Half Agony, Half Hope Sewing

One era that has always intimidated me is the 18th century.  Now that I have been actually sewing for a year (before it was kind of half-assed) I feel like I might be able to dive into this era.  Gowns are defined by their undergarments, so I felt that was the perfect place to start. This includes stays (Which I ordered from someone) petticoats, bum rolls, and pockets. The pocket seemed the easiest place to start, plus when I went to Colonial Williamsburg I found this lovely fabric (And too many books)! Colonial Williamsburg Haul In the Costume Close-Up book was a nice pattern of an embroidery pocket. I am a student who also does an internship so I really didn't have time to dedicate to embroidery, plus I am not very skilled at it.  Instead I chose just to copy the general shape. I then sized it up some. Creating the  pattern In the book it recommends that you use a running stitch and a binding stitch to construct the pocket.  I have neve...

I recently returned from the Jane Austen Festival and it was wonderful (despite the heat). Because my husband and I recently moved I didn't get a lot of time to make my gowns. I ended up making one ball gown and one more day dress which is less than I wanted to make. I am kind of glad now that I didn't make another one because it was quite rainy and muddy on Sunday and the gown I made last year now has a nice layer of mud on it. :( Anyways, onto the day dress! Step one: Stays. The ones I made last year didn't work so well (They were too big) so instead of doing them myself this time I ordered them from Historical designs on etsy. They are absolutely perfect! I never could have achieved anything close to this. Day Dress 1: I found this lovely block printed cotton on Etsy (shop: handprintedshop) from India that was only $50 for 10 yards! It took about a month to get here. It was a lot more sheer than I expected so I ended up having to line it. Block printed ...