Middle Class: The Gown

Starting the pattern - muslin is pinned at the center back.

Our goal is to get the muslin lying smoothly around Janey's torso - as you can see, that's going to be a challenge!

Slowly, inch by inch, we get the muslin pinned in place

Stretch the fabric gently, until it is smooth with no excess, then push a pin in, working in 2" jumps.

Occasionally, you'll have to make cuts into the fabric to get it to lie smooth - otherwise, it bunches over the hip area.

These cuts are made up to about 1" below the waist line, from the bottom of the muslin straight up - don't try to follow the grainline.

Draw the line for the bottom of the bodice on the muslin. You can redraw, but it's hard to uncut!

The bottom of the bodice, trimmed with seam allowances.

Cutting around the armscye area - I always screw this bit up slightly. This time, I went lower that I wanted with the bottom of the armscye.

The completed front of the bodice.

The completed bodice, from the side.

The finished flat pattern - it looks almost like the ones in the costuming books! :)

The Bodice, inside out, without the curves clipped. See all that nasty wrinkling? Yuck.

Clipping the curves, but taking out little triangles.

The bodice, right side out.

A closeup of the front - notice how the pattern is running on the diagonal? Because of the way the one piece bodice is cut, the front lies on the bias. This makes stripey patterns look really neat, just like the phoenix dress.

The back of the bodice, with the pattern still on the straight.

The fabric pattern on the straps runs horizontal, instead of vertical, because of their placement in the pattern.

Overcasting the edge with small stitches to "neaten" it -- it's a permanent form of ironing.

The edge, half done - the neatened area (to the left) stays crisp instead of bagging out.

The edge on top has been completely neatened; the one on bottom, not at all.

Basting down the hook and eye tape: I line the tape for the eyes up edge to edge with the bodice edge on the hook side.

The tape is sewn down on both sides. Notice that you see no stitches on the outside - that would not have happened if I didn't know they were going to be covered anyway!

The bodice, hook and eyed shut over janey. There's a bit of a ridge where the tape is sewn down, but it will be covered later.

This is a seamstresses cat - he know's I'll have to pick him up if he's sleeping on top of the fabric bin! (That's a 17 gallon bin, if you're wondering about the size of the cat....)

The skirt lining, with a 6" wide double layer of 1/8" cotton quilt batting sewn along the top, at the seam allowance.

The cartridge pleats sewn in.

The process of attaching the skirt to the bodice - easily one of my least favorite tasks. Ugh.

I couldn't wait until I was finished sewing the skirt to the bodice - the skirt is half sewed, and half pinned directly to janey. But the batting makes it lie nicely!

Look, ma, no bum roll!!! No kidding. All of that poof comes from the padding in the pleats of the skirt!

Turning the fabric to make the front guards on the skirt.

Pinning up the fabric to make the bottom guard.

All guards sewn, from the front...

... and the side....

... and the back.

Drawing the front guards on muslin.

The cut bodice guard pattern.

The shape of the guard - you can see it tapers on both sides.

All of the guards - the skirt is sewn, and the bodice guards are made and pinned.

I plan to wear the skirt held up by a girdle. This is how it will look from the front...

... and from the side.

Last night, I drafted the pattern for the bodice. As it turns out, this process is a lot harder when you're also acting as your own director and photographer. (The voices weren't playing well.) This is the same style of bodice worn by Queen Elizabeth in the Phoenix portrait -- it's cut in a single piece. I've done this in the past, with my red noble from '99. It's actually a nice, easy pattern to draft. I'm hoping I didn't screw it up this time. ;) Last time I did it, I didn't have a dress dummy, so I was trying to draft it on myself, while wearing a corset. I seem to have miscalculated center back, and the resulting dress fit my sister better than it fit me. The glory of this pattern is that it results in a front that is cut on the bias (assuming that your waist and bust are not exactly the same), so I was able to stretch the darn thing to fit last time. This time, I'm rather hoping to avoid it. Anyway, the drafting process went something like this: pick a place to start -- I usually start drafting at the center back. Pin fabric along center back. Smooth fabric around to front. This sounds idiot simple. Bear in mind that the fabric will fight you on this one, as it is quite decidedly flat and all the same measurement all over, and the female form is not like that at all. Some stretching is involved. Janey (my dummy) stands on a pole which allows her torso to be rotated freely. A situation that would, I'm sure, be hilarious if I was watching it instead of living it ensued. After an epic struggle, I realized that I had no idea where my pins were. Found pins, started again. The trick (other that, "do not try to do this while holding a camera you fool") is to pin frequently. Smooth about 2" of fabric onto the dummy, then pin it. You will reach a point where the fabric just won't play any more, because it is too tautly stretched over the hip area. At this point, you'll want to start making a series of cuts up into the fabric, to about an inch below the waist level of the dummy. *Do*not* cut any underthings the dummy happens to be wearing. Ahem. I haven't done that in years, and I'm starting to get really worried about my luck running out. ;) Continue smoothing. At some point, you'll get to the front. Now, you'll want to draw the front waist line of the bodice onto the soon-to-be pattern. This will include the center drop. I determined last night that you should not use a glitter pen for this. If you are cutting seam allowances into the pattern, cut about a half inch outside this line, the cut the back of the muslin straight across, 1/2" below waist level. That's the bottom of your bodice. Cut the center front, straight up the center (or, 1/2" off center, if you're cutting in seam allowances) line of the dummy. Draw and cut the top edge of the bodice -- since I haven't gotten around to finishing my corset yet, I just cut along the top edge of the corset. I've taken to cutting a little stub of a strap on the bodice where the strap will attach lately - you can do that, or continue the cut of the bodice straight into the armscye. You will cut round the armpit area, being careful to leave seam allowances if you're doing that, then cut up along the back of the shoulder -- you're not cutting the outside edge of the strap. Peechy-keen, huh? Cut the strap long enough to reach the bodice, plus seam allowances if you're doing that. If you're unsure, cut it a bit long. It's easy to shorten. Now, you cut the inside edge of the strap, which continues around to become the top of the bodice in back. Drafting patterns on a dress dummy is a lot like drawing with scissors, when it comes down to it. Incidentally, you're done now. :)

I cut and sewed the bodice the night before last, while waiting for a friend to show up at the house. The whole process took about 7.5 minutes (including time to change my machine needle) and was, on the whole, mercifully unexciting. I couldn't come up with anything in that process to take pictures of. I mean, it's not precisely rocket surgery or anything -- 1) Use pattern to cut fabric. Use pattern (which has convenient seam allowances) as lining, thus avoiding all the bother of cutting a lining. 2) Put fabric and lining together, right side to right side. 3) Sew around edges, leaving center back bottom open so that you can turn the bloody thing later. Do Not sew the edges of the straps shut. 4) Stand up and open the door for friend who arrived with awe inspiring timing. I mean, that's like, it, and most of you will probably find step 4 to be optional. This is as plain jane and basic as a bodice can get, for initial construction. (But, wait, missa, doesn't the design sketch have trim and stuff on it? Well, yes, smarty pants, but that is going on later. That's the clever bit.) I did cut my seam allowances down to like, a sixth of an inch or so, at the bottom of the armscye (where I goofed the cutting) and on the straps (which I realized I had completely forgotten to put a seam allowance onto).

I did all of the neatening up of the bodice last night, which required roughly 20 minutes of effort, with picture taking time. The first thing I did was to pin the bodice onto janey to make sure it would fit. That's always a worry. I took a picture, so show the nasty wrinkling that you get from a bodice being a mere 1/2" too long. Yikes! Fortunately, in this case, that 1/2" is the seam allowance, and it will end up safely tucked inside the bodice. After that, I started clipping the seam allowance. Any time you're working with curved seams (bodices, sleeves, the hem of a gored skirt, etc etc), you should really clip the seams. On a curve seam, the seam allowance is always has an edge that is either shorter (armscye and neckline seams) or longer (everything else) than the seam. That means that the seam allowance will either pull the seam into hideous wrinkles (too short, aka armscyes) or ruffle inside and make the edge of the garment bulky (too long - everything else). Either way, it's icky looking. Technically, you're supposed to just take little snips a the too short seam allowances, and take little triangles out of the too long ones (reduces bulk). If you're me, there's a really haphazard thought process that involves whether or not you feel like making little triangles, whether or not you can remember if this is the right kind of seam for little triangles, how soon you must have this done (little triangles take twice as long), and whether or not you think anyone will notice if you skip the fricking little triangles. Since I was going seriously photohappy, I figured I'd make little triangles. The little triangles always look more impressive, I think. I ended up with a lapfull of little triangle droppings by the time I was done. I'm so glad I took the carpet downstairs up. :) As it turns out, this was the right kind of curve for them after all. Your goal, whether you're snipping or making little triangles, is to cut to about 2 threads shy of your seam. *Under*now*circumstances* should you actually *cut*the*seam*. That's bad. Trust me. I used to do it all the time. I just bought a pair of the ultra spiffy fiskers razor sharp scissors (grey handle), and they worked amazingly well for this. I have no idea how long they will stay razor sharp. I'm hoping there's some sort of magic involved that will keep the sharp for ever and ever. Yeah, right. And there's a scissors fairy, too.... Anyway, I then turned the bodice right side out, and pinned it to janey. I took a couple close ups to illustrate something really neat about the one piece, "phoenix" type bodice. The fabric I was using has a vertical pattern too it. Because the front of the bodice is cut on the bias, the pattern appears to run diagonally at the front. (This is, incidentally, what we like to call "slimming".) The back, which was cut on the fold, shows the pattern still running straight. Due to the way the straps come almost straight out from the top of the bodice, the pattern on them ends up running horizontal! This is definitely something to keep in mind when working with this pattern - it will make your stripes go wonky. I wouldn't recommend using it with a horizontal stripe, which will end up on a downward diagonal in front, which, according to the fashionably aware, makes your bust look smaller and your waist look wider. Personally, I really prefer things the other way round, how 'bout you?

I really meant to finish the dress construction over the weekend. Then again, I also meant to write this diary update yesterday. It's been a good week for good intentions, so far, but a lousy week for results. I did manage to dedicate a few hours of saturday to sitting on the couch with some of the handsewing for this project (roughly 1.5 hours was spent sewing.... Another 3 hours was spent alternately petting, shooing, photographing, and serving in my natural human role as kitty furniture.) One of my topmost goals in life is to spend as much of my saturdays in my pajamas as possible. I think it's good for the soul. Handsewing and cats are both ideal saturdays-in-my-pjs activities. Unfortunately, what I was actually doing was neatening the front bodice edges and sewing down hook and eye tape. Crucial, but slightly less exciting than discussing the finer points of particle physics with a drunken martini olive. (Really, I'm not convinced there are any sober martini olives.)

As I've recently been called out on my apparent allergy to paragraphs, I'm pointedly inserting a new one at this juncture. "Neatening the edges" is a term you hear a lot in tailoring. Quite honestly, I have no idea what it technically means. I mean, the phrase really sort of implies some action that makes edges neater, but I've no idea how this is normally accomplished. I'm taking a bit of literary privilege, and promoting my own theory on this one. When I say that I've neatened the edges, what I mean is that I have turned the garment right side out (if it wasn't already), fussed with the edge seams until the stitch line is actually at the edge, instead of sulking about somewhere inside the garment, and overcast it with *very*tiny* stitches -- about 5 threads in from the seam is sufficient. This very permanently sets the edge nice and crisp, and leaves you with the happy knowledge that you will never have to iron it. That's a very big win in my world. For the record, in spite of some really intense liver cleansing herbs that seem to have wiped out most of my allergies, I remain completely allergic to irons. They give me weeping hives.

I love hook and eye tape. It costs somewhere around 6$ per yard if you can find it on a roll somewhere (Vogue Fabric in Evanston, IL carries it -- it's in the trim room, by the velcro). I rather doubt that it qualifies as a period choice, but hooks and eyes are period, and that makes it close enough in my book. Applying hook and eye tape so it won't gap is a special art, and I wouldn't say that I've gotten it down pat yet. The theory goes something like this: you're going to do a lot of basting. Baste the hook side down first (the hook side of the tape does *not* go down touching the fabric, and the hooks themselves point away from the edge), with the edge of the tape approximately 1/8" from the edge of the fabric. Alternately, you can keep the the two pieces of the tape together while you baste, and line the edge of the eye side of the tape up with the edge of the hook side of the bodice. (If that made no sense, stick with the 1/8" guideline.) Once the hook side is down, attach the eye side to the other side of the closure, with the tape lining up right with the edge of the closure (this will leave the eyes hanging off of it a bit). Again, this should be basted. It is very very important for the hooks to line up with the eyes, or the garment will be crooked. Once both sides are basted and you have checked to make sure that the thing will close correctly, sew around the tape (both long sides) securely. I use something of a sloppy hand blind stitch. In this case, since I am going to be covering the edges of the bodice with appliqued trim, I went through the outer layer of fabric as well as the lining, and the finished result was much better. Normally, I only stitch through the lining. Technically, applying hook and eye tape is not difficult. There are a couple tricks - namely, line the eyes up an eighth inch inside the edge, make sure everything lines up, and stitch through the outer fabric if possible.

I really meant to do a lot more work over the weekend. I did. I don't know what happened. I went to the fabric store to pick up some cotton quilt batting for hem stiffening (huh? Don't worry, I'll explain it as soon as I use it), got sidetracked trying to find a good fabric to make a curtain for the front door, then I had to go to the book store and make sure they didn't have any new books on any topic I could possibly be interested in (that's a lot of sections to check!) and have a nice cup of coffee since I was out of milk at home, then I had to go to the grocery store and get more milk for home, and somewhere in there, it dawned on me that I would feel much more inspired about my sewing if I dyed my hair. (My hair is a yard and a half long. Dying it is not really a quick project. I'm going back to the Feria dyes, I swear. This is a disappointingly subtle shade... :( ) Then I had to read a book. It was a moral imperative. Sunday was a complete loss in the sewing department as well. The moral of the story here, and this is very important, is that any sewing project can be accomplished quickly, but only if you're really in the mood to do so. I was clearly not. It happens.

It became clear to me last night that Cinderella's little singing, sewing mice were not planning on coming to finish my sewing any time in the near future. I started working on the skirt. I've been agonizing for literally weeks about this skirt. On one hand, I would really rather like to make it gored, because that seems to be more period. On the other hand, I would like to make the guarding at the bottom by turning up the skirt lining to the outside which, frankly, looks like a legitimate short cut. The two possibilities are directly at odds with each other -- gored skirts have curved hemlines, and turning up the lining to make the guard will only work with a straight hem. Last night, laziness triumphed, backed by the thought that if I don't do *something*, this blasted dress will never, *ever* get done. The skirt is your standard, idiot simple variety. It's made of two panels each of outer and lining fabric, each cut about 8" too long so I have room to do my turning and hemming. (I have oodles and oodles of both of them. If you are running short on your yardage, more math is advisable.) The grey fabric is wider than the blue grosgrain, but I figure I can cut it down later when I do all the turnings. I wasn't really in much mood for fussing with math. I've been more than just a little suspicious of numbers lately - I get that way as tax season nears. I spent a few weeks earlier in the year doing some experimenting, trying to come up with a period technique for getting fullness into the pleats of a skirt that did *not* involve a bumroll. (Check over here for more info on that.) A good, working means, that seems to be described in tailor's warrants of the elizabethan era is to "stuff" or "pad" the pleats with wool or cotton. (Note: I say "seems to be described". Tailor's warrants, unfortunately, were not written with a mind that some poor fool would be looking to them for construction information 500 years later. They are more like a detailed supply list with some specifics of the design than anything. But they do definitely talk about pleats being padded out with wool or cotton, so I thought I might try it.) The results on my test dress were encouraging, so I decided to pad out the pleats in this gown as well. What I've done is to attach a 6" wide strip, composed of two layers of 1/8" thick cotton quilt batting, just inside the seam allowance at the top of the skirt. I've left about 10" of the finished skirt width on either side of the center front split free of the batting, as I don't want to add bulk to the parts of the skirt that will be flat pleated over my tummy. While tummy fat can be adorable, it would really rather defeat the point of the corset. The padding does two things for the skirt: firstly, it adds enough bulk that you get nice, lusciously rounded pleats when you cartridge pleat the top of skirt, even when you're using piddly little 1" pleats, like I was. Secondly, it adds an amazing amount of stiffening to the top of the skirt, causing it to want to stand almost straight out and *stay*that*way*, falling off in a gentle curve. You can see the results in the pictures off to the side. I think it comes closer to the nicely rounded look of period skirt pleats in portraits than any other technique I've tried, and it certainly *looks* like there's a bum roll under there! (I'm hoping it will deflate a little when worn, actually.) I'll spare you the details on the sewing of the skirt and the cartridge pleating -- it's spectacularly boring. (If you need info on how to make cartridge pleats, check the Gold Silk Noble diary.) I also started stitching the skirts to the bodice. I find this really spectacularly tedious, and it makes my hands cramp up faster than anything else I do, so I quit slightly shy of half way done and played dress up with janey. ;)

I'm a little late on updates again. I apologize. I've been busy (although, mostly, i've been playing at decorating my house. It's a little more difficult to get to your sewing when the spontaneous "just one thing first" involves finding the perfect shade of neutral chartreuse and painting the stairway and upstairs hall, or taking down paneling, or, well, any project that involves the potential for a trip to the hardware store.) Anyway, here's some catch-up:

For those of you who don't know, Old Man Winter was a little oversceduled this year, and couldn't be bothered to make it to IL until march. The month started with a series of blizzards and got worse from there. When 18" of snow lands on top of your car, there are really only two sane things to do: drink and sew. So I got some mead and started working on the skirt. I finished the cartridge pleating, then started working on the guards. In the spirit of doing things differently, I decided to cut the front edges of the skirt on an angle, so that they can't possibly fall closed on me. (I'm still not sure how well I like the overall effect, but that's another matter.) The guards, in this case, are made by the expedient means of turning back (or up) any excess fabric, and sewing the turnback to the main skirt. The guards are "stuffed" with the excess fabric. That worked out surprisingly well. The extra fabric provides gives the guards more stiffness than they would have had, without too much bulk (they still look flat), and without moving in an appreciably different way that the rest of the skirt fabric. The blue guards are simply lining fabric. (This would be an easy, decorative way to shorten a skirt if it was handed on to a younger child or shorter servant.) All of the sewing was done by hand, because I didn't want machine stitches showing on the turnback when the skirt is girdled up. That's more handwork than I'm used to. Between that and having to shovel the next day, I was in a world of pain....

The bodice guards were made as finished, appliqued pieces. I first made the pattern, in my normal highly technical way - I pinned muslin to the front of the bodice (while it was on janey) and kinda sketched what I wanted the guard to look like. Then I cut the guards, using this pattern, and cut a double thickness of quilt batting to stiffen them with. Getting the batting into the guards once they are sewn is a bit of a trick, but I got it in there and all flat with a knitting needle. I pinned the guards on the bodice, and found out that the guard on the left front side of the skirt was about a half inch wider than the guard on the right front side of the skirt -- so it doesn't line up right with the bodice guard! Oopsies.... I'll fix that, eventually. The bodice guards extend slightly above the top of the bodice, and takes care of the fact that the over gown bodice and the kirtle bodice maybe don't *exactly* match up... I will be putting bits of fur trim on the bodice guards before sewing them down.

Design Concept

The Underpinnings

The Kirtle

The Gown

The Sleeves