Completed C18th costume - Gwen does Poldark?

Ta da te da te Dum! (larger fanfare than usual)

Not only are the pet and caraco complete (old news) but I have now made the skirt and a neckerchief to complete the costume. There is no point in making stays – the only way to reduce or alter Gwen's waist is with wood working tools, no point in shoes, etc – there are no legs or feet, and a cap or bonnet looks incomplete without a head to go underneath it.



front showing the inside of the open pet

The skirt is simple, blocks of fabric pleated at the waist, raised slightly in front to compensate for the bum rolls. The hem is taped rather than folded, extra work but a smart, clean finish. The construction is straightforward – the knife pleats face to the back leaving a small flat section at centre front. A length of tape runs along the waist edge, neatening and holding the pleat edges as well as extending to become ties to fasten the skirt. The knife pleats sit really well, opening over the roll and folding shut when not needed.

 This extra layer does not benefit the mission in search of Gwen's corset waist, but with the pet's skirts flaring outward over the hips it is contriving to give an illusion of narrowness ( you have to get the angle just right and squinting might help).

The neckerchief is again very basic. Janet Arnold shows a triangle, Nancy Bradbury, a square to be folded. For this one I used a triangle of muslin – need practice with the flimsy fabrics, though now I never wish to see it again! To finish the edge I turned a hem and then caught across it in the first row of a crocheted edging to keep it secure. The originals seem to have been made in a wide range of sizes, fabric and colours – coarse and dark for workers, finer and more ornate for the ladies, so it seemed quite safe to improvise a little. Having the longest side of the triangle on the cross grain of the fabric did make life a little exciting – the muslin is quite loosely woven so pulled and rolled out of shape. The crochet edging seems to have stabilised this and inspite of the excessive moaning was not difficult nor take long. It is a single crochet into the scarf, chain 4, and repeat every half centimetre. Row 2 is merely single into the chain loop of the row below, chain 5,and repeat. I did try all sorts of designs of various complexity but this gave a neat edge with minimum fuss.

 

Overall - an enjoyable foray into the 18th Century, frustrating, time consuming, deeply annoying. But enjoyable. There are many errors still to address but I would look forward to tackling them rather than sob into my soup and consider emigration. A full sack back gown perhaps?  It will join the growing list Of Things I want To Make... Seeing the ensemble together is strangely satisfying - something to be learnt there I think - but next task......  is already underway.

 

It is experimental, uses builders' grade and a hair drier - at the same time.

 Should have it done for next week's post, if I manage to recapture the scissors by then.

 

watercolour inches and apologies

sorry folks - again no sewing to share this week -
the trouble with making Christmas presents is the time  it all takes - oh, I'll just add this or that little detail, 'just' adds an hour or two each time. Or three. And I can't share the trials, tribulations and triumphs here because I want the pressies to be as much of a surprise as possible!  Definitely not winning this week.

I am stacking up a couple of sewing tasks to do  over the holiday while the rest of the family is snoozing or on mobiles or watching Dr Who, so should have some work done to show soon. Item one  already cut out and ready to sew is a petticoat to go with the 18th Century pet en l'air and caraco. They look MOST odd with the skirts flaring out over the bum rolls on Gwen or even odder when sadly drooping without them (see the caraco post). The  skirt I photographed the pet with was a confection of pins and recreational violence (apologies to Gwen )  so it is time to make one properly. It won't be fancy - not quilted or flounced,  just knife pleats at the waist and fastened with the tapes used to finish the top edge.



I've even taken a bit of a break from the portraits. Shock, horror! Been totally immersed in doing inches - literally. These are tiny paintings measuring about an inch square. It began with wanting to practice different fabric surfaces and sewing details but is threatening to expand drastically, The fabric details are so good to do, lots of texture, delicate tone and colours, and the different shines and patterns are a great challenge. The watercolours are difficult at this scale - I want to let them run and enjoy themselves but it becomes a soggy blob too quickly, so restraint and precision (within reason) is required. Oddly the worst trap is trying to be too precise -  the most controlled ones I don't like at all - they are too hard edged and photographic. The painting techniques are shifting all the time as well, some inches are built up with layer on layer of transparent colour while others are more like gouache, opaque mixed colours, and others are just bullied until they give in and begin to look something like.  Having worked through one scrap fabric bag do I start on the next? should I do inches to chart the journey up the stairs to fetch it? I'm already starting on a journey across the work table- tape measure, binding offcuts, pencil sharpenings, paint box, papers, lunch......  the trouble with this is that nothing stays still long enough.......

Gwen travels back in time -

Considering that I was interested in Regency costume  pet en l'airs and now a caraco are an aberration. These jackets were common wear in the mid 18th century but were sadly outmoded by the turn of the century when the Neo Classical was all the rage.  Mine was based on the example from Snowshill again used by Janet Arnold and Nancy Bradbury. It is not a complicated design = no shaping to the front, the underarm seam is a dart  and the back  panel is cut in 2 with the pleats in the skirt following down from the seams, a gusset giving extra fullness at the base of the underarm dart. The cuffs are lined and winged. Simple! 
I'm sure it should have been but again the pattern had to be Gwenned. I should be good at this by now! I am beginning to believe more firmly in the need for a basic block pattern for each era rather than scaling up from the original each time. Perhaps by next post I will believe strongly enough to have done something about it.

It was good to be doing a tailored back, even though I had to piece the fabric to make the 2 centre back panels. The extra seams are at the waist so do not look out of place. Understanding the fit was a problem. The National Trust photographs the garment as an artefact rather than a piece of clothing  and each of the other extant examples I found seem to be variations on a theme! Some were very much more intricate, shorter, longer, decorated and plain, some, en ferreau, some sack backed and others tailored! I was as faithful to the original as possible but don't think I got the underarm dart right. This became a seam and is too upright  you can see the pull to the bust, it should be angled  forward from the arm hole which would move the gusset  more to the front.


loved the back details and naturally flirty skirt!

 The flare on the skirt has had tantrums, the top and lining fabrics argued, especially at the gusset ( the triangular insert over the hip). A lot worked out when I gave Gwen real hip rolls. The pleats immediately became flirty rather than droopy!  The real pain has been the front neck line, the angle to the shoulder wasn't quite right  and it has a tendency to gape just a little. Neither the lining nor the top did this but together they made trouble. The sleeves were inspired by this poor behaviour - these are fitting no. 4. They are in and sewn and I don't intend there to be no.5.  
I had thought it would be longer from the illustrations in Patterns of Fashion,  but then I wouldn't have been able to fit it on the remnant of fabric at all. The proportions look awkward - I did have to redraw the waist lower by about an inch, so there is more body than skirt compared to the original. ( don't think anyone will know if I don't tell them)The winged cuffs were also a new thing and quite fun to do. It is a lined tube, pleated on the front and then sewn to the sleeve. The cuff is wider than the sleeve which gives the 'wing'.  I had to do the top fabric in 2 parts so they are a little stiffer and more awkward than they should be.

Not entirely happy with this. I am expecting more now, very little margin of error allowed. The flat lined garments look much smoother at the seams and the fitting is easier. This was started as 2 garments and then joined at the front and neck and then the side dart put in holding the two together.



Snowshill caraco,  National Trust

The 2 extant garments provided the shapes and form I was aiming for. The Snowshill one was the inspiration right from the word go but the Met museum one showed a similar robe in the round. The neckline is scandalous, obviously (hopefully)  there was an undergarment or a well pinned kerchief to preserve some modestly (and prevent chest colds). The sleeves are a little longer, without cuffs, but  I tried to get them to hang in the same way.  It does have the gusset, similar problems under the arm. The skirt is longer and more shaped, the pleats give the back a bit of a kick but not to same degree as mine. Perhaps I should have pressed the pleats in more aggressively.


Distractions - Gwen2  the clone- resurfacing and tidying, Christmas decorations, drawing and painting. Now reading about the Fairfax family of York. Have also put my drawings and paintings of these costumes onto a page - tab is at the top -

new Gwens and painting

Gwen 2- A Clone Drone.

For some brilliant reason I woke one morning, leapt out of bed and encased Gwen in layers of clingfilm, PVA soaked fabric and then paper – all before breakfast.

Shame I can't remember why it was so important to do, I hadn't planned it at all. The process was fun enough and simple enough but had I thought about drying time?

Photo one is Tuesday. Photo 2 is Thursday. Still drying on Saturday. I've taken the body cast off her and resealed it and guess what? - waiting for it to dry. I've also made a paper cast of a dinky body form to experiment with – it is still drying too. I have headless bodies dotted round the house hogging the radiators.... why does this make me want to put Christmas decorations up?

This brought nearly everything to a halt- difficult to drape and fit without a model to drape on and fit to. Never mind. It has been a finishing and resolving week. The velvet purple spencer has been revamped, some hems redone and illustrations, notes and pattern pieces put together. Instead of total chaos taking over the house it is now organised total chaos and coordinated heaps of things. Can't spot the difference. I've roughed out a caraco to use up the scraps from the blue rose fabric and hope to complete that this coming week once a Gwen is free. The illustration below shows what it should be like (hope).

In the meantime it's been research, paint and draw. I now know what Marie Antoinette wore to the Revolution – fascinating book but still feeling rather ambiguous about her ( felt sorrier for the husband!). The ideas of clothing as a visible statement of status, personal attitudes and political allegiance are still commonplace and mainstream, but it was interesting. Still not sure whether it was the choice of clothing or the attitudes leading to the choices that are important. She did seem to give a lot of ammunition to her enemies with many of the things she did.

Compared to the current book this was light entertainment. Having read some of the 'Ackermann's Repository's on Google books (thank you for the free downloads!!) I desperately need more background. I'm on page 12 (again) of a weighty tome– and there may stay – it's discussing the underlying shifts in philosophy and attitudes that led to the Neo Classical revival and Romanticism – apparently it wasn't just finding Pompeii and all those Grand Tours. The posts on Google+ in the Regency and general history communities are excellent at providing snapshots of key people and places but stitching these snippets into a broader understanding of the era is taking time.

As light relief more illustrations – new artists to trace down and try to remember, and as usual the more I look the less it seems I know. I was brought up with the formal portraits, but there are so many styles, some looking back, some looking forward.
While admiring the skill and drama of the formal, (Gainsborough's country house portraits of tall figures who tower above you in all of their finery, or of starchy court paintings,)
I am a creature of the 20th and 21st centuries so find the sketchy, the domestic, the intimate and informal more fascinating. Some the pastel or pencil studies are exquisite – they show more of the artist's thought and working practice in response to the subject before the layers of fashion and style take over. Looking at Fragonard's body of work is an education in itself – the fanciful, mannered and playful Rococo pieces to the more sober, bolder observation of paintings such as “young girl reading”. It is so easy to dismiss artists if the style of work is not fashionable any more but that just means we judge on trends and presentation expected of their time and not on skills and content.

Of course there are problems, dating the painting, attributing work – just take a look at John Copley's listing on BBC paintings - some the handling is so skilful and on others so clumsy. The same face reappears on different bodies. Even within the one painting the quality can be radically different. Some studios did have specialists to do various parts of a painting such as the clothing ( my dream job, if anyone needs one just ask!) or hands, and sometimes students filled in the unimportant bits, but there should be a consistency of standard. Of course I don't know which works were of a commercial standard and which may have been rejected and stayed in the studio or reworked and sold on. Some may have been retouched or repaired and this is not recorded on most sources.

Paul Sandby

Using portraits to help with understanding the clothing isn't helped by the artists having a stock of costumes which appear on a variety of patrons over the years. A serious draw back as I've been using them to match hair and accessories to dress styles as well as dress to artistic style! Oops? But at least it makes it very clear where the traditions for the school photo poses come from!

Meet the completed pet en l'air. This has been a week of traumas, obsessive sewing and happy painting.

As usual the simple task list hid hours of work.

Task one – sleeves. Made up sleeve-1 as per pattern – did not fit to the robings as shown on the Arnold drawing and stuck straight out like a penguin.. They would do for fitted sleeves but needed greater length between the bottom of the arm hole and the head plus more width at the head because of the lengthening of the front bodice. There was  sleeve-2, and sleeve-3. I wasn't sure about the fullness at the top of the arm but many portraits show a looseness there, so it will stay. The arm is set back and angles backward rather than hanging straight ( better than the first Pingu attempts). I have been assured that this is right but it still looks strange to me –truly need a real Gwendoline to see how this works.

After sleeve trauma came flounce-gate. Having been out and bought contrast fabric for lining the flounce and then made them and attached them, I decided the bulk of fabric in the fine gathers at the cuff looked clumsy and awkward. Hmm. Then salvation through the post – Fashion History arrived showing details of the Kyoto Institute collection – lots of raw pinked edges! Did get a little carried away, well a lot carried away. It took several days of looking and pondering before giving in (time for the perforated finger ends to heal- sewing the flounces on had been a pig of a job) Off came the flounces, unpicked and pinked and reattached with the lining now dropped slightly and facing outward.



  Much happier with the results and a quick lace ruffle put in to complete the look. In the mean time furbelow fever struck – Not on the original design at all but having seen so many examples it seemed silly not to try. Bye bye to Wednesday. These are 2cm wide strips with 1cm box pleats meeting nearly edge to edge down the length of the strip. Huge lengths had to be pinked, measured and sewn and then attached but it was strangely compelling. I had intended to add just two strips either side of the centre front on the stomacher…... not down the entire front but...

and then just had to try doing curling flourishes at the hem. I still think of these as moustachios.

It has changed the nature of the garment – it was quite plain and clean with a clarity about the construction, but now is fluffy and fussy.  I still quite like it, but that was Thursday gone as well!

Final finishing – the hem and redoing the sleeve flounces and that was Saturday. DONE.
 

Fragonard - the Love Letter. Met Museum

nattier 1750

This has been a great adventure – painful at times but rewarding. The research has gobbled up hours – trawling for 18thC painters has introduced many new names to explore and reintroduce old favourite pieces. I was expecting rigid, theatrical, formalised portraits with grandiose dresses, silks, flying ribbons and romantic notions of settings and did find lots of them. Considering the highly mannered style of the Rococo some of the portraits are definitely modern in their boldness and direct use of colour and composition. I still have trouble dating  some paintings - the dates of the sitter are given but not that of the artwork, a real menace especially when artists used their own collection of garments over many years to pose their models in. Jacquet !

Liotard 1754

I've also been reading “Queen of Fashion – what Marie Antoinette wore to the Revolution” by Caroline Weber. Very different attitudes to the significance of dress. The rigid stratification of society up held by distinctions in dress code, I had known about this but not the extreme importance it seems to be given in the breakdown of the ancien regime. Were the experiments in new dress modes responsible for, or merely a symptom of new ideas? Was it the new that caused the conflict or the determined adherence to the old?

And of course I've been illustrating – an interior, seated pose to reflect the pet's informal nature.

Lacking anyone daft enough to pose for me I have had to borrow bits of myself to help – so no elegant young romantic writing love letters – just me with a drawing board or table. I love artistic license – bye to the wrinkly bits – a very cheap face lift! Promise she does look happier in close ups. It is a love doing the fabric. Does any else want paintings of cloth? Some court portraitists hired specialists to paint in the clothes - does an opening still exist do you think?

18th Century jacket - pet en l'air.

And this week's challenge – a pet en l'air (pet en l'eir?). I think the direct translation is somewhat rude but to me it is a sack back jacket from the 1700s, a kind of short version of an open robe, or robe a la Francaise.  Think Watteau, think Thos. Gainsborough. This was an informal garment, worn at home, so when finding portraits I've looked for full gowns showing the volume of fabric at the back and the fitting at the front.

Watteau studies - just how much fabric! Shall we play guess the weight?

Gainsborough - Viscountess Tracey



Gainsborough, Miss Theodosia Magill

 The one I am making is based on one from the Snowshill Manor collection dated 1745-55,  described and drawn by both Janet Arnold and Nancy Bradbury. It is made in silk with a linen lining and probably worn with a kerchief to fill in the neckline.


Drawing from Janet Arnold, Patterns of Fashion. The painting above is the one cited by Bradbury - Upton House NT.

  Again it is made to fit Gwendoline, the little model, so every inch on the pattern becomes a centimetre- there will have to be other tweaks and adjustments but the Arnold diagrams will provide the basic shapes.

 I am using a printed cotton - quite fine in texture, too much of a coward for silk or satin at this stage of the learning curve.

 There are several extant examples documented and similar jackets seem to have many different names - on some the front closes, others the stomacher is pinned in as a temporary closure, the back pleats can be sewn in or sewn in part rather than hanging from the neck line. This caraco is from the Met. and although the detail may be different it does give an idea of the garment and the size of padding needed to get Gwen up to speed! I do get everso confused by all these names - I think I understand what a caraco is, a casaquin, a pierrot , and then..... Never mind - the embroidery is exquisite and that row of buttons!

 

– Even with 2 sources to glean information from I had no idea how this garment worked. Unpicking happened often. And again Gwen's shape has caused some major headaches- she has a wide flat torso, little hips and a long smooth waist, nothing like the kind of corseted shape shown in the contemporary paintings. I have tried to be as faithful as I can to the original – give and take a bit (quite a big bit in places).  The pattern had to be extended  to fit around

her and the upper front elongated.  The fabric is in two halves – joined at the centre back , with a major amount of pleating on the hip and back and the front bodice extends over the shoulder to meet the back.. What did become obvious as I tried to put this together is the importance of the lining in creating the base for the top fabric to hang from. There is a lot of fabric there - Gwen is 16cm across the shoulders - one half of the top fabric is over 50cm.  Janet Arnold described the parts being made up as one as far as the centre back, so that is what I did, but the lining back has to fit snugly to give shape to the bodice front and shoulder as well as to support the pleats. So undo the flat lining and fit the back bodice together – re-attach top fabric so there was something to hang the pleats onto. Working without a centre front was also difficult - trying the garment on Gwen seemed to give a different fit each time, and with the top and lining together of course they behaved differently again. To stabilise it the false front was made up and fitted as shown. Chickened out of doing the tab fronts from the original jacket and treated it as a solid piece with hooks and eyes to fasten at centre front just to make fitting easier. Considering how the parts were made and all that had to be done was to sew it together neatly the length of time taken seems huge- 2 hours! The side seams were extended an inch to fit Gwen more snugly but then there should be hoops or at least a large bum pad to hold the skirts out from the body which will alter the shape completely - can't win!

Next steps – sleeves, ruffles, hem, decoration.

The arm holes seem to have migrated backward  but I left a lot of spare fabric when cutting out so should not be too difficult to re- establish. I am looking forward to the sleeve - it is such a different shape. The pleats at the head should give a little leeway but....

A the real reason for putting myself through this torture ? Want to make the ruffles, I want to flounce. Already thinking through and planning...... are they lined - self or linen? or hemmed ? Do-able at this scale? Hours of fun to moan about next post.

 

 I've put in some of the useful sources/blogs etc. To be honest there is a lot of very good stuff out there- these are only a tiny tip of the proverbial iceberg.

 http://brocadegoddess.wordpress.com/pet-en-lair/   does a much better job of making than I have!

 http://www.marquise.de/en/index.html
http://americanduchess.blogspot.co.uk/2010/10/costume-analytics-1770-80-chintz-caraco.html

and of course - Janet Arnold -Patterns of Fashion 1 p28-30, Nancy Bradbury - Costume in Detail p19 National Trust - Snowshill collection.
BBC paintings, Met Museum, and Museum of London.