Sneak preview of my underpinnings!

[janestarz]

The stays are as good as done! I finished handsewing last night during some episode of the X-files. NoKey, knowing me, toted the camera and asked "Will we be needing this?"
I tried to arrange it all on my mannequin Esmeralda, but she does not squish as nicely as I do. Alas! Woe be upon me! I would have to wear it myself.

So off went my comfy jeans and Ohio University t-shirt and on went the 1700s shift I once bought with Reconstructing Hisrtory. I had re-located it during the past week. Next up was the pinker-than-Barbie petticoats. And then came the stays.
Of course, in a fluttering frenzy I remembered to put something on my head. The coif I had made a couple of months ago was located quickly and dunked unceremoniously on top of my hair.

Okay, so here's the picture already!



My lovely assistant Lisa is making sure I have some accessoiry to distract me from striking a pose (and making rather more a fool of myself). She's not pink, but she is cute and fluffy and will more than do.

The stays were rather comfortable, despite the fact that my Boobage was trying to choke me. Or at least migrate to a cooler climate. I was sweating as soon as the stays were on my body, three layers of heavy linen are not the ice cube you'd like them to be.
Still, there was a huge gap at the bottom back, but this might be for the fact that we started closing the stays towards the top. I had the feeling the back should have been up higher (and if you look at the cardboard mockup, we had an even gap from top to bottom of about 7cm, so it is possible!).

Stays pattern: Reconstructing History RH711 - 1670s-1720s Stays
Coif pattern: Reconstructing History RH102 - 1600-1660 Caps
Petticoat pattern: Reconstructing History RH708 - 1690s-1710s Mantua
(Patterns can be ordered through me to save on shipping!)

Now these are just the underpinnings, and I still need to do the mantua! But this can be done in the spare time this week and the week before Puerto. As much as I enjoy a relaxing bout of handsewing, I refuse to be handsewing wool flannel mantua while I'm in the hot sun on Kos.

So....whaddayathink?

Comments

[anemoona.livejournal.com]

it's... very... pink.
Not a colour I'd expect from you, but I like it. I'm looking forward to the mantua.

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

I'm going to actually make two mantua's.
One outfit will be with dark pink (oud-roze) petticote and a reep burgundy mantua. It will also have the coif from the picture. This will be my Puerto costume.
The other outfit will be with the baby pink petticote and with deep navy mantua. It will also feature a hairnet, and a Tudor flat cap lined with baby pink and with pink ribbon and feather. This will be my Maerquin costume.

[nathreee.livejournal.com]

I already told you this, but I'm so impressed! A completely historically correct costume, with loads of work done by hand, I think it's amazing!

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

There's degrees of historical correctness, and I'm not willing to visit them all (cue me trying to downsize the amount of work that went into this)
- Everything historically correct, including the stitching, fabrics, embellishments, hairstyles, and accessoiries. Nothing is done by machine.
SCA Nazi's, in short. (Well, not all of them are all that bad...)
- Handsewing where it shows and the insides done by machine. On the outside it looks genuine, but it saves a lot of work. My medieval dresses are like this!
- Everything done by machine, except the spots where this is really impossible. This is the degree of this costume.
- Historically inspired. The patterns are mostly modern adaptations of historical silhouettes. Most larp-costumes are like this.

So, really, it could be a lot worse! *grin*

[nathreee.livejournal.com]

No, actually there's another degree below the last one you mentioned. It's the degree where the costume consists of a tacky tunic and a pair of linen trousers or a wide skirt, hopefully without print, bought in a (sometimes second hand) store. That's for people who can't sew, like me.

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

OK, yes, but that doesn't involve any sewing on my part!

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

Is it just me or do I look larger than life in that picture. The ironing board just seems so low and tiny.

[nathreee.livejournal.com]

It's just you, honey. You may be tall, but never large.

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

I feel like...

[webshark.livejournal.com]

Somehow my optical nerves stopped working below your waste

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

Girls have wastes, boys have junk?

[webshark.livejournal.com]

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

*gigglesnort*

[sjuuls.livejournal.com]

awwwww that's a sneakprevieuw indeed. Such a small picture! I know it does not do the cortume justice! Because you can not see the details. (or I should get some better glasses)

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

Je kunt erop klikken, dan zie je de (iets) grotere versie!

[lievonneke.livejournal.com]

Wow, errug mooi Jane! I think pink is not really your colour, but this is CUTE! Still want one of them corsets myself...

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

I might offer them for sale (as in: made to your size) in the future, but binding them is really hard! I did like making these stays a lot, so that's a good thing!

[anemoona.livejournal.com]

Een vraagje uit nieuwsgierigheid. Zijn stays ook een soort corset? Ik vind hem namelijk erg mooi, maar ik ben bang dat als ik er een zou maken voor mezelf dat mijn boezem nog platter wordt dan die al is. Of valt dat mee?

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

Ja, het is de voorloper van het corset. De Elizabethaanse versie was helemaal erg, geruchten gaan dat mannelijke acteurs (vrouwen waren verboden in toneelstukken te spelen - onnagata anyone?) een perfect decollecté kregen van de stays. Deze werden heel strak aangetrokken waarna ze hun borstspieren iets omhoog trokken, waardoor de 2 appeltjes die toen zo in de mode waren, bovenop lagen.
(Ik zie gelijk zo'n zwoele acteur voor zich die aan zijn vingers likt, langzaam die vingers in zijn stays wurmt, en dan heel wulps kijkend zijn "decollecté" in "orde" maakt. Bah!)

Deze en meer weetjes hoor je alleen bij de Malle vrouwen middagen van steelweaver & janestarz!

[anemoona.livejournal.com]

als het er dan maar geen is met borsthaar (argh... plaatjes!).

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

Daar droom ik nog nachtenlang van met dit zwoele, hitsige weer. (Nachtmerries dus!!)Maargoed, ik denk dat wel duidelijk is dat als mannen ook mooie appeltjes kunnen krijgen zo'n corset voor jou ook niet zal misstaan! :-)

[anemoona.livejournal.com]

Is dat patroon van RH makkelijk aan te passen voor mensen die 'afwijken' van de norm? Stomme vraag eigenlijk, ik denk dat jij hem ook langer hebt moeten maken. Ik denk dat ik er een verjaardagskadootjeswens erbij heb ^_^.

[janestarz.livejournal.com]

=D
Het is eenvoudig aan te passen. En je kunt rigilene of riet gebruiken om het corset mee te verstevigen.
Ik geloof dat ik toch weer RH711 patronen bij moet bestellen. Ik ga deze week nog een order plaatsen bij Reconstructing History!

[anemoona.livejournal.com]

O, maar ik ben nog laaang niet jarig. Maar mensen willen altijd dat je met een wensenlijstje op de proppen moet komen, dus ik bewaar het nog eventjes.