My Sewing To-Do List

I skimped the traditional posting of a full “To Do List” at the beginning of the year by posting the swatch book version. Now, I’m finding I am inundated with fabric and mental lists of what needs to be made or remade. So… here it goes….

• Pink Lawn dress (me)
• Plaid cotton dress (me)
• Alter or make sheer dress (me)
• Wash dress (Lily)
• Corset (Lily)
• Second Chemise & drawer set (Lily)
• Cage (Lily)
• find shoes/boots (Lily)
• New wrapper (me)
• Possibly a wrapper (Lily)
• Wool apron (Lily for cooking)
• Bonnet (Lily)
• Undersleeves x 2 or 3 (me)
• Dancing dress? (both Lily and I)
• Civilian pants (Dan)
• Shirts (Dan)
• Replace drawers (Dan)
• Vest alteration (Dan)
• Civilian Vest (Dan)
• Covers for cots x 2 I think
• Black and red stripey quilt
• Multi-color stripey quilt
• Carpet bag for Lily
• Find parasols in storage – See about repairing and covering the one still waiting
• Green coat for next fall
• Green wool dress for next fall?
• Multiple modern garments

Mind you, this does not include anything I plan to make for Etsy.

Time for a Vote on Embroidery

I have yet to pick an embroidery for my shawl. I need some opinions. Right now it is too tempting to leave it simply fringed because it is so pretty as is. The base is the creamy off white with narrow fringe (right now).

I am thinking about this border – simple and doable.

Here are the corner designs I am pondering. Please vote for your favorite in the comments section. Info on why will be helpful.

1

2

3

4

5

6 

 7

 

 

 

12 Homemade Gifts of Christmas – Day 1

For the First homemade gift of Christmas we have a heart shaped pincushion which will also make an adorable ornament.

From Eliza Leslie’s American Girl’s Book, this heart pincushion is made from two pieces of triangular fabric, ribbon and batting for the inside.

• Use 12 day Christmas Heart Ornamentwith the longest side twice the length of the two legs.
• Sew right sides together along all three sides leaving enough space to turn the triangle right side out.
• Stuff with batting or emery and sew closed
• Gather along the longest side
• Pull tight forming a heart, securing the points together
• Add a ribbon to hang the heart from or a bow and hanging loop

Little Sister Needs New Clothes

Since it has been 2 years since my little sister has been able to attend a history event with me, she is in need of new clothes. She will be 13 this next month. So, she’s in those between years. That can mean lots of options and lots of confusion.

Luckily, Catherine was kind enough to send back the clothes that don’t fit her anymore. Let me tell you my surprise when my little sister, tall & thin little sister, fit into the dress I wore in my late teens and early 20s. She could have a little more flesh on her torso and shoulders, but over-all it fits rather than falls off of her. So, the skirt will get some age appropriate tucks. The bodice will get some pinches in the seams. I think this skirt might get a sheer white bodice since she liked the one Marta sent from Kay’s site. I’m picturing something like this body/bodice or this bodice/body just with short sleeves. I like the sleeve treatment of the first. This does mean I need to either do an under-body or a half-high lining or a corset cover for her. Something like this but with a straight waist sorta would work, but is a bit off of what I have in mind as I’m pretty sure this is for evening wear. (While we are talking white sheers, this is one I would really like for myself.) The skirt/body combo will need a belt in black or red. I have a nice MOP buckle which will work. Or we can do a back closure. This dress and skirt/body combo will work nicely for ‘better’ wear.

She has two cotton shirtings coming thanks to mom’s ordering. (I know the first one is the right one; I’m not sure I have the right photo of the second one.)

There is enough of each for a dress thanks to the wider width. The first will be a dress. The second is intended to be a skirt  combined with a shirt. I’ll decide if that is happening when I see the quality of the cotton. (I’d rather see a sheer body with a silk or high-end cotton.) I haven’t decided on styles yet of either. I should really get on that. For the green, likely it will be a basic dress with tucks in the skirts up to lower calf or upper ankles. The sleeves will be comfortably short. The bodice might get to be a yoked bodice with a jewel neckline. That could be really cute while appeasing my desire to make a yoked bodice. (okay, I confess, I really wanted this fabric.)

 She also needs all new underpinnings with the exception of drawers which should fit. That hopefully will be easy. Now the cage… I have my fingers crossed on.

Oh, just remembered. I need to fix my other boots for her to wear. Hope it doesn’t rain that weekend since I’ll only have my wool boots.  

 

 

 

 

Things I would like to make

There just isn’t enough time or organization to do every sewing project on our lists. Here is some of my sewing wish list.

This Bonnet Bag has been on the list for a while. I like my pasteboard box bags very much. I have a plan for this type of bag, I just have to get around to it.

I am rather intrigued by this style of flat, round bottom bags. It may be that bit of structure. The version I like even more has the flat bottom and structured sides. They look like they are built around pasteboard.

I don’t know if I will ever be up to this level of needlework. Okay, I highly doubt it. But, this little slipper shaped bag is just to cute not to make at some point.

There is something about these multi-sided shaped bags. There several different shapes found in Godey’s and Peterson’s for both lady’s bags and men’s tabacco bags. Some have these central embroidered designs on each side, some have full/all-over needlework while others have braidwork. I don’t know which I will do. The idea of the personalized embroidery is very apealling. But, so is doing some braid work.

I’m determined to remake a broken fan I have (somewhere) into a Jenny Lind fan like one like this or this. While I’m at it, it would be nice to replace my feather fan that died. Granted, this one is a bit Wow. I wasn’t aware making a fan from painted pasteboard was an option. Then I saw this one. Tempting. 

A pasteboard box or bandbox from scratch

A ribbon cockade – There are some amazing, I should say AMAZING, reproductions out there. I just want to take a try at one or two.

I’m bound to find a way to make my own thread winders out of recyled MOP, bone or such. I just have to find the right material and the dremel tool (hopefully it still works after getting wet during the move.)

I will learn to make my own gloves for my challenging to fit hands.

After finding it uncomfortable to sit the whole day in a mid-century chair sewing, I will make a period cushion for sitting.

This apron.

Christmas fabric

Dan gave me a length of the fabric I saw a while back. Now the fabric and I are in discussion over what it wants to be. Current options are…..

• A mid-century to 60s wash dress for if/when I’ll get around to doing work in a dress again. I’m not sure how likely this is. Though it may be smart to have a wash dress since I currently don’t have one anymore.
• The yoke style dress I thought I should have when I realized I don’t have one. Again 50s or 60s
• A dress more from the 1830s to experiment with the style. I’m not sure I would have enough occasions to wear this decade though.
• An 18-teens dress since there is likely more times to wear it and I’ve been really wanting to make Regency era dresses. I’m not sure this fabric wants to be that era though.

 Here are some new photos… The ground is a rich brown with the deep, almost turkey red flowers and creamy leaves/stems with a hint of gold. From a distance it reads brown with a hint of red. I think the distance photo below really is more washed out then it really looks. I took these with the phone rather than the camera.

In thinking about the yoke dress idea, I would need some shaping to it. Kinda like this one below. (Though, that collar thing will not be making it.)  I’m concerned I will not look so great in this type dress between my larger bust, fluffiness and short shoulders. Not sure. (opted to play with photo so she isn’t so skinny.)

 

ADDING…..

Gail suggested this type of early 1850s dress. (this is a facebook link) In actuality, my instinct was to lean towards something later 40s or 50s. But, I have a few dresses for those years, so didn’t include it. I’m just drawn to the styles from then so much more then the early 60s. The V shaped sheering could look nice with this fabric.

Quilted Pettis

One of my favorite garments became one of my favorite garments a few winters back. Oddly enough, this 19th century garment became a favorite in a 21st century way. I already had a couple red wool pettis, which I loved. It was time to make a quilted petti. So, I did using wool batting and a favorite fabric selvaged from a less than fabulous dress,  that reminded me of Grandpa because it had wheat in the stripes. Being a teacher in NY, I often was up and on my way to work well before the snow plows were to far into their routes and in less than wonderful temperatures. Now, add to that my creaky, achy knees and you can imagine the drive in was not so great. One particularly cold morning, when several other school districts were closed due to the cold, I opted for my 19th century coat, hood and new quilted petticoat. It was wonderful. I was toasty warm despite the frigid temperatures. That quilted petti was worn many times over after that.

Fast forward to New Mexico. I didn’t think I would end up missing a warm quilted petticoat of all things. But, there is something about the snuggly softness as well as the warmth it could provide on evening drives after the temperature drops and my husband doesn’t like a warm car. Since I have this black print fabric with a green tone that just kept saying it wanted to be a quilted petti, it is time to make one. Here is the fabric.

The inside is a nice white muslin which is a tad thicker and softer then most muslins we see. The petti is two 44″ panels, 36″ long with 30″ of quilting. So far the quilting design is 4″ scalloping along the bottom with a 1″ quilt from the bottom edge for now. This might change as I go because I think the very bottom below the scalloping wants something. The top is a chain of 2.5″ wide () shapes, which I can’t think of the name of right now. The field in-between will be vertical stripes of a yet to be determined distance. I may do double sets with two very close together. I’m a little tempted to add some batting in small circles, called Trapunto, under the scallops. But, I don’t think that is common for this era.

Now, of course I can’t post about quilted pettis without some background or originals. I thought I remembered a passage from The Workwoman’s Guide, but I can’t seem to find it, just the flannel pettis. So, here are originals instead:

This is a green silk one from the 40s.

1850s wool petti with a 167″ hem listed

Green wool petti which I don’t think is reversible as they say. It has a 74″ hem.

Quilted cotton petti with narrow strip quilting on the bottom and diamonds on top. 107″ hem

This petti is post war, but a must see for the fabric and shaping. This one is also post war, 1865, but shows nice wide wadding sections.

A child quilted petti.

Here is the outside and inside of one on the Graceful Lady Site -

Another one from Anna Allen’s Graceful Lady site -

A close-up for Corsets and Crinolines

The Musee McCord Museum has this photo which shows what looks like a quilted petti underneith.

This is a blog post from the FIDM Museum with a great, colorful petti