It’s true when you look at photographs from the 1800s or observe antique dresses on custom-made mannequins it’s not hard to envy those petite waistlines. Do you do this? This perception usually leads to the generic thought: “Teeny, tiny waists are what women strived for back then. Everyone wanted an 18″ waist!” But did they?… Read More...
A Controversial Red Dress
Last month there was all of this kerfuffle going on about the new Simplicity pattern released, designed by American Duchess, and inspiration taken from “The Red Dress” seen in Outlander, Season 2 designed by Terry Dresbach. I thought I’d share my rambling ideas on this [apparently] controversial sewing pattern. Read More...
Flatlining 19th Century Sleeves
Flatlining – or the process of mounting an underlining to a fashion fabric – is a hallmark of garment construction in the 19th century. You find it everywhere in all decades of this era – in bodices, skirts, collars, reticules… and also sleeves. Essentially, flatlining in these antique pieces is what we’d call putting in a Read More...
Tracing Paper Patterns
Save the original pattern! It is generally suggested in the sewing world that you copy that precious, new paper pattern you recently received and are getting ready to sew with. This is so you keep the original intact. I would agree – about 80% of the time. Read More...
Seam Finishes for 19th Century Garments
If you’re like me, as you sew up a garment you wonder how you’ll finish the raw edges of the seams. You know I cheat on nearly all my historical projects by serging the exposed raw edges. But what if you don’t have a serger? Or don’t want to use something so modern as a zig-zag Read More...
Divide & Conquer Pleating Method
In many historical costuming instances you’ll need to pleat up a length of fabric to fit another. Most commonly it’s a skirt to a waistband. However, this can be anything really. A sleeve cap to a bodice. Length of trim to an overskirt. A curtain to a bonnet neck edge. A lot of times a Read More...
30 Days of Sharing Historical Costuming
Happy Happy New Year!! May it bring many blessings and new challenges in your creative projects. As a way to get our creative imaginations flowing, I’ve made a list of concepts relating to historical fashion and sewing to prompt the sharing of ideas we can use to spur on our projects for this new year. Yay! 🙂 Read More...
Selecting Color Palettes for Your Historical Costumes
You look fabulous in red. Or purple may make your heart sing. But green is calling to you recently. In all the colors we have to play with in creating our historical costumes, how do you decide what to use? What shades are complimentary to each other? Will they “look period”? And how do you Read More...