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A fair number of historical costumers I’ve talked with have no problem when it comes to sewing a dress for an upcoming event. They can get the right pattern. And they’ve got the routine down of selecting fabrics. Despite the fitting challenges, after some hard work they manage to produce a creation they love. Then… The Read More...
Being Safe in the Wilds of the Sewing Room
Do Not Try This At Home The deadline was approaching. The annual Costume College was the next weekend, and I was desperately trying to finish my costume for the Gala. You know the panic. I had a narrow ¼” seam allowance with several fat layers of fabric under my presser foot to stitch on the Read More...
The Biggest Mistake Costumers Make
Reproducing historical costumes is a heavy task. We work and labor; we finagle and cry; we bleed and curse and cause our family to wonder why we do this crazy stuff for something we’ll display to the world once or twice. It’s because we’re chasing after that elusive goal of hearing: “Wow! You look like Read More...
How to Calculate Yardage for Ruffles
Ruffles are SO Victorian! You see them on so many skirts from the 1830s all the way through the early 1880s. But how do you figure how much fabric you’ll need for these fluffy strips of trim? 1 yard? 5 yards? Here is the easy formula for you… Read More...
Wonder How Much That Costume is Worth?
I sort receipts for a living. For real. As a bookkeeper I have to sort through someone’s crumpled, sticky, torn, estrogen-mimicking receipts so they can be recorded. Piles and piles of receipts. And they all come to me stuffed into a gallon size Ziploc bag. I save the fun for slow work days…. Makes me wonder…. How Read More...
When Victorian Meets a Dystopian Future
I’m pretty much a cut and paste historical costumer. I mean, if I’m making a 1830 dress, then I stick to a late ’30s design. I don’t mesh styles. I don’t make a dress with a bustle and leg o’ mutton sleeves just because (As if! That’s saved for the Barbie outfits.) So what in Read More...
How to Apply Boning to Darts
You may have read a recent article I wrote on boning in bustle bodices. How you HAVE to have boning to keep the shape of bodice in place. Yes. You do. Well, Frank asked the question about just how one applies boning to the front waist darts. “Do you encase the bone in the dart, Read More...
The Red Dress: 1883 Caramel Apple Dress
Here is my finished bustle at its debut at Costume College 2012! It all started last December with the idea that I needed a “quick” bustle dress. (yeah, right!) Then I was on this kick that I HAD to have a red costume. Because every woman needs a red dress… you know. 🙂 Well, the “quick” part Read More...