theladyrebecca | Entries tagged with dickens dress

I had an amazing time at the Victorian Festival in Port Townsend this weekend! My boyfriend and I stayed in a Victorian hotel right on the main street in the town. We took the ferry over on Friday morning, stopped to see Port Gamble on the way up, and arrived in Port Townsend about 2pm. We got all dressed up, and then explored a little through the town. The official stuff started with the sing-a-long and pub crawl that evening. The pub crawl was especially fun - the main place we went to was this tiny basement level bar that had a packed dance floor and an awesome swing music band. Fun to dance to in a bustle!

On Saturday morning, I attempted to watch the parade (except apparently it happened 15 minutes early!), then looked at a couple exhibits and bought a late 1890s bodice at an antique store (for only $18!). Then we headed up the giant staircase to uptown, and went to the Rothschild House museum, which was built in 1868. After, we headed out to Fort Worden to take a quick tour of the Commanding Officer's Quarters, which I believe was built in 1905. We checked out a couple of the workshops, and then Sean headed to watch a gun demonstration, while I made my way to the Fashion show. It was a bit disappointing - though there were a few very nice repros and several antique gowns, there was also a fair amount of poly satin... Yikes. Afterwards, we dressed for the ball, and headed out to dinner and dancing. The ball was so much fun! We missed the first hour because our dinner service was sooo slow, but still caught a few waltzes, and the contra dancing was way more fun anyway. Unfortunately, we didn't stop to take any pictures in our evening attire, so I still have no pics of my new cloak, But here are the rest of the pics, including the new hat and bonnet. The whole set can be found on flickr.

This morning, we caught the ferry back, and I went back to work. But overall, it was a fantastic weekend, my BF had a wonderful time at his first costuming event, and it was a great way to spend both our birthdays. :)

I don't feel like I was all that productive this year, probably since the early candy bustle wound up taking up soooo much of my time, but I did make a fair bit leading up to CosCol.

( Pictures under the cut. )

My goals for 2012 were:
-a black knee length skirt. I didn't make one, but I bought one!
-the 1869 Pink Candy Striped Early Bustle Gown. Completed!
-Titanic gown. I started one, but I never finished it. The skirt is done, and the bodice is partially done. Now it's languishing as a ufo.
-Teens-era corset. Completed!
-Ballgown bodice for my black and gold plaid Dickens dress. Completed!
-Late Victorian jacket for my mom. She decided she wanted an Edwardian one instead. I've fitted the mockup to her, but haven't actually started the final jacket.
-Late Victorian bathing suit. Completed!
-18th c Robe a la Turque. Not for 2012, but I've finally started it!
-18th c quilted petticoat. Completed!
-1780s-style red wool Riding Habit. Started, but not yet finished.
-18th c red wool cloak. Nope, not yet.
-a Victorian waistcoat for my dad for Dickens. Nope, but I'll do it this year!
-18th c mitts. Nope.
-Regency corset. I didn't get into the CosCol class last year. We'll see if I can manage one on my own before this year's CosCol.
-Regency day dress. Nope.
-Regency overgown. Nope.

Overall, not too bad.

For quite some time, I've wanted to make a ballgown bodice to go with my black and gold plaid skirt that I made for Dickens Fair two years ago. Luckily, I had almost a yard of the fabric that I've saved for that purpose. Considering I knew my Candy Bustle dress would be daywear, and therefore, inappropriate for the gala, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to make it (you know, other than all those Gaskell balls I always wanted to go to, but never actually made it to while I lived in CA).

I didn't have much time, since I started less than two weeks before CosCol, but I managed to pull it together, and I like the end result. The overskirt is pleated directly to the bodice, which laces up the back. A lot of handstitching went into the bodice, since the bertha is almost entirely handsewn, plus the binding, and all the pickups, flowers, and hems of the overskirt are handsewn. I also had to handsew the overskirt to the bodice.

I wore it over the cage crinoline and petticoat that I made for the Candy Bustle, plus my corset and a modern camisole (whose straps had to be pinned down below the bodice to keep them from showing). I couldn't find any good shoes for it last minute, so I just wore my ballet flats. I paired it with a tiara from ebay, and vintage gloves I found at Value Village, and stuck leftover flowers in my hair. It was a lot of fun to wear, since we decided to not to the gala food, and instead went over to the mall and ate in the Italian restaurant there. Navigating the hoops through the mall and restaurant were quite comical, and I had to sit waaay far forward in my chair. But it was so worth it, and I plan to skip the gala food next year as well. We did go back to dance and chat afterwards.

First two photos by DA Sandoval, second two by Andrew Schmidt

I hand-sewed for app 10 hours today. Which might explain my massive migraine and the holes in multiple fingers. All three of my hems are done for the ballgown. The front pleats of the bertha are tacked (still have to tack the pleats in the back). And the snaps and hooks and eyes are on the bertha to let it close at the shoulder. I also took in all three of the waistbands on the Jane skirts.

On the to-do list for tomorrow (besides working for 6+ hours) is to finish tacking the bertha pleats, press my hems, sew the pick-ups in the overskirts, tack flowers over pick-ups, stitch elastic to my ballet shoes for the bathing suits, and make a headband for the edwardian bathing suit. That feels like a lot.

I am definitely experiencing sewing fatigue. The bertha is fully attached to the bodice (though I want to tack down the pleats in a few more places). I stitched the overskirt to the bodice, and in doing so, made several holes in my finger with the back of the needle. That fabric is woven waaaayy too tightly. Ouch. Still needs pressing, but the waist is done. And I pinned the hem of the skirt, and started pinning the hems of the overskirts. I still need to figure out how I want to rig up the snaps or hooks to close the bertha (I didn't want to close it center back, so I'm going to have it lap over on one side and close on the shoulder). It's looking pretty decent, considering how much of a last minute project this has been. I just really really need to finish it completely tomorrow. It also still needs the pickups done and the flowers tacked over them.

I worked for 10 hours today, so I didn't get much sewing done, but I finished stitching the lace to the bertha, and I started stitching the bertha to the bodice. I got a little more than 1/4 of it stitched down, though another quarter will be attached to the bodice with snaps and hooks (so technically I guess I'm about 1/3 done with it!)

As I figured, I didn't get much done today. I managed to redo setting the sleeves, so that there's not nearly as much bulk in the armseye now. I think it will fit much better. And the bertha is now about 1/3 stitched (and when it's done, I have to stitch the whole thing to the bodice). I also undid the old hem on the skirt (or rather, both old hems, since it was first hemmed to my old hoops length, and then hemmed up again to be worn without the hoops), and started pinning the hem in place for the new length. And I draped the overskirt pleats in place on Antoinette, so I have to take that off and stitch those to the bodice as well. I'm starting to feel a whole ton of pressure for Costume College, which is not good, since I work 4 out of the 5 days left before I leave!

Oh, and since I haven't had any time to post pictures, I guess this means this is now my secret gala project. Except not really. :)

I bound my ballgown bodice today, and finished the sleeves. I'm not sure I'm in love with them, though, and now I'm worried that the armholes are going to be too tight (apparently I didn't take into account all the width that would be added by one layer of gathered fabric and two layers of gathered lace). I haven't actually tried it all the way on since I finished, though, so I guess I shouldn't worry about it yet. And I doubt I'll have much (if any) time to sew tomorrow. The next goal is to finish and attach the bertha. :)

Somehow, I feel like I accomplished nothing today. But really, I sewed together the bertha, ruffled a ton and a half of lace (two tiers - 6" and 8" each - for the sleeves, and one 3" super long one for the bertha), pinned and got 1/4 the way through sewing the lace ruffle to the bertha, and am about halfway done with the binding on the top of the bodice. Oy. I was really hoping to finish this by tomorrow night. Looks like that's not going to happen!

All the eyelets are done, and the boning channels are in and boned. I've made the body of the sleeves, but I think I want to go buy some net to stuff in them, since it seems like they want to collapse right now. I'm also trying to decide how to decorate the sleeves. I know I want at least one lace ruffle over the puffed sleeve, but I think I might do two. And the bertha is cut out and pleated. And the neighbors downstairs are complaining (again) about me sewing past 10pm. Sorry guys, but you're not going to get your wish till after CosCol!

I had a nice sewing day today. The two layers of skirts for the ballgown are almost done - they just need to be pleated onto the bodice (which I can't do until the bodice is finished) and hemmed, and have the pick-ups stitched in place. And I'm waiting on an order of black fabric roses to come in, which will be tacked over the pick-ups in the skirt. I sewed the two tiers of the skirt together at the top, so I can manipulate them as one.

The bodice also now has facings, so tomorrow, I hope to put all the eyelets in. And assuming the fit is still right, I'll put the boning channels in right after. And I have my sleeve and sleeve liner cut out and serged. I want to put those on tomorrow, too, and I'll be adding a couple layers of ruffles lace over the puffed sleeve. After that, it's pretty much just the bertha and the binding on the bodice, and the project will be done! :)

My serger arrived today, two whole days early! Which is really wonderful, since I'm off the next two days. :) And so far so good! I serged all my bodice pieces, and it's working wonderfully. At this point, all my bodice pieces are together, though I think I'll need to do a facing for the back (since I'm making the crazy and probably stupid decision to be historically accurate, and lace this bodice up the back).

I've also looked into how the skirts were attached (since no one responded yesterday), and it looks like a lot of the skirts were attached directly to the bodice, so that's what I plan to do. I'm basing my overskirts off the pattern for the ballgown in Cut of Women's Clothes.

I did lots of little sewing bits today, which makes me feel like I kind of did nothing... But I finished off the sleeves on the candy bustle underbodice, and put the last bar on the overskirt, which means that everything I needed to do for the early candy bustle project is finished! There's still stuff I'd like to do for it (like bind the bottoms of the bodices, and put hooks and eyes all around the waists so nothing rides up or down on me), but that stuff is not entirely necessary.

I also took in the seams of the Jane bodice today (4" at the waist!), and tried on all the skirts. Which means I now need to move a ton of hooks and eyes on there, since they're all too big as well.

And for the ballgown, I went out and bought more cable ties, and draped up the overskirt(s). Since I'm not very familiar with ballgowns of this era, does anyone know if the overskirts were attached directly to the bodice, following those deep points, or were they just made as a normal skirt? In any case, I'm very happy with how it looks so far. And I'm super tempted to make it have a train... Which I know would be a bad idea.

Oh, and speaking of the gala, would anyone who is not planning on attending the food portion (I was so not impressed last year) like to go out to eat somewhere in costume?

I made the hat for my candy bustle dress today.

I also bought the twill to line my ballgown bodice, and cut that out. It's amazing how much quicker I can cut out those pieces when I'm not trying to match plaids. :)

I tried on my Jane bodice today, since I've lost some weight since fall, and I need to take it in at least a good 3-4"! I've only lost maybe 1.5-2", but I also now have a new corset that really helps with the reduction.

I also cut out all the pieces for the ballgown bodice, meticulously matching all that plaid. Though of course, there's only so much I can do to match the plaid on a princess-seamed bodice. I hope it worked! Unfortunately, I realized I'm out of the duck I planned to flat-line it with. And I have no more cable ties for boning. So I have to go run out and buy stuff. Plus my new serger isn't due to get here till Monday. I think in the mean time, I'll go ahead and take in Jane, and try to finish out the trimmings on the candy bustle bodice.

I made the ballgown bodice mockup today, and it got me thinking - how did the Victorians deal with those low, off the shoulder necklines? I feel like all the Victorian chemises I've seen have relatively high necks, and somewhat wide straps. And certainly, that's the kind of Victorian chemises and corset covers that I have. So what did they wear underneath?

I'm thinking about creating some business postcards, since I would like to really get into creating costumes to sell to other people, but I don't really know what I should put on them. Thus, if anyone an help me, I'm going to post pictures of what I think are my best projects, and if you can all vote on what should go on there, that would be really helpful. Unfortunately, I don't have about half the costumes with me right now, so I'm not able to retake pictures of any but the 17th c gown, the medieval, the navy ren gown, and the chemise a la reine (and it would involve finding someone to take the pictures, since I know the bathroom mirror ones aren't particularly professional).