My Make Nine 2018 choices

A few years ago I took part in Lucky Lucille’s Sew For Victory and Spring For Cotton sewalongs. Here’s another one that seems nice to take part in, especially as her website states “This is a gentle challenge. It’s not one that you can fail. It’s meant to be flexible”! =) I’ve been trying my best not to stress myself by imposing deadlines on myself anymore, so a gentle challenge is the only thing I want to be going for…

Here are my choices, though in no particular making order!

Project #1: 1920s-40s knitted men’s slipover

I’d like for my husband to have a full civilian outfit for both the 1920s and 1940s, and this is the first part of it. This project’s already on the needles!

Project #2: Napoleonic short cloak

Last year I made a 17^th century cape for my husband, and I’ve got enough left of the wool fabric to make myself a short cloak for another era. Since I always borrow his Napoleonic cape, it would be nice for both of us if I had one of my own!

Project #3: A new 1940s dress

I’ve been (occasionally) doing World War 2 events for a few years now, but there aren’t that many clothes in my 1940s wardrobe yet, and even fewer that are a colour that actually suits me! So I want to make a new 1940s dress in a nice bright colour pattern. My husband and I have been taking 1910s-40s dancing lessons, and I'd like to go to a lindy hop party in full 1940s attire.

Project #4: 1920s party dress

Last year I went to a nice historical clothing exhibition at the Centraal Museum in Utrecht (well, actually it was both historical and more recent fashion, but I largely ignored the contemporary pieces! :P), where I saw, among other things, this lovely 1920s dress that I’d like to recreate. Probably in blue, though. I’d love to wear this dress to a 1920s party!

Project #5: The Drawers of Doom

(Imagine dramatic background music) These are the drawers of my fabric cupboard. There are four of them. And since they are full of UFOs and bought clothes needing alteration (yes, all four of them!) I call them the Drawers of Doom (D.o.D.). This year, one of the main sewing related things I’d like to do is to get the D.o.D. a lot emptier than they are now! Then I could do something nice and handy with these drawers, such as storing my yarn stash in them =).

Project #6: Brasov wrap top

I really like Welmode’s Brasov top, and would like to make one as well.

Project #7: Underwear!

For years now, I’ve had trouble finding nice underwear, so I thought I’d have a go at making it myself. It would be awesome, once I’ve got a good pattern, to never have to look for underwear that it exactly to my liking, again!

Project #8: WW2 QAIMNS uniform

I’ve got two World War 1 nurse uniforms, and a Boer War one, and since I already bought suitable fabric for a WW2 version a couple of years ago, and had a look at an original last year, why not make the WW2 one as well? I suppose this project has the lowest priority, though, as I haven’t got any WW2 nurse events planned yet.

Project #9: It Cannot Fail To Please sweater

As I said under #3, I’m hoping to add more deep winter colours to my 1940s wardrobe, so I’ll be making this in dark pink.

The new fashion for 1915

Pattern: Wearing History R109 1910s suit pattern

Fabric: green linen, silk with a leaf design, thick white cotton, a strip of coutil

Haberdasheries: two snap fasteners, 16 cover buttons (23 mm in diameter)

When this pattern appeared on the Wearing History website, I immediately wanted to make it. I have loved the 1920s style for as long as I can remember, and this look, though from 1916, is very 1920s-like!

I bought the pattern as a print at home e-pattern because that was cheaper and I’d have it more quickly. At first I found sticking all the pieces together a kerfuffle, but actually it was quite fun, and I realised after that I could just cut the pattern out, rather than having to trace it. It would have been really great if there had been an overview of all the pages, though, because two pages contained nothing except the sticking lines, so I wouldn’t actually have needed to print those. I don’t like wasting paper.

I decided to fashion this suit in spring green linen, with a green silk with woven in leaf design for the collar, cuffs and cover buttons. As my fabric was thin, I lined it with thick white cotton, treating both layers as one. On second thoughts, perhaps the lining fabric was a bit too thick, because some seams became quite bulky. But this does make the jacket and skirt hems stand out a bit, which is nice.

On the original pic, the shoulder seam is neatly at the shoulder and doesn’t hang off it at all, but it did with me, whereas my shoulders are not narrow. So I sewed the sleeves in about an inch higher than the pattern said.

I folded the bottom of the jacket at 12 cm from the bottom, cut about 6 cm off and hemmed it. I also fixed the facing in place. I think the pattern suggests to leave it loose, but the silk I used frayed very much (as does all silk), and also, the facing showed a bit at the neckline when I put the jacket on.

Unfortunately the inside belt construction on the skirt didn’t work for me. It puckers and does not keep the skirt at the heightened waist typical of the period.

I must admit I’m wearing the suit without my corset here, as I don’t dare wear it anymore because it gives me numb hips… This suit is rather suitable for going corset free as the jacket is so wide, it’s definitely got a dress reform or rational dress feel about it. But it would still have looked better, and more authentic, with a corset underneath.

I’m wearing the suit with my teens blouse, 1915 hat and American Duchess Astoria shoes.

 

I like how this suit has turned out, and it makes me stand out a bit at events because it's more modern than what most people (depicting civilians in World War I) wear. People do notice that. I would not recommend this pattern if you want to look slim at all, though! The jacket really makes my waist disappear.

1940s suspender belt

Fabric: A cotton satin Ikea Gäspa sheet

Haberdasheries: 1.5 m 2 cm wide elastic, 6 suspender clips, 6 suspender regulators, two suspender hooks

When I made my first 1940s clothes in 2012, I attempted to make underwear as well, but I made things unnecessarily difficult for myself by making everything double layered so it would be neat on the inside as well.

I then decided to be lazy and order underwear from What Katie Did. I had ordered stockings from them before and liked those, but I was rather disappointed by their underwear. It’s made of cheap polyester (at 40 euros apiece surely they could have used something nicer?), I didn’t find the garments neatly sewed at all, but most importantly the fit of the bras was the most terrible I ever encountered, at least on me. The Harlow deep suspender belt was fine, the Harlow Bullet Bra was alright but made a weird dent, the Padded Bullet Bra was too pointy for the 1940s, and the most 1940s-styled one, L6036 CC09, just looked awful. Since I wanted a matching bra and suspenders but none of the bras were good enough to keep, I had to return the suspenders as well. Returning went fine, I’ll give them that.

Having found that many original suspenders were simply hemmed instead of double layered, I decided to try to make one again, a bit similar to the Harlow one.

I wanted to use light pink satin cotton but opted for white instead because I couldn’t find pink suspender clips. White ones were readily available though. I ordered six complete clips, and got seven :P.

The suspenders I ordered had hooks to make them detachable, but there was no need for that, so I removed the hooks and used them for the closure. I bought ribbed elastic for the closure, but since that actually had more of an old-fashioned feel about it than the suspender elastic, I decided to replace that. I guess next time I’ll buy separate parts!

I used tie wraps as bones next to the closure in the back. I wouldn’t dream of using plastic boning in a corset, but I felt that here, steel would be a bit too heavy duty.

I left off the lace (which the Harlow suspender has) as the original examples I found didn’t have any.

I wanted to test-wear the belt around the house but didn’t get round to that. I wore it for four consecutive days during the D-Day commemoration though, and am super pleased with it! It fits perfectly, neither slipping down nor feeling tight, and the clips are much easier to fasten to my stockings than the smaller clips of the modern belt I used before, didn’t snap open once, and keep the stockings in place very well.

My portfolio

This is the old version of my portfolio. For the new one, have a look on my Pinterest board!


Every time I make something new, I try to post it. But I already made lots of things before I started this blog! Here’s an overview of all the historical items I’ve made so far, largely in the order of making.

When no mention of a pattern is made, that means I improvised.

 

My first ever historical piece, a Regency day dress

(Photo by Johan Evers)

I found it difficult to get my hair right in the beginning, but I do love the décor on this photo. I have since lowered the neckline of this dress, and added a gold band on top of the ribbon at the waist and wrists.

White Regency bonnet with flowers, and matching reticule

A Regency spencer with regimental buttons of the 92nd Highland regiment

Regency redingote, beret and matching reticule

A Regency ball gown made of silk with a woven in kashmir pattern

Late 1920s clothing

 

This is a cotton satin slip with matching tap pants. The slip was inspired by the blue crepe the Chine one with lace insertion on page 116 of Fashion From The 18th To The 20th Century by the Kyoto Costume Institute.

I based the pattern for this coat on my bath robe :P.

Regency short stays

Pattern: I got a hand-drawn copy of the pattern for this from a friend, so I’m not sure which it is; possibly Simplicity 4052 or Sense & Sensibility Regency Underthings.

Regency camp follower’s / working class outfit

A Regency turban to match my knitted pineapple reticule

A pair of Regency gentleman’s breeches

(Photo by Stephan Vroom)

A Regency stovepipe hat and woollen spencer

(Photo by Hans Hoevenaar)

Regency morning jacket and cap

Jacket pattern: Patterns of Fashion 1 by Janet Arnold, a shortened version of the c. 1795-1803 Victoria & Albert Museum robe (pages 43-45).

17th century clothing

(The brown spots aren’t due to wearing, but to the tea I spilled over the corset just after finishing it...)

Corset pattern: drafted based on The ‘pair of straight bodies’ and ‘a pair of drawers’ dating from 1603 which Clothe the Effigy of Queen Elizabeth I in Westminster Abbey (Costume, vol. 41, 2007) by Janet Arnold, and http://www.elizabethancostume.net/effigy.htm

Bum roll pattern: drafted based on http://www.elizabethancostume.net/bumroll.html

Drawers pattern: Patterns of Fashion 4 by Janet Arnold, number 64 (pages 50-51 and 106); embroidery pattern from Blackwork Embroidery Archives.

 

Victorian underwear

(This one’s still under construction, as I want to add lace at the top, and flossing.)

Corset pattern: Laughing Moon Mercantile #100 Ladies' Victorian Underwear, Silverado corset

Boer war nurse outfit

(Photo by Christine Pet-Sepers)

Bodice pattern: Truly Victorian 420, 1879 Cuirass bodice with evening options (modified)

Skirt pattern: Truly Victorian 291, 1898 Walking skirt 

A late 1920s party dress and matching head dress

A 1940s outfit

Knickers patterns: Vera Venus’s free circular knickers pattern, and circular drawers pattern from A Complete Course In Dressmaking In Twelve Lessons by Isabel de Nyse Conover (1921)

Blouse pattern: Simplicity 1430 (vintage)

Skirt pattern: Simplicity 4915 (vintage)