I started these as learning samples in free motion embroidery. The small motifs are from a 17th-century stomacher at the V&A museum. The original was done in silk and silver gilt on linen with spangles. My samples are in polyester thread on cotton muslin with silver bullion wire and fine silver cord for some of the… Read More 17th Century Stomacher Slips Free Motion Embroidery
The sigil of House Lannister done in yellow, scarlet and gold metallic threads with gold bullion/french wire for the the mane and silver for the claws. Free motion embroidery and hand couch work.
A series of photos showing the process of free motion embroidery on House Targaryen’s sigil. Polyester threads on cotton muslin background, with silver bullion accents on the claws and eyes.
I’ve fallen in love with free motion embroidery. it doesn’t require a fancy machine, digitizing software, or hunting down designs that might not be quite right. I’ve been working on several different projects trying to push the bounds of what I can do.
A month ago a Facebook post on Elizabethan Costume showed me some inexpensive* shoes (non-affiliated link) that looked very similar to cutwork shoes found in period. The price was right, but they came in only one color: white. I ordered 2 pairs, not seeing the FB thread till much later about sizing up (and again if you… Read More 16th Century Shoe Hack: Painting Shoes
16th-Century Handsewn Silk Sleeves This week I finished the silk sleeves, yay! The last few steps ended up being very fiddly, as I needed to change the curve of the underarm section of the armscye and take it in by an inch. The last few steps ended up being very fiddly. I needed to change… Read More WiR: Hand Sewn Silk Sleeves Done!
The main project this week was revising my 16th-century sleeve pattern and making up a pair of test sleeves. I was not happy with how my sleeves turned out in the caramel wool petticoat bodies. Some of that was from how thin and lightweight the fabric was, and some of it was from the pattern… Read More WiR: A Pair of 16th Century Silk Damask Sleeves
This week I unearthed some unfinished projects while “Cleaning” aka where did I put my photo box? How could it have vanished? I’ve looked in that box three times now and I’m running out of places it could be. That is the problem when I clean, I put things in a safe place and never find… Read More Hand Sewn Red Linen Hose
This post is a tiny bit misleading, I’m smooshing together last week’s missing review in with this week. I was sick last week and while I sat at the laptop with the Edit Post tab open it, it just wasn’t happening. (After typing the week that many times in a row the word has lost… Read More Week in Review: Silk Pincushion and Bobbin Lace
This week I finished pad stitching the silk taffeta kirtle interlinings and basted the outer fabric in place. I popped it on the dress form with pins holding it together to see how it looked. The 3 layers of canvas at the front (which may be overkill) plus the pad stitching gives it lots of… Read More Week in Review: Silk Taffeta Kirtle and Passementerie