Paletots and Cloaks

    I'm researching cloaks instead of writing a paper for class. Of course. I'm the world's worst procrastinator. But I'd rather research historical patterns than write a paper on the textual analysis and audience response to gender in media. Or write another chapter for my novel. I'm pretty burned out on writing right now... anyways:

    The Naim Cloak!!! 

     This is the pattern I'm looking at for my reenacting 'cloak' (the name is a little misleading. It's not a cloak at all!). I found it in my handy-dandy 60 Civil War-Era Fashion Patterns by Kristina Seleshanko. I noticed that every other paletot or cloak pattern was made with velvet or silk. As a laundress, a silk or velvet paletot would be pretty impractical, and women wouldn't make a 'fancy' paletot in a plainer cloth. It just wasn't done. This pattern calls for "cloth, velvet or thick silk". Wool suiting is cloth. I'm going with it. 

     I really like the more fitted styles, since the only figure-flattering area is the waist (and especially on me: I have wide shoulders and a long torso, so I like the definition), but these women are wearing loose paletots. 

       Something like the illustration below would be great. It is an 1864 pattern, but I think it would be permissible to take in the paletot a little bit (shh, don't tell).

     And now that I'm looking at outerwear, I've stumbled upon a mid-19th century hood on Romantic History Historical Clothing. 

       

Sarah Jane provides the pattern on her blog, and I think I'm going to make one out of a couple of wool skirts given to me. The skirts don't fit, but the wool is soft and pretty, so I've been holding on to them for a while. 

     Well, dinner is ready, and I really do have to work on that paper (or research 17th-century New England for my novel...), so I'll write again soon. Hopefully I'll have made some sewing/ pattern progress by then! 

     Cheers!

New Projects

Finally! I can breathe. All of my crazy hectic plans have been completed.
So, of course, I'd like to stress myself out again :)
It's really more like starting now before I stress myself out the last week of August, really.
My unit is going to the Huntington Beach Civil War Reenactment the first weekend in September, and I've things to make. Specifically: A third set of split drawers and a paletot.
I'm going to hand sew the drawers, since the machine I use is at the shop, and I'll probably machine most of the paletot. I'll do topstitching and trim for the paletot by hand.
The drawers (and maybe another chemise, actually. It's really humid and gross in H.B. at this event) will be made out of lightweight muslin. I have a 50% off coupon for Joann's, so I'm pretty ecstatic about it.
I have a nice wool suiting that I purchased in L.A. for the paletot, but no lining. So this week(end?) I'm going to the $2 fabric store nearby to pick up a lining fabric. They have some pretty nice twills, three yards of which I bought to line stays, corsets, etc. I'd use that, but it's tan, and my wool suiting is a hunter green/ black check.
Wish me luck!