I got the undersleeves and the forepart complete in time for the An Tir Twelfth Night 2006, and in response to some friends who complained about Sim's somewhat stern mien in the photos, here's a cheerful picture of the completed costume.
Three years or so ago we bought fabric so that I could make Sim a gown of some sort, then I got distracted and nothing happened. Three weeks ago we (OK, I) decided that we could get a gown of some sort ready in in time for a Yule Feast that we wanted to attend (hosted by the wonderful folks up at Ravenrook in Seattle). Now I don't sew quickly, everything else that I've put together has generally taken four to six months filling in on spare time as it comes up and definitely only getting rushed if it looks like the season will be over before I get a chance to wear it. So a gown from scratch to complete in three weeks seemed doable, but decidedly tight.
I didn't have a pattern, so best part of the first two weeks were spent drafting a pattern and fitting a muslin. That seems like a chore, but it really did make the third week much less stressful, and the end result was a gown that actually fit, looked good and was comfortable to wear. I might just buy a pattern next time, it really would have been a lot quicker.
I got the undersleeves and the forepart complete in time for the An Tir Twelfth Night 2006, and in response to some friends who complained about Sim's somewhat stern mien in the photos, here's a cheerful picture of the completed costume.
| |
Anyway, here's the result. We did get the Yule feast with the gown complete, yes there was progressively less and less sleep every night as the day approached, and yes I did finish the last few bits in the car on the way there, but it did get finished. And yes, a flat tire on the way there after all of that work really sucked :( The gown is in a Spanish style. We have a fitted gown based on the picture of the pattern of a woman's fitted gown taken from Geometria, y traça, by Burguen (as discussed in Janet Arnold's Patterns of Fashion). The sleeve style is also Spanish and is called a Spanish great sleeve. |  |
| A slightly different show with the sleeves hanging away from the wrists (note that it's much easier to eat with them like this :) ) |  |
And a final shot of the two of us.
|