Tag: inspiration

HSM 2017 – The rest of the year (Aug-Dec)

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I always find it hard to plan a full year of sewing ni adwance, since so much can happen that will change your creative drift and interest.
So this year I only made plans for the first half of the “Historical sew Monthly“.

But as summer’s now upon us I think it is time to take a new look at the uppcoming challenges, and to try to figure out what I wan’t to create for the ending of this year.

August:
Ridiculous – Make something that was considered outrageous in its own time, or is just utterly ridiculous to modern eyes.

There are SOoo many things yuu could do here, like 1880s bustles, 1890s mutton-sleeves, 17th century trunkhose ore 1830s hairs (already done that:-).
But for this challenge I will try to finish my Robe a la Franchaise that I begunn in 2014.21b6904ef6a12a9a9d65e486ef558bfdIt’s not silly looking per se, but the panniers that it will go over are a bit cazy

September:
Seen Onscreen – Be inspired by period fashions as shown onscreen (film or TV), and recreate your favorite historical costume as a historically accurate period piece.

I’ve been wanting to make myself some more 17th century garb and now might be a good oppurtunity to get to it.
elizabeth-capell-countess-of-carnarvon-ca-1665-sir-peter-lely I’m thinking maybe a new 1860s bodice (since I already have a pattern)
Or maybe someting a bit more daring like a mantua (I’ve hears a lot of Swedes arte doing these now a days…)

October:
Out of Your Comfort Zone – Create a garment from a time period you haven’t done before, or that uses a new skill or technique that you’ve never tried before.

This one is hard, but I’ve been wanting to give menswear a fair try, so why not now. k4202drwI already have a Regency west cut and waiting, and if I can find the time I would love to also make a pair of breechers and a shirt.

November:
HSF Inspiration – Be inspired by something that has been made for the HSF over the years to make your own fabulous item.

 There are so many gorgeous and inpireing entrys to the HSF/HSM, that it would be almost inpossible to choose only one.
That I think I will approach this from the other angle – to decide the garment first, by going through my stash and then find the right inspiration from the comunity.

December:
Go Wild – You can interpret this challenge as an excuse to make something that incorporates animal print, or wild animals in some way, or to simply make something wild and over the top.

I also been craving an 15th century Burgundian gown for myself, and since those often are decorated with fur, it would be the perfect choise. spinning-women1

As you sure can guess, I’m planing a lot more costumes this year, 3 of which are already well on their way, that don’t fit into the scheduel that is the HSM.

Historic Pregnancy Wear

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As my urge to sew slowly seep back into my body, I find myself looking at another type of fashions then before – namely maternety dresses through history.

Even though I probably never will get the time to sew, and even les to wear them – here are some of the beauties I´ve found.

images(Yes I know, its comonly said that this weeding portrait comes without childbearing gifts, but you got to agree with me´- eiter that´s a lot of cokies, padding or she´s been honoring those wedding vovs for quite a while…)
I would love to wear something simular to the medieval fair late may – if i have the strenght to go.

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99f0c1525ae4f83fae85088048e9ee90Dreamy – and would work both with and without a baby bump

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tumblr_m0qnmbmEJC1qbkn6io1_500Ok, not the most comfortable thing to wear, but it do looks good.

ladda ned

Austria2This “I only button the top”thing, works just as well in the 16th century as it does today with knit cardigans.

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Images of pregnancy maternity fashion - 17th 18th 19th century maternity style

c511f98c3f2bfec60ee6b59a5b7e8e4b“Lets just hide everything” is a look that only works for paintings – and instagram photos…

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tumblr_m13h8vq1Mm1qbkn6io1_500

969e4d687c637f87c23984dee3539077Not sure if I´m most facinated by the womans figure or the mans outfit…

Do you have any favourite pictures of maternity wear?

Outlander dress inspiration

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This past year I’ve followed the fenomen of “Outlander” with interest.

I’ve watched the series, read the analysis and discussions about the costumes, and smiled at the world wide drooling over Sam Heughan.
And of course admired all the fabulous recreations of the clothing’s from the show.

But it wasn’t until recently I found myself dreaming of my very own highlander/Clare costume.
It started late august.
I was going through my fabric stash for some creative impulses, when I found a piece of lovely plaid wool, in shades of dark green and navy, that might be just enough for a full skirt.
And there, right beside, a piece of perfectly matching left over beige wool that wouldn’t be enough for anything more then a small jacket, perhaps 18th century…
Yep, you see where I’m going here.

So onto Pinterest I went:

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355cff34b471477934399d8c8a14a566One of few back views

113df6a2fa677ee4eb31bb5ccaf5f374Close-up showing the hooks and bars that keeps the stomacher in place.

c26db7014bdcad3b3995e84fc3b1a71bAnd you got to love the cosy knitwear.

“Sew 17th Century Challenge” – Finding my Painting

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Last fall Isis from “Isis Wardrobe” started the “17th century Challenge” to encourage more interest and recreation of 17th century fashion.
(As she explain in her blog post (see above) the idea comes from Maria of “In deme jare cristi” who started the “Manuscript challenge“.)

I immediately liked the idea, since I’ve been pondering on making a 17th century dress for some time and this seamed the perfect excuse.
(This project also fit perfectly into the HSM15 challenge “Out of your comfort zone” due in June)

The rules for the “Sew 17th century challenge” are simple:
*Pick a painting or original garment from 1600-1699, and upload your picture to the Facebook album
*You got 1 year to recreate the painting (every piece of clothing) as close as you can considering, skills, time and budget.
*Present your garment in the Facebook album and tell a bit about the process.
(read the in dept rules at “Isis Wardrobe”)

So this winter I took a good look at what internet had to provide in terms of 17th century fashions.

While searching I discovered some of the typical styles in (women’s) fashion painted in the 17th century.

The extremely elaborate court robe:

(c) The Royal Hospital Chelsea; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation
Catherine of Braganza (c) The Royal Hospital Chelsea; Supplied by The Public Catalogue Foundation

The goddess drape:1671 Louise de Kérouaille by Sir Peter Lely “Louise de Kérouaille” by Sir Peter Lely (1671)

The crazy as panniers court dress:1660s Ines de Zúñiga, condesa de Monterrey by Juan Carreno de Miranda “Ines de Zúñiga, condesa de Monterrey” by Juan Carreno de Miranda (1660s)

The “simple” high waist:1632 yellow dress“Yellow dress” (1632)

The extremely elaborate high waist:Susanna Temple ca. 1604-1669 (later m. Lady Thornhurst and m. Lady Lister) by Marcus Gheeraerts, 1620s“Susanna Temple ca. 1604-1669″  by Marcus Gheeraerts, (ca 1620)

The crazy as embroidery:  Portrait of Margaret Layton, attributed to Marcus Gheeraerts, c. 1620. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London“Portrait of Margaret Layton”, attributed to Marcus Gheeraerts, c. 1620. © Victoria and Albert Museum, London
I would love to make this one from the recreation of this fabric some day, But not right now. 

The 16th century lingerer:Frans Pourbus the younger, Portrait of Margaret of Savoy, Duchess of Mantua, 1608“Portrait of Margaret of Savoy, Duchess of Mantua” by Frans Pourbus the younger (1608)

The “Poor” people dress:Mother Combing Child's Hair by Caspar Netscher (1669)“Mother Combing Child’s Hair” by Caspar Netscher (1669)

The rigid and “simple” dress: Peter Lely. Portrait of Elizabeth Wriothesley, Countess of Northumberland, and later Countess of Montagu, 1668. “Portrait of Elizabeth Wriothesley, Countess of Northumberland, and later Countess of Montagu”, by Peter Lely (1668)

The rigid and lace decorated gown:Portrait of a Lady by Gabriel Metsu“Portrait of a Lady” by Gabriel Metsu (ca 1660s)

Even though I can see something charming in almost every one of these fashions (maybe except the “crazy as panniers” – I mean what is that), but I’m definitely drawn to the 1660s “simpler” styles of dress.

So focusing on portraits from that period I still had to narrow it down to just one favorite.

Elizabeth Capell, Countess of Carnarvon, ca. 1665 (Sir Peter Lely)Elizabeth Capell, Countess of Carnarvon by Sir Peter Lely (ca. 1665)

(c) Enfield Museum Service; Supplied by The Public Catalogue FoundationPrincess Henrietta Anne of England (1644–1670) by Jan Mytens (1665)

While both lovely, I knew I wanted to make something a bit more basic and les fancy.

Not loving the dress color, besides I could never get over how bald she looks in the mirror.Woman at a Mirror 1650” Woman at a Mirror” (1650)

This one would be perfect if I could ever find those golden ribbons (yeah, as if…)The Glass of Wine (detail), c.1661, Johannes Vermeer.“The Glass of Wine” (detail), by  Johannes Vermeer (c.1661)

Perfect!
Gerard_ter_Borch_(II) - The_Concert ca. 1675“The Concert” by Gerard ter Borch (II) – (ca. 1675)
Yep, That’s the one

You can find my Pinterest board for the “Sew 17th century challenge”here.

The start of a War – Downton Mary’s Striped dress – studie

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About the same time the challenges for the HSM15 was announced, I was sitting at home in my soffa, stitching and re-watching (for the third or forth time) “Downton Abby”.

I’ve always loved the striped gown Lady Mary wears in the very last scene of the first season.
Realizing how perfect it would be for the April challenge “War & Peace”, and that the perfect fabric already lay waiting in my stash.

So last a few weeks ago I started collecting images of the lady and her fabulous dress (and accessorize).downton460_1755730c

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images (1)What’s pretty obvious straight away are the change in hat and necklace, between the two times she wears the dress in the show. I love the “over the top” wide brimmed, flower-covered straw hat in this photo.

 My searches also led me to some fashion plates from the time, which I’m pretty sure would have been the inspiration for the dress from the costume designer.images (2)

images (3)Sorry for he small size.

I also found lots of people recreating this dress (It seem pretty popular – wounder why…)37e33d1bdc006046b9238d4844fd79cdLady Mary as a doll

1-DSC_0135And a modern interpretation. Love this so much!

Of course there’s also lots of costumers who re-created this dress, but if I post them I will feel the pressure of there beautiful creations so much more…

But this is the picture I decided to try to copie.0x600I’ve bought both the crocheted glows and the super long necklace.
The hat looks a bit intimidating, but I’ve collected the hat base, the flowers and the netting, and don’t think it will be that hard to get the right look.

The dress on displayd10283050e04121086e4765e2635ba73Here you can see the slim width of the skirt and the fact it’s gored all the way down.

downton_abbey_mary_dress_season_oneOn closer look we can see the proper way to close the dress – wit a placket hidden under the contrasting ribbon and front side dart/seam. This means the dress will be closed both with buttons (at enter front bodice) and with hooks and bars at the center side skirt (in a kind of lightning shape).

You can also clearly see that the dress is actually pale lilac & white in the stripes, and a darker lilac on the belt.

I was indecisive of what to do with the bodice back – would it be a center back seam? Darts? Something else?
Until I found this picture…17a9fa6259cc877505541e81efa36bc0Not from the back, but you can clearly see the stripes running on the bias. Of course! The back will be designed with the stripes meeting in a V at center back, running up to the shoulder and continue into the sleeves. So pretty and so simple.

I hopes Lady Grantham approves. images

Lady-Mary-Crawley-Downton-Abbey-GIFChears!

HS(F)M 2015

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The Dreamstress have decided to host yet another year of wonderful historical sewing challenges.
Only this year we will all (and most off all me) slow the paste down a bit and do the “Historical Sew Monthly“.

After some consideration I’ve decided to participate even this year – Oh, how am I kidding there was never any doubt…
But this year I will put up some ground rules for me to follow.

*Use stash first – I may need to buy notions and fabric such as buttons, cord or lining but I will use fabrics from my ever growing stash as much as possible.

* Don’t sweet it – If I can’t finish in time for a deadline, there’s no pressure, I will just post whenever I finish. – This also means I will not rush to complete thing in a slopy manner, but instead take my time and make everything as good as I can.

*Take time of from sewing – If the choice is between hanging out with friends/hubby/family or sewing, I will choose people every time.

Let’s present the challenges and what I intend to do with them for 2015.

January – Foundations:
Make something that is the foundation of a period outfit.

18thCpannierI’m going for 18th century here and doing some panniers – probably a smaller version of the ones in the picture.

February – Blue:
Make an item that features blue, in any shade from azure to zaffre.

7f449c24f267568720b72a36903b2682I’ve started a 1790s Redingote in a light blue wool for the HSF 14 challenge 22: Menswear, but left it after some hard design decisions. This is the perfect excuse to finish it.

March – Stashbusting:
Make something using only fabric, patterns, trims & notions that you already have in stash.

c06c34a182a07515aa4b3c486a835003I’m not completely sure about this one, but I’m thinking of making a Spencer  from a beige wool I’ve got laying around. There are really to less fabric for anything else, and I do need some  more outerwear, but I might as well go in another direction with this one.

April – War & Peace:
The extremes of conflict and long periods of peacetime both influence what people wear.  Make something that shows the effects of war, or of extended peace.

sisI’m thinking of making the famous striped 1914s dress that Mary wears in Downton Abbey the day they get the news of the coming war.
I got some leftover striped white/green cotton that would be great for this project.

May – Practicality:
Fancy party frocks are all very well, but everyone,even princesses, sometimes needs a practical garment that you can DO things in.  Create the jeans-and-T-Shirt-get-the-house-clean-and-garden-sorted outfit of your chosen period.

5880ee0d1aa5d43db828e03caa587e55I’ve long been thinking about making a everyday regency dress from some green cotton sheets I’ve got, and this seems like a perfect opportunity

June – Out of Your Comfort Zone:
Create a garment from a time period you haven’t done before, or that uses a new skill or technique that you’ve never tried before.

borchA few fellow seamstresses here in Sweden are all getting their 17th century dresses finished this year, so why not join in. I love to make a boned bodice and skirt for this challenge.

July – Accessorize:
The final touch of the right accessory creates the perfect period look.  Bring an outfit together by creating an accessory to go with your historical wardrobe.

bba904c5a7aa1a5222e9b051ebcf7186This challenge could be a lots of things. I’ve considered headwear, aprons, jewelry and shoes, but I think what I most need (and want) are some 1800-1860s chemisetts.

August – Heirlooms & Heritage:
Re-create a garment one of your ancestors wore or would have worn, or use an heirloom sewing supply to create a new heirloom to pass down to the next generations.

dalsland4This one is hard for me, since I don’t know anything about my ancestors, and there are none of my older relatives left to ask.
But considering most of the Swedish population heirs from farmers, I suppose that’s as good guess as any.
I will need some more research to determent what to make for this one.

September – Brown:
It’s not the most exciting colour by modern standards, but brown has been one of the most common, and popular, colours throughout history. Make something brown.

gray1I got some brown wool/polyester blend that would look great as a late 19th century walking dress. Perhaps something along the lines of the suit Satin/Nicole Kidman wears in “Moulin Rouge”.

October – Sewing Secrets:
Hide something in your sewing, whether it is an almost invisible mend, a secret pocket, a false fastening or front, or a concealed message (such as a political or moral allegiance).

Digital CaptureYet another one I’m not sure about. But I know I want to make a 18th century mourning dress this year, and this may be the chance to do so. And the secret?
You will just have to wait and see.

November – Silver Screen:
Be inspired by period fashions as shown onscreen (film or TV), and recreate your favourite historical costume as a historically accurate period piece.

movies_20_memorable_movie_queens_4I’ve wanted to make this dress (worn by Cate Blanchett in “Elizabeth”) since I first saw it, I already got the fabric, the pattern and the period undergarments for it – so now is the time (If I can brace myself for so long).

December – Re-Do:
It’s the last challenge of the year, so let’s keep things simple by re-doing any of the previous 11 challenges.

?

I have honestly no idea on what to make for this challenge.
But since it is a whole year left until then, I’m sure I will figure something out.
After all, I got a pretty impressive list on “Want to make” this year…
(More on that in my next post)