June 25, 2009
Heart of Darkness
I just had to post this picture of my son. He's a good looking kid, but he's also really good with photoshop.
All you young girls can stop drooling, he's taken!
June 21, 2009
Plaid 1883 - Finished Outfit
I wore the entire plaid outfit to a gig in the park yesterday. Unfortunately, I had to "die" twice, so after all that falling, I have some finishing stitches to attend to. Other than that, the outfit looked great. It's probably going to be my entry at Tombstone this year.
This is what it looked like after the gig. I have made two very different outfits. This one has a small bustle, so it's more appropriate for 1883-4. The other one (which I need to get pictures of - thanks Brian) is the sleek natural form look of 1881. It was just a matter of making two different bodices, and adding a bustle pad.
Now that I look at it, I don't particularly like that hat with it. I made it yesterday morning specifically for this outfit, but I think it's too dark. Plenty more where that came from though!
June 20, 2009
A Challenge
Someone here in El Paso (probably the history museum) is celebrating the Treaty of Velasco, 1836. All I really know is that we need to dress up on July 16th. I need a new dress! I have the fabric - printed cottons were all the rage back then. I just ordered a Romantic Era dress pattern from Truly Victorian. Talk about pouffy sleeves!
When I saw that the date was 1836, I realized I knew nothing about that era. I knew about the Napoleonic era Empire style dresses with their sheath-like tubular quality and high waists, and I knew about the huge hoop skirts and Garibaldi sleeves from the Civil War era. But I had to look up the era in between. I kind of like it, though it can make a short woman look really squat and fat. Here is a description I found in an article at the Illinois State University website:
This fashion plate from the September 1831 issue of The Royal Lady's Magazine demonstrates many of the the characteristic trends of the Romantic Era.These include:
-a silhouette that is wide and top-heavy, especially when compared to the vertical columnal silhouette of the previous period.
-demi-gigot sleeves (full and balloon-like from shoulder to elbow and tight fitting elbow to wrist). Other popular large sleeve styles included the leg-of-mutton/gigot sleeve, the imbecile/idiot sleeve, and the Marie sleeve.
-a tiny, corsetted waist sitting a few inches above the natural waistline
-cone-shaped skirts created from gored (triangular shaped) panels. Hem widths gradually increase throughout the period. During the early years of the period fullness at the waist is minimal.
-Sleeves sit low on the shoulders and necklines are wide, baring the shoulders. Here the exposed neckline is concealed by decorated, coordinating pelerines (large removable collars) for proper day wear.
The only trouble is that I have so many costumes in the works right now, and where I thought I would have the summer to sew, I just discovered that I will be teaching a PSAT book camp for the next two weeks! Aaaagh! Then there's the annual 5-day vacation at camp, then I have a week of cross training for the ACT (another standardized college entrance exam). When the hell am I going to have time for all this?
On a brighter note, I finished the second bodice for the plaid outfit. I will try and get pictures taken at the gig this afternoon.
June 18, 2009
June 17, 2009
1895
Last August I made an outfit for the re-enactment of the killing of John Wesley Hardin (a man who needed killin' if ever there was one.) My usual time period is late 1870's to early 1880's, so this one had to be a bit different. Fortunately, I have always loved those huge puffy sleeves.
Unfortunately, I did not put enough crinoline in the sleeves to make them stand up. I also cheated and used velcro for the front closure instead of buttons. I guess that just means it's unfinished. Before the next Hardin event, I will fix those sagging sleeves, put proper buttons down the front, and add a lace mantilla-type decoration that sits across the top of the sleeves and fastens at the throat. I have some pink lace that will work well.
June 16, 2009
Rio Bravo!
I was downtown today on personal business, so I decided to go hunting for a fabric store. Downtown El Paso used to have several cheap fabric stores, but most of them have closed down. I figured they were all gone, so I was actually about to give up when I saw Rio Bravo Wholesale Fabrics. It had moved to a smaller place, but it is still in business. I got 8 yards of a good quality polyester satin for 2.99 a yard. It's a russet brown, so I can make Annie's dress (below). I also picked up a beautiful shade of green crepe satin for the same amount. That will be for the Miss West costume (also below). I'm pretty happy with what I found today.
June 15, 2009
Annie's Dress
I've been racking my brains to figure out exactly what I want to do for Annie's dress for Tombstone. She wants an outfit for the Madame category, and she wants it in brown. I finally settled on this:
This dress has so much potential. The design is a simple polanaise with a natural form bustle and a lace ruffle on the edges. The skirt has a nice box pleat, complemented by a simpler ruffle in a more expensive fabric - perhaps a satin. To make it worthy of a madame, I will just give it a lower neckline. Everything else will be the same. I had thought to make this out of a home decor fabric they have at Hobby Lobby that looks like watered silk, but is made of 57% cotton and 43% polyester. But that's a bit heavy, and the dress itself is not made of any fine fabric, so I'm leaning towards a high-quality cotton. I'm going to invite Annie and a couple of others to meet me at JoAnn's so we can all find fabric for the three (!) different dresses I'm making this summer.
Does anyone know how to do those box pleats? I'll look around for some instructions, they don't look difficult.
June 10, 2009
The Actress
This is a picture of Aimee. That's all I know about her, except the fact that she is an actress. I loved the dress she is wearing, and I hope to replicate it at some point.
I like using actresses as inspiration. When trying to find something for a "shady lady" to wear, I want to be accurate without without being boring. Actresses were photographed in all sorts of outfits, from sedate, modest dresses to outlandish costumes that showed off their legs and other charms. The actress photos of the 1860s-70s depict them as respectable women, wearing perhaps a low cut neckline on a ball gown, and seated or standing very demurely for the camera. We only know they are actresses because the picture is labeled, or if the actress is obviously posed as no common woman might. But later in the century, actresses realized the advantages of marketing themselves through photographs and advertising. Photos were easier to have made, so they could spread their images everywhere. Lily Langtry and Lillian Russell were two professional actresses of renowned beauty whose pictures could be found everywhere. On the flip-side, there were lots of would-be actresses whose pictures might be found only in a pack of cigarettes. She was still admired, though not as respected - no one respected a woman whose outfit consisted of tights, "hot pants", a low cut bodice, and a cape. But really, I don't think the women who posed for these were looking for respectablity.
What's interesting about Miss Aimee's dress is that it has the cut of a ball gown - a low neckline and no sleeves - without all the bustle and frou-frou that would be seen at the waistline and below. I like the two-color effect, and the flowers add a nice touch. I think that this is a costume for some particular character in a play or opera, especially since she is wearing a powdered wig (not fashionable in the late 19th century), but it is still so very 1880s that it could easily be worn as a evening gown. I think what really marks it as 1880s is all those darn buttons! I really need to find a good way to sew button holes.
June 04, 2009
Widow Makes Big Time
Someone just sent me a new El Paso Pride commercial featuring Concordia Cemetery. Members of Six Guns feature in some of the still shots they use, including yours truly. This is the picture:
This is my favorite outfits. I'm also wearing it in the picture in the banner above. It's great for atmosphere - in fact, I never wear it for performing, only for when we need cemetery atmosphere. Here is one of my more "atmospheric" pictures:
It's a very accurate outfit. It has a button-down French bodice, an overskirt and underskirt, no bustle, and a bow in the back. It would be about 1882. The fabric is a moire patterned cotton/polyester blend that is available in the home decor section of Hobby Lobby. I added a veil, feathered hat, black gloves, and a big locket/ring with a picture of my dearly departed inside. The ring was a wonderful find on eBay. The purse was from a used clothing store.