2015 Dream Sewing

Sew...(pun-intended) I have big plans for sewing in 2015. I wish to expand my horizons. At the end of the year, we'll see how actual events will have matched up to my plans (I don't expect the comparisons to be similar by any means). I already have another Costume Designing job coming up (oh, glorious pre-production) but it should not interfere with my other projects *cough* *cough*

 

Anyway, starting from newest decade to oldest, here are the garments I'm looking forward to making this year!

 

 

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 A simple, yet elegant '50s dress. I absolutely adore this era! And I have so much fabric that works for this decade, it's really sad that I haven't made one in three years!
 

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Now, I'm not "into" the Forties as much as I should be. It's not that I think the styles ridiculous our weird; I just find other decades more exciting (I'm sure watching Agent Carter is going to fix that). But one thing I've always adored about the Forties is the sweet suits and business-casual side of fashion. I would love to complete a suit similar to the ones above.

 

 

The pure ingenuity of the women from the Thirties always astounds me. They had nothing and they continued to get up every morning, dress and put a bright face on for their families. Mommy still looked put together, so things couldn't be that bad. The styles are always practical, but elegant and those women emerged from the hard times all the better for it. I love all the separates that were more utilized in this decade. The skirts are flattering to any figure (particularly hip-y ones) and I would love just one evening gown *sigh*

 

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I'm just madly in love with so much about this decade! Oh, the styles just speak to my sensibilities. Elegance and optimism seem to be the theme of the Twenties. When most people think about the Twenties, they think flappers and The Great Gatsby and maybe the scandalous Miss Fisher (that TV show was a disappointment). I think of art deco and beading and feathers and fur and velvet. I think of also the simple calico, the eastern-inspired tea sets (I happen to own one), the t-strap heels and the Charleston and the magnanimous and endless variety of collars on those drop-waist dresses! I'm going all-out on the Twenties!

 

 

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Anna Pavlovna

I liked the NineTeens before Downton Abbey made it cool *pushes glasses up with finger*. It might seem like I'm covering every decade, but I'm not. The first half of the 20th century is absolutely my favorite! I have a lovely pattern by Andrea Schewe (I don't normally take Simplicity costume patterns seriously, but Ms. Schewe does her research). I have big plans for a dinner dress at the very least. And you can't go wrong with a huge velvet hat with silk flowers just as big!

 

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I do love the 1870s, but I'm not entirely sure I'm ready for it yet. It remains to be seen if I do end up bustling up in the end. I actually haven't made anything Victorian (aside from a girl's dress HERE )

So, I'm going to start with 1840s and move on from there. It may or may not happen this particular year.

 

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The 1830s, '40s and '50s are going to be my springboard for entering the world of Victorian fashion. My HSM project for this month is an 1840s-90s corset (I guess you could call it an all-purpose corset). Again, I doubt I'll attempt the 1870s, but I'm going to be hanging out here for awhile. North and South is what got me interested in Victorian fashion in the first place and I think I'm going to try and duplicate one of Margaret's dresses. Maybe eventually, I'll catch myself a Mr. Thornton of my own ;)

 

 

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Here, ladies, is my sweet spot. Regency! I don't normally make a goal to do more, but it's so easy for me, I often overlook it. A huge, huge thank you to Jennie Chancey for her wonderful

 Sense & Sensibility Patterns.

Her beautiful and easy-to-understand patterns were what got me into historical sewing in the first place! A must-have for me this year is a cross-front gown. Probably white (the 1790s-1830s was the era of the "Little White Dress"). I don't have any solid calico drawstring day dresses, so that must be fixed (not even kidding, it takes me about a four-hour afternoon to make one) and one can never have too many open robes!

 

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It would be positively heinous of me to put all the painstaking time and elbow grease into making a Georgian Corset and not make myself something other than a Carico Jacket and a few measly petticoats to wear with it. This year, I'm hoping for some pretty day dresses and maybe a ball gown with side hoops!

 

 

By Raffaello

I'm also looking into some French/Italian Renaissance pieces, but it's certainly not priority. My sister, for her 5th birthday, wants a reproduction of that Ever After gown on the top. I love it!

 

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And finally, I shall continue dabbling in Medieval/Faerie-Tale Gowning. I would like to do at least one practical gown and one Royalty gown. And a crown. One can't be a queen without a crown!

 

There you have it. Most of this will fit in one or another of the HSM categories. It will be interesting to see how this list compares at the end of the year.

HSF Challenge #10-Art

I was so nervous about this challenge! I scoured Pinterest and looked everywhere for an acceptable gown that I could replicate. I finally decided on this portrait of young Martha Washington. It's a modern painting by Michael Deas that imagines what she would look like when she was young. Originally, the plan was to make the gown for myself but when I went to lay out the pattern, I found that I was about a yard short of the purple satin fabric! *cue sad violin* I related my woes to my Mama and she suggested I make it instead for my little sisters! I cheered right up and got to work!

This is Mandee; #7 of our 8 children and she's 4 years old. I don't think I need to say anything in praise of her beauty because the pictures speak for me. She looks exactly like my mom did when she was 4! She also quite a character. You can see in the pictures below that she has a four year-old attitude. While she's sweet most of the time, she was having a moment when it came time to take pictures of her "princess dress", as she calls it.

This was such a fun project and I hadn't made anything for Mandee since February. I'm also halfway done with Mirial's (8) matching gown :)

I did finish the gown by Sunday but haven't got the pictures up until now. I wasn't going for complete historical accuracy here-I was going for maximum play-ability with ease of movement. I used a basic Simplicity pattern and dressed it up. Easy Peasy. And she loves it!

The Facts...

The Challenge: #10-Art

Fabric: 1 1/2 Yds. Purple Satin, 1 Yd. Gold Taffeta

Pattern: Andrea Schewe's Simplicity 3725

Year: 1750s-ish

Notions: Thread, Zipper, Elastic, Ribbon, Lace

How historically accurate is it?: Maybe 75%

Hours to complete: 4-5

First worn: For Photoshoot 

Total cost: It comes out to somewhere around $10-15

Period Film Game {2}

I think the last Period Film Game went well so we'll give it another go, eh? Now, for those of you who didn't participate last time, the rules are as follows: I put 10 screencaps from different period films and tv shows and you make a guess as to the title of the film/show. Comment below with your guesses. 10 points for each correct answer for a possible score of 100 points! Next week, I will post the answers alongside the individual scores of each person. I went easy on y'all last time but now I'm cracking down ;) Have fun!

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Have fun! And remember-don't peek at another's guesses until you've posted your own!!!