From a recent Christie’s auction, Follower of Francesco Salviati del Rossi Portrait of a Lady.
Author: Centuries Sewing
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I’m adding this to my “must make one day” list
From a recent Christie’s auction, posted to wikimedia, found via the Elizabethan Costume group on Facebook. -
Interesting Costume Related Articles
A round-up of some interesting costume/textile articles and theses I’ve come across the past week.
Of Crymsen Tissue: The Construction of a Queen. Identity, Legitimacy and the Wardrobe of Mary Tudor
English Embroidery of the Late Tudor and Stuart Eras
‘The inordinate excess in apparel’: Sumptuary Legislation in Tudor England
Texts and Textiles: Self-Presentation among the Elite in Renaissance England
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Teal Wool Kirtle Test Fit
Skirt front basted in place 
Knife pleats in the back 
Hand bound eyelets in green silk, once the skirt is attached I have 4 more to sew. -
Sewing Projects on my Plate
I’ve been sick the past week with one of those hit you in the face colds, I haven’t been able to sew or do much else. It is finally clearing up and I can sit at the computer without a sinus headache starting every ten minutes.
Stuff on my summer sewing list:
Final bits of Steph’s test kirtle, and send it off.
Draft out hard copy of her skirt pattern so I’m not redrawing it every time on the fabric.
Cut and sew her wool petticoat.
Green wool kirtle for her eventually.
Olive drab over gown for her eventually.Things I want to make for me
Black Velvet Tudor hood from the Queen’s Servants – I roughly scaled it up, made a mock-up and it is huge on me.. need to do lots of tweaking.
Finish my herringbone wool kirtle, I’m up to the eyelets which are taking forever.
English Fitted Gown out of black wool.
Ruffs
Another kirtle with a video on how I make them
Everything I know about sleeve tutorial
Another Tudor Gown.. I have 8 yards of navy wool, but the question is do I want to line all of it or just the bodice and sleeve area? -
The Pink Linen Test Kirtle
This is a budget kirtle (total cost for materials maybe 30 bucks?) made for a friend who lives several states away.
I had a chance to do one unplanned fitting on her of a mock-up from old measurements, I pinned the heck out of it, scribbled a few notes, and took it away with me back to Florida to come up with this. This is a test kirtle because I now have some wool to make her another one, and would rather work out any other fitting issues before I cut into the good stuff.It is a cranberry colored linen/rayon blend that my camera hates to photograph and I can’t seem to color correct to a shade near what it should be. It should look more like this:
Not hot pink or barbie pink. The skirt is one I finished some time ago, it laces to the bodice through eyelets on each side and has a hidden side pocket.
The bodice is interlined with cotton twill and lined with more cotton. There is no boning and hopefully it should keep her comfortable and supported.
I ended up piecing the bodice shoulder straps to allow for a bit of custom tweaking based on some fit issues we had, if the straps are a touch too long the squares are easy to unpick and the straps can be whip stitched back together. The sleeves are just pinned on in the photos, once the shoulder straps are finalized the eyelets can be put in.
All that I really have left to do is make more fingerloop braid for the sleeve lacing and the skirt to bodice lacing.
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Green Tudor/Henrician Gown Finished!
Here is a run down of all the layers.
Cotton/linen smock: Machine sewn with hand finished seams and hems.
(more…)
Cuffs: Machine “blackwork” with silk thread, hand hemmed, they lace on to the smock cuffs with fingerloop braid so I can change them out as needed and wash them separately.
Rust red petticoat: Same one I wear with all my clothing. -
Brian Froud’s Costume Sketches from Labyrinth
Brian Froud -Woman Ballroom Costume Design I Labyrinth, 1984 Graphite, ink 16 x 20″ I ran across this a few weeks ago, a gallery in NYC is showing the Froud’s work. Including sketches from The Good and Bad Fairy Book, Dark Crystal, a few things I don’t recognize and of course Labyrinth.
I am not located in NYC, nor am I heading up there any time soon. So I’m quite happy to see the collection is online and even better the costume designs for the ballroom dancers are included, along with Jareth’s armor/coat, goblins, and other assorted puppets.
This will making coming up with my own inspired version easier. Time to break out my pencils and water-color.
Labyrinth Copyright © The Jim Henson Company
