Edwardian Fashion (Part 1): A Brief History of Edwardian Fashion

     In celebration of my new Etsy store, ACleverNotion, I'll give brief histories and explanations of my garment inspirations!
      First up: The Edwardian Period.
     The Edwardian Period in England lasted from 1901-1910, and was a time of great change in women's clothing. The Period started with the death of Queen Victoria, who was conservative in her dress and presentation. Her son, the fashionable and jet-setting King Edward VII, brought about the craze of Continental Style. This period also coincided with the Belle Epoque Period (1890-1914) in France and the Turn of the Century Period (1890-1914) in America.

     The interesting thing about this Period, starting with the death of Queen Victoria and ending with the horrors of the Great War, is that the contemporary sense of a "leisure class" was born. Wealthy men and women took up outdoor sports, and because of this, women's fashion had to change dramatically.

     During the Victorian Period, women wore corsets and crinolines, which then transitioned to bustles in the '70's. Figures were kept neat and tight, and emphasis was placed firmly on the narrow waist.

The 'belled' shape which marked the mid-19th century.

The bustle dress of the late Victorian Period.

     During the Edwardian Period, women still wore corsets, but the belled and bustled look of the previous era had gone; the new rage in fashion was the long, lean look of the "Gibson Girl".

No crinolines or bustles. Pretty awesome hats.

The "Gibson Girl". Caption reads: "A Northeaster. Some look well in it."

     A low, full bust and wide hips became the epitome of beauty, though the waist remained neat and slender. The S-curve corset became popular. What differs greatly from the Victorian Period is the fact that the hips can be seen, and the bust is over-emphasized.

The S-curved corset.

Full bust and hips.

the "New Figure" looks quite strange next to the "Old Style Corset."

     Near the mid-decade, French fashion houses started designing for the thicker waists, narrower hips and flatter chests we see in the fashions of the Great War.

1910 Fashion Plate.

     Women started wearing tweed "suits": jacket and skirt combos worn with "waists" or blouses tailored like a man's shirt. These outfits were easy to move in, and leisured women wore them while sporting.

A lady's 'Suit'.

A simple shirtwaist.

     After the Edwardian Period, corsets fell out of fashion, and were replaced by the brassiere. And we've never looked back.

     Next Post: Flimsies.
     Cheers!

Halloween is My Favorite.

One of my favorite movies of all time.

You get to dress up, scare trick-or-treaters, bob for apples . . .

This looks like so much fun. 

And the weather is nice. . . ish. In Southern California, Halloween can be blisteringly hot, and there are usually a few brush fires, so it's kinda hard to breathe. But never mind all that.

How can you not be happy on Halloween?

I'm going to make a Halloween costume. I haven't done that in forever. I mean, literally three years. We have a Las Vegas (Spring Mountain Ranch) reenactment every year on the last weekend of October. Which is fun, since I technically have a "costume". But since the 31st is a Wednesday, I can celebrate it day of, or even the weekend after. My dad has a thing about celebrating things after they've happened. "The anticipation is gone," he says. But my pent-up Halloween exuberance could probably have its own party. So either way, I'm making a costume.
"What are you going to make, Megan?" you ask.
"Um, the best Halloween costume ever," I reply.
That's how dialogue works, you see. Questions and answers, questions and answers.
I'm really excited.

Presenting (drumroll, please):

Idris!!!!!!!
If you don't know who this is, you should probably become awesome and look her up.
She's from the Doctor Who episode "The Doctor's Wife". She's not really his wife, but she kinda is. She's the human form of the TARDIS, his flying Police Box Time Machine, the one thing he loves the most in the entire universe (If David Tennant had to choose between Rose and the TARDIS, would it really be a competition?). You should watch the episode. It's one of my favorites.

Not many of the Doctor's new companions are brunette. There's Sarah Jane Smith, Martha Jones, and Lady Catherine de Souza. I was Catherine when I went to the Matt Smith/ Karen Gillan signing in LA, but not many people recognized me (and they call themselves Whovians, psh). I'm not exotic enough to pull off Doctor Jones, and I'm too exotic to pull off Sarah Jane Smith.
But Idris is way more awesome than all of these companions (although Sarah Jane comes close). She's the one person/Police Box Time Machine who could steal a Time Lord!!!!

So I'm starting my research.
Neil Gaiman, the writer of the episode, describes Idris' gown as a "wrecked Victorian party dress", and while combing through my stash ( I nearly wrote stache, lol) of patterns, I came upon this little beauty:

Now, the neckline is all wrong, but the bodice shaping and the petticoats seem like a great starting pattern. So I'll lift and round out the front and back neckline, and make the skirts a sort of high-low style. Of course I'll want to add more volume to the skirts, and make a half bustle. And sleeves. Sleeves would be a good thing.
Wish me luck!