On Sunday at Costume Con I wore the gown I was most excited about making but least pleased about when I actually wore it.  Mostly that is because I frantically struggled to get this gown done, as is evidenced by my favorite picture taken at Costume Con:



This was taken by Gloria and shows me Saturday afternoon, in my green striped polonaise, cutting out the sleeves of the Whig gown, a mere 10 hours before I was to wear it.  When I said it didn't have sleeves, I didn't mean they weren't sewn in.  I mean I really, truly didn't have sleeves.  I'm just glad I remembered my pattern!

(Aside:  I especially love this picture because It echoes my icon so well.  I have always been so amused by those Diderot images of the dressmakers and embroiderers going about their work in the frouffy gowns.  Well y'all, I've done it!)

I still can't believe that I got this finished.  A big HUGE thank you goes to Gloria who hand-hemmed two hundred and fifty inches of hems for me over the course of Friday and Saturday.  She was the reason that I got this done.  Gloria, you rock.  I cannot thank you enough!

Despite my displeasure with the finishing and construction of this gown, it is the one that I got the most comments about and the one that I have seen the most pictures of in other sets, so it was obviously a hit.  It is certainly striking, that's for damn sure, but I'm not sure if I love it.  I almost feel like it is too much, you know?  Like maybe it needs a simple gold petticoat or something to go with it.  And, as you will notice by my tag, this is supposed to be a Zone Front gown and it most certainly is not yet!  I will finish this, though, because I can see it in my head and I'm far to close to stop now!

Here are a few shots:


( Whiggishness ho! )

ETA:  Also, I want to point out on that last picture, where you can see how well the stripes of the bodice and the sleeve match up, that it was complete luck and I didn't even try to do that.   I'm telling y'all, the costuming gods are STRONG  at Costume Con!  Not even a touch of sleevil!

On Saturday at Costume Con I wore the green striped Polonaise.  Overall, this was my favorite outfit of the weekend simply because I felt like the fit was the best of all of them and it was the most properly finished.  The gold ruffle at the bottom turned out beautifully, as you will see from the full-length image.  I was initially worried that it would stand out too much, but it effortlessly blends in with the rest of the gown and really turned out nicely (good job, you guys!  You have impeccable taste!).  The only bad thing was that it shed like you would not believe, and there were MANY times during the day where I had to lean over and snatch off yards and yards of gold threads that were trailing behind me.  

I think I'm going to need to go back and actually hem the entirety of the ruffle, because it shows no sign of being at a stopping point of fraying.

I believe that the last time I left this dress I talked about the petticoat trim, but I also eventually added box pleating along the skirt and sleeves and a wide knife-pleat along the neckline.  I'm actually quite pleased with how the trim on this turned out, given that I was so worried I wouldn't have enough.  All I can say is that there is a shocking amount of piecing in the trim!

Bizarrely, I don't have any pictures of me alone in this dress, so these were stolen from madamemodiste , quincy134 sarahlizzi bauhausfrau  and girliegirl32786 .  Thanks for picking up where my camera left off, ladies!




( Much more pretty behind here! )

Here's the outfit that I wore on Friday at Costume Con.  This is the re-worked jacket torn from the skirts of the Polonaise. 

The fit isn't ideal.  I wish that I had cut the front panels a little bit wider so that the stomacher didn't show as much and I wish that I cut the skirts a little bit longer.

But over all I'm pretty pleased with it.  Not bad for a torn up old gown!( Cut for Kat! (I told you I would!) )

I am awakened from a Strep-throated stupor.  It has really hit me.  I truly hope none of y'all end up sick. 

I also realized that I left one whole disc at work, so I'm 200 pictures short of what I have.  I need to wait to post them.  However, if you are Facebook friends with me, I've uploaded a preview, though it is me-heavy.  If we aren't friends on facebook, you should add me, yo!

So I think I actually WORE OUT my camera this weekend.  I'm unable to get it to turn on and therefore all of my pictures are STUCK on my memory card!  It is horrifying!  I have a million pictures to share and no way to show them to you.  I'm going to try to run by a CVS at lunch or something and see if I can pull them from my card to a photo CD.  Keep your fingers crossed for me. 

Also, I think I have Strep Throat, so if I made out with any of y'all at Costume Con, you should probably take some vitamins or something. 

And I have another userpic- this one is my "evil countess" picture that quincy134 took of me. 

Oh, and Gloria- what kind of camera did you have again?  Now I am REALLY in the market for a new one.

I just wanted to show off my new profile pic- taken by sarahlizzi 

I'm calling this one "Did you SEE that chain mail bikini?!"

Or, to quote madamekat "My eyeballs bled OUT of my head!"

Exhausted.  Missing you all.  Trying to sort out eleventy billion pictures.  

More very, very soon.

Well, I'm sorry to say that my Whig gown DOESN'T EVEN HAVE SLEEVES YET and I am only 100% finished with one of my costumes (there will be much sewing in/on the airport/plane/baltimore).  But!  I'm so excited that I don't even care.  I cannot WAIT to meet so many of you and take fabulous pictures for all of those of you who aren't able to come.  We'll miss you!

Ready or not, Baltimore, here I come!!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!

Holy crap.  I am not going to be done!  

I STILL HAVEN'T STARTED MY THIRD GOWN. 

I LEAVE FOR COSTUME CON IN 6 DAYS.

I am loosing my terrified mind!

Happy Birthday to chinook2006 

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May it be filled with the "extras" of George Washington!  I think you should start referencing this video to all of your visitors at Mt. V.

"Did you know that George Washington had, like, 40 goddamn dicks?"

Now that I am all internetty at home again, I thought I'd post a few teaser pics of the Red Jacket.  This is my Friday outfit:



And a closeup of the trim, which I got for a steal at a reenactment (I wish there had been more- I would have bought it!)



I think this is a good reincarnation of the red gown!

Alright, I'm officially freaking out about costume con!

According to my schedule, I was supposed to be 100% finished with the striped polonaise on Friday night and I am nowhere close!  Last night I sewed down the box pleated trim on the skirt of the gown and sewed half of the trim down on the petticoat (I had forgotten how much time trimming takes!), but I've still got a lot more to do including:

1. THE GODFORSAKEN SLEEVES!  BAH!
2. A little bit of cleanup on the bodice
3. Bodice and sleeve trim
4. Re-pinking the trim on the petticoat (I used wave shears on the straw taffeta, but I don't like it and I want to pink it now)

And then I still have a whole 'nother gown to do!

I've decided that I am going to do the blue and gold Whig gown.  It's been in my head for ages and I want to do all 18th century and it's a style that I know to some extent so there isn't a lot of patterning stress involved. 

I haven't really started on that yet- just torn the panels for the petticoat and skirts and sewed them together, but at least it is something.

I do still have two more weekends, at least.   I hope to finish the green polonaise by THIS friday, then I can start on the Whig gown. 

tick-tick-tick-tick

All I can say is that y'all have great taste.  I love it!  Thanks for the input!

Ok, I've hemmed and I hawed and I've rent my garments fabric, and I've come up with a few options for trimming the polonaise.  I was able to eek out enough fabric to do a box pleating along the edge of the skirt, so that I'm happy with, but now I need to figure out how to trim the petticoat.

My original plan was to have a deep, ruched ruffle all along the bottom, but I don't have enough fabric to do a deep one.  I cut it all down to half it's size and I still only have a double length so it will be skimpy.  However, it isn't terrible:



It's about 6 inches deep.  (Also!  Here's my fabric for the first time!  Isn't it pretty?)

However, I'm still not thrilled with it, so today I went out and bought 1 1/2 yards of a straw taffeta that matches this.  I can do a hell of a ruffle with this stuff if I want to- there is plenty:



I'm a little "meh" about this.

Or, I can combine them thusly:



So, what do you think?  I can't decide.

Poll #1381746 How should I trim my Polonaise petticoat?
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All

Whadd'l it be?

Isn't my fabric pretty?

Or, do you have a better idea?  Do share!

I am frustrated!

I don't have enough fabric to finish the Polonaise like I want.  Grrrr.  I figured 7 yards would be PLENTY with some to spare, but it is a much narrower width than I am used to working with.  What a rookie mistake!  I can't believe I didn't pay attention to the width!  In an effort to have enough fabric left over to trim, I pulled out an entire panel of the petticoat, which makes my circumference only 108".  I wanted it to be much fuller.  I thought with that I would have plenty to do the trim, but even that is keeping it skimpy. 

And I don't even want elaborate trim!  Just a deep, full ruffle on the petticoat (and full isn't going to happen now, since I don't even have enough for a double length on the ruffle) and box pleats along the skirt of the gown.  I'm going to need to get very creative. 

It's especially frustrating because I had to waste so much fabric cutting out the bodice (stupid stripes on their stupid bias!) but didn't end up with any pieces that are even near large enough to piece.  

Please join me in my frustration with stripes!

Also:  Grrr!

I'm a bad girl and haven't registered for CC27 yet (Oh My God!  I know!).  Is it safe to do it via the online server?  It seems kinda sketchy...

Last night I finished the main contruction of the bodice (well, except for the sleeves...right bauhausfrau ?!).  It has gone together much quicker that anything else I have done.  I'm not sure why.  maybe it's because I've been watching Firefly and it makes the time go by so quickly! 

If I stick to my schedule, I have to be completely finished with this gown in exactly one week, which I don't know if I can do.  I have decided that I am going to do the long seams of the petticoat by machine just to save time, but everything else is handsewn.  This weekend I hope to complete the petticoat and attach the skirts to the bodice, which leaves Monday-Friday to finish the trim and the sleeves.  Now that I'm actually talking out what I need to do, it doesn't seem so bad.  The trim isn't going to be elaborate on this gown because I think the fabric itself is very decorative.  I'm definitely going to do a big, deep ruffle around the petticoat, but I'm not sure what else.  I'll need to put it all together and see what else it needs, I suppose.

I did, however, get some gorgeous silk organdy that I'd like to do somethign with.  Maybe a sheer little frill around the neckline is just the thing!

Ok, so I sat down and really thought about my plans for Costume Con last night.   I'm only going to be able to squeeze out 3 full outfits, so I won't be changing for the evenings.  I do have a couple of plain woolen gowns that I could wear if I get really desperate for something different, but here's the impressive stuff:

Friday- Red ex-Poloniase Jacket and petticoat

Saturday- Frouffy green striped Polonaise

Sunday-  Either the blue and Gold Striped Whig Zone Front Gown (wow, I need a catchier name for that one!) or the Pink Regency. 

Both of these are planned out in my head, but it depends on how quickly I finish the Polonaise.  If I finish quickly, I'll do the Regency, but if I'm pressed for time, I'll do the Whig gown since I'm so familiary with the 18th century and I can get that done rather quickly.

I must say, I'm tempted to do the Whig Gown either way, since I like the idea of doing all 18th century.  I know sarahlizzi is planning a Zone-Front.  Anyone else?  Who's up for zone-front Sunday?

What about the rest of you?   What are y'all wearing?

I almost finished my chopped up red polonaise new jacket last night.  The only thing left to do is hem and trim the sleeves.  I tried it on last night for the first time and it is adorable!!  I am in love with it.  The only problem is that is is almost too small, so it isn't terribly comfortable.  but still, you know, that's what one must deal with for 18th century fabulousity, right?

I'm so sorry that I don't have pictures for you.  I'm still internetless at my house (ye gods!  The pain of it!) and I don't think that it's a good idea for me to bring in my camera and load a bunch of pictures onto my work computer.

The even better news is that I am still on track for Costume Con!  I was scheduled to start the bodice on my green stripey polonaise last night and that is exactly what I did!  Thanks to the bodice mockup that jennil bestowed upon me, it was painless and satisfying. What a surprising change of pace!

I'll figure out a way to get pictures up soon so that y'all can fall in love with my prancy, frouffy, fabulous jacket!