Finished 1890s Bathing Costume

The weather was lovely, my sister was at the house, I remembered that I needed to photograph my costume... So here it is in all its green splendor!

Front with the skirt over top

Back of skirt with pleating

Bloomer bottoms underneath the skirt

I love all the stripes everywhere!

The outfit includes a matching swimcap

The one-piece bloomer and blouse underneath the skirt

Bloomer and blouse combo from the back

Based on the materials I looked through while working on this project, this bathing costume has more of an 1890s vibe. The decoration motif is based off an original Met piece, but the color itself is different from many of the typical colors seen on the original pieces. While it is different, I love how it turned out with all the striping on the sailor collar, waistband, cuffs, cap, and front inset.

I will note that I did make several changes to the original pattern. For a lot of the top stitching, I opted to hand stitch instead to help eliminate the number of visible seams. The striped front inset is attached using hooks and eyes instead of buttons, and there are additional hooks and eyes on the skirt and suit combo waistbands to provide additional support on the buttons.

In another post, I had wrote that I couldn't find instructions on how to add elastic to the bloomer cuffs. They were there actually, but buried underneath the "finishing" instructions. I'm glad I added the elastic because the ruffles match up nicely with the sleeves. Here are links to additional posts on this project:

Research
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Hat Project

One more project done, and one more piece of fabric off the stash pile!

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Pattern - Folkwear Vintage Bathing Costume #253 

Fabric - Seafoam green and light cream broadcloth, both 100% cotton

Notions - Bias trim and strips made from the same fabric, hooks and eyes, mother of pearl buttons, matching poly thread, and 3/8" elastic for the cuffs.