Scissors!!!

 Because I got a new one! Yaaayyy!

Being a dressmaker means, that one has a special relationship to scissors, especially those we use to cut fabrics with, right? 

The first scissor I keep (no picture of it, because it is pact away) is the scissor my maternal grandfather used to cut the leather, as they were making shoe tops, or rather tops for those wood soled slippers and clogs that were such a height in fashion over here in the seventies. After their death, I asked my mom for it, but it was in shambles, and it is broken and only half of it exists now, but I keep it. 

The next one...

I got these, when, after graduating from highshcool, I went that special technical school to learn dressmaking. The forewoman of the shift I was doing my practice period gave it to me. It is smaller than the average scissor, and by now it isn't working well on fabrics, but I still use it on paper, I cut my patterns with these.

I bought these after I finsied the technical school, and dived into sewing properly, so I have a special, sentimental love for it. I took it with me when I lived in the US, I cut a number of crazy clothes with them... Unfortunately, I must have cut on a metal pin, or something, becase there is one small point on its blade that is dull... I can still cut with it, especially thinner fabrics, or one-2 layers, but for more serious stuff it isn't the best.

This next one I bought to replace the previous one, but it was a bad choice. 

While its blade is okay, its handle is uncomfortable. I don't like it. It is Fiskars, okay, but I bought it in a market in the US, and with a hindsight might be either not "fabric scissor", or it might by just a copy, or something. 

Anyhow, I made do with these three for many years, often thinking that once I will get a new one. In fact I did made a decision in the fall of 2020, when I made Eva's wedding dress, that once she paid, I will make part of that money and buy that scissor I am dreaming of, but somehow it did not happened. 

This time, I had no particular reason, other than doing the Aidah gown, but I had enough of struggling with the scissor, and while a friend asked me to go with her to the sewing machine store, I decided to get the biggest Fiscars scissors they had. 

(this how it looks like along with the old, thirtysome years old one). I love it, it cuts several layers of fabric nicely, without a hitch.

The orange scissors have a special pleace in this house... I mean, we all know, fabric scissors shouldn't be used for anything else (the least o fall paper cutting), and the rule is that noone else can touch the orange handled shears but me. There are a bunch of other ones, black, blue handled, flowery blad, even one with red and white polka dots, they are all fair game (until they get back to their places after use), but using my orange handled scissors carry a death penalty. Not a hard rule, and my darlings are safe this way. 

Testing, testing... Aidah gown

 Before you all think that once again, I abandoned the blog, here is a little uupdate...

The thing is, I want to sew EVERY possible 18th century project, even if we don't really have many events to wear them to, but I definetly need to add some pieces to my 18th C wardrobe. 

The red dress I made in the summer was supposed to be a practice piece to figure out what is what  and which way is to that way with 18th century sewing. I do love that red dress to pieces with all its faults. 

That is an 1780 dress, from cotton, which is really fine the aspiring, up and coming burgoise citizens, but if I want to go upward from that (like the court of Marie Teresa), I need something from a bit earlier, and from finer materials.

When Scroop Patterns came out with their Angelica gown, I applied for testing, but did not got into the pool, but I applied again, when they were looking for testers to its sister gown, the Aidah. Thus, at the moment I am working on that.

65 page without the sewing instructions,

A few hours and a whole roll of Scotch tape later. 

Trying the first mock up...

Modifying the front curve.

Back looks fine, but a little bit too thight.

Thats where I am now... 

To be continued.

Londondondon

 Any excuse to go to London, right?

I love London, I can't deny it.

With Christopher we always go to the movies on Christmas day. And then we usually watch "big movies" at least twice. Once in dubbed versions, just because that is what available readily / at the big theatres / in IMAX etc. And then with the original sound, just because... well, thats the original, right?

We went to the movies on Xmas day, and watched "THE" big movie, Avatar, but then, as it happens, no original sound screening in IMAX in my country. There might have been other option, but hey, it is Avatar. Made for IMAX.  We looked for the closest theatres which was Vienna. but for some reason train tickets and accomondations cost an arm and a leg in all January. 

Then we tested the theory "sometimes it is cheaper to go to London", and loo and behold, it was, and as I already stated, any excuse to go to London. We have a saying to abot "tieing together the useful and the pleasant", in this case wee did the pleasant and the pleasant, and so it turned out that this trip became my Christmas present from my boy. 

We have not been there for long, 3 days, 2 nights, didn't even managed to do "big things", museums, or big sights, but wondering around, see a friend who has a costume workshop, see a small exhibition, see "the" movie, eat at the place they filmed Sherlock, 

and I still take it as a great present from life (and my boy) that I could spent this couple of days with my son. he is 22, and who knows, how long wants to go anywhere with me, and not with someone else. (Don't get me wrong, he has friends, he travels without me, that is why it was extra special).

I am planning other posts with more pictures (that are more on topic of crafts and historical clothes, so bear with me)

Truly Victorian Reverie Bodice (TV449)

This bodice / jacket was long in the making. Started it around Xmas time in 2021, hoping to finish it to our annual Sisi even in the Gödöllő castle. It didn't happened, even though I did spent considrable amount of time of the family celebrations sitting in the corner and sewing, still, we didn't got back in time to put in the sleeves. 

I wore my old, velvet Hungarian dress, which I hated (see the blogpost on my new Hungarian bodice), and then before the summer lost just enough weight that it would not fit me anymore without serious rework (I.e taking the handsewn boning channels out and take it in at the sides.). 

Unfortunately I did gain back some of the weight, and the Xmas even got closer again, so I decided to finish it up, but this time - since the soutache thing went so well on the Hungarian bodice- add more than a simple edging for decoration- and then again, I did spent considerable amount of time of the family celebrations, sitting in some corner and sewing - this time silver ribbons, all 8 meters of it, instead of boning channels. 

 The velvet was a leftover piece of factory reject, crumpled and dirty on the shelves of ILoveTextile, with a paisley print that could be only seen close up, but it was just enough for this bodice. I used the leftovers of my ballgown to do the lapels, cuffs, and the turned out thingies at the back, to tie it with the skirt, that is used in the third set, the third variation now. 

The pattern was Truly Victorian's Reverie Bodice (TV449). It went together pretty easy, and needed minimal adjusting at fitting. I am not sure about the instructions, as I remember reading them once, when I started this, then promptly putting it away. I used an old, stripy cavas for lining, I brought it back from the US many years ago, and the historical flatlining tecnique. Sewn the major seams with the machine, but all the finishing are by hand (even sewn the boning channels on by hand).

I use this bodice / jacket with the corset and corsetcover I made , and also a pair of sleeves, I am not posting separately. 

And here it is at he event itself:

Photos: Norbert Varga @bodeszphoto

(Detail pics from my phone)

New Year's red - just a quick update

 Since I was asked let me just put it out here too:

Yes, I am doing it. 

I went through the patterns I saved for this, and selected one, I wanted to do since it came out: Drops Rosendal. 

I dug out these yarns from my stash:

And here is where I got with it until now. The body and sleeves are separated, and I've knitted a few rows of the body.

To be continued.

Truly Victorian Corset cover

 When we talk about the layers of Victorian clothing, we always mention the corset cover (which is a little blouse like of thing to -as its name says- cover up the corset, and soften the line the corset's enge gives), but quite often skip it, as it rarely seen. Yes, some ballgowns have the edges peaking put (or they sew lace edging to imitate that, like I did in my "Hungarian" bodice. Now, I could not put making one off any longer, and you will see in my next post why. 

Unfortunately I decided in the last minute, that I am making one, and rushed with the sewing, so no pictures about the making it, sorry. 

I ordered, printed and taped together the Truly Victorian TV107 pattern in one late night. I did not make a mock up, as my fabric was a leftover piece anyway. I found it in one of the chainstores of the factory outlets that peppers the long boulevard in downtown. They have six stores in the city, five of them along one tramline, that goes trough on that boulevard. The truth to be told I think Hungarian reenactors do hunt those stores, because sometimes there are treasures in there. I have many a dresses from fabrics picked up there. In one of the stores I go a little bit less because it is in between two stops, and I seldon get off and walk there, but in the end of november I did for some reason, and in the store of factory rejects and leftovers there was a pile of stuff they even reject, and in that pile there was two piece of white linen. You know me and and linen have a love affair, I have a hard time saying no to it, even if it is any color... much more so, if it is white. Now, these pieces were crupled, dirty, and even pieced, but I got them anyway. At home I threw them into the washing machine (linen needs to be preashed anyway), with some stronch washing detergent, bleach and baking soda, and after a hot cycle, it was lovely clean and soft. From the smaller length, I took off the narrow strip that was piece don, and put it away (It is a perfect size to do an embroidered 16-17th century coif with), and I was left with just enough to put up the pattern pieces. I also have a box full of lace, and I dug up a piece that was left over from some petticoat, which was just enough for the decoration on the front, along the neckline and one sleeve... I had another piece, but I wasn't keen on cutting that, because if I do that, I am sure next time I will miss that dearly, however as I checked, I found that it was also pieced, and the length that was sewn on was like 2 cm longer than what I needed for the second sleeve. This way I felt less apprehensive taking it off the roll. 

As usual I sewn most of the long, basic seams with a machine (after all it was for the 1860-ies, when sewing machines were already a thing), but I finished the inside edges by hand. 

As for the pattern it is straightforward, goes together quite easily, but I needed to fit the heck out of it, because the size I cut out was way to big on me. The instructions unfortunately do not give us the measurements in cm-s, only inches, and I was too lazy had no time to do the calculations.Now either I remembered wrong, which size I used for the bodice last year, or something else was up, but then again, it is much easier to solve the problem of things being to big, than vice verse. 

Corset

I've made a corset in the summer of 2021, which served me well, but last spring I finally managed to lost eough weight that it could be easily closed fully. Besides, even though we did those little metal cups on the bones, they stil managed to find their way out of the twill tape I used as boning channels. I sewed the holes up countless time, to have yet another bone digging into me at the next event. So I decided a new one is in order. Like a couple of days before Xmas, when else.  Little did I know, I will run into a number of problems. 

One of these was finding a busk. I mean I have busks home, I make historical clothes, I think I have enough stuff in my house to make anything I can think of... SOMEHOW. I mean, these busks would work in a pinch, however I found the shorter one, that is the good length for me is too weak, the stronger one is too long. It will be perfect for a late edwardian corset, once I convince myself I really need one. Until then I will make do with a mid-victorian. I started looking on E-bay, the German place I got them the last time simply diassapeared, not to mention that shipping would take weeks (and shipping prices went up to the sky in the last few months.

Then I remembered, that Taylor, the store that sells fabrics and notions for dancewear and wedding dresses was open even in the worst of the pandemic, a phonecall could not hurt, even though the last time I was there, they did not had the spoon busk. Now they did. So I went and bought one, and while I was there I bough a roll of boning channel tapes, that are so thightly woven, practically guaranteed that no boning gets through the. Then at home I used one of those I deemed to weak for a proper corset and made up a busk strip and a lacing strip that should help me with mock ups and fittings. 

My next problem was the pattern. When I do something I always keep the original pattern pieces, the mock ups, half of it usually all in one, the other half picked apart to make the pattern, and the final pattern. I thought it will be as simple as taking it off the shelf, and then I can easily modify according to my experience with the corset over the last year and half.  But try as I might I just could not find the package. I took out the boxes, I even cleaned half of my sewing room, I found interesting stuff, like the pattern for the previous (early victorian corset I made), but not this last one. 

I did find the original Redthreaded pattern I printed-taped cut out back then, but it wasn't much help as it was modified to fit me better. So I sat down and tried to copy the pattern off the working corset as much as I could, comparing those to the original pattern pieces and drawing up new ones. 

Made up a mock up from some old fabric I fould while I was looking for the pattern, noted the few small changes I wanted: I remembered and noted again, that my bust gores always work better if they are shorter that the original ones, however, I need to take out a cm or two of the waist, and add a bit of extra to the hip insert.

Coutil is not readily available in my country, I am not sure I could get it at all, even if I would try harder within the borders, so I used a pretty, small flovered cotton satin for fashion fabric, a white denim for the strength, and one more cotton sheet for the middle. I said white denim... right, I planned to used that as when I gout the cotton satin, I also got some pretty snow white (or "optic white") one, about which I was so happy, that I forgot to check its elasticity... and guess what it is pretty elastic cross-wise, which aint good for corsets. Thus I had to climb up the ladder (don't ask me why, but I keep my corset materials on my uppermost shelf), take down what I had there, which was denim, and white, but a but too yellowish to my taste but it had to make do. 

It is not in the instructions, but I did a couple of lines on the gores to strengthen them, and then stitched all the pieces so I could handle the triple layers as one. 

Did a few line on the hip insert as wel.

And more stitching

Finally cut the place for the gores, and set them in.

Sewn down the edges by hand.

Added the boning channels

And added the hip insert.

When the two half was done up, I finally added the spoon busk. Just so you know, it is not more difficult to sewn in a spoon busk than a regular straight one. You only have to be more careful at the rounded edge at the bottom.

Added edging to the bottom, added the bones (the spiral steel around the boobs, and straight ones to the other places) then a bit of lace and another edging to the top.

Added grommets to the back for lacing and it was done.

It looks like this at from the back. The little bit of wrinking means that I will have to add just a little bit to its sides, and maybe take out even more from the waist.

This is the thirsd time actually I make this pattern, and only now do I realize that I need one more bone to both side between the busk and the breast gores, and that would take out the wrinkling there. 

So now, this is not perfect either, but works under my Victorian clothes (who the hell will look for the slight wrinkling under three layers of clothing?), and I can retire the old one, and have it as a touchable show-piece at living history events, among the other, earlier, busk-less version. If I manage to loose more weight than I gained in the late fall and Xmas period, I will make yet another, improved one. I did packed up the pattern pieces and the mock-up pieces carefully, but in this house, you never know.