty things!

Here are my 3 favourites :

I will be using an authentic pattern I bought on etsy a year ago, I've never used it before so I don't know how it looks in real once the dress is finished.

On this picture you can see the true color of the fabric I bought, as a redhead green is my color to go with!

And here is the pattern I will be using.

Tomorrow I will be cutting into the fabric and maybe start sewing if time allows me to. 

That's all for now :)

1805 Provençal cretonne dress and new shoes!

I've been spending a lot of time on pinterest lately, searching for fashion plates and I have to say I found quite a lot of nice ones. I had the idea of provençal regency clothing because I play a provençal washerwoman at reenactment. I knew there was specific 18th century clothing from that province of France, but ignored that in fact there was 19th century too.

It is characterized by a fabric called cretonne, which is a strong cotton cloth with a very specific print such as this :

A close-up for a better view of the print:

And here are my two favourite fashion plates I found on Pinterest :

 

Amsterdam, 1807.

 

Washerwomen, one of them is wearing a provençal cap. 

I will be making the red dress and the blue spencer as seen on the plate above.

For the dress, I'm using as always the bib-front pattern from Janet Arnold from her "Patterns of fashion" with some alterations, since I am sewing a working class dress there won't be a train and also short simple sleeves.

So far, I finished the bodice and have attached the back of the skirt to the bodice. Everything is handsewn so it takes a lot of time to make, but I prefer it instead of machine stitches which I find breaks a lot easier.

I also bought regency looking shoes from amazon, and I love them, they're perfect for a working class lady. The shipping was very fast, I received them in a week, and also the price is very interesting! I ordered the brown ones, but I will definitely buy more shades.
You can purchase them here :

http://www.amazon.com/Ollio-Womens-Comfort-Pointed-Oxford/dp/B00GXMEC8A/?ref=pd_sbs_shoe_21&ie=UTF8&refRID=19TYMTPVSNH1FTTRJYNH

And here are some pictures :

The back finished. The lighting makes it look pink, but in real it is red.

That's all for now, until next time ;)

Regency day dress - Finished and ready for reenactment !

Finally, some pictures of the dress ! It's all finished and ready for reenactment, I'm so excited I can't wait !

     

Janet Arnold's pattern for this dress is amazing, I highly recommend it! Everything was perfect from the first try, no alterations needed !

Next will be making a petticoat, a spencer for the cold nights, buying a pair of regency boots and also a straw hat to be protected from the sun.