Sabrina

I tried on my petticoat yesterday so that I could fit the straps. So you get (not very exciting bathroom mirror) pictures! The fabric is a cotton print from the Old Sturbridge Village collection by Judie Rothermel and I found the actual fabric on the OSV website, which dates it to 1822, so a bit after this outfit, but still pretty close. This petticoat has a gored front piece and straight back piece that is gathered at CB. Slits are left in the seams to reach pockets (which I'm hoping to make for this month's HSM challenge: Holes), and the hook and eye closure is at the left seam. The waistband is fabric and the straps are twill tape, based on this example from the Royal Ontario Museum. I'm wearing it over my quick 'n' dirty Regency stays that I made for CoCo last year and my shift, which you can see I adjusted by gathering the back neckline to a band because it was too big.

I need to finish this off today so I can get started on the shortgown. Hoping to get it patterned today and maybe also cut out.

Got this done just under the wire. I think I sewed the very last stitch at 11:58pm so right before the deadline. :)

The Challenge: Under It All

Fabric: Cotton-Linen Blend

Pattern: Diagram from Costume Close-up

Year: c. 1795

Notions: Cotton thread

How historically accurate is it? Almost completely. Cotton and linen were both used in the period for shifts. The pattern is all rectangular construction. I sewed the seams by machine but all the finishing was done by hand.

Hours to complete: Not sure. A couple hours every few days for about two weeks.

First worn: Last night to see the finished product on with my stays

Total cost: About $25, and that includes all the extra fabric I have left over (that will hopefully become a habit shirt soon)

This project turned out beautifully. I am so pleased! I tried rolled hemming for the first time and the tiny little hem on the neckline is so nice. The only nit-picky issues I have with it are that the back neckline is a little bit low (goes just below the back of my stays) and the shoulders tend to slip off a bit. Next time I will cut the bottom of the gores wider so that the point of the shoulder isn't so far out.

Hand felled seams at underarm gusset:

Tiny rolled hem at neckline:


Hand hemmed and inside of the felled seams:

I have cut out a shift and am in the process of felling the gores for the HSF challenge Under it All. The shift is made out of a cotton-linen blend from Joann Fabrics that I picked up while on a trip to the States before Christmas. I plan on sewing the seams by machine but felling and hemming by hand. My felled seams are not the tiny things of beauty that can be seen in Costume Close-up, but they are smallish (3/16" or 1/2 cm) and look nice and neat. So far I have one gore felled and plan to get at least two more done today. I have the week off from school so I figure it's a good time to get sewing!