The boys at the "school" display

This year, both of my brothers had outgrown their reenacting outfits, so I had to make these.

When we began to plan them, I wanted to make Daniel a new shirt just like his old one, and a tunic for Joshua. Put simply, the reasoning is that Joshua is still in the “little boy” phase, and Daniel is a “bigger boy”, but not a quite a boy old enough to have grown up clothes.

But Daniel had other ideas.

The tunics in action

He was adamant that he match Joshua. It was not enough to have the same fabric for each of their shirts, he wanted the same style. I finally convinced him to let me change up the sleeves, so that we would be able to tell which tunic was who’s, but that was all!

Joshua was happy that I wasn't worried about him getting his outfit dirty

I found inspiration in this outfit (the one on the boy standing on the table). I scaled it down to a less fashionable silhouette – the image is from a fashion magazine, after all, and what little boy cares to be fashionable?

All the pattern pieces are rectangles, and the only shaping is the curve of the neckline.

As always, you can click on the pictures for larger views.

Which are your favorites and why?

Click on any picture to see the listing in my Zibbet shop!

Tan, Blue, and Pink Jumper or Sundress

Stars and Stripes jumper or sundress

Purple Butterfly Jumper or Sundress

Patriotic Hearts Jumper or Sundress

Watermelon Jumper or Sundress

The dress is so comfortable.  Elbow-length bell sleeves made of light fabric are a dream to wear and the silk-ribbon finish is nice and light to match.  Because the sleeves are relatively long, they offer sun protection (a must for a red-head in the south-west!), but the fullness allows air to circulate, so they’re nice and cool.  A full, long skirt makes the dress easy to move in–a girl never has to worry that her hem is riding up!

The feminine embroidery is inspired by the floral “vector” swirls that are so popular.  I designed and drew it on my own–no tracing!

L-R Me, in the featured outfit, Moriah wearing a circle skirt I made for the occassion, Bethany in a skirt that I wore when I was smaller than she is, and mom in one of my signature wrap skirts

I made this 50s inspired blouse from my basic sloper pattern, and the removable collar is from a real vintage sewing pattern from the 1950s. The skirt tiers were gathered using my Serger’s differential feed, and I serged the rolled hem as well.

Both pictures were taken at a friend’s Sock Hop themed birthday party. I decided to go with an Audrey Hepburn look for my hair and make-up, mostly because my hair is too long and heavy for the teeny-bopper ponytail. (And yes, I do wear make up on occasion – it’s part of the dress-up!)

This dress was designed for the cover of the Historical Novel, Walks Alone by Sandi Rog, which is coming out with White Fire Publishing January 2012. I used Truly Victorian patterns 400 for the bodice and 303 for the apron/overskirt. I draped the skirt directly on the dressform, creating my own design.

I highly recommend Truly Victorian patterns. The fitting method really works. I made a few adjustments, such as changing the neckline, and shortening the lower edge of the bodice, and I changed the dart placement and size slightly, but those changes are to be expected. I didn’t mark the pleats on the overskirt, opting to drape them myself since I didn’t have a full bustle support.

Undergarment support: chemise, petticoat, bustle pad, 1860 corset.

I didn’t spend a whole lot of time detailing the back since the front was what mattered for the book cover. Also, a traveling dress wouldn’t have extra detailing that would only be sat upon in a stage coach or train.

I love the seam detailing of the patterns of yesteryear! This photo shows the back of the bodice.

Once i sewed the peplum to the back of the bodice, the whole bustle look started to take shape.

This was my first experience piping an inside corner. Maybe it was fool hardy, but I didn’t even sew up a test! I think the neckline turned out quite nice anyway.

I lined the whole bodice with handkerchief weight linen, which worked wonderfully (you can see it inside the sleeve). The buttons are purely decorative; the functional closure is hooks and eyes.

While sewing and pressing the darts, I felt like I was molding the fabric like clay – wool is so nice to work with!

The pleated sleeve ruffles are piped, just like the ruffle on the skirt.

Am I obsessive when it comes to things like matching up seams? Maybe, but little details can make or break a project!

While pleating yards of fabric, I wondered whether the extra effort would be worth it. As soon as I stitched the ruffle onto the skirt, I knew it was!

It’s settled. Wool is my favorite fabric to sew with.

((Many thanks to my dad, Mark Newhouse http://gnuhaus.tumblr.com for taking the photos!))

*click to view larger*

I wanted an outfit that would express my femininity and artistic nature and be practical enough to wear while going after a perfect picture. Having a fair complexion, another necessity was sun protection for plein aire painting.

Simplicity 2453, views A and B
I subtracted and added seams, ending up with a yoke and two princess seams in the front, framing faux-pocket flaps. I fussy-cut the flaps so that there is a butterfly on each where a button would usually be placed. The back seams echo the pocket shape and all seams and hems are topstitched for extra stability and interest. The collar is narrower, so as not to overwhelm the other details, and I added some length overall.

Simplicity 2288, views E and D
Using the basic skirt pattern, I created yoke seams along the front and back, taking up the dart excess. I also added pockets (see lower left photo). All seams and hems are topstitched.
Using another pattern as a reference, I widened the pant legs and elasticized the back waist, so these pants are very comfortable and easy to move in.

I based the jacket mainly off of this one, notice the sleeve shape and embroidery in particular

The bodice on the woman farthest to the left was the inspiration for my bodice

Materials:

Jacket~blue wool fabric, white silk floss, white silk lining, metal hook and eye.

Bodice~cotton batiste, silk ribbon, metal hooks.

Skirt~dark blue wool fabric, metal hooks and eyes.

Construction: The white “waist” (we would call it a blouse nowadays) is shirred and decorated with light purple silk ribbon. It has dropped shoulders which is typical of the period and closes in the back with hooks and thread bars. The sleeves are full Bishop, gathered into a narrow cuff at the wrist. All decoration and most of the construction was done by hand.

The jacket is decorated with chain-stitched embroidery. It has two-part shaped coat sleeves. The neckline, front and back edges, and sleeves are finished with tiny homemade piping. Rather than being bag-lined, as we would do today, I opted for a more time consuming, but more historically accurate technique. The lining is fully constructed apart from the jacket, then felled (or slipstitched) to the piping.

I created the design for the embroidery based on fashion plates and original garments, including a little boy’s jacket.

The skirt is box-pleated to the waistband and opens off-center in the back with hooks and thread loops. There is a pocket in one of the seams (a detail I found I simply could not live without in my reenacting outfits!). Three tucks and a wide ruffle grace the hemline.

PS~I received an honorable mention in the state level Make It With Wool competition

This is the Nissa dress. Every cent earned from the sale of dresses made in this style will go to help Nissa and the other children who live with her. My goal is not only to offer this dress in doll sizes, but in girls’ sizes as well. Each dress will be made in the same general style (halter top, long, full skirt, elastic waist) but will be one-of-a-kind in fabric and embellishments.

Reach Out is making Nissa dresses to send to Africa in August so that Nissa and the other girls who live with her can dress like princesses too.

This first dress is for sale over on my main site:

This Nissa dress features ruffly bias ruching around the neckline, ribbon flowers that match the halter tie and a double ruffle at the hem. It also includes a headscarf with a matching flower. The headscarf has narrow elastic underneath to keep it on the head.