Catching Up

Catching up! I finished the earrings for my outfit. I needed a bunch of real pearls so I bought inexpensive freshwater pearl earrings and “harvested” the pearls—which already had pendant settings.

Using gold plated jump rings, I attached the pearls to the previously made chandeliers. I then finished with the gold ring for the ears. I need to tighten up some of the silver wire, but I am pretty pleased with them.

I’ve also finished my petticoat/underskirt, except for waistband hooks (on order). I used softened box pleats to attach the skirt to the waistband. Hubby once again helped level the skirt. I had to do so at the top as there is a decorative hem already. It is a bit shorter than I like, but that will help the pretty silk to survive the dust.

Sleeves

I broke the sleeves down into upper and lower pieces, cutting them out separately. I made the straight lower sections by making tapered cylinders with rolled seams. The upper puffy sections I cut in an ogee shape, a yard long.

 

I created knife pleats along both longer sides, fitting them to the wider part of the lower sleeve, attaching them at the pleats. I will do the same at the top of the shoulder.

For the sleeves, I used both a running stitch with cotton thread, upholstery weight for stress points and all-purpose at the other points.

Over all, I’m pretty pleased with the sleeves! I made them loose to accommodate the camicia that I will wear underneath. I’m getting very close to using up the teal taffeta. Yikes!

Overskirt

Worked on the overskirt today after hanging it forever. Hubby helped me level the skirt (as instructed in the Tudor Tailor) last night and I cut away the excess. Good thing there was no one to take a picture of the process!

After some math, I started to create my box pleats, using matching upholstery thread for strength.  

Amazingly, they came out just perfectly. I think that the length of the skirt is not as long as I prefer, but I need to walk around without worrying too much about the hem.

Attaching the skirt to the waistband was easier than I thought it would be. I still need to find the brass hooks, but I am pleased even before I can iron the skirt to look nice!

I continue working on the darn camicia...

And this necklace (not IRCC)...

A Little on Camicia

Didn’t get a lot done this week with work and in-laws visiting from the U.K. But I did get started on my camicia. The camicia in the inspiration painted is only evident at neckline and wrists. It is obviously square-necked to match the dress, with either white work embroidery or lace. I’ll be working on the trim later. For the body of the camicia, I took inspiration from the images of extant camicie on Bella’s website at http://realmofvenus.renaissanceitaly.net/workbox/extcam6.htm, particularly plate 218.

So far, I’ve cut all my pieces from my lovely natural white 100% linen and roll hemmed many of the edges with white Egyptian cotton thread. I’ve just started to inset the hand-made (not by me!) cotton cluny lace. This weekend will be old movies and insetting lace!

Underskirt

I am tied between using linen or silk for the underskirt, both of which I have in my stash. It won’t show, at least not much, but I might want to use it when it would show. The linen is turquoise and the silk is a shiny gold. The former would sort of blend whereas the latter would go with the trim. Both would be cool, but the linen would probably hold up better….

Ok, after a lot of debate, I’ve cut the beautiful gold silk from my stash. I have been saving that material for so long it was tough to cut into it! I allowed 4 yards for the skirt. There is a decorative edging that I would like to preserve so I will need to be careful cutting the waistband.

This material is a fraying mess! I cut off one edge and set aside for the waistband. I sewed the ends together for the skirt seam, double it over to control the fraying.

I left about 6” at the top for a closure, rolling the edges with a hem stitch. I think I will do a box pleat to attach to the waistband, but I need to hang it first.

Layer 4: Partlet

In the portrait, the partlet appears to be one of the more simple types, similar to a scarf, placed around the neck and tucked into the front of the neckline. The inner edge is trimmed with a gold gimp. The fabric is very sheer, white, with gold stripes about two inches apart. A bit of extra fabric from the partlet spills over the dress’ shoulders.

I have some very fine silk gauze with metallic stripes. The stripes are less than an inch apart, but it still has the feel of the partlet fabric in the portrait. I also have gold gimp, cotton from an older collection, which will do nicely. The fabric is only a 1/3 of a yard, so I may not be able to get the exact way the stripes run in the painting, but they should look right from the front, and since we can’t see the back, the issue is moot.

I used waxed cotton thread to trim the partlet and roll the hem. The fineness of the fabric is a bit scary! While very soft, the silk has a bit of tooth, nice as it stays in place.

It looks good, but I won’t know if it works until I finish the dress.