At Her Leisure

I did a lot of needlework this year, but I didn’t make a lot of things. I liked the things I did make, but they were generally lengthier projects.

It was a much better year for events. There were several DFWCG events, and I went to Costume College. A friend and I even made our own mini-event where three of us dressed up, ate out, and went to a play.

( This year’s projects behind the cut )

One of my goals for this year was to work from my stash. I was not nearly as successful as I was last year. The 1908 eyelet dress was all stash, but then the 1805 embroidered dress was all new materials. The 1876 dress was all stash, but the three bathing suits were all new materials except for a couple of balls of yarn. “Winter Lace” was stash, but “Street Scene” was new materials except for a few skeins of embroidery floss. The 1916 dress was stash, but the 1940’s dress was new materials. The stays, the nightcap, the vest, the Eleonora stockings, scarf, kerchief, skating cap, and flute décor were all from stash. The 1910’s purse materials were a combination of stash fabric and new threads. I bought wool fabrics for three dresses, wool yarns for two sweaters, and cotton yarn for a quilt that I haven’t started yet. I bought fabric and embroidery wools for an 18th century wallet. I bought some miscellaneous embroidery threads that don’t necessarily have a project planned. On the balance, I think that means that I had no net change to the fabric stash but increased the yarn and embroidery supplies I have. I shall have to try harder not to buy things in 2024.

I might finish the cross-stitching on my first Christmas ornament of the year today. I'm going to do all the cross-stitching on all three and then do all the outlining and then make them all up.

I ordered a pattern for Regency stays that a friend recommended. I might try to make them up before I go to see Emma at the theater in December in the dress I embroidered earlier this year. It looks like a pretty easy pattern.

I hate Regency stays. The whole lift and separate thing just does not work for me. The best ones I've got are still the old Simplicity short stays that really aren't all that accurate. And they don't work great; they're just not as bad. I tried with the Bernhardt stays and using the underbust line with cups, and they still don't really suit. Maybe if I add some boning at the sides...

I'm planning to try on the mockup for the embroidered dress over both the old Simplicity short stays and the new Bernhardt stays and see what works.

Why is it that Victorian corsets and Georgian stays are so easy but the nominally simpler stays of the Regency period are so difficult?

2020 was an odd year, no doubt. I was lucky that I was able to go to the George Washington Ball in Williamsburg the week before everything spiraled into chaos. With nothing else going on, I got a lot more time for needlework than usual this year, and by summer I realized I was churning stuff out way too fast. I started working on things that take a lot more time to get a finished product like cross-stitching and knitting.

I made two things this year that I really love – an 18th century domino and a Victorian shawl. I'm happy with a lot of my other stuff, but those are just some of the coolest things I’ve ever made.

( This year's projects behind the cut )

I tried my Regency stays with springs on under a dress, and they really don't raise the bust like my other stays do. I don't think that's necessarily a problem; it just means that these can't replace my existing stays. They still might be really comfortable for wearing all day. They might work under the sari dress I made for the Jane Austen festival last year since it goes over the 1790's stays which are a little longer waisted. I also need to move the straps out a bit at the back. They definitely show at the back with them at the point as they are now. Moving them out 2" should be sufficient to fix that.

I've done some knitting this week too and joined in the next ball of yarn on both the 1930's sweater I'm making and the 1930's bathing suit I'm making. I just have 2" left on the bathing suit before anything changes. I get to cast off half the stitches then. I also only have a couple of inches left before the armscye shaping starts on the sweater.

Considering that I spent a lot of time cross-stitching this year, I'm surprised I made so much, but I had a good variety of projects this year. I didn't sew any clothes for modern wear so I should try to do more of that next year.

( This year's projects behind the cut )

Somehow I don't think I ever posted a picture of my finished 1830's underwear so here it is.



Most of it is reused from previous period projects. The shift/chemise is a Regency one I made a number of years ago. The stays are the 1820's stays I made back in about 2012.



They're completely hand-sewn and based on koshka_the_cat's pattern on her website. They were only corded, but since they had a tendency to bunch up a bit around the waist, I added steel bones at the center back and along the side seams to extend them into the 1830's. The wrinkling was fine for the raised waists of the 1820's, but it was just lumpiness at the waist for the more natural waist level of the 1830's.

Then I've got a corded petticoat and two more petticoats - one plain and one tucked. I don't have a picture of the corded petticoat, but it's of the variety that has 17" of solid cording at the hem. The plain petticoat looks like a plain petticoat so I didn't bother with a picture.

I also took the opportunity to use my amusing little knit bustle pad made from an 1840's pattern.