A celebration of sorts!

[mlsdesigns]

To celebrate my stays being finally finished (for now, lining comes later) I decided to whip out a quick project, and a banyan for elegant lounging seemed like the next logical step after stays, more underwear!
This banyan is definitely an odd little thing, it's a real stash buster, and is rather ghetto fabulous ;) I had a 2.5yd length of Indian block printed cotton I bought ages ago intending to make a jacket for Mummy, it's very fine though, more like a muslin or lawn than the first fabric I bought from them, which was more of a quilting weight. So, completely unsuitable for a jacket, and the print isn't really suitable for anything other than 18thC, so it needed a home. I also had the remains of a length of supposedly linen with an open-work stripe, that is far too shiny to be 100% linen and definitely has some dead dino content! The 2 together seemed perfect.
With 2.5yds I had just enough length to make a longish garment, although not quite as long as I'd have liked, and by making the cuffs from the linen, I had just enough width to make elbow length sleeves, again, not as long as I'd like. I loosely based it on this ladies banyan from the V&A http://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O85965/banyan-garthwaite-anna-maria/ I shaped it with a pleat running over each shoulder down to the waist at the front and the back, and a small inverted box pleat at the centre back. To get a bit more width at the hem I small godets cut from the waste from the underarm shaping.





It's all machine sewn, except the hems (which I'll do on my lunch break tomorrow), I even stitched the pleats down by machine, although, I'm debating redoing them by hand. I'm finding it hard to reconcile myself to the idea of visible machine stitches on anything in my 18thC wardrobe. I know I shouldn't bother, the lining is so obviously poly, and I'm never going to wear it to a reenactment in front of the public, but...

Comments

[zaftig46.livejournal.com]

This is so cute! The shape actually reminds me of those caftans that the ladies in Turkish dress wear in Liotard's paintings.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you :) It is very like isn't it? I think all these mostly shapeless T-shaped garments look pretty similar.

[koshka-the-cat.livejournal.com]

You know you want to fix the pleats...

I love it though!

I bought this fabric: http://www.etsy.com/listing/101656999/hand-printed-cotton-fabric-pink-and?ref=usr_faveitems for a banyan. It's pink and green, of course!

[my-stitching.livejournal.com]

How did you order fabric from them? I saw some interesting ones but the price is for 1/2 yard with only 1 available. Did you contact the seller to arrange it?

[koshka-the-cat.livejournal.com]

That's what I did. They got back to me quickly. Lots of Etsy sellers are like that. Don't they have nice Fabrics? It was a hard decision!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Yeah, you're right, I do! I'm going to leave them till later though, there's bound to be a time when I need to take hand sewing to work and don't have any ready.
That fabric is lovely! and of course it's pink and green :D

[my-stitching.livejournal.com]

Love it!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[girliegirl32786.livejournal.com]

It looks awesome!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you :) It's really nice to wear too, I put it on last night to show Mummy, just over my normal clothes, and it was so comfy I was still wearing it an hour later without noticing!

[girliegirl32786.livejournal.com]

I think that is a good sign. :)

[jennylafleur.livejournal.com]

Oh very cute indeed! I'm very impressed with your stash-busting skills. Immmmmpressive!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I'm impressed too! I thought I'd never find a use for the block printed cotton, I'm so glad it worked out so well :)

[starlightmasque.livejournal.com]

That looks adorable! Well done!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you!

[madamekat.livejournal.com]

Very pretty!! I would be proud to lounge in that!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

Thank you :)