Knottynotions's Blog

Civil War Ballgown

knottynotions — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 17:48:10 +0000

****Update- January 24, 2010****

AL and I went to the Civil War Ball last night. My dress turned out perfectly. I was a Union officer’s wife and AL was representing the Confederacy. I’m posting some pictures of not only the dress but my undergarments as well. The hoop skirt was so much fun to make and wear. We had a wonderful time doing the Spanish Waltz, the Galope, and, of course, the Virginia Reel! Enjoy the new pictures!

It has been a while since I’ve posted anything good. I recently updated my Mrs. Lovett’s post with pictures of Halloween night. I am currently working on two new outfits.

AL and I are going to Gadsby’s Civil War Ball in January, so, of course, I have to make a new fancy dress! I decided to choose the colors of the Union Army, which probably not go over well since I live in the state that was the Capitol of the Confederacy. It’s just that I look so fetching in Union Blue! I have a beautiful magenta bertha across the front and back of the bodice. It looks like I have an Officer’s sash. I also made little blue and magenta bows to adorn the skirt and bodice. Since I haven’t finished making my hoop skirt yet, I won’t post any pictures. The skirt’s beauty is enhanced with the hoop. No worries, I’ll post soon!

A (new) 1770-1780s Gown

knottynotions — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 08:50:58 +0000

I have decided to be bold! My newest delight is the dress I have drafted straight from Janet Arnold’s Patterns of Fashion.

To start at the beginning, I recently made the acquaintance of a fellow sister of my sorority, Kappa Kappa Gamma. She is a historical re-enactor and dancer. Our conversation stirred me to dream up a more accurate dress for the Grand Ball in April. The Grand Ball, AL and I went last year, takes place in the 1780s. Therefore, I decided to embark on a Polonaise en Forreau. I bought pattern paper from Mood Fabrics and created my pattern. Scaling up is fun!

I have purchased my fabric and am currently awaiting its arrival. The Polonaise is a sage green color with flowers embroidered on it. For the skirt, I have chosen a white satin. The best part of my skirt is this: it’s quilted! OH JOY! I’m super excited to do the quilting. Luckily enough, I have quilted before. Whew! However, this prior knowledge may not curb the cursing that might spill forth. Only time will tell.

Underskirt in sage green

knottynotions — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 15:05:08 +0000

I decided to make this skirt using TV’s underskirt pattern. Once I made the bodice from the sage green remnants I had, I ended up loving it. I decided that it needed a skirt to complement it. I found a lovely sage green flower-patterned material from my favorite fabric store, Fabric.com. It was fairly easy to complete and it looks simple yet elegant. Not sure where I’ll wear it but I could be used for some other project down the line! Who knows!

The GRAND Bustle

knottynotions — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 15:00:49 +0000

Using TV’s revised grand bustle pattern, I created this wonderful bustle to help keep my skirts looking poufy and beautiful. Unfortunately, my sewing machine strongly disliked the material I chose for the flounces, so I had to completely hand-sew that entire section of the skirt. Let me tell you, my fingers were extremely sore and poked full of holes! Ouch!!!

The pictures of the Mrs. Lovett skirt and the sage green underskirt also feature the bustle. I put both skirts on top of the bustle so one can get the full effect. I love this bustle and it fits me perfectly. It’s also surprisingly easy to sit down in…shocking, I know! Enjoy!

Mrs. Lovett’s skirt

knottynotions — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 14:55:47 +0000

So after much cajoling and begging, I have convinced Dad to be Sweeney Todd to my Mrs. Lovett (please no thoughts of incest here). We’ve decided to go all out for Halloween and are decorating the garage to look like the Meat Pie Shoppe and Todd’s Barber Shoppe. Thankfully my outfit is nearly complete. I want to add some more trim to the bodice and I need to finish my corset. However, the skirt (in all its glory) is finished! It looks SUPER awesome. I worked VERY hard on it too.

The pattern I used was TV’s 1875 Parisian Trained Skirt. I tried it on with the grand bustle I made and it is fabulous. I’ll post some pictures of me in the completed outfit once I finish the trim on the bodice. Until then, please enjoy the pictures of the skirt!

****UPDATE*******

Halloween went so well! My costume and “haunted house” was a big hit. Here are some highlights of the night. My BFF, AL, went as Marie Antoinette (yes, we know she’s an anachronism, but it was good to have some color at my Meat Pie Shop!)

1870s Ball Gown Bodice (in remnants)

knottynotions — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 19:11:35 +0000

Below you will find the details and dealings of my first ever attempt at TV416.

Materials used:

Sage green silk charmeuse- I decided to rip out the seams of the mock-up bridesmaid dress I made for K’s wedding. It’s absolutely gorgeous.

Natural Muslin- leftover from my Regency stays

Sage green lining- lining for the aforementioned bridesmaid

I made this “mock-up” because the pattern instructions suggest that you have a practice run. Well, this is the one of the prettiest practice runs I’ve ever made.

I ordered boning and casing from Farthingales. Now, I have to wait for them to arrive. For now you’ll just have to look over the pictures. Enjoy!

Early Bustle dress (1870-1876)

knottynotions — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 17:35:01 +0000

I have found out recently that I’m not truly happy unless I’m currently working on many projects at once. A few months ago I decided to visit Truly Victorian. The site has an extensive collection of various fashions worn during the Victorian Era. I’ve fallen in love with all the patterns that deal with the Early Bustle period. I think it speaks much about my personality. My best friend, AL, and I were discussing our fashion styles the other day. She is very fluid and loose. Her style gravitates toward a bohemian, peasant style. However, I’m on the completely opposite end. I love form, structure and would classify myself as preppy.

It makes perfect sense why she loves Regency-era clothes, while I love the form-fitting, laced-up Victorian styles. On every new project, I learn more and hone my sewing skills.

Recently, I have broken down (after many months of worrying and fretting) and bought materials for my first real evening dress. I plan to use TV101, TV216, TV201, TV416 and TV 110. I’m most worried about TV110. I have never made a corset before. I did make the stays for my Regency undergarments. But a full on crazy corset, I haven’t come close to it yet!

I bought all my fabric from Fabric.com (very VERY affordable, especially when you need 9 yard for the skirt). For the stays and all the corset materials I went to Farthingales again. They make things easy to understand and have lots of high-quality products.

When everything arrives, I’ll start to document the crazy journey. I’m nervous and really excited. In preparation for the “real” thing, I have made TV416 in leftover dress materials (goodbye, bridesmaid dress!).

I’ll detail my success in the next post with some pictures!

Mom’s Capelet

knottynotions — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 13:08:35 +0000

A few years ago, my mom picked up a Vogue Knitting magazine. She thumbed through it and found a very beautiful cape. It was in the Spring/Summer 2005 edition, pg. 87.

The capelet itself was easy to knit. It was Lana Gatto’s Feeling in white. She sprung for it and all of the other yarn. I picked up the other colors from elann.com: Peruvian collection, Sierra Aran. This past weekend I finished cross-stitching the colors into the capelet. And for the past two days, I have been crocheting the borders on. Mom is in France until the end of August so when she gets back she’ll attach a lining. The capelet is nice, not my style, but very nice.

The Harley Scarf

knottynotions — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 12:59:56 +0000

This scarf has taken me FOREVER! A few years ago I knitted my dad an AWESOME Harley-Davidson scarf. He has loved that scarf for so long and he wears it when he’s out on the road. Unfortunately, that scarf is beginning to fray and unravel. So, I thought, maybe, I could make him a new scarf that has the Harley colors but wasn’t as detailed as the first scarf.

I believe I started it last year, but honestly, it might be going on two years. I hand dyed a skein of white yarn with orange and black. It was a thrilling experience to hand dye my first skein of yarn. I went to knitpicks.com and bought the yarn dye and the white skein. I dyed the yarn in such a way that it self-stripes! I don’t have to count rows or anything. It’s great.

The great thing about knitpicks is that they have great tips and wonderful yarns. Everything is VERY affordable.

However, the problem I find myself having is that since it’s a simple scarf it gets pretty boring. I pick it up whenever I need something to do with my hands but I don’t need to really pay attention.

Once again, I’ve picked it up. I’m hoping to finish it before Dad’s birthday in October!

*******UPDATE*******

I finally finished his scarf last night while I watched True Blood. It’s so great to be completely done with it. Woohoo!

Preparations

knottynotions — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 15:55:11 +0000

The Jane Austen Ball is next weekend (August 15) and I’m now scrambling to find a solution to my hair crisis. My original plan was to create a turban from some leftover material. Yesterday, I hand-sewed half of the turban, but it looked strange. I need to figure out what style I should attempt next. I wish that somewhere on the internet was a Regency turban pattern. Alas! There is isn’t!

I am still excited to attend the ball though. AL and I went to Amherst, MA this weekend and we talked the subject to death. I guess my next step is to scour the internet for up close pictures from which to draw some ideas.

Any suggestions?