Completed: Patterns of Fashion Regency Undersleeve/HSM Nov. ’22

Back when I made my first regency gown, I meant to make detachable undersleeves for it. Alas, the fabric yardage was off and I did not have enough to do so. I went a little overboard buying extra of the fabric for my new regency gown, so I decided to finally make undersleeves. Photo by…

Completed: Fashions Revisited 015 Chemisette/HSM Feb. ’22

After making a fichu, it opened my eyes to historical neckwear. As you immerse yourself more and more in a period, you become more attuned to what pieces make an outfit look more finished and a chemisette is one of those pieces. I decided I wanted to take my white dress I made in the…

Completed: Laughing Moon 115 Chemise/HSM May ’22

For the May Historical Sew Monthly challenge the theme was "Protection." I decided to tackle this theme literally and make a new chemise (mostly because I really needed a new one and it was the only challenge that seemed to fit when I made up my list!) Chemises/shifts protected the body from chafing from the…

Completed: Black Snail 0119 Regency Gown for HSM June ’22

Photo by author. June Challenge Theme "At the Museum: Be inspired by the items and research available in museums and archives." Fabric from extant gown. Image from Augusta Auctions. My object of inspiration was the textile in this gown, which was previously part of the Suddon-Cleaver Costume Collection. Below you can see the gown in…

HSM July ’22: Regency Bodiced Petticoat Research

For the Historical Sew Monthly July challenge I am making a bodiced petticoat. The challenge's theme is "geometry." I had already started this garment as part of my ongoing thesis research, but I will need it for an event later this month to go under my newest regency gown. Having this type of deadline is…

Black Snail 0119 WIP Update 2

Amazingly, it will have only taken me just over a month to nearly complete this project! I'm pretty slow at sewing, even by machine, so I wasn't feeling too positive about hand-sewing this. Fortunately I'd already made my mock-up last year, but I did have to do another fitting. What I didn't anticipate was that…

HSM June ’22: At the Museum

I've just begun my entry for the June HSM challenge and thought I'd go ahead and give some background on how this project came to be. My plan is to finish it by mid-August to wear at my JASNA region's annual retreat. I've splurged and will be staying over for the retreat along with some…

Completed: LM 115 Regency Long Stays (HSM ’22 #1)

This post is a summary of my more long-winded, narrative-style posts about these stays as a work-in-progress: toile, #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5. Progress photos from these posts have not been re-posted here. These stays were sewn in preparation for my thesis work, for which I am recreating a ca. 1810-1815 dress in order…

WIP: LM Regency Long Stays Part 5

Photo by author. Slowly but surely I have come to the end of my stays making project! Starting it in August of 2021, I have finished it in February of 2022. How naive I was to think it would take but a month or two to complete! I will have a "completed project" post up…

Examining Early 19th C. Long Stays II: Thread Analysis

Click here to read my previous post on the Fiber/Fabric Analysis of these stays. Thread morphology is made up of multiple aspects that can be analyzed: fiber, number of plies and cords, direction of spin for a ply, and direction of twist (the direction individual and multiple plies are twisted together). On non-historical threads one can…