Battle of Five Forks Reenactment at Hale Farm

For the third year running, I traveled over to Hale Farm and Village for their annual Civil War reenactment. I got to wear my sheer striped dress to the event and while it was still very warm out, it was still much cooler than the calico dress I've worn in years past.

We walked around the village a bit and looked around the Union and Confederate camp sites. Kerry had gone with me again this year and he took a few photos while we were in the garden.

Finished Sheer Stripe Dress

Everything came together finally - we had nice weather, low humidity, and both myself and the boyfriend were home so he could help me with pictures. The dress itself has been finished for a few weeks, but this was the first time I was able to get around to photographing it.

So first, my prior posts on how everything went together.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

And the finished dress!

Cartridge Pleating for the Sheer Stripe Dress

I've finished off the last few touches on my bodice and one of these led me to make a few changes on my finished dress. When I attached my waistband to the bodice, it did this weird thing and shrunk about 2 inches (?). As a result, I wasn't going to be able to attach the skirt portion of the dress directly to the bodice because none of the edges lined up the way they were supposed to. On to plan B.

In the instructions for the dress (TV447), Heather does provide alternate instructions for creating the skirt and bodice as separate pieces. So I got everything cut and sewed according to the instructions, and then stood back and looked at the amount of fabric I would be working with.

Yeah, that's a lot of fabric!

At 60" wide with 4 panels to work with, I found I would have to somehow attach 20 feet of material to about 34 inches of waistband.

Bodice Bustin for the 1863 Dress

Well things are progressing nicely with my sheer dress. While I have been taking my time with it to make sure fittings are going well, I'm also making sure to correct a few areas where my last dress was rushed.

For the collar, I had just cut a bias strip and sewed it in. Yeah, it looks poorly planned and executed as a result. This time, I decided to draft out a collar using the existing pattern pieces.

Drafting a collar off the original pattern

Final collar to line the inside

Cutting it to match the neckline definitely makes things lay flatter and it covers the fabric and piping edges.

New Sheer Civil War Dress

So for my second sewing project of the year, I have decided to redo the early 1860s dress I wear for Civil War events. My blue bud calico dress was made back in 2012 for a tea event at the local historical society. When I had put it together, I used a quilting calico which makes for a cool dress even during the summer (yay for cotton!) but the dress itself is very heavy because it's a quilting fabric. In addition, this was one of the last dresses I made before I started fanagaling fitting techniques so the bodice is a little big on me.

Denver Fabrics was holding a sale at the beginning of the year and while had I told myself I would NOT buy any more fabric this year, I caved when I found a pretty blue and brown striped cotton lawn. It is definitely much lighter than the quilting calico.

Final Project of 2014

I had to wait to post this until it was received since this was a Christmas gift. I don't have many progress photos since I pretty much just followed the pattern instructions.

Back in August, the beau's dad and young sister came out to Ohio and they went to a Civil War reenactment with us. I had dressed up of course and Lexie just loved my 1863 calico dress with the hoop skirt underneath. We bought her a hat and fan that day, but she kept on mentioning dresses. We departed with the mention that "Christmas would be coming soon."

Well Christmas did come. Kerry went to the fabric store with me and helped to select a pattern and the materials for just a basic calico dress with some embellishments. 

I used Simplicity 3725 view A with some modifications. For Lexie's dress, I shortened the sleeves to elbow length and left off the collar so it wouldn't be so tight around the neck (Or hot, they're in California). We weren't going for historical accuracy, so there are some modern alterations like a zipper up the back.

She loves the dress though and looks absolutely darling in it! What a great wrap up for 2014!

Ripper Street vs. Copper Round 2

So I got Ripper Street and Copper seasons 2 close together and (just like the first seasons) watched them back to back. Despite my earlier reaction of trying to space them out for season 2, I'm glad they were viewed close together because I was able to start differentiating between the two shows.

Ripper Street
I'll start with this show because I watched it first. Season 2 moves away from the original plot of the revived Ripper murders, but still retains much of its dark, brooding atmosphere of East End London in the 1890s. Instead, the focus now falls on individual people. 

Matthew Macfadyen, Jerome Flynn, and Adam Rothenberg all return

Inspector Reid's (Matthew Macfadyen) wife has left him, Bennet Drake is now a married man, and Rose has left brothel work behind. It seems all might be well, but this is East End London so it never is. Opium trade, matchgirl strikes, and fanatical occult followers are only a couple of the topics touched upon in this season's 8 episodes. And as the cases pile up, the police of Whitechapel find their own lives taking a sharp turn into the darkness that consumes the area where they work.

With each passing episode, I found myself more engrossed in this season. Part of this might be because all the character setup has already been established. On the other hand, I think the scriptwriting got just THAT much better. Yes, there's going to be mystery involved with the show, but when you've got me so engrossed that I just keep watching for hours on end, that's when you know it's good.

Charlene McKenna as Rose Erskine

Costumes remain fantastic, especially when looking for material of what the lower classes of London. Many of the outfits presented are worn by men with multiple wardrobe changes, something that gets overlooked. Women's attire is mostly limited to brothel and dance hall workers and may lack some accuracy, but are still gorgeous to look at.

Overall Rating - 4 out of 5
Costumes - 3.5 out of 5

Copper
Second season for this show started out with promise - within the first 20 minutes we've got a man a girl and carving a knife into her back amongst more seedy Five Points action. The main cast is back along with a number of new characters. As the new cast members are introduced though and the back stories of some of the existing characters surface, things start to feel bogged down.

Corky starts pulling stunts that make you want to scream. His adoptive daughter and wife bring cat fighting to a new level, in the most ho-hum of ways. Matthew, Corkey's longtime friend, is still dealing with the issues that come with being a freed blackman in the 1860s, but they seem to be the same over and over again. I'd go on, but all it would be about is how the characters got so annoying (Seriously, I could write a whole blog post on how Elizabeth Haverford makes Scarlett O'Hara seem like a sweet woman with no issues).

By the time episode 3 rolled around, it had mostly turned into background noise while I worked on the my sewing. That's how uninterested I was.

All of the sudden though, the scriptwriting was kicked up a huge notch. Oh my goodness, there's been a subtle plot building the whole season! Not that I could tell, giving how bored I was becoming with it all. The season was left with a cliffhanger, but alas, we shall never find out what happens.

Perhaps due to awful scriptwriting, poorly executed characters, or plummeting viewer numbers, Copper was cancelled a few days before its season 2 finale. Guess I wasn't the only unenthused person.

Costumes also remained mediocre. For characters from the Five Points district, wardrobe was done well enough that they blended in with the atmosphere. As for those who didn't reside in the area - ahem, Elizabeth Haverford - the costumes on the woman, have that lovely look of minimal research.

Overall rating - 2 out of 5
Costumes - 3 out of 5

HSF - Challenge #13 Under $10

Challenge - Under $10

Fabric - 100% cotton reproduction fabric from Windham fabrics. Print is dated for 1845-1865

Pattern - Heavily modified Garibaldi Blouse (TV441) pattern from Truly Victorian

Year - 1850s-1870s, no specific year

Notions - Buttons and poly thread

Hours to complete - About 18

First Worn - Just for photos right now. Still have to make other things to go with it.

Total Cost - Only $0.75. Fabric was in my stash, and thread was leftover from another project. Buttons I found on clearance at the fabric store.

How accurate is it?
To be honest, not really sure. I scoured the internet trying to find photos of frontier style work blouses, but really couldn't come up with anything. As work blouses, these garments were usually worn until they were worn out then discarded, so there are few originals still in existence. Photos did not help either since most frontier/pioneer photos are of families in their Sunday best, not their work clothes. Using other existing reproductions, I heavily modified an existing pattern which is very historically accurate in design.

Lucky 13, I managed to get this challenge done on time! I've been wanting to do a dressed down outfit for a long time (hoop skirts, petticoats, and yards of material can be cumbersome sometimes). I bought this fabric about three years ago with the intention of using it for a bodice or blouse, but never had any firm plans until now. The outfit I finally put together in my brain consisted of a brown skirt to go over a corded petticoat with a simple cotton work blouse with roll-able sleeves.

Recollections

Recollections

Since it was in the stash, I started with the blouse. As mentioned above, there were very few original examples or photos to work from, so I looked at a few reproductions and just sort of started mashing designs together using the Garibaldi blouse pattern as a base. 

Garibaldi Blouse TV441

The first change I made was to the chest area. Smashing together different sizes and measurement adjustments, I took the chest in so it wouldn't be as loose fitting and shortened it about 2 inches.

I did the same with the sleeves, taking them in about four sizes so they wouldn't be as puffy, a characteristic of the Garibaldi blouse. The sleeves were also shortened about 4 inches not only to reduce more of the pouf, but due to material shortages.

Original sleeve pattern over the shortened fabric

When I bought my fabric eons ago, I only grabbed 3 yards of it, figuring there would be enough. Right... I used every inch along the length of the fabric with less than 1/4 inch between pieces to maximize space. I even had to piece together the neckband piece.

The other major change I made was to the cuffs. I widened them considerably and added 1" to the length so the ends would overlap. I also widened the placket which would allow me to roll the sleeves up when unbuttoned.

Finished sleeve cuff

After everything was sewn together and stitched down all the loose edges, I added my awesome clearance buttons. When shopping at the store, I had found one style that was okay, but then I found these in the clearance which went nicely. I went ALL of the clearance buttons to find more and lucked out, finding just enough for what I needed for this project.

Total cost came to $0.75. Yippee!

I opted for modern technology when putting in my buttonholes, using my handy dandy buttonhole foot on the sewing machine. I know I need to eventually look into making buttonholes by hand, but decided it wouldn't be on this project at this time.

Buttonholes on cuff

All the buttons are attached by hand though to ensure that they stay attached to the blouse and I finished off all my open edges with a small whipstitch to keep everything in place.

For starting without a mockup, the pattern size mashup turned out very well along with the fit. Although it's still not as fitted as I want through the waist area, I figure I could easily add in some darts if I find the extra material is bothering me too much. Yay for finishing though, since HSF challenges will have to be set aside for right now.

Upcoming White & Black Challenge

Okay, so I am bound and determined to have this new challenge finished on time - Challenge #9 Black & White. However I might be fudging things a little with this project. I knew about it a while back when the challenge list was released, and since that point, kept pondering what I would do for Black & White. Each time I kept coming up with the same exact thing - zip, zilch, nada. The creative juices weren't exactly flowing, but the manipulative ones were.

About a year ago, I started work on a mid 1860s ballgown inspired by an original in the Kyoto Costume Institute. 

KCI Evening Gown, 1866

I got the bodice and dress done for the event at the Dress U Conference last spring, but just never got around to making up the overskirt portion of the dress. So this is where I stand with the dress.

Dress U Conference 2013

The challenge is black & white, ivory is a sort of off-white color, therefore ivory counts as part of the challenge, right? Right? Right! Yeah, okay, now you see how my mind works.

Well, onto the actual word - challenge. So the only existing photo of this dress is the one pictured above released by the museum. No close-ups, no detail descriptions, no alternative view. Once again - zip, zilch, nada to really work with for constructing an overskirt.

So I'm going to wing it and do the best I can with what I've got to work with.

I pulled some apron pattern pieces from existing patterns that I own and sort of changed an angle here, shortened and lengthened over there, and did a whole lot of guessing.

Wish me luck, I'm going to cut draft pieces over the next couple of days and put them together to see how everything looks.

Gettysburg Battle at Hale Farm, Pt. 1

It's been very busy since Saturday so I'm just now getting to this post.

As I briefly mentioned last week, the local historical farm was doing a reenactment of the famous Gettysburg battle over the weekend. With only three days notice, I pulled out my calico bluebud dress and headed out to join in. Along with the dress, I pulled out my good camera and took it along to take some photos.

At the event, I got to sign a petition for the abolition of slavery (despite the fact I had no voting rights as a woman), watched the drum and fife regiment...

 
Got to wander through the Union and Confederate army camps...

Saw Abraham Lincoln deliver the Emancipation Proclamation...

And saw a bunch of other lovely dresses throughout the day.

The culminating event for the day was of course the battle. I've actually never been to a Civil War battle reenactment before, so it was a bit exciting for me. It's not something you forget soon after either. While I did take a number of photos, this one was my favorite in particular because it caught things "in the heat of the moment" during the Union Army retreat.

These were a few other favorites. 

Eventually I would like to take some of these photos and do some work in Photoshop to give them the overall look of a carte-de-visit or a daguerreotype. Similar to what I did with these photos.

Bluebud dress photo before...

...and after Photoshop play

I had a lot other costume happenings outside of the event itself, including finds and (ulp) wardrobe malfunctions, but these will be posted separately at a later time.

Tavistocks are Here!

I've only had them on payment installment for two months and they're finally here!

My lovely new Tavistocks!

These are the new Tavistock shoes from American Duchess that I have been eagerly awaiting since they were in the initial design phases over a year ago. When Lauren first announced she was going to be making these beauties, I was so excited because I've always loved the Victorian high-button shoes. Imagine my disappointment when it came out that they were only going to be made up to a size 10. I have large, modern day size 11 feet.

Well after a small incident that resulted in my getting a pair of size 10 shoes of a different style, I found they fit rather well. Lauren was already out of black Tavistocks in that size though so when she announced there were ivory ones coming in, I bought them as soon as possible. My ivory pair arrived two days ago and to my greatest joy, THEY FIT PERFECTLY!

And to make things even better, someone returned a pair of size 10 black Tavistocks which I immediately bought. Those are due to be here in another two weeks.

I have never had so much fun with a pair of shoes. In anticipation, I bought shoe button hooks a few months ago and got to use them finally. The fun part was despite never actually doing the process before, I knew how to button the shoes up (an indicator of how many period movies/shows I watch - too many).

I found out today that Hale Farm and Village is going to be doing a Gettysburg battle reenactment this weekend, so I just might button up my shoes and trot on down to check it out (the place is literally five miles from my house). They're not completely period correct for the Civil War, but they'll go great with my cotton blue bud dress.

Copper and Ripper Street Reviews

There's been a whole lot of other things going on, and unfortunately not much sewing. In case it hasn't been mentioned yet, I also do cross stitch and I've been working on a couple of projects instead. I have been watching a few of my costume dramas though.

Copper
I watched the first season of Copper when it first came out on DVD earlier this year. Now that the second season has started up, I've been doing a bit of catch up (I don't have cable, so I watch them when I can online). Copper airs on BBC America and is the first scripted show made exclusively for the channel.

Image Courtesy of IMDB

The show centers around the Five Points area of New York starting in 1864 and focuses mostly on Kevin "Corky" Corcoran, an Irish immigrant who works as a police detective. Other characters that come into play are the men on his police force, some of the...ahem "ladies of pleasure" the men see frequently, and a few benefactors and other side characters.

While there eventually is an overarching plot that comes to light, it comes across as just another crime show for me, just in a historical setting. There are a few costumes that pop up on some of the female characters, but they are very far and few in between. Right now, the story has me intrigued enough to keep watching as the episodes come out, but not enough that I eagerly anticipate each new one.

Show - 3.5 out of 5

Costumes - 3 out of 5

Ripper Street

When I first heard about this show, it had already aired so I had to wait for it on DVD, then wait for it to come in at the library. As a result, I was only able to watch it just last week.

Image Courtesy of IMDB

Matthew Macfadyen of Pride and Prejudice stars one of the key characters, Edmund Reid, an investigator looking into a variety of killings and other cases following the final Jack the Ripper murder in 1889. Despite the title, there is little mention of the Ripper cases themselves, aside from a couple of murders that resemble the original Ripper murders. Instead, the cases that Reid investigates are in and around the areas of the murders in the East End of London.

There are some great costumes though that pop up throughout the series. One in particular, worn by Amanda Hale, I'm absolutely in love with (hm, new dress possibilities?).

Best image of the dress

Show - 3 out of 5

Costumes - 4 out of 5

In watching the two shows though, the one thing I've come to find is that they are so similar, it's almost as if I'm watching the same thing. The location, time, and characters are different, but overall concept of the character types and how they relate to each other are just too similar. Although it was not intended this way, just check out the above photos.

I'll probably keep watching both shows to see if they get any better (Ripper Street was left on a bit of a cliff hanger). Thankfully there's enough of a gap between the two shows airing that I can separate out the differences.

Weekend Wrap-up

I've been working so I'm just now getting a chance to post this.

I was able to sit down this weekend and crank out a bunch of sewing, resulting in these lovely new frillies.

Underthings 1850s-1880s

The chemise is made using the Truly Victorian 102 pattern, as originally planned. During one of my ventures to the fabric store, I poked through pattern books and ended up coming home with one of the Simplicity Martha McCain historical patterns (9769). 

I used this instead for the drawers and am very happy with the results. Rather than worrying about redrafting a pattern, I sewed this one and it was an absolute breeze. Not only was the pattern easier to put together, but it fits more smoothly than my original drawers from the TV pattern.

Also in my fabric store wanderings, I found a lovely eyelet trim that worked perfectly for the edge of everything.  

I also managed to finish out my corset with all the extra lace and trims and it's gorgeous!

So now that I'm finished with my foundation pieces for under my 1850s-1880s dresses, I'll see about jumping on the 1910's slip next.

I did start one other project and I'll leave you with this little hint - Kate Winslet wore the original in Sense and Sensibility.