Author: Centuries Sewing
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The finished Elizabethan ruff and some progress photos.
The starched Elizabethan ruff after drying and before setting.
The starched Elizabethan ruff dampened before setting.
First try at the sets came out too big.
The finished Elizabethan ruff with a 3 inch and 1/4th set. -
Fitted English Gown, Green Kirtle, Linen/Cotton Shirt, and Wool Petticoat Done.
It’s done, it’s done!
I finished the full Elizabethan ensemble (it does need some ruffs but that is for another day) for my friend’s birthday/Gift-mas/every other holiday in the world for the next 300 years. I am now going to sleep the sleep of the dead.
So starting with the bottom layers:
Linen/cotton blend shirt with reinforced french seams. Cranberry wool skirt with tucked hem, a pocket and fingerloop braided closing.
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Kirtle Sew-Along: Measurements and Adjustments
Pattern Adjustments and Mock-ups
To me this is the annoying and tedious part of sewing, but once it is done we will have a bodice pattern that fits and we can use for various projects. If you already have a block pattern by all means use it. I’m starting from the beginning because this is stuff I wish I knew when I was starting out.
Materials:
Pencil
A small scrap of cardboard
Tape
Measuring tape
A long Ruler
Paper to trace your pattern on
Muslin or calico for Mock-up(s)
Scissors
Narrow Elastic or Ribbon
Tracing Wheel (optional)
A pinMeasurements:
To start we need a few measurements, so take a second to change into a fitted knit top and if you wear extra support under your garb put that on too. I’m wearing modern jeans to show where where your waist is not.
Natural waist: ________ Take string or narrow elastic and tie it snug around your waist, wiggle around from side to side till it settles. Make sure it isn’t twisted like mine is. This trick for finding the waist doesn’t always work, so a second way of finding it is to look at where your elbow falls, that will roughly tell you where your true waist is. (Thank you Elizabethan Costume facebook group for teaching me that proportional trick.)
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Margaret Layton’s Jacket Finished, with far less bling.
I finally finished off the jacket project I started a few months ago. Well, I guess I really started it when I made the scaling up patterns video. I didn’t make any huge changes to the pattern I scaled up, the measurements were close to mine and I wanted to see what I would end up with. I had this green wool in my stash for a few years now and I knew that was what it wanted to be. It then fought me every step of the way. This was going to be a nice soothing hand sewing project that I could take my time on and enjoy. That lasted for a few weeks until I realized I needed to unpick both sleeves and sleeve lining. I decided it could either sit in the corner until it behaved or I could switch to the sewing machine and get it done.
Done is good, done is a wonderful thing.
So this is partly hand sewn, partly machine sewn with some hand finishing. In hindsight I should have done one more mock-up of the pattern to get everything super perfect but its a jacket and it works as a jacket.
The only changes I did to the pattern was to accommodate my ski slope shoulders and take the back seams in, and then take the back seams in even more, and raise the neckline to not quite doublet height.Looking at it now I should let the back seams out a wee bit, I don’t have hooks and eyes in yet so there is some puckering where I pinned it shut. The only other change I might do is bring the armscye forward a little bit more.
The extra poof at the back of the sleeve lets me reach forward and up and back with no horrible pulling.
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Time for a Crash Course in 1560s Nuremberg Fashion
Nicolas_de_Neufchâtel – Susanna Stefan (died 1594), wife of Wolff Furter (1538? – 1594) of Nuremberg, National Gallery London I have a confession to make, I am not a huge fan of pink. It is a fine color and I can wear it without looking ill but in my day-to-day life it is rather absent.
Yet a great deal of my costumes and historical clothing however are pink. I didn’t really notice it at first, until someone suggested that I should make the pink gown in the Neufchatel painting.
Then I noticed, I did have at least 3 or 4 gowns that were pink. Be it by fate, or accident, of the by-product of digging through the clearance rack and looking for something useable.
I’ve found silk on sale, it was pink, I found a linen blend that was pink. I also managed to some how color match the linen to wool bought half a year later from a different store. I’ve tossed tables cloths and tan fabric into a scarlet and wine dye bath and they too all ended up some shade of pink.
Rose, Salmon, Cranberry, Azalea, Raspberry. Or more Elizabethan names, Maiden’s Blush, Carnation, Lusty Gallant.
The color is haunting me or hunting me with every project I make.
I resisted at first, maybe I could make it in a different color? Yet most of the fabric in my stash is already set aside for other projects, and I realized I picked up the perfect scrap of velvet for the gown trim a week ago.
I found a damaged silk blend sari for cheap, it should get here in a few weeks. Until then I have time to plan and plot. This is not my usual area of sewing, I usually stick to England and Spain. I’ve read a ton of dress diaries over the years so I know a few bits of terminology but I may get something things mixed up. I have a black velvet purse I could use for the bust band (brustfleck?) that has bullion embroidery on it, or I have a few other ideas on how to make something similar.
A few details from the painting:
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Hey I got my first award nomination!
Thank you American Seamstress for the nomination!
So the apparent rules of being nominated:
1. Add the award icon to your blog!2. Link to your nominator to say “thank you“
3. Nominate 5 blogger with less than 200 follower.Here are some folks who I think can use a little link love. I like their work, and some have put up with my late night costume rambles! -
The Pink Linen Test Kirtle In Action
The pink linen kirtle I made for a friend made its debut last weekend. Linen/rayon blend soft bodice with handmade eyelets. It has sleeves but it was way too hot for them. Over all I am pleased the next version in green wool will need very little tweaking.
