Sleeves seem to be that *thing * that bothers a lot of dressmakers, costumers and sew-ers. The term “sleev-evils” has been tossed around for a while now. But I don’t want you to think of sleeves in that way. It only hinders you in getting that sleeve sewn and set into the bodice as quickly Read More...
Tag: Sleeves
Sleeve Fitting for Movement – or Victorian BFFs
Ahh… sleeves. The bane of nearly every historical costumer. Aren’t we glad we only have two arms! Ever work yourself into a frenzy just trying to get your sleeves right so you can at least *move* in your costume? Yep. It’s the challenge for most of us. Over and over with each bodice…. Well, after Read More...
How NOT To Set Your Sleeves In Backwards
Have you done it? We’ve all been there – it’s pushing 1am and you just want to get the dang sleeves sewn in then you can go to bed. You pick up one sleeve, look at the seams and the gathered cap, and then start pinning it into the armhole. Good. Now run it Read More...
Sewing Room Tasks NOT To Do When Angry
We all have those – I’ll call them moments – when our blood boils and we escape to the sewing room to blow off some steam. (That, or we have a pressing deadline so move to the sewing room because we have to.) When this happens it’s a good idea to know what you shouldn’t 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...
Constructing a Victorian Bustle Dress
It’s that moment when you are ready to jump into your first Victorian dress and hold out hope that it’s not as complicated as it “seams.” Because I’d been sewing clothes for about a dozen years before I got into historical costuming I wasn’t afraid. The gorgeousness of the 1870s & 1880s called me strongly. Read More...
Sleeve Shifts of the 1890s
Fashion doesn’t change overnight. There’s a subtle movement when a new thought is presented. The idea is taken to the full extreme over a period of a few years. Then it seems to be discarded quickly; put on the shelf and forgotten. Another new idea is presented and we start the cycle again. This path Read More...
Deciphering Sleeve Styles of the Regency
Fashionable dress in the Regency years (1795-1820) is full of uncomplicated styles. Although the bodices and skirts are relatively simple to begin with, dressmakers give their own take on basic forms like with a cross-over bodice or perhaps an overskirt. But what’s truly an area of design here is in the sleeves. I mean, how Read More...