Versatile Blogger Award

I have just been graciously granted the Versatile Blogger Award by Lady FashionK of Fashions of Time. Thank you so much. I've been smiling all day!

Now that I have recieved this award I must tell seven things about myself and post a list of my five Versatile Blogger Award Winners!

7 things about me:

1. I am a, soon to be, 36 years old, stay-at-home-mum of an 8,5 years old son and I live in the Netherlands.

2. Like most people who make costumes we have a cat. No costume is ever complete without cat hair! She is black, with some white spots, and her name is Tinkerbell. We also have a rabbit named Snuffy.

3. I have ADHD and fibromyalgia.

4. I not only make costumes but also write short stories and poems. I also love Photography.

5. I started this hobby in Society for Creative Anachronism as a member of the Dutch branch, Polderslot. My brother-in-law and his wife are still members there.

6. Our first event was in October 1997 and the dress I wore was not made by me, but by my mum! My husband and I where both hooked immediatly and that is when I started sewing and making historical costumes.

7. Our first re-enactment event was in November 2003 at Brederode it was called Middeleeuwse Toestanden. It marked the start of our Living History Group De Zwarte Zwaan (The Black Swan)

An my 5 Versatile Blogger Awards go to...:

Bad Dreams Good Nightmares I really love, love, love Scott Altman's art. He truly brings magic to live.

Living Dutchly
A American living in the Netherlands describing his daily live here. His stories often make me laugh !

And ofcourse some costuming blogs only three awards remaining. That is going to be a bit of a problem. There are so many great blogs out there!

Loose Threads: Yet Another Costuming Blog
Catherine Raymond also manages to dig up great information about archeological finds and facts. She also makes really great early costumes!

The Dreamstress In one word, WoW! If you are not familiar with her blog, check it out and see for yourself.

Wilhelmina's Antique Fashion
Always posting pictures and information about historical fashion.

Dorestad 850 at Wijk Bij Duurstede

Where the post about our previous event could have had the title Wet, wet, wet! This posts title could be; feeling hot, hot, hot!




Luckily for everyone the Saturday was slightly cooler than the Sunday. When the temperature was around 30ºC. So at least, the biggest part of, Saturday and on sundaymorning I did demonstrate dyeing with natural dyes, but after getting sick of the heat on saterday afternoon. I had to keep it cool on Sunday.





I did feel bad for those who came to see us. And found most vikings sitting in the shadows, trying not to get a heat stroke.





I also felt bad for our son. The Huginn sibbe could not attend the event. As they where celebrating Skuld's birthday. BTW Happy birthday little princess! He was all alone and had no one to play with. But he behaved extremely well and did a lot of different things.

Like:



Woodcarving with his own knife ! He got his first knife this event and he was really happy and really proud. I was not so happy, very proud but really scared...



Making a fire with a firestrike and a flint.



Leatherworking, sewing a pouch.He also sold one, for the first time. He is becoming a real craftsman.



And ofcourse charming the socks of vikings and visitors!

Not everyone was able to hide in the shadows. The brave fighters did give shows to entertain the public.









Meanwhile, at the campsite of the craftspeople and merchants, there was a more relaxed attitude.






All in all, all of us, had a lovely weekend.

And although I can't wait to work on my 1909's skirt, I first have to clean up and store away all the things we used this weekend. Last week, I did manage to take the skirt in. I am keeping my fingers crossed that it will fit this time and that it hasn't become to small. If it fits correctly, I only have to hem it. I plan to decorate the it as well, but this will have to wait until I have finished the coat. I want to make the flounces out of the same fabric as the skirt itself but I am not sure if I have enough fabric to do this.

If my Purple Edwardian 1909's costume is finished in time. Maybe I'll use it as an entry for the Historical Costume Inspiration Festival


I would like to thank Fashions of Time for posting about it on her blog. I also would like to thank her for giving me the versatile blogger award. I've been smiling all day and I am working on my post about it.

Edwardian Corselette ready

Today I finished my Edwardian Corselette!


Detail of the embriodery on it.



The Corselette worn over the, unfinished, skirt.



The original skirt and skirtwaist.

The waistband of the skirt turned out 8 cm to wide, if I want to fit the skirt into the smaller waistband neatly, it also has to be taken in. This probably will have to wait. As I want to finish the grey diamond twill linen viking undertunic that I also have been working on before next weekend. Because than we will attend a viking event in Wijk bij Duurstede, in viking times known as Dorestad.

Something strange is happening here...

I don't like doing embriodery. I don't have the patience nor the fine motorskills necessary to make it look good. So my husband was really, really surpriced when he came home and found this....



The original corset waisted skirt has embriodery on the "corset" part and I really, really love the look. So when I found Edwardian embriodery patterns, dated to May 1908, on-line. I decided to have a go at it.



I have tried to keep the pattern and the color scheme in the same style/feel as the original. The whole pattern will be done in a simple chainstitch. And I must admit, that I am, literally, warming up to the idea of doing embroidery. As it is one of the things, I can do while sitting outside, soaking up the sun.

Alas, this does mean I can't work on the corselette until the embroidery is finished.

Edwardian Corselette

Truly Victorian 492 Pattern



I've sewn the mock-up versions of the Edwardian corselette together.



I've decided to go with the alternative version of the tall corselette, because in my opinion, it matches the look of the original, best.

Edwardian Corset skirt

A few years ago I fell in love with a picture of an Edwardian Walking Costume, in the book Haute Couture & Prêt-à-Porter, Mode (Fashion) 1750-2000 - Ietse Meij. For those of you lucky enough to own the book, it's on page 79. And also in the book Haagse Hofmode (Hague Court Fashions) on page 27, on the far right.

It is the costume on the right, in the picture above. I found this image here berthi.web-log.nl. Where you can also find, under 26 &27 september, more pictures of the exposition Haagse Hofmode.

A description of the dress:

A Liberty& Co Walking Costume, consisting of a blouse, skirt, coat and mitaines (fingerless gloves). The skirt and coat are from purple wol and silk shangtung. The smocked blouse is made in silk.

The skirt has an attached corselet but without, as more commonly, the point going upward, but going downward instead. I can't see the back in any of the pictures, so I have no clue, how it looks.

A picture of a corset(waist)skirt in dutch called a keursrok.




Pattern of typical corset skirt:




How to sew boning into a corset skirt.



I do not intend to replicate this costume, my costume will be merely based upon it, but I do want to keep close to the original look. As I have a very short uppertorso, I was not sure of whether or not the attached corselette skirt would look good on me. I decided on making a separate corselette girdle after finding this picture, of what is called the Medici ceintuur (belt).



* All image above are from; Ik kan kostuumnaaien, dated to ca. 1905/1909*


Which looks suspiciously much like the Truly Victorian #492, 1890's Victorian Corselets pattern.



With a separate girdl I will have the option to wear my costume with or without it. So if it doesn't look good, I do not have to change the entire skirt.

At this moment I am experimenting with several variations of the TV pattern, on of them has a downward curve in front.

I found out that a corset/girdl/belt like this is also often refered to as a Swiss waist.

Swiss Waist (picture)

Vintage silk Swiss waist

Vintage Swiss Waist

Variety of pictures with Swiss waists

http://www.koshka-the-cat.com/swiss_pattern.html

Victorian Blue Corduroy Swiss Waist Cincher

Adventures of a Costumer has a nice blog about it.

And now I finally understand where the famous swiss dirndl derived from!