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.

I continue working on the darn camicia...

And this necklace (not IRCC)...

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?

Lost

I was lost, but found again. I've actually been working on quite a few projects and just about to start a big one for the summer.

In October 2011, I participated in the The Realm of Venus' first Mini-Challenge: the 'Idle Hands' challenge. I made a 16th century style fan flag, inspired by extant fans (image from Hartwood Castle website).

I chose to creat a flag fan--ventuolo--made of perforated parchment and gilded wood. I first researched flag fans, fairly easy due to the many wonderful sites with information about the Venetian 16th century accessories. It seems that flag fans could be made of fabric, parchment, or woven of ribbons or plant fibers. I chose parchment as I loved the perforated extant example. I wanted to do a finer perforation as I have a tool for that already. I thought the breeze created might be better without larger holes in the flag, too.

I acquired real parchment made of sheepskin. The pieces were lovely golden and had a texture that was unique unlike what you would find with faux paper parchment. The parchment was also thicker than paper, although still quite easy to punch through.

My perforation tool is very modern - as you can see in the picture - but fairly straight forward. Perhaps one day I will make one that might have been used in the 16th century. The design is created by pushing the pin through the parchment at regular intervals.

As you can see, the design is hard to photograph due to the small holes, but hopefully the lattice pattern comes out. The slightly blurry close-up, I took a picture without the flash so that backlight could (possibly) shine through some of the holes.

Here's the other side of the flag.

I used wooden molding for the handle, gluing the parchment edge in between two pieces. After sanding the wood, particularly where the pieces met and the ends, I used 18k gold paint to gild the handle. I used the same paint to decorate the parchment a little bit.

Perhaps not as fancy as some, definitely not as intricate as others, but it is my real parchment perforated flag fan!

References
Realm of Venus http://realmofvenus.renaissanceitaly.net/
The Anéa Costumes http://www.aneafiles.webs.com/index.htm
Festive Attyre http://www.festiveattyre.com/
Oonaghs' Own http://webspace.webring.com/people/lo/oonaghsown/curves/fans_in_portraits.htm
Katerina’s Stuff http://katerina.purplefiles.net/FlorenceFiles/FLAccessoriesFAN.html
Lady Dianotto's Costume in Renaissance http://www.ladydianottos.com