My Latest Finished Project, Based Off A Couple Of Extant Bodices And A Fashion Plate Which All Had This

My latest finished project, based off a couple of extant bodices and a fashion plate which all had this snazzy cross-over front feature.

I actually made the skirt a long time ago as a historybounding, everyday thing to wear. It has alternating panels of striped and solid black cotton, and has a scalloped hem. I love it and wear it often, and decided that I was going to make a matching bodice so I could wear it to costume events, too.

I draped the pattern myself, based off of a couple of extants. Each seam is boned with artificial whalebone and the seam allowances were tacked down by hand with a herringbone stitch. The peplum is lined with black cotton, but the rest is just lined with cheap plain white muslin to save on cost. The bodice closes up the center front with hooks and eyes, and then the wrap panels are folded over and closed at the side seams.

Brain gremlins about my weight are under the cut for those that don't want to read it.

I finished this outfit a while back, but I've been struggling with whether or not I wanted to post it. It's not the outfit, I think that it turned out fabulously. But I've been really unhappy about my weight, and it's been a fight to remind myself that my weight is not my worth. I keep hearing the negative things my mother would say whenever I would gain a pound or two or the "positive" things she'd say when I lost them (things like "oh, you have a chin again!" or "I can actually see your waist now.")

So I'm trying to ignore all that and remind myself how awesome this dress turned out, how hard I worked on it, and how proud I am of the construction of it.

bodice, waistcoat

c. 1615-1618

linen, silk, silver, silver-gilt, metal, hand-stitched

Glasgow Museums

Hello, Stripes, you have my attention. ♥

La Mode: revue du monde élégant. Troisième année. Juillet. 1831. Paris. Pl. 166. Robes de Mousseline blanche et mousseline à raies brochées, façon de Melle Palmire. Coiffures de M. Hypolite — Bijoux de Chauffert, Palais royal. Bibliothèque nationale de France

Victorian painting of a 17th century scene, with excellent seasonal vibes

Laura Theresa Alma-Tadema (English, 1852-1909)

At the Doorway

La Mode nationale, no. 17, 25 avril 1896, Paris. Notre patron découpé (Grandeur naturelle). Corsage à pointe. Bibliothèque nationale de France

Détails et Explication du patron découpé:

Ce modèle forme pointe devant très court sur les hanches; des coques de même étoffe, doublèes de soie assortie, forment petite basque; les pinces sont ornées d'un galon brodé. (This model has a pointed front shape, very short on the hips; shells of the same fabric, lined with matching silk, form a small peplum; the clips are decorated with an embroidered braid.)

Ce patron se compose de six morceaux. (This pattern consists of six pieces.)

No. 1. — Le devant. (The front.)

No. 2. — Le premier côté; un cran indique le raccord au devant. (The first side; a notch indicates the connection at the front.)

No. 3. — Le deuxième côté; deux crans indiquent le raccord au premier côté. (The second side; two notches indicate the connection to the first side.)

No. 4. — Le jockey de la manche. (The jockey for the sleeve.)

No. 5. — Le dos, coupé long de façon à former une coque en repliant le bas à l'endroit indiqué par un cran de chaque côté. (The back, cut long so as to form a shell by folding the bottom at the place indicated by a notch on each side.)

No. 6. — La manche ballon, demi-longue; un trait à la roulette indique le dessous. (The balloon sleeve, half-length; a roulette line indicates the bottom.)

Métrage: 1m,50 tissu grande largeur; 0m,70 soie ou satin pour l'intérieur des coques.