Costuming year in review 5: Achievements

I think it will have be these two:

Making a wholly hand quilted garment:

And, making this gown in a week. And there's no visible hand stitching and I was working normal hours. And I only had scraps smaller than 10 cm/4 inches left when I finished.

Costuming year in review 4

Costuming year in review 4 - my biggest regret:

Taking in this one so much, because I have gained back some of the weight that I lost (mostly in the boobs) and now I can't wear it, but have to make a new kirtle for that outfit.

On the plus side the new one will probably be made from silk, not rayon curtain. But it's such a lovely damask.

Costuming year in review 3: New appreciation

Another hard one - this year has mostly been about continuing reserarch and making stuff from last year's two new periods/styles: Directoire and Empire (which wasn't a new appreciation, but I hadn't done much costuming from this era since I have nowhere to wear it) and, most importantly: late 13th and early 14th century Italian.

And I really appreciate all historical styles, and has done for many years. However, this year I returned to a style that I haven't made since the late 1990s, so that will have to be it.

I have also started, very slowly on a new pair of 18th century stays, and 18th century (before the revolution) I haven't made since 2007, so that is also a return.

There are also several periods/styles that I really appreciate, but have no reason for wearing, or don't make because "everybody else" are doing them so I feel that they are over done and this might be next year's "new appreciation"

Costuming year in review 2 - best acqusition

Well, due to some mishaps with her equipment and the fact that we don't really trust the Swedish post  - which meant that we didn't hurry this project because it's needs to be brought personally to Sweden when someone we know is travelling that way - my best acquisition of 2018 has not been finished, nor arrived yet. But it's amazing even in it's current state and will be my best acquisition for both 2018 and 2019.
See how beautiful it is even when it isn't finished yet.

It's by EvaJohanna Studios and she makes the most amazing stuff - check out her Etsy page.

2018 costuming year in review

The traditional summing up of what I have done is this year guided by the instagram hashtag costumingyearinreview.

Yesterday I was very busy so I will have to make two subejcts today. The first is the summing up:

January
The first costume that I made in 2018 was this Italian 15th century gown.

About the same time I finished my daughter Valeria's gown based on the one that Eleonora di Toledo was buried in. Including an embrodiered camicia.

February
In february I remade one of my old gowns for me (though now it is too small instead, so it will be sold) and one of my youngest daughter's gowns for her.

March
In march I went to New York, and I painted chests. No finished costumes apparently.

April
Then there was April, and a very early Double Wars (starting on the 5th of May) meant lots of preparations for that. The first thign was a night cap from wool, lined with linen.

May
The final days of April I started on an insane project: to make a 16th century Saxon court gown in less than five days, from materials in my stash. This is the result.

My Genuese outfit from c. 1330 was also finished in May:

It was already a little tight in the bust then, so I have now pieced it under the arms to make space for my again bigger boobs.

June

In June I made a new spencer to wear when I visited a late 18th century house with my friend Anna.

July

In July I made a late 18th century open robe from printed cotton, and a matching cap and hat.

August
More Regency happened in August. In the beginning of the month I had surgery on my foot and spent a lot of time on a couch. So I hand sewed a cotton gown from the first decade of the 19th century, and a new cap. I also made a cap for Anna, as a birthday present.

September
In September I hand sewed a linen shift with short sleeves and a half linen/half cotton sleeveless over gown, both from 1370s Italy.

I also went to the Abbegg Stiftung for a conference on Early Modern dress.

October
In October I went to Drachenwald's Autumn Crown and to Nürnberg and the Germanisches Nationalmuseum for a study visit.
I made a just-for-fun project in the form of a Landsknecht cheerleader outfit.

And I also started sewing on my 13th century aqueton, a quilted shift.

November
On November the 15th I had my stomach cut open an a titanium net inserted to keep my intestines on the inside of my muscles, not outside. This is a rather big thing and I'm still in recovery. I have however done some knitting, and finished the skirt part of a 16th century German gown (can't make the bodice until my torso is back to some kind of normal).

I also did a lot of hand quilting on my aqueton.

December

I made a pair of 18th century stays for one of my dolls.

And I finished the aqueton! Today!!!

This doesn't mean that the Golden Egg project is finished. I need to write both more detailed blog posts and an article for Dragon's tale (Drachenwald's newsletter) and I have more research to do, this has made me very inspired to make more quilted garments in the future. I also need to wear it to see how well it works as protection against cold, since that is what the original presumably was for. I plan to sleep in it at Double wars, but I need to do some testing outdoors before that. When my surgery has healed more.

Now I have to figure out what was the best acquisition. Not sure if I bought anything though.

God Jul! - Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everybody!

This year's Christmas Pin-up photos were inspired by vaudeville in some kind of mix of the late 19th century and the 1940s (the hair).

It's only a paper moon....

A pair of 18th century stays for my doll

Arabella has got herself a pair of 18th century stays.

And yes, it was a pain to sew the tabs and boring to make the lacing holes. Next thing to make is a panier or possibly a pair of pocket hoops.


In other news I am busy hand quilting the front piece of my 13th century sleeveless shift.

Behind the counters at "my" haberdasher

This movie shows how it looks behind in the inside of my favourite haberdasher her in Gothenburg: Knapp-Carlsson. Unfortunately I can't figure out how to embed it.

Link to movie on facebook