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!

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.



Little Things

Finally a day off to work on my outfit! What do I do? I don’t work on any of the layers, but on the jewelry instead. I received the silver and gold findings that look the best. I had played with other pieces, but just didn’t work.










Using 34 ga silver wire, I pulled the findings together by wrapping and twisting. The wire is very fine, almost looking like cobweb when it catches the light. The pieces still flex, but they are firmly connected. Now, where the heck did I put those pearls?

Not too bad, eh?

Here are some of my other items that I will be using for this project!

22k gold plated...

Silver-plated...

Gold hoops...

Smoky quartz beads...

Gold gimp braid...

Getting Started

I had to work this weekend, but I did manage to cut four yards for the skirt and sewed the seam (backstitch—all of this will be hand-sewn as my machine is under about a foot of dust. I didn’t want to destroy what seems to be a burgeoning ecosystem). Besides there is something soothing and friendly about hand-sewing. Now I need to decide on the gathering. I had contemplated trying cartridge pleats, but after some research, it sounds like knife and box pleats were favored during this period. I have enough of a natural bum roll to keep the skirt nice and full!

The fabric is beautiful, the color very rich. But—as a taffeta—it is very slippery, all those yards sliding around as I tried to work on the seam. I used a cotton thread that was similar in color to the fabric, waxed by running the thread through my beeswax. That stuff smells so nice! I’m even using a brass needle that I found through a sutler in the UK who specializes in historic repros.

I have to be careful—two of my enfants terribles—my cats—are sniffing around the fabric. I just don’t trust them! They are still kittens and don’t take direction very well still.

IRCC II

Just a few days away from the start of IRCC II! Yikes! Am I ready? I have my fabric, my notions, my tools...my nerve? We shall see! This is my inspiration... Portrait of a Lady by Peter de Kempeneer, c. 1530, which hangs in Peter de Kempeneer (previously attr. to Girolamo da Carpi) c1530s: Portrait of a Woman, which hangs in Städel Museum, Frankfurt ,Germany.

This painting came from Kempeneer's period in Italy, in Ferrara. Kempenner was a Netherlandish painter, active mainly in Seville and known by the Spanish form of his name rather than the Flemish one, Pieter de Kempeneer. Before settling in Seville he had worked in Italy and he exercised a strong influence in Andalusia as a pioneer of Mannerism and the style of Raphael. Several of his paintings are in Seville Cathedral. In 1562 he left Spain to direct a tapestry factory at Brussels, his native city. (From the Web Gallery of Art).

Here's the plan:

Layer 1: camicia:
The camicia will be made out of white linen (stash), hand-stitched with cotton or linen thread, trimmed in linen or cotton lace, with a square neckline (the lace trimmed edge shows at the neckline of the dress) and gathered cuffs (very clearly shown at the cuff of the sleeves). I’ll make it a bit shorter than the dress for ease of movement. I am back and forth right now on how I will execute the trim...

Layer 2: petticoat: something fun out of my stash!

Layer 3: Dress:
The dress appears to have the sheen of silk, perhaps a taffeta. I have a gorgeous greenish teal shimmery taffeta in my stash. I think I have matching cotton thread, but I will have to check. The waistline is slightly higher than natural—de riguer for this date. The sleeves have a full puff at the top, fitting the lower arm with a pretty detail at the cuff. Hard to tell what pleating the skirt has, I’m not sure that it would be cartridge as it doesn’t seem to puff out immediately from the waist. I will probably use box or just a simple gathered pleat as the material isn’t too heavy. The trim on the dress looks like a narrow gold soutache braid, forming stripes on the sleeves and a simple geometric on the bodice.

Layer 4: partlet:
The partlet is very sheer, a simple one like a kerchief that seems to be tucked into the front of the dress, a little bit falling over the shoulders of the dress. The material would be a cotton, linen, or silk gauze with metallic gold thread stripes. Might be a challenge to find the material, but I will try for something close. The edges from the neck to the neckline look like they are trimmed with a gold gimp, which I do have in my stash.