So ... another dress diary for you!

Greetings all!

As promised, here is the dress diary!

Sunday, January 7, 2007, 10:30PM

After seeing Josceline, Robert, and Leona to near completion on their projects, it was time to start my own gown. I decided to do a Henrician gown with a decorative frontpiece and using simple side lacing. I cut out the bodice, outer skirt, and waistband of my dress. The bodice pattern had been done a few weeks previously with Leona's help, the other pieces were simple measured rectangles.







Monday, January 8, 2007

Cutting continues. Each bodice piece was cut in triplicate - lining, bodice, and linen-cotton interlayer. I cut the underskirt and decorative front panels by measurement, not from a pattern piece. The decorative front panel also got a supportive interlayer. The brocade was a bit too short, so a strip of black velveteen was used at the bottom to complete the length.



The brocade had been one of my first hand projects in the SCA and is embellished with pearls, garnets, onxy and glass beads. When I finished beading the piece, I was to nervious to cut it. By the time I was a confident seamstress, I was no longer interested in late period garb. :P Now, a decade later, I'm finally getting around to using it.







Tuesday, January 9, 2007

Because I clearly had too much time on my hands, I decided to bead the decorative front panel further and added dozens of tiny black and white glass beads as well as additional pearls and onyx beads.





Once the beading was completed, the bodice was constructed and the decorative frontpiece applied, the raw edges covered with beaded trim (another ages old OCD project).







Wednesday, January 10, 2007

I took the bodice to fighter's practice to complete the stay stitching around the seams and to apply the lacing rings down one side.

Back at home at the end of the night, the underskirt was constructed and finished with a simple drawstring top. The overskirt was pleated into the waistband.







Thursday, January 11, 2007

Quick break from the dress project - I cut and sewed several 12th night gifts and the special "gift" for Leif.

Returning to the dress - beaded trim was applied around the front and hem of the outerskirt and along the join of the black velvet and brocade on the underskirt. The black velvet was hand hemmed. There is no machine sewing visible on the finished gown, it either being hand finished or covered in hand-applied trim.





Then I patterned the undersleeves and oversleeves.





The undersleeves are brocade lined in cotton and the oversleeves are two layers of cotton velveteen. The over sleeves were finished and then whip stitched to the bodice. The undersleeves tie and/or pin to the dress. The oversleeves were held back with cute quatrefoil pins from the Fettered Cock.







Friday, January 12, 2007

I was up way too late and went to work Friday tired, but done. Friday was entirely consumes with work, packing, and travel. I settled for using an existing chemise, but I should make one out of linen and with a more narrow body and longer sleeves to get better poofiness.







Saturday, January 13, 2007
Last but not least - the Reveal! I added several gold, pearl, and/or garnet rings, pearls in my hair (six, of course), a garnet cross, and the fan I fortuitously won in the raffle.



And a group picture, including all the folks that I assisted and/or instigated in this grand 12th Night project. (Michael also got a doublet, but is not pictured since due to several mixups, he was not wearing it for court.)



Yeah! Spiffy garb!