Oh *my.*

[rivka]

So, Bill was over all day working on my dress. And it's nearly finished!





Left to be done:
-- Hook-and-eye tapes need to be sewn in to the bodice. (Right now it's pinned on.)
-- I need to buy another lace for my corset, which is currently only laced to mid-back.
-- Once the corset can be laced all the way up, we'lll need to get a final fit for the bodice. Right now it has a distracting tendency to slip off the shoulders.
-- Bodice needs to be trimmed: narrow lace all the way along the neckline, wide lace falls at the edge of the sleeves.
-- I need to sew ribbons into the inside of the overskirt, so it can be tied up a la polonaise instead of a l'anglaise, as it is here.

-- Eventually I want to add some embroidery to the bodice, and maybe to the front edges of the overskirt. Most period clothes (circa 1780, in case you haven't been following along) were heavily embroidered. But that's a project for later on.

Bill is amazing. He designed this entirely himself, working not from a pattern but from an annotated picture in a book. I am beside myself with admiration and gratitude and awe.

Comments

[aiglet.livejournal.com]

Oh, it's *stunning*! You look marvelous. Very many compliments both to Bill for making it, and to you, for knowing how to wear it. :)

[wcg.livejournal.com]

Hey, the picture came out very nicely. I'm glad you were able to post it. It'll be good when we can get a shot of the back too, so your adoring fans can see all the detailed seaming and how it fits you so perfectly.

[kalmn.livejournal.com]

(and look at rivka's... oh, never mind. ;)

[rivka.livejournal.com]

(and look at rivka's... oh, never mind. ;)

Heh. With the overskirt all pleated and gathered and looped up? I suppose there are two ways one could look at it: (a) my ass will be so big you'll be able to see it from the next county over; or (b) for all you'll be able to tell, I might not have an ass at all.

[geekchick]

Gorgeous!

[kightp.livejournal.com]

-- Once the corset can be laced all the way up, we'lll need to get a final fit for the bodice. Right now it has a distracting tendency to slip off the shoulders.

Why, erm, yes, I can see how that would be distracting. (-:

Gorgeous photo.

Nice dress, too, Bill.

[wcg.livejournal.com]

It is actually so stiff with interfacing and perfectly matched to her that when the straps slip off the shoulder it just looks like a French gown. The bodice stays put, but the effect is even more stunning.

Re:

[rivka.livejournal.com]

It is actually so stiff with interfacing and perfectly matched to her that when the straps slip off the shoulder it just looks like a French gown. The bodice stays put, but the effect is even more stunning.

It is a flattering style, I'll admit. But I don't really think it suits the spirit of this particular dress. Now, if it were a silk ballgown with a hoop...

[tsjafo.livejournal.com]

You look lovely! Oh, and the dress looks nice, too!

[jenett]

Very incredibly spiffy. You look gorgeous. The dress looks immensely cool.

[persimmon.livejournal.com]

Eventually I want to add some embroidery to the bodice, and maybe to the front edges of the overskirt. Most period clothes (circa 1780, in case you haven't been following along) were heavily embroidered. But that's a project for later on.

Wow - very nice!

Small question: if you have enough of the green material left, you might also consider a small pleated ruffle down the front edges of the overskirt, as the model for a la polonaise has: it wouldn't take as long as embroidery, I don't think.

[jilesa.livejournal.com]

You look lovely, Rivka, and so does the dress. :) Wonder how hard it would be to adapt the 'pattern' to my size...

But I have garb to sew for [Bad username or site: k'shandra @ livejournal.com] before I start on anything new for myself. :)

[wcg.livejournal.com]

I think it would be pretty straightforward to adapt the pattern to almost any size. There are four pieces that make up the back, and the outer two can be scaled to just about any shoulderblade width. Then the two frontpieces have to be scaled to your measurements. But that's really all it takes. The skirts are very simple. The outer skirt is just a three yard long rectangle pleated to the bodice, and the inner skirt is a 3 gore skirt with a ribbon casement waistband.

Dress and Rivka

[mama-hogswatch.livejournal.com]

Yes, both lovely.

As far as adapting that pattern, I doubt it would be hard, as Bill did comment.

Though, I do have some advice for anyone who does a lot of costuming or home sewing for oneself:

Make yourself a sloper out of muslin or something. Once you've done that, you've got the basic layout for anything you want to make.

Re: Dress and Rivka

[rowanf.livejournal.com]

Make yourself a sloper out of muslin or something. Once you've done that, you've got the basic layout for anything you want to make.

We who do bodices for Renn Faire and such do a bodice form using duct tape... take a t-shirt you don't mind losing. Tape the person up and then cut up the front and let them out. The taped form can be cut into pieces and with the addition of a seam allowance you have a bodice that actually fits. [An important consideration in my life as I need to add front and reduce back of any commercial pattern.]]

Re: Dress and Rivka

[mama-hogswatch.livejournal.com]

What sort of things shoudl I be cautious about if I try this? I've made slopers before, but I'm going to be making a bodice for my wife soon. She has an opera singer torso and a short waist, so is hard to fit.