petticoat junction

I have had a mental block when it comes to executing the petticoat.  There is something quite foreign to me about trying to scoop out the front of skirt to ensure the hem lays parallel the ground. I am accustomed to be able to adjust the hem after the fact!

My futile desire for perfection has caused a great deal of procrastination.

That said- I finally decided to break down and create a petticoat out of muslin.  I wound up rebuilding the waist band twice.  The first time I pleated the fabric up- I found that it made odd bumps at the side of the hip.  Sloping the waist more gently rather than eliminating it to a direct point helped to eliminate this problem. I added a ruffle at the bottom for weight

  I initially thought that I could use this as an extra layer over my quilted petticoat for fullness. The reality is I am not likely to put a muslin skirt over a silk one. Still I am glad I made it because I learned a lot about the process without having to cut into a more expensive project.   

Quilted Petticoat

I have made great progress on my quilted petticoat.  A quilted petticoat helps to hide the hoop ridges made by the Panniers/Pocket hoops.  As an added bonus- it will help to keep me warm (probably too warm).  I have to remember that Carnevale is in Febuary and likely I will spend the whole time vacillating from freezing outdoors to sweltering indoors.

The Fabric:

Many months ago in the garment district I saw this embroidered gold scroll scroll quilted dupioni. I knew right away that is what I would use to for my petticoat but as I was in the very initial stages of researching- It was not the time to buy.  At the time I didn't have even a clue as to how much I would need and at 35$ a yard- I didnt want to get the wrong amount. I had a minor heart attack when I went back (months later) and could not find the bolt. Luckily I had photographed it and the salesman knew where it had been stored away. Had it been sold- It would not have been the first time that I have missed out on a stellar piece of fabric because I was unable to make a decision when I saw it.

Anyway- here is my fabric:

Along with my fabric I bought a 1/2 a yard of the closest matching silk dupioni I could find.  This is to add to the top of the skirt so I don't have to pleat the quilting into the waistband. Despite having 34,623 colors to choose from- they did not have a matching so I went with one slightly lighter.

When I got home I found that the slightly lighter dupioni really bothered me so I decided to take the risk and try to dye it ....in Luca's fancy coffee.  (it was all we had!)  I used the anything but scientific method of boiling 6 espresso's mixed with a wine glass full of water. I tested a swatch and it seemed to work. In goes the actual yardage- fingers crossed.  BAM! The fabric came out great  albeit as silk does it lost its crunchy hand when wet. I am ecstatic over the results and more than a little proud of myself (even if the results should really be attributed to luck over any skill on my part.)

I didnt have a big enough pot or enough coffee

fabric on top is original. In the middle is after dying and on the bottom is the embroidered quilting.

Construction: 

Unlike some store bought quilted fabrics which have fashion fabric on both sides-  this one is dupioni on front, polyester batting and a fusible web/stiffener on back.  It makes sense that they created the fabric this way because it would be a waste to use silk on the back of what likely to be a home decorating fabric. The unfinished back meant a lot more work for me though.

Not only do I hate seeing things unfinished but I also was afraid this would be scratchy/uncomfortable on my legs so I decided to back the quilting.    When I initially sewed the quilting, skirt yoke and cotton muslin backing together I found that the stiffness of the quilting and embroidery left odd bumps at the top of the skirt.  I unstitched the yoke and by hand removed all of the embroidery in the seam allowance. I then pulled as much batting as possible from the top of the quilting to make it as thin as possible.  It took much longer and was much messier than I expected- but it worked.  

The quilted petticoat ties on in the standard way of 18th century petticoats.  All of my petticoats are being made with temporary ties which I will replace later.  

I hemmed the petticoat pretty short because I need to be able to wear it under both evening and walking skirts.  It is hemmed by hand with the fabric backing slip stitched to the hem for a clean interior.

Pocket hoops

I have finally completed my Panniers- twice. 

SET 1 (½) :

After reading so many blog posts about proportions and petticoats- I decided to undo the progress I had made on the initial set to make the pannier 3 inches larger.

The problem is that making the hoops larger made them very flimsy.  These were probably at the size that they needed to be a pannier instead of pocket hoops.  Making it even more difficult is that I was trying to achieve the pocket hoop look while only using the skeleton (bones) and no fabric.  This was strictly an aesthetic decision as I am likely to take a few photos in my unmentionables and find that pocket hoops are ugly.

I was finally able to make this shape work by adding a reverse hoop that help the largest and middle hoops out.  Supporting braces- much like a bridge- held the end of the hoop to the waistband while still leaving space to utilize the (yet to be made) pocket underneath.

These hoops worked.  That in and of itself is a feat!  However-  when I draped fabric over them (I hadn’t made a petticoat yet) I found that I just did not LIKE them.  I know that at carnavale bigger is better- I just could not get used to the proportions.  They seemed  comical, contrived and costume-y.  Three things I do not want.

This set back completely halted my progress and for about a week I hemmed and hawed over IF I should make a new set (So much work went into this pair!)  I could not make a petticoat until my hoops were confirmed and this (and my inability to make a decision) greatly stalled my progress. 

Set 2.

Of course I decided to remake the hoops- slightly smaller this time. I took each hoop down by 3” and am much much happier with the result.   The slightly smaller hoops mean that I no longer need the reverse hoop (which worked but I did not like).

As I have dropped the top Hoop off from the waist- I still need the supporting pieces however these actually add to the architectural feel of the piece.

I also have tested to see if the waistband will fit under my stays like I want - and it does! 

Finally I have no excuse to not move on to my petticoat (except my own procrastination)

The focus that i spoke so excitedly about in my last post has sadly eluded me for a little bit.  A large part of this is because during this time- I moved!   Not far- just to another apartment- but as anyone who has tried to move in the city knows- it is exhausting.  Our new place is much nicer, larger (relative for nyc) and closer to the garment district however we have zero pieces of furniture. Not even a chair to sit on.

As a result- I have to sew while sitting on the floor with my machine infront of me. Awkward to say the least

It reminds me of freshman year of college when I made an Elizabethan gown on the floor of my dorm.  Only unlike college - this kills my back now and makes it very hard to work for more than a few hours in a row. Old age! 

I am definitely looking for a table right away

Marathon

Some people run marathons- I, however,  lacking both any athletic inclination nor the mental fortitude for long term strenuous exercise- instead have sewing marathons.

This happened a few weekends ago (sadly since I have been too busy with non sewing stuff (moving! work! visitors! to blog).  

In total that weekend (from Friday after work to sunday evening) I sewed a total of 38.5 hours and virtually (minus the fitting and stomacher which still needs to be done) completed the main body of my pet en l'air.  

It is very rare for me to have such focus- so I have learned that when I do- I must capitalize on it.  One of the downsides of such focus is that it is difficult for me to stop to document the process so instead you will have to settle for a few haphazard and awkwardly timed photos that truly dont show the scope of how this garment is put together.  Still -I hope you enjoy. 

On friday night I sewed the lining out of the leftover unbleached canvas that I used on my corset and hand made the eyelets that close the garment (till almost 4am)

Cutting out the fashion fabric (100% silk taffeta) took me a great deal of time- mostly because i wanted to make sure the left and right halves of the garment matched up as closely as possible.  Much to my surprise- the repeat of the stripes in the silk was not consistant from selvedge to selvedge necessitating me placing my pattern pieces very stratigically to make them identical. Thankfully this is one instance where I had plenty of fabric did not have to struggle with running out.


I decided to half flatline/half bag line the silk outer fabric.  The pattern does not call for lining as it is historically based. I, however, hate seeing raw edges and I like the shape that the cotton lining gives the silk. I lined the garment with the many many yards of unbleached muslin I bought for mock ups. One of the benefits it (since I read ahead on the pattern) I was able to "hem" the garment in advance. The garment is short so my height has no effect on finished length.

 
  The pattern mentions not to be scared of the pleating in the back of the garment and in truth it was pretty easy- with the exception that it took a little bit of mental gymnastics (more perhaps because I was tired) to determine which way exactly the pleat fold (over or under)  Luckily (for once) I made sure to include all of the pattern markings.  

The back of the pleats are to be hand sewn down. Much like the eyelets I rather enjoyed this process.  Lacking a thimble, however, my fingers took a beating from forcing the needle through so many layers of fabric.  As duct tape is the solution to most problems- i fashioned a make shift finger cover.  This greatly eased much of my pain.  The next day my finger had tons of holes in it from the BACK end of the needle.  ouch.

The directions call for the top of the back of the pleats to be cut as one piece but since my fabric is assymetrical- I split the pattern, added seam allowance and cut this so it lined up with as large a portion of my pleats as possible.  I have to admit- this is one of the parts I am proudest of on the garment even if likely no one will notice it. ( I will prob use the same technique on the stomacher)

lining up the pattern

after being very very careful sewn down

I don't have any images of me setting the sleeves in however making the mock up was incredible useful because I already understood how they would set in- and how to cut the fabric to maximize the stripes I wanted to see prior to working with my fashion fabric. 
 

lining before it is set into garment.

The front of the robe and the side pleats will be officially tacked down after I have another fitting.  Here is the garment without the final fitting, trims and stomacher

What I like:

• I got very lucky with the fabric I chose as when pleated it looks even more elegant than it did on the bolt- It also loses some of the Americana feel I was afraid would be too evident
• The inside of the garment is 'clean' finished
• I like the adjust ability in the back (the hidden ties)
• While I was initially thinking I would use a light cream colored silk for the outer petticoat- I am leaning more and more towards a washed out red.  I feel it will give the garment more visual interest. 

What I learned for next time:

• When I make this as a gown- I would like more fullness in the skirt. I also think cutting the skirt as a separate piece from the bodice would give you more freedom with fit.
• I know the slits for the pockets are historical but I am not sure how i feel about them.  They seem like gaping holes without all the undergarments. Hopefully as it all comes together- they will make more sense.  If not- i plan on stitching them shut
• It is impossible to be sure this fits as I sew it because I cannot try it on.  I find this very stressful as I get to the later aspects of tacking down robings.
• I need to buy a thimble     

 

 

Fitting

My frustration with the cursed panniers has caused me to abandon them (temporarily) and look at other aspects of my project.

I decided that I would create a Pet en l'air before I made my Robe a la Francaise.  A pet en l'air is a shortened version of the latter.  By making one- I could get a better feel for how the pattern goes together and work out any kinks before I have to cut the longer and more expensive version.  Additionally- for my gown- I want to deviate from the pattern.  Having not made this gown before- altering the pattern would be like changing a recipe you've never tasted.  It's too hard to know how much or exactly wear to change.  

I started with making a mock up of the lining only. 

 

Doesn't really fit my form because my form can't wear stays

I really like how the back of the gown uses hidden ties to make it adjustable- perfect since I’m making a gown for many months from now and weight can change! (hopefully for the better!)

I am so lucky that for my 'regular job' I work in the apparel industry with many talented designers.  One of whom offered to help me with fitting my mock up Pet en l'air before work one day.  Of course it is impossible for me to fit myself in my own garment and so her help was invaluable in my process.  (thank you!!)

The sleeves seem really really big so we have pinned them in some. I am worried that if the sleeves don’t fit- my costume might look more like a rental.

  Next:  on to making the garment!

Impulses

After work one day last week I decided to peruse the Garment District to see if any fabric caught my attention.  After an hour or so of fruitless searching- on a whim I asked about the price of this silk taffeta.

There is something  elegant about this

  After some haggling- I was able to buy everything left on the bolt (6 yards give or take) for what I felt was a reasonable price.  The entire way home- and I walked!-    I questioned my impulsive buy!  This fabric is not close to the colors or style I thought I would be buying.  Additionally 6 yards is far too much for a Pet en l'air but not enough for a gown. I also wish it was wider- It is about 49" wide  

Did  I make a huge mistake?  Final decisions cause me so much anxiety.  I need to work on that. 

Close up in better lighting makes all the difference.