So here is yet another costume blog! the difference is, this one is mine, and maybe ut will help someone else in the same way all the others have helped me.

Let's start with an introduction. My name is Kit, and I've been sewing since I was five, and draping patterns since I was seven. Most of my tastes have been for historical things, generally ranging from the 14th century to the middle of the 20th. I also design, but haven't really been doing much of that lately. Currently, I work at Colonial Williamsburg in the Historic Area Sewing Room, which makes the clothes that are sold on Duke of Gloucester Street, AKA The Duke or Dog Street, in the historic shops. Most recently, I was asked to make one of the specialty gowns for the Mary Dickinson shop, which was a lot of fun.

The dress forms were all too big, so it had to be laid out on the table to get any kind of shot, as the hanger just looked BAD.














When I am at home, I'm still sewing, but not necessarily for the 18th century. My current projects (there's never just one) are a kind of generic Saxon gown for the Maryland Renaissance Festival, a Robe a la Anglaise for work (in case they send me to the Historic Area to work on hats -- it's been known to happen), and, most importantly, my Halloween costume.

This is from the Danish National Museum, I think? This is where I found it. Yes, there is a pattern there. No, I cannot read it, nor can anyone I know, but it looks pretty straightforward. I have enlarged it to roughly my dimensions, and as soon as the corset is done, I'll be fitting the lining. The outer is a black cotton sateen, fairly inexpensive, which is just what one wants from a Halloween fabric.  The trims will not be appropriate to the time period, but will be removable, so if I ever need to do something for the 1830s, I'll have this. And if not, well, I'll wear it to tea.







The corset is from a book called Corsets, It's corded with jute twine, which actually works pretty well, though I'm not sure what I'd going to do about a busk. There will be heavier bones at least in the back, possibly also in the front, just to be a little stiffer than the cords where it's needed. I'm told paint stirrers are good enough for the purpose. And if they break, the fabric is heavy enough that it should not be to bad until I have a chance to get it out ... hopefully. 

But good news for corsets when I want to be only somewhat accurate, but don't want to use those godawful metal eyelets! You know those nifty little button hole template machines that were sold in decades long past to fit onto machines that did only a straight stitch? There is a somewhat obscure template that fits into them that makes eyelets. They're not perfect, as the threads do not all radiate out as they should, but they are thread eyelets, and super fast, when you need that. I'll be trying them on this corset, and will tell you later how they turn out.