sheer 1860s dress

[mlsdesigns]

ok, as promised here are lots and lots of pics! i got so carried away :)

i'm so pleased it all goes together so well!


the pinks go so well, and the ribbon trim on the dress is the exact same colour as the curtain!

look!!

excuse the silly face, but it shows the buttons nicely, and the sheerness

it's not as sheer as some, but i like the effect

i love the way the skirts go when i sit down, but i wish i had a pair of socks to knit, it would have made such a good little women photo :)

and i got tired :)

sorry, can't help it, another silly one! but i like the line, and i might get clare to play with it on photoshop and try and make a 'period' looking photo.

and i had so much trouble working out the closure on the skirt, why didn't i make a skirt and a bodice and then sew the 2 together :) anyway, here it is bit by bit, lots of button holes!

i used a linnen button for flatness under the belt, if i'd had a brain i would have done it on the inside like the others:

the skirt opening is so far back because of where the pannels are joined


so so sorry there are loads of pics, but i'm just so pleased with how it turned out! next week there will be pics of my fun day yesterday, showing all the children :)

Comments

[chloeandrudy.livejournal.com]

That came out so very pretty! You look so Summery! I'm supposed to be concentrating on finishing the dresses I have, and now I want a white one!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you! i felt so summery too :) dresses are like everything else, you always need at least one more!!

[sphinxvictorian.livejournal.com]

Absolutely stunning! You did a great job on the corset as well! The line is perfect for the period.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you so much! i'm very pleased with the corset too, it's so boring doing the same many pannel late 19th century corsets, i thought the gussets would be perfect for a change :) the pattern i drafted from is a little earlier, but i did see an original corset from the 1860s with gussets, i guess it's ok! and you're right, it does give a very good line :)

[sphinxvictorian.livejournal.com]

People not in the know never seem to get that corsets went through some very real design changes in the course of 50 years. I don't know how many times I've been reading a book or watching a film and the corset will be completely wrong for that period. I was reading a Victorian mystery the other day, and the author described her lead character unlacing her own corset, like it was a wench's bodice in the Ren Faire! I always applaud anyone who gets the corset right! It's like David Selznick said during the filming of Gone With the Wind, when asked by one of the actresses, why she needed real lace on her undergarments, since no one would ever see it: "Yes, Miss Keyes, but you will know it's there, and it will affect your performance accordingly." I'm paraphrasing, but that was the gist of it.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

people shouldn't try and write a novel when they only know half the story! and that is so true about wearing lace on your undies, even in modern life if you know you've got pretty undies on you feel so much better :)

[koshka-the-cat.livejournal.com]

It's so pretty. So perfectly 1860s looking.

Nice corset too. And gussets are perfectly period. My 1860s corset is made from an 1863 patent that includes them. I really prefer them to shaped seams, actually :)

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you!
gussets are very pretty, and they give such a good shape, but they are so tricky to put in :)

[girliegirl32786.livejournal.com]

You and your dress both look fabulous! I just love the floatiness of it all!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you! it's all the dress, i don't look fantastic at all! but then we all hate photos of ourselves, don't we :)

[my-stitching.livejournal.com]

Very pretty! I love how the dress opens. Very clever with the buttons like that. I was wondering how you got into the skirt. Your bonnet is lovely too. Did you make it from scratch? I found a supplier for felt blanks and straw bonnets that can work for a couple of different periods, but I would really love to make one up from scratch.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you! it took me a long time to get it sorted in my head, the skirt has it's own separate waistband just from the centre front to the placket, the rest is sewn to the waistband of the dress.
i did make my bonnet totally from scratch, i did a 'how to' post on LJ last december when i made it, i'll try and find the post for you.

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

this is the post, let's see if it works!
http://mlsdesigns.livejournal.com/10751.html#cutid1

[my-stitching.livejournal.com]

Yes it worked and the steps seem very clear. I have added it to my memories so that I can find it easily. I really want to make on of those regency bonnets where the top (crown?) is tall. Do you know the ones I mean? Thanks!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

you're welcome! is this the kind of thing you mean?
http://www.historichats.net/

[my-stitching.livejournal.com]

Sort of though that is a full hat with the brim all the way around and the one I am thinking of is a true bonnet. In the BBC version of Emma, she wears one when she meets Mr. Elton outside Mrs Goddard's school after visiting a sick Harriet though it is a bit higher in the front than I prefer.

If you have the Ackermann book, there is a similar one on page 19 though it has a lot of decoration. The pelisse I am using for inspiration is on page 17 by the way and looks to have a similar bonnet, but it is covered in feathers naturally.

As an aside, in looking online for an image, I noticed this image of a regency bathing gown. http://hal.ucr.edu/~cathy/ack/RA1816.html

[tailordrews.livejournal.com]

Schreammmmmmmmmm!
That is wonderfull! What a lovely eyecandy! I simply think its perfect.
Thanks for letting us se it.

Bjarne

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

wow bjarne! thank you so, so much :) from you that is such a compliment.

[fracture242.livejournal.com]

Very, very, very nice!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you!

[jennil.livejournal.com]

Wow! I'm blown away! You look like you stepped right off the pages of "Little Women." Fabulous!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you so much! i love that beek, and i must admit i was thinking of the pretty summer dresses meg gets with her wages all the time i was making it :)

[margaret-hale.livejournal.com]

hey! your outfit is lush!

[mlsdesigns.livejournal.com]

thank you very much :)