Past Projects - Green Renaissance Gown

I made this costume in 2010 for my sister Gretchen.  She wore to the Minnesota Renaissance Festival with me that September.

My starting materials - with flash

I already had green velvet, which I had bought for another project years before but never used.  I had also acquired about a yard of upholstery fabric with a wavy, curtain-like pattern on it, and several yards of ugly green fringe.  I found a scrap of lime green satin and an unopened package of green and gold brocade ribbon in my mom's fabric stash.

Using McCalls 2806 as a pattern basis, I made the overdress out of the velvet.  The upholstery fabric piece wasn't long enough to make the skirt, so I added a band of the satin at the bottom, and covered the seam with the fringe.

This must have been before I learned the importance of ironing...

Like my Blue Gown, I modified the pattern for the overdress to lace up in front instead of zip up in back.  I also used the same Butterick 6391 skirt pattern to get the pleats in the back.

I also pleated the underskirt at the top, and since it was still too short I ended up adding more fabric at the top.  This time I used extra lining from the overdress bodice.

The gold brocade is also from the Blue Gown, as this underskirt is reversible and can be used for both costumes.  So when we attended the Minnesota Renaissance Festival together, I had to make myself a new underskirt.  More on that later.  

The gold side can also work with the green gown.

Since Gretchen had short hair at the time, I made her a snood.  I crocheted it from olive green crochet thread, largely making up my own pattern as I went along, and worked gold beads into it.

With flash

Without flash

Close-up shot

Stay tuned for photos of Gretchen wearing her green gown!