Good Afternoon!
How was your Halloween? Mine was so much fun! I had a little bit of a fitting emergency with the Simplicity pattern I used, but my costume ended up looking okay when I called upon the magic of safety pins and false eyelashes.
Now that Halloween and Veteran's Day have come and gone, I’ve just realized how late in the year it actually is. Christmas is around the corner, and I’m rubbing shoulders with Thanksgiving. So you can imagine the white-hot lance of fear that shot through me when I realized that the Calico Ghost Town Reenactment at the beginning of 2014 will be upon me in no time. This event is blisteringly cold, and is often punctuated by torrential showers and/or snow flurries. I know, I know. I’m really up-selling this reenactment. It is fun. Mostly.
Since this event is the coldest of the year, I don’t really have much in the way of winter wear. I have flannel drawers and petticoats, wool gloves, and a bunch of wool scarves and shawls. I end up looking like a storybook witch. I think it adds to the persona, but it doesn’t keep me all that warm; the spaces between the scarves and shawls attract little gusts of wind, I swear. So, I have a list of things I want to get done by the Reenactment, which is about two and a half/ three months away:
Plaid laundering dress
Olive and black check paletot (lined with flannel?)
Winter hood
Plaid flannel wrapper (if I have the time/money)
The Plaid Laundering Dress:
A couple of months ago I started hand-sewing a new laundering dress, since my machine was on the fritz. It’s better now, but all of the long seams have already been done, so I’m going to continue to hand sew. I’m calling it a “laundering dress” specifically because of some modifications I’m making.
First, the skirts are a bit on the short side, making it easier to tramp around camp without getting caught up on stakes/ ropes when I’ve got armfuls of laundry. The skirt is cartridge-pleated a little narrower than the usual day gown (three 44” panels serge to serge), so I can walk through camp without having to maneuver skirts around.
I absolutely hate bishop sleeves, which are good for rolling up when doing laundry, so I’m going with a buttoned coat sleeve, which I can unbutton at the wrists and roll to my elbows so the fabric doesn’t get wet. I’m going to line the bodice and sleeves with unbleached muslin, and the kick pleat will be unbleached muslin as well.
My maroon gown is pretty and all, but the fabric isn’t really accurate, and I want to go with something a little more dirt-friendly. I purchased a tan plaid, and I’m changing up my usual hook and eye front closure for a buttoned closure. I’m using these really sweet untreated wood buttons, and hand sewing the button holes. The bodice is gathered, which was fairly common for coarse or homespun cotton gowns during the period. A friend of mine said it wasn’t all that fashionable during the war, but I’m a laundress, so I really shouldn’t be looking all that fashionable or I’ll attract too much attention and get myself fired. So gathered it shall be.
I won’t be sewing a collar to the gown, but instead will be using my trusty linen kerchief, which I think looks adventurous and comes in really handy in the summer.
Both armscyes have self-piping, and the skirt will have self-bias around the bottom. I’m slightly worried that I may run out of fabric; I purposefully bought less than I usually do because the fabric was not on sale and I want to force myself to piece. I usually have a lot of fabric left over, and this wastes money and fabric, especially since I haven’t started quilting any of my scrap yet. I know I’m going to have to piece the sleeves, and definitely the bias and piping. If all else fails, I’ll probably take out some volume from the skirt for sleeves and piping.
Olive and Black Check Paletot:
This little beauty will probably lead me tear out my hair. I posted about this project, and was super psyched about it. I bought this really great olive and green wool check in the Garment District a couple of years ago, and it is perfect for a paletot. So I made a mockup and cut out the fabric. I also bought some cotton velveteen for sleeve cuff and neckline decoration. The sleeves and the little cap sleeves are done, and the sleeves only need some flannel lining basted in. The body of the paletot, though. Sometimes I really dislike being a woman. Especially the sudden hormonal weight gain where you least expect it. I mean, I honestly find myself thinking “do people really store fat there?” Don’t get me wrong; being a woman is way more awesome than being a man, in my biased experience. But the strange, sudden weight gain? I can live without it. Needless to say, I cut out the paletot when I was ten pounds lighter than I am now. And a large portion of those ten pounds magically ended up where it really matters in fitting upper body garments. The thing strains to cover my bust, and I definitely need to tear this thing apart and piece the heck out of it. I only have a small amount of fabric left, so I’m going to have to be very creative, I think.
Winter Hood:
I found a great tutorial about Romantic History’s winter hood. I usually use a large-brimmed straw hat during the rest of the year, but I don’t ever take it to Calico. My face is always so cold that I end up wrapping multiple scarves around my head. But I was cleaning out my fabric chest, and realized that I have a couple of old Irish Wool skirts that would make an amazing winter bonnet. I also found some plaid flannel shirting and am going to line the inside of the bonnet with that, since the wool is a little scratchy. I plan on machining this, but I may hand quilt the brim if I’m feeling brave.
Plaid Flannel Wrapper:
So this project is going to be saved for last, if I’m feeling really ambitious. I have a mid-century wrapper pattern that I’ve made a mockup of, and it is awesome. And in flannel? I would never ever change out of it. Ever. If I can find some well-priced plaid flannel, and if I have enough time, I’ll whip this up on my Singer.
