IRCC6: Plans and Fabrics

Sorry for not posting last week! My laptop was out for repairs so I wasn't able to post anything except for the video I'd finished before hand. But it is back and happy and we can get back to the regular(ish) blogging schedule.

The Italian Renaissance Costuming Challenge 6 is set to start this week and I'm so excited. I've been gathering supplies (since my costuming fabric stash is quite sad at the moment) and solidifying my costuming plans so I'll be all ready to go as soon I'm allowed to start sewing.

Here are my fabrics! The bottom two are yummy linen yardages. Florida summers are going to require linen so I splurged on some 100% linen for the gown (blue) and petticoat (burgandy). The top fabric is a cotton blend that I will probably regret in August when it's time to take final photos but the color and diamond pattern were so perfect (and cheap!) that I couldn't resist. It's for the overdress.

I was very inspired by the color combo on this lovely lady! So yummy! I did swap which color was for which garment but at least the color combo is good.

I had a hard time getting all of the fabrics to show up as the correct color all in one photo. The two reddish ones are quite the same shade of red purply wine like in this photo.

The blue is a yummy blue gray that is even more fabulous in person. This photo shows it best. I'm so excited to get to sew with it. Both linens are 5.3 oz IL019 from Fabrics-store.com. They are a bit more slubby that I would like but they are wonderfully soft and I'm going to love wearing them.

 This is the style of overdress I'm planning on making-a giornea. This one has some pretty gold trim around the edges and I may try that with mine if I have time! The diamond pattern will be great for designing my own trim. I have some faux and real pearls in my stash that I may end up using to bling it up but I'm not sure yet.

I still need to purchase some linen for my undergarments but I'll have quite a bit to get started with for right now. So excited!!

Italian Renaissance Costuming Challenge 6

I've been an avid follower of the Italian Renaissance Costuming Challenge (IRCC) for several years and have decided that this is finally the year to enter it! I'm strongly considering making my Adrian persona Italian because Italian garb is so pretty (and because picking a late period English name would be rather boring). So I do need some more Italian outfits.

I really love the high waisted look of 1490s styles like those who inspired the fashions on Ever After and The Borgias. And I've got a bit of cold feet at cutting into my silk for my Borgia dress in an untested pattern. I'm hoping that this project will help me get some kinks out of the dress pattern before cutting into my pricy silk.

My first layer will be a camica or Italian chemise. I've already made one for my Borgia dress but one can never have too many pairs of underthings for costuming. The second layer will consist of a gamurra or gown which will be front laced with a pleated skirt.

The third layer will be a giornea which is a pretty draped over dress that is open at the sides like this lady is wearing. I'm hoping this will be a nice easy layer to throw on to make my outfit look pretty pretty for events such as court during Adria but that can be left off for most of the day when it's just too hot for that.

Lastly will be accessories. I'm planning on making some jewelry and another pocket ( because pockets rock). Italians also have such pretty jewelry! If I have extra time at the end and I'm feeling ambitions, I may throw in a few extra accessories but who knows.

Once the challenge begins on April 14th, I'll be sending in monthly updates which I'll also share here. Now off to do some fabric shopping!

HSM January: Foundations

This year's Historical Sew Monthly started out with the Foundation Challenge. So for my foundation, I decided to make an Italian Chemise. To me, a foundation is the thing you build your entire outfit upon. Mess it up, and nothing else will work correctly. The Chemise (or camicia if you are Italian) is the layer closest to the skin that not only keeps your pretty garments free of body grossness but also is a comfortable, breathable layer. Unfortunately, it's one of those things the film industry has decided are mostly unnecessary!

The Challenge: #1: Foundations
Fabric: 3.5 ys Linen ($11/yd)
Pattern: I used this great tutorial by Jen of Festive Attyre.
Year: Renaissance-ish (1500s)
Notions: thread
How historically accurate is it? It's mostly machine sewn and I surged my seams but the overall shape is correct. And it's yummy linen!
Hours to complete: 4-5
First worn: not yet. This linen is quite fine so I don't feel comfortable modeling it for you!
Total cost: ~$38

It's got this great cartridge pleating detail at the neckline. And it's super comfy to wear!

While we're at it, I decided to photography the corset I made for the 2014 #20: Alternative Universe Challenge but never photographed.

It's made of one layer of coutile and bound with store bought bias tape.

I hand sewed the eyelets but the rest of it is sewn by machine. Coutile is hard to sew by hand!

The seams are all finished nicely for maximum comfort.

I started with the pattern for my kirtle bodice and shortened it. Then I tweaked the fit until I got the shape I wanted. To draft your own kirtle bodice, go to elizabethancostume.net for a drafting guide.

And now that I have the corset and chemise done, it's time to get started on the dress!!!

The Borgia Dress Project

A while back, I posted about my dream to sew a dress based off of the costumes in the show The Borgias and it's going to happen! I spent a lot of time researching and looking for fabrics and such and I found some stuff out.

The first thing I needed to know was how period accurate were the costumes. They were gorgeous but costumes on film (especially on tv shows) have a tendency to be rather unperiod. And these are no exception.

Actually 1490s garments- note the curved bust, center front lacing and over gowns they are all wearing.

 The Borgias dress- straight front, side or back lacing, and no over gown. But they do get points for period appropriate prints, chemises and period appropriate hair.

So even though they are not 100% period, they are gorgeous and they aren't that far off from what would have actually been worn (especially when compared to some other "period" tv shows that have come out lately). And I love them so I'm going to make one. Plus I'm feeling in the mood for a pretty pretty dress.

Despite being set in France, the costumes in the movie Ever After are also based off of this period also and it's one of my favorite movies. So double score.

Originally, I was really inspired by this dress that Vanozza, the mom, wore. I really loved her outfits because they were higher cut and lower waisted than most of Lucrezia's more fashionable dresses. Being a chesty gal, I needed some space so I wouldn't be popping out everywhere.

But I ended up deciding on this dress, but in purple since I'd already fallen in love with some pretty purple fabric researching the other dress. And it will be silk because I want to sew the pretty things!

On the left, purple silk doupioni and on the right, black and gold silk damask. Most of the gown will be the doupioni and the contrast trim will be the damask. I also snagged a gorgeous dark purple silk blend velvet for the bodice.

Of course, the first step in a new period is period appropriate under garments so it'll be a while before I can start working with the silk. (So I'll just pet it for now....) The corset is mostly done and the chemise is up next on my list. Thankfully, I can do a pretty period accurate shift for this dress so I can use it for other more historically accurate dresses.

Some weekend sewing

One of the benefits of being home sick all weekend alone is getting in some hand sewing. Also watching a lot of costume dramas for "research".

First on the list was finishing up the striped Italian dress. Mostly, I just had trim to do. I had hoped to wear it this weekend but that was not to be. Ah, well. There are two more weekends left of the Ohio Renaissance Festival. It could still use some more accessories but it's enough done to wear.

I also finished up two small hand sewing projects. The yellow one I started at the SCA event the other weekend as part of a class. I had so much fun making it that I made the blue one too. Can you guess what they are?

They are needle books! They were an easy project plus they are useful. I hate leaving needles in my pin cushions and my husband hates the other place I leave needles- stuck in the arm of the couch.

I overcame my fear of hand sewn button holes. After eyelets, you'd think button holes wouldn't be intimidating but sometimes we get weird about things. Turns out the silk button hole twist makes sewing fun!

I've also started planning my next costume! I have a serious costuming bug right now. I'm planning a 1490s dress in the style of The Borgias. The costumes aren't 100% accurate but they are very pretty. I've decided to splurge a bit and make the dress out of silk. I ordered some swatches and they should arrive soon. Can't wait!

And a new period requires new underpinnings! While corsets aren't period for this period, I'm planning on making a lightly boned one just to give me the right shape. So far, the muslining is going well and it's quite comfortable.

What projects did you work on this weekend?