Perhaps you’ve been thinking about how to incorporate your love of historical fashion with your everyday lifestyle but find it challenging to wear a bustle dress to your weekly grocery store outing. You are not alone! So many of us in the historical costuming community have – for years! – been trying to add those Read More...
Tag: Bonnets & Hats
Year in Review: Costuming in 2013
It’s that time of year again to marvel at the projects you completed during the year and kick yourself for ones that didn’t get done. (Or maybe it’s just frustration at having the lack of sewing time to complete the to-do pile…) As noted in my 2012 list, reviewing my completed projects is not something Read More...
Cleaning & Storing the Costumes We Make
If you’ve been making costumes for any length of time you KNOW the space they take up in the house… the closets… the garage… the bathroom… under the bed… How does a flat bit of fabric suddenly need a stretch limo to take it home? Or its own bedroom to pout in? And what happens Read More...
Tips for Whipping up a 1880s Summer Berry Hat
The latest millinery project to come from my sewing room is my 1880s Summer Berry Hat. It was made to complement my all-stripe 1887 Summer Berry Trifle dress (still in progress), and also became the foundation for the 1880s online hat class. Whipping up something this yummy takes a bit of time, the right ingredients, and Read More...
Trimming a Regency Bonnet – Ideas & Instructions
Jane Austen you say? Lizzy Bennet? A walk to Meryton? The War of 1812? Napoleon and Josephine’s court? If you are at all into the early 1800s you know you can’t dress up without completing the ensemble with a bonnet. (Heck! That’s why those films we swoon over are called “bonnet dramas.”) The Regency Era Read More...
You Have Made Your Hat… Now what?
Guest Article by Gina White Hours and hours have gone into the creation of your hat. (In my case blood, sweat, tears, frustration, and a few choice words go into the making as well….) You have worn your newly crafted chapeau to your event to the delight and amazement of your fellow event goers, and Read More...
A Christmas Ribbon Rose
In honor of Christmas week, I want to celebrate by showing you how to make a ribbon rose. Perfect for a gift package, wearing in your modern hair, or adding to the side of a mid-19th c. bonnet! 🙂 Although you can’t finish this one quickly, you *can* make it during a fantastic mini-series like Read More...
The 1871 Harvest Grape Bustle Dress
Hooray for quick bustle dresses! My newest completed (or nearly completed) historical costume is an easy bustle dress made while teaching the online Victorian Bustle Day Dress class. I kept the design pretty basic as I needed something I could actually finish in about six weeks. Below is the fashion plate I used for inspiration. Read More...