18th c. Fancy mens shirt

I've been playing in the land of 18th c. Menswear again. This is for a friend, for a fancy dress party that we are attending next week.

Here is the shirt with the cravat:

Knot buttons

I made knot buttons for the Turkish coat.

Turkish coat

Turkish coat (anteri) that I made for myself, based on Reconstructing History pattern #407, out of shot silk - a teal blue and brown cross weave. Looks like olive green. I'm going to let it hang on the toile for a bit before hemming and buttons. Lined in scraps of linen. 

Making garb for a Pennsic newbie

My friend Paul is attending Pennsic first time this year so I'm making garb for him.

Viking hoodies

Some memorable garb moments from Pennsic 42

An old Italian Ren dress - still a favorite and so easy to wear.

Turkish garb

Elizabethan cross-dressing

Here's that lovely long-sleeved Turkish Kaftan

Spotted at Vlad's "Drag Races" - this gown was impressive.

Once again, I had a wonderfully relaxing and fun Pennsic, because my camp is awesome. I took some photos and videos to try and capture the beauty I see at Pennsic and some of the experiences that I would have difficulty describing otherwise. 

Here's my flickr set - http://www.flickr.com/photos/mirvana/sets/72157635007331881/.

And, here's a playlist of videos on Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL282B596CB737D01E.

Kannik's 1812 Waistcoat in the field!

Thanks to my friend, John, here you can see the finished Waistcoat in all its glory! I really like how this one turned out. Taken at Gennessee Country Museum this past weekend. 

Kannik's Korner 1812 waistcoat done!

So much hand sewing....I hope it fits.

Kannik's 1812 waistcoat: progress report

The fronts are just about done. The pocket, lining, and buttonholes are in. After doing the pocket and lining all by hand, I resorted to machine sewing the buttonholes. I tried handsewing one, and it just looked hideous.

The Queens Servants: Rusty gown with W neckline

Yes I have gone a bit crazy with The Tudor Tailor. I just couldn't wait to get the new book - The Queens Servants - at Pennsic, so I ended up paying for shipping from the UK. It was well worth it. They do an excellent job of researching and illustrating the clothing, and the patterns are working out pretty well. 

New pattern from The Tudor Tailor

They have this new full-size pattern for the gown I made, but once again I just drafted the pattern out of the book and scaled it up to my size.

I am fascinated by this W neckline, but it was a bit tricky to pull off. It is trimmed in black velvet. I also stiffened the bodice with reed boning. I'm hoping that with the back lacing, it will be supportive enough. Ideally, I should have made a kirtle to go underneath this gown, and that would provide the support, but I want to be able to wear this alone over a chemise/smock.

Late Elizabethan flounced skirt

So this is the next look that I'm going for, from The Tudor Tailor:

I was hesitant about doing a flounced skirt, which would require a bumroll - it seems odd to modern eyes - but it turned out ok:

 

 

That's the doublet bodice that I made earlier; drafted that pattern from scratch, but it's very close to the one in the book, and I did use the pattern from the book for the medium bumroll.

However, I totally guessed on how to do the skirt. I measured down from the waist, over the bumroll, about 8 inches, made a tuck about 1 inch wide, and ran two rows of loose stitching to gather it. The fabric is a teal-colored wool gabardine that was left over from another project from a long time ago.

Since it's an open front skirt, I might make some sort of forepart to go under it, to hide my corded petticoat. I wish I had the time and fortitude to do something in blackwork, but that's definitely not my strong suit.

The Tudor Tailor comes to life

Progress continues on the late Tudor wardrobe, inspired by this look from The Tudor Tailor:

  

They have published a pattern for it, but I had already started drafting the pattern from the grids in the book - which worked out really well. 

 

I made the kirtle/petticoat out of some red linen that I sat on for a long time. I was glad to liberate it from my stash. The fitted, open front gown is made of a burnout velvet with a fine print that has also been sitting around for a while. 

 

The paned sleeves were the trickiest part, but I like how they look. The tartan bodice looks good on the red kirtle, too. I probably won't ever make sleeves because it's always too hot at Pennsic to wear them. 

Current Sewing Project: US Army Roundabout, 1812

I'm working for my black powder/Rev. war reenactor friend again. He's been doing War of 1812 stuff lately, so this is an army jacket of that period, based on http://www.pastpatterns.com/041.html. It only includes sizes 38-44, and I had to scale and adjust the pattern up for a size 54 - a non-trivial task, but my fitting skills just get better. I did a muslin fitting and cut out all the pieces, and so far have the welt pocket on the right front sewn. I'm working on it little by little, as I find the time. The design and construction of the back is not too different from the 1870s Robe Anglaise that I did last year.