Finishing touches!

Right. Last few bits before hand in!..

I stitched down the CF so that all raw edges were hidden. I have  also hemmed the bottom of the jacket and  hemmed the skirt to the best of my ability (due to the shortage of calico at the back-!) I have also simply turned over the bottom of the cuffs so that they have a neat edge too and I have also slip stitched the belt to the jacket.

I have also stitched up the back of the skirt to the best that I can (due to their not being a fastening I have had to leave to top open to allow my model to get it on and off.

All that is left to do now is to take some photos of Immie wearing the toille tomorrow!!

Constructing the skirt!

I had great trouble with the skirt initially as I was limited with the amount of calico I have left. I have more than enough to fit around the waist, the trouble was with having enough to create enough width at the bottom of the skirt.

The picture that I am follwing shows a simplistic A-line looking skirt that has a bit of full-ness around the bottom. It also appears to go out slightly at the back, created by a bustle. Unfortunately, the peticoat I have chosen to work on does have a slight bustle but does not have the fullness that I require. I am going to just have to make the most of what I have and be creative. Like I have said before, use a little 'artistic liscense!!'.

I began by trying to pleat the fabric around the waist but this made the skirt far too bulky at the top. I then laid the fabric out and folded it in half. I then measured from the top corner half of the waist measurement (as the fabric is folded in half) and then drew a diagonal line from this point all the way down to the oppsite corner creating a large traingle shape. You can see that I have had to add some fabric in here as I did not have enough for the width and it still is a little short.

I then draped this onto the stand and it seemed to work well however was still not quite right. I then worked from this line and created one similar that had greater width at the bottom and this seemed to work better. I now need to sew this up and hem the skirt and it will be done.

I have left half of this seam open as otherwise it cannot be taken on and off. If this was a real garment it would have a seam similar so that a fastening could be used. However I am only creating this piece like a pattern piece so this is un-necessary. Likewise, I have not created a waistband as again, this would be un-necessary.

Constructing the collar..

Today I began working on the main part of the collar. This began with, as you can see, a piece of calico that I simply draped on the mannequin. I made sure this sat flat against the back of the mannequin and also on the front. To create these big pleats over the shoulder, I gathered the fabric until it sat in the correct place. I then pinned it in place and marked on the design lines on the front. This piece stretched over half of the toille as I seem to be running out of calico and have to be fairly creative when cutting!

Front.

Close up.

Side.  

Pictures of the main collar constructed in a double layer of calico with no decoration.

I then worked on the decoration. For this I simply marked out lines that were 1cm away from each other and stitiched them with black thread. This is just to signify the fabric decoration tht is in the picture as I am not able to do much more decoration due to lack of time!!

I then went on to create the smaller part of the collar. I created this much the same as before by laying calico onto the mannequin and cutting a piece to the correct shape. I then cut these out and stitched them to another piece of calico so that they were substancial enough to sit on their own.

I then hand stitched the collar onto the toille to secure it before machine stitching it.

The collar!

I will not secure down the CF by turning it over slightly and stitching it on the machine. This means that all edges will be secure and look neat for hand in on wednesday.



Sleeeeves!

I began by looking at some of my research on how to create the correct sleeve shape and came accross this pattern from the Janet Arnold books:

From this I cut s shape similar free hand on a scrap of calico to see if it would have the correct effect. With a bit of gathering around the sleeve head and then tapering the side seam so that it is narrower at the bottom, this shape was created:

I am happy with this shape, however I will add an extra layer of calico underneathe to pad out the sleeve head to make the shape more exaggerated.

From here I used the sleeve pattern from my first toille as a basic shape for the sleeve head. I then made sure that the sleeve length was correct by checking my measurement sheet. I then cut this out of calco with an extra top half of the sleeve to pad out the sleeve head. I then gathered the head, stiched the side seam and put in on the mannequin:

So far so good!!

I then took this sleeve apart to document the pattern onto some paper then used this as a pattern piece for the other sleeve. I then put them both together and pinned them onto the mannequin.

I will go back to these if I feel that the shape is incorrect but for now they seem to be fine!

The other side!

I constructed the other side of the toille by copying the exact same design lines of the other side. I then secured the two halves together down the centre back. My Tiolle so far..

Front.

Further development of the fourth toille

Right so today started off with a quick trip to haberdashery to get some more calico..

I then came back to carry on with the draping of the jacket. Like I said in my previous post, I realised that the jacket needs to have movement and therefor made allowances to this when sewing the seams together by making the pieces wider at the bottom.

Even though the seam lines may not be completely corret, I have made sure the silhouette is correct and is similar to that of the picture. I have given the toille four pieces to the jacket that are extended to make the skirt part of the jacket. Because the petitcoat is now slightly bigger from the gathered pieces I added to it, the jacket sits nicely over these now.

Front.

Back.

I am hoping to continue with this tomorrow and have the other half of the toile cut out and sewn.

From yesterday I have realised that the method I was going to uses doesn't really work in this case. I then had a think about the other ways in which I could still have the close fitting top but have the fullness of the skirt. Whilst I was eating my dinner last night a girl came on the telly wearing a jacket that had a similar sillhoutte. I realised that byu creating pieces that are wider at the bottom, this gives the fullness yet keeps the top half fitted. From this I had a go at drping this idea on the stand and this was the outcome.. 



Front.

Back.

I kept the same design lines as the first toille as I feel these work well and are suitable for the piece. I am happy with the overall look and if this was made in the correct top fabric, this would sit beautifully.

Fourth and final toille!!

Right so today I began my fourth and final toille!! Very exciting I know but also pretty scary as time seems to be flying by!! I began by setting up the mannequin with the corset and set to the correct measurements as I am hoping that this will fit my housmeate so I will be able to take photos of her wearing it for future reference. I draped on a stand until I was happy with seams and also the shape of the jacket. Initially I was thinking of making a pattern and then adapting but as the project is called '19th century cutting on a stand' I thought I'd do the latter!

I created a shape that was sleak and close fitting to the body. This looked good but when I then reffered back to the drawing of my design I realised that the skirt part of the jacket had movement and body to it. After a bit of faffing, I realsied this needs to be tweaked!

First attempt: Draped fabric, close fitting to mannequin.

Front

Side

Side-back.

Back.

As you can see it works well however it is tight to the body.

I then realised that underneath the calico needs to be a greater shape so that wen the fabric is draped ontop, the correct sillhoutte will be formed. As I have the bustle peticoat on the mannewuin, I realised that I need to pad the peticoat out. I stupidly un did all the gathered pieces of calico I created for my second toille, so I have spent the afternoon creating these and re-padding the mannequin..

One step forward, two steps back!!

I then realised that by having the jacket pieces in strips and attached by seams, this doesn't allow for any movement either as it is too rigid. In my last project I created a jacket type piece over a set of pocet hoops. Too allow for the extra fabric to sit over these I bought a piece from the back pannel that would be pleated along the waist line. This meant there was extra fabric and allowed for pleating over the pocket hoops. It also allowed the fabric to pleat and sit correctly. I am hoping this will happen with this toille!

Tomorrow I am planning on carrying on and really getting on. I need to nip to haberdashery to colect more calico..

Third Toille continued..

I have a slight confession.. I have not concentrated on my SDP project in the last week. This was due to another project running along side our SDP which consisted of an essay. Now it is all handed in and done I am ready to SERIOUSLY crack on and finish these toilles ready for next monday..eeek!

Since the last post I have been working on the embellishment that sits on top of the pleating on the back part of the skirt. Like I have said before I have realised that this calico isn't completely appropriate but I am going to try and make it suitable to the best of my ability.

I began by pining the fabric where I think it should be (this is where I left it last time) and I made sure there was enough calico to make it look correct against the picture. I the made sure where I had pinned the fabric it was lying flat against the skirt. I then drew on the tab type shapes to resemble that of the picture. I then took the whole piece of calico off of the mannewuin and traced these shapes onto the other side makeing sure the tabs were the same level and same size on each side.

This is what I want it to resemble when complete. In this picture I have just pinned the tabs in place, working out where they should be and size etc.

When I was happy with the shape of the tabs, I then cut an identical shaped piece of calico so that I could back the original piece onto it. This means that the tabs would have a neat edge. The piece of calico looked like this..

From here you can see that the tabs aren't complete symetircal. If I was to re-create this piece I would make sure that this had been done. I feel that then the outcome would appear more 'crisp'. By backing this piece of calico onto another the top looks really neat. I was a complete wally though and cut through the first tab on the left hand side. I was bagging out the pieces and cut along the wrong seam. Ideally I would like to re-cut these pieces and re-attach them however I am beginning to run out of time and I feel that I need to make this sacrifice.

From here I then pinned this onto the skirt making sure the tabs sat in the same position both sides and making sure the fabric hung correctly.

From here I the slip stithced the tabs in place and also slip stiched the top of the tabs onto the skirt. This is different to the picture but due to the fact that the fabric isnt completley correct, this needs to be done to ensure the tabs sit correctly.

I did not include any fastenings to this piece however this picture highlights where I have included a small dart to insure there is enough room for the skirt to be slipped on and off. This is where I would include a zip and/or buttons if it were a real piece. This dart also ensures the fabric sits corectly on the hip and around the front and back of the mannequin.

Adding to the third toille.

So that the pleating would hold itself and not be taught around the body I backed the pleats onto another piece of calico. I then stitched the pleats to this. I then pinned the sides of the skirt that were coming round from the front to the pleats to see what it all looked like and so far, so good!

 The only problem that I am facing is where to put the fastenings. As I have stated before the skirt would not of been like I am doing it so I have to make a decision as to where to put an opening. I am thinking of hiding the fastenings in one side seam so that it is un-noticeable. I will deicded this at the end!

I pinned the pleats to the back of the skirt where I think they should be in relation to the picture. I then began to play around with the decoration on top of the pleating. This was slightly more difficult than I first thought as the calico I have is farily stiff and does not drape quite like that in the picture. It still looks similar however.

I pinned this in where I think the fastenings would be to see how it looks.

I think from the side it works well. I might make the fabric a little less bulky though so it does not over power the pleating.

This shows the extent of the bulkiness of the fabric from behind.

Third piece..

I began by pinning a large piece of calico to the front of the mannequin to create the front of the skirt. I then pinned it to the back of the peticoat where I think the seams should be.

Whilst looking at the picture I have realised that this does not seem to be a skirt that I was imaginaing. It looks as though it comes from a jacket or is a dress as there is no seam. As I have stated that I want to construct the whole thing I do not really want to have to do the top half as well. As I speak, time is running away with me and I want to focus on the bottom half.

I am going to improvise and use my artistci licence to create a piece that is similar and hopefully looks like that in the picture!

Once the front of the skirt was pinned on I started to construct the pleats that are seen underneathe. I began by playing around with calico, ironing in the pleats and then holding them up against the mannequin. Due to the shape of this pannle that is pleated I have had to pleate the rectangle of calico at an angle so there is enough fabric to fit between each side of the calico that comes from the front. So that the pleats would stay, I also ironed heavily then stitched the pleats in place to give the crisp, sharp edge that the picture highlights.

The front pinned on.

These pleats did not allow or the wide bottom part of the skirt. I had to cut a bigger piece of calico and re-pleat it so that it would fit.

Voila! The ironed and stitched pleats in the back of the skirt.

So far so good! I feel like I am on track and getting this one done at a god speed. Maybe it is because I am now working under pressure as I still have a lot to achieve in time for hand in! I feel I am a little out of my deoth with this piece as there is so much to it but as I have said before I am learning new skills by constructing different pieces and this is really important for next year and my future career and also knwledge.

Third toille!

I began by going into the costume store to see what pieces were available. I have kept the same corset throughout but for my skirt all I need is a peticoat with a bustle. I found the exact thing so I am ready to start!!

Constructing the skirt..

I began by heavily gathering a long piece of calico so that it would hold the large shape of the peticoats. I made sure this piece was floor length and the correct length to fit around half of the mannequin.

I then did the same for the shorter piece and laid this ontop. When it came to do this I realised that this would not work as it did not sit flat.

As you can see where the fabrics is not gathered to the bottom piece it doesn't sit in the same way. I then took out the gathering on both pieces and ironed them flat. I them re-gathered the pieces but this time together. This meant that the skirt actually held the gathers better as there was more fabric. It also meant that I did not need as much fabric as I could not gather it as close as the original piece had been.

I then cut a rough design line for the bottom of the top skirt to mimic that of the design. I was hoping to do a fabric sample of this but at the moment it seems that time is not on my side!! I am hoping to do a small one but at the moment I am concentrating to creating a sillhouette that is correct.

I turned the hem of the under skirt up and stitched it, this created a nice neat finish to the bottom of the dress.

The back of the bodice..

These are some pictures of the back and side of the bodice.

I decided to incorporate the side seam into one of the pannels. This was before I realsied about the strap having to reach over the shoulder to the back as you can see!

I am going to make sure the back and front curves are the same.

The back of the bodice. I ironed this as I pinned the pieces and it has made such a difference. The piece seems to sit better and seems to create a stronger shape.

This shows the strap from the front of the bodice going over the shoulder onto the back. As you can see it isn't quite long enough but if the sleeve and strap were to be in the correct position of being off the shoulder it is just long enough. Note: makesure the fabric is about an inch longer than need be just incase of any extra movement needed!

At this point I also began to start playing around with the sleeve. This was farily tricky as the position of this is such an odd one to try and do on a mannequin. At this point also I was running out of time on this piece and I have still got the skirt to construct. I feel that even though this sleeve is not technically correct, it shows the correct shape for the piece. I also feel that because i constructed a proper sleeve for the last pice, that this one is not so important as I was more interested in the bodice and skirt.

Working out the back of the dress..

As I only have a front view of the dress I am using the Costume in Detail book as a reference as to what the back of the dress would've looked like. However the dress that these pictures show is slightly different to the one I am constructing as it not made from pannels and therefor shows different seams. From these pictures it looks as though the side seam is taken onto the back of the dress to create a strong curve. I  recreated this on my dress to see if it would work..

The side seam taken onto the back of the bodice..

Keeping the back of the bodice smooth with a curved seam from the front of the bodice.

Even though it was achievable I don't belive that it is in keeping with the rest of the design. I have decided to make this decision and to construct a back that is similar to the front of the dress. I have looked through my research and discovered that this is suitable to this period and style of dress.  

I have found it quite intesting to make my own decisions in this project it has made me trust my own judgement a little more. I feel that my confidence will grow if I carry on to do this.

I have also learnt that there is an area of artistic licence around this area and that it is all about experimenting with different shapes. I feel that if I do not complete these pieces completely it will not be a huge loss as I have gained many new techniques and also learnt how to work around a mannequin creating new and interesting shapes.

Starting my second piece..

Once I had my under garments all sorted I began by working on the top half. I decided to mark all of the pannels by eye and just pin in place until I was happy with the outome. At first I constructed the pannels so that they finished at the top of the corset but I then realised, by studying the picture, that one of the pannels stretched over the shoulder to help create the sleeve. I then started to consturct this pannel again making sure it was long enough to go over the shoulder.

This picture shows how I have constructed the pannels and that the one that needs to stretch over the shoulder isn't long enough.

This shows the changes I made to this pannel so that it is long enough to fit over the shoulder.

I then made sure that the front of the dress had the correct design line and that the curve was deep enough to properly highlight the fullness of the skirt.

Creating the correct shape to work on top of..

I went to the costume store and found a crinoline that was correct  and I also found a couple of peticoats that are perfect too-horraaaay!! However.. when I then put them on the mannequin I relaised the the shape was not correct, there was not enough volume to the skirt and there were no other suitable peticoats.. After talking to Dexter I decided to pad out one side of the peticoat by pleating lots of calico and arranging these pleated pieces around the peticoat so that it gives extra volume. This seemed to take a long time and I had not allowed for this. It had to be done but was farily irratating.

Even though I found this frustrating and it initially felt like a waste of time, I think it was iportant as if I go into this industry not everything will go my way and I need to learn to adapt things so that they are appropriate. It was also interesting to see how the shape of the peticoat could be changed by adding such simple pleated pieces. After all this project is about learning new techniques and preparing myself for third year and I feel like I am gaining skills and learning to work independently especially as the majority of this piece (if not all) will be done at home.

4th of April 2011.

I was meant to crack on with work over the weekend but seeing as it was mothers day on sunday I didnt think this really appropriate..!

Today I have done the last few finishing touches to the dress and have got it looking just right. On friday Dexter advised me to sample part of the embroidery on the skirt, at first I really didn't think this would work as the fabric is so fine and can be quite tempremental in the machine but one I had got it into an embroidery hoop it was absoloutely fine. I have recently got a new machine so it took me a while to figure out how to create a neat stitch with the free hand machine embroidery on it.

I first tried two layers of muslin in an embroidery hoop. This worked well-I think I have sussed my machine!

This is a sample of free hand machine embroidery on one layer of muslin. I used an embroidery hoop to keept the fabric taught. This picture isnt very clear but the smaple shows the struggle I had with the tension of the machine!

I then moved onto the hem of my dress, as the fabric is so light I tried to keep the hem to a minimum and as neat as possible as it will be seen. I think this has been very sucessful and gives the bottom of the dress a really lovely shape.

I then finished with the braiding around the neckline and over the shoulder to the back of the dress. I only did a sample of the front piece as this would  be the same on all pieces. I covered a strip of calico with muslin and then embroiderd over the top. I then covered the back and stitched around the outside. This gives an indication of where the edging braid would have been and the size although on relfection, I think it would've been bigger than what I have done.