HSF '14 chllenge # 22 & 23: A Hatefish ladies uniform

Last weekend I attended the Great Dickens Christmas Fair in San Francisco. on . As per usual, I was having too much fun to take any pictures (though my mother managed to snap a few) On saturday I played a member of the notorious (and fictional) submarine Hatefish.

This was originally going to be my entry for the alternate universe challenge, but with the amount of work that went into it, I'm glad I spread it over two.

I suppose you could put the Garibaldi shirt and the zouave jacket in challenge 22's category (gentlemen's and gentlemen's inspired) and the skirt in challenge 23's (modern history)

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The Challenge: Gentlemen and Modern History

Fabric: Navy wool, blue linen and  red cotton

Pattern: Self drafted

Year: 1860's

Notions: Thread and red bias tape

How historically accurate is it? Equal parts machine and hand sewn

Hours to complete: Lots

First worn: To Dickens Fair on December 13th and 14th

Total cost: $20

HSF '14 Challenge 21: Re-do

I missed challenge #4 the first time around (I was visiting my sister in Washington) and so I took the opportunity to make a second chemise. 

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The Challenge: Re-do of underneath it all

Fabric: The same cotton batiste as the chemise I made for the UFO Challenge.

Pattern: Self drafted

Year: The Victorian era

Notions: Thread and ribbon

How historically accurate is it? Machine and hand sewn

Hours to complete: A day and a half

First worn: November 16th

Total cost: Free

HSF Challenge #20:Alternate Universes or The Red Queen circa 1840

I've been reading a lot of classic literature lately, and when this challenge rolled around, I was in the middle of Through the Looking Glass. I had a different outfit planned, but my fabric failed to arrive on time and so I turned to my reading material and came up with the red queen.

The bodice is made of red silk dupioni bought way back in the mists of time when the Jo-ann's near my house was going out of business. By the time I got there, they were practically giving it away, so I brought mountains of it and I'm thinking of maybe making something for my mother out of the rest.

This took longer than I expected it to, mostly because the sleeves decided to be difficult. The first pair refused to lie straight, and the second decided to stick out at odd angles. I finally decided on a simple double puff at the elbow and left it at that.

The bodice is trimmed with a red double lip cord, again from my stash.

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The Challenge: Alternate Universe

Fabric: Red silk dupioni

Pattern: Drafted

Year: 1840

Notions: Thread and double lip cord

How historically accurate is it? Machine Sewn

Hours to complete: A week

First worn: Not yet

Total cost: Free

HSF Challenge #19: Inspiration

Another fortnight, another challenge! After seeing this lovely pair of under-sleeves by The dreamstress, I was inspired to make a pair for the Bright Copper Penny Dress.

The material for these sleeves started out it's life as part of a set of curtains found at the goodwill. They were originally going to be a dress, but one of the panels decided to shred in the middle while it was in the wash. The fabric's a wee bit sheer on it's own, so I lined it with some cotton voile I had lying around.

             I like this fabric so much that I just might make a chemisette out of the leftovers.

                                          And here's what they look like with the sleeves:

The Challenge: Inspiration

The challenge you were inspired by: The dreamstress' engageantes

Fabric: Embroidered cotton and voile

Pattern:  Nope

Year: 1850's-60's

Notions: Thread, hooks and eyes

How historically accurate is it? Machine and hand sewn

Hours to complete: 3

First worn: Not yet, probably to Dickens Fair

Total cost: $2

Borrowed and Blue: HSF'14 challenge #18

As I was scouring historical poetry for suitable material for this challenge, this age-old ditty popped into my head:
                                                      Something old, something new,
                                                      Something borrowed, something blue,
                                                      And a silver sixpence in her shoe

It's not likely that I'll ever be a bride, but I was wearing my white dress from challenge #10 to an event and it was in need of a sash.

The ribbon is graciously loaned from my mother's bustle dress and hat, on the understanding that I will eventually give it back. It compliments the fabric of my dress perfectly.

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The Challenge: Poetry in motion

Fabric: Um, no.

Pattern: Nope

Year: 1830's

Notions: Blue satin ribbon

How historically accurate is it? Completely hand sewn

Hours to complete: 2

First worn: September 27th

Total cost: Free

HSF '14 challenge #17

My sewing circle does a hand-made gift exchange for Christmas and I tend to give vouchers for articles of clothing or embroidery in lieu of making something beforehand. This year, I'm making an 1880's evening dress for my friend C.

                                                 

 The silk (from my stash once again) is a warm gold, although it doesn't photograph as such, and I plan to pair it with a chocolate brown bodice and overskirt.

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The Challenge: Yellow

Fabric: Silk Dupioni

Pattern: Truly Victorian 1885 Four-Gore underskirt

Year: 1885

Notions: Thread, bias tape

How historically accurate is it? Machine sewn

Hours to complete: About a week

First worn: Not yet

Total cost: Free

HSF '14 challenge #16: Calico and a Pocket-Handkerchief

Ticket to the Twenties is coming up at the end of the month. It's a 20's festival at the Workman Temple Homestead Museum with a live band, vendors, tours, and (you guessed it) picnicking in funny clothes. I don't dabble much in 1920's fashion, since it doesn't particularly flatter me, but then I found this lovely extant dress on ebay for a song:

It reminded me greatly of a 1-hour dress, and after reading about two successes by the fabulous Jen Thompson, I decided to attempt one of my own.

 The dress itself was easy  to pattern, and it went together surprisingly quickly. For this challenge, we had to choose a term from the Dreamstress's Historical Fashion and Textile Encyclopedia and I chose Calico. A raid on my fabric stash yielded a lovely green on yellow print that when paired with a solid collar and cuffs made the ideal end-of-summer frock. 

To accompany it, I chose another term and made a pocket-handkerchief. Cotton embroidery floss on linen, and whipped up in an afternoon

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The Challenge: Terminology

Fabric: Yellow and green cotton calico, green cotton and white linen

Pattern: Dress drafted from an original garment, pocket-handkerchief is a basic square.

Year: Dress 1920's, pocket-handkerchief any.

Notions: Thread, vintage applique, blue embroidery floss,

How historically accurate is it? The dress is machine-sewn, the handkerchief is hand  sewn andembroidered

Hours to complete: The dress took about a week, the handkerchief took 2 hours.

First worn: September 21st

Total cost: $4 for the green cotton, the rest is from my fabric stash

HSF challenge #15: The great outdoors...indoors

 Every December, my family visits the Great Dickens Christmas Fair. Victorian London is recreated (streets and all) inside San Francisco's Cow Palace, and the sheer volume of people generates a considerable amount of heat. My plan this year is to wear the Bright Copper Penny Dress with it's newly made over-sleeves, and I needed something that will cover the dress's low neckline when I'm out in the "streets" without roasting me alive. 

So I de-stashed some claret colored velvet, bought some spicy green cotton to line it with, and voila!

Claret and spicy green is my favorite winter color combo and luckily, they both go well with the dress. Another plus is that I don't have to make a bonnet to wear with the dress (although I may make one at a later date.)

 It is, I am aware, In desperate need of trim. But I thought I'd wait until a little later in the year to sew it on.

The Challenge: The Great Outdoors

Fabric: Silk velvet, green cotton and cotton batting

Pattern: KayFig 1860 winter hood pattern

Year: 1860

Notions: Thread

How historically accurate is it? Machine and hand sewn

Hours to complete: About a week

First worn: Not yet, probably to Dickens fair in December

Total cost: $15

Toile! (and a cat)

A bright copper penny, or: HSF challenge #14: Paisley or Plaid

Since I'm not attending Costume College this year (except for a quick turn about the marketplace,) I find myself at leisure to write about my newest challenge entry. I've been working on some non-HSF related projects and given my utter ambivalence towards paisley, there was really only one thing I could do. But first a little back story:

The "Bright Copper Penny Dress" (so nicknamed because my friend saw the fabric and said I'd look like a bright copper penny in it) was originally made to wear to my reenactment group's Hogmanay celebration earlier this year. I trimmed it with lace and piping and added a pair of sheer silk under-sleeves, which work well for evenings, but I wanted to wear the dress to day events as well.

I had bought the last four yards on the roll and I didn't have enough for a separate day bodice, but fortunately I came across some extant 1850's convertible dresses in my ramblings on pinterest. I adore the idea that with a pair of detachable sleeves and a pelerine you can go from day to evening with the greatest of ease, To my astonishment and very good luck, there was just enough left of this beautiful silk to make a pair of over-sleeves:

                            They'll eventually be basted in under the cap sleeve of the bodice, although I've also seen versions that tie.

                                                                          The lining

                      The sleeve is piped around the edge with brown cotton bias piping.

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The Challenge: Paisley or Plaid

Fabric: Plaid silk dupioni, cranberry cotton

Pattern: Drafted by me

Year: Late 1850's

Notions: Thread, bias piping, green buttons, cranberry bias tape

How historically accurate is it? Machine and hand sewn

Hours to complete: about a day

First worn: Not yet, probably in December

Total cost: ??

The cutest little hotel in Petaluma

Recently, Mom and I had cause to travel up to Northern California. In a fit of whimsy, she eschewed our usual defaults (i.e. Motel 6 or Days Inn) and booked us into the very lovely, very french Metro Hotel.

       The hotel is a renovated Victorian house, decorated with french furniture and memorabilia.

I am an admirer of puppetry in all it's many forms, so I was delighted to see this lovely vintage puppet theater hanging on the wall with what appeared to be it's original puppets and a lovely mural painted on the front.

                  If you want, you can even stay in a vintage Airstream trailer!

Here's our room. The walls were a cool lavender, (although the photos I took made it look a little grey) and while it's very compact, it had nice high ceilings so it didn't feel cramped

I now want this pink claw foot bathtub

                                             Yes, that is in fact a lamp shaped like a goose.

The hotel also has a breakfast area with coffee, tea and pastries for the guests. 

My Mom took this picture, She said I looked "very french"

                                       All in all, a great place to visit if you're in Petaluma