Red chemise gown updates

I wrote earlier this year about my plans to make a red chemise gown- here is some of my progress on it!

The front is made up of two really long panels of fabric- I then put drawstrings on them at the neck and waist, and sewed them together from hem to waist. The cut of the back and shoulder straps (still yet to be covered) are from a basic late 18th century style bodice sloper that I drafted off my stays a while back. For the bodice construction on the back portions of the gown, I followed Serena Dyer's tutorial on 18th century gown construction, and stitched the fashion fabric onto my already-constructed bodice lining (not only is it historically accurate, but it's actually really nice and easy too).

Inside view of the front panel.

The lining of the gown (along with under-bodice front).

To give it some more structure (and a bit more modesty, given that the front only closes with two ties!) I added an under-bodice in the same material as the lining (a medium-ish weight linen-cotton blend).

I'll try to get some more photos up soon-ish of how it fits!

Stuff in the sewing room

B6055- the flowery one pictured left,
with another dress I'm still altering.

Recently, I finished altering a dress that I had started ages ago from a reprint 1950's pattern (Butterick 6055, the red floral print dress pictured on the left in the photo). It turned out really awful-looking the first time I made it up, (and I think I accidentally cut the wrong size) so I had to take it in by a lot. Maybe I'll actually have the opportunity to wear it now that the weather's nice!
 

 I've also started taking a pattern drafting course at a school nearby (which is going really well!). We've been drafting jacket blocks, and the course has helped me improve my fitting techniques a lot!

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On the historical side, I've been working on the red chemise gown since I last posted about it in February. I've completed the body of the dress. I'm still in the mock-up stage of the sleeves because they're giving me a hard time, but that's most of what I have left! I'll also try to post more about the construction and how it went when I'm done, but I'm very pleased with it so far!

The front, showing the under-bodice beneath.

The back- I am very proud of all those pleats!

Red chemise gown: Inspirations

On a crisp day in early fall, I was wandering through my local Fabricland when I happened upon the most wonderful bolt of red cotton voile in the bargain discount room. While red was a very unsuitable colour for any kind of chemise/shift undergarment sort of thing, it was still the perfect weight for something else: that perfectly scandalous upscaled outer-garment cousin to the chemise, the Chemise Gown!

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More specifically, the idea of metres upon metres of red voile made me think of a pretty red 1791 gown featured in Hansen's Costume Cavalcade (which I swear was one of my favourite books when I was a kid). Some wonderful costumers on the 18th Century Sewing facebook page directed me to the original after which the illustration in the book was based. Here it is, the original fashion plate:


Journal de la Mode et du Go(u)t, 25 décembre, 1791-13ème cahier,
 in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
 Displayed in glorious detail here, on their website.



The original source1 description of the gown:
"The coiffures en cheveux [hairstyles without a hat or pouf], having been for some time neglected, have returned more stylish than ever. Here is one in the new taste. It is formed all in large curls, and is trimmed with a garland of poppies. Gold earrings, totally round. Necklace made of a nakara [a shade of red] ribbon.

Kerchief of gauze or linen batiste, as you like, all plain.

Chemise gown, a la Coblentz, of nakara satin, trimmed along the bottom and on the amadis sleeves with black satin. We observe again, in passing, that the color of the gown is very striking in fabric, and one must not judge it by the illustration which necessarily renders it dead.

White gloves. Nakara shoes trimmed with black satin."
(Translation by Cassidy Percoco)

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My cotton voile will obviously have to stand in for satin, which I don't have. I'll be writing updates on the progress made on this dress in later posts!



1 18th Century Sewing group also alerted me to the fact that you can also access the full magazine it came from (with the original French text) digitally, through Gallica BNF- the full magazine makes an interesting read too- there are book/theatre reviews, small anecdotes and even sheet music in some of these editions!