1785 Swallowtail Jacket

I first fell in love with this jacket two years ago.  I probably found it on Pinterest, and followed it back to the V&A website.

Victoria & Albert Museum

 I zoomed in as far as I could on the front and back images and drew lines along the seam and fold lines:

Black lines are seams, blue lines are folds

This helped me see how the grain lines lay on each piece.  I drafted my own pattern, using the swallowtail jacket pattern I used for my Green Swallowtail Jacket as a guide.  I added a seam to the back to make it two pieces with an extra pleat to the tail.  I also lengthened the center points of the tail.  

On the right is the original back pattern piece, on the left are my newly-drafted back pieces.

The sleeve was the hardest part to draft, but I don't have pictures of that.  The original sleeve was in one piece and elbow-length, with just a dart at the back to give the curve at the elbow.  I used that dart to indicate the direction I needed to extend it in to make it two pieces and wrist-length.  

Once I had all my pieces, I tested the layout on the white cotton muslin I was planning to print to make sure that it would be enough.  I needed enough extra to make the ruffle around the neck (which I have yet to add).  

At this point I printed the fabric.  But before I cut it out, I used more plain cotton muslin to make a mockup:

(So I tried it on Anna the dress form with the stays, and tried it on myself without them - not sure why.  I was probably too lazy to bother with taking them off the dress form and putting them on myself.  :p)

The fit was pretty spot-on, but I did make some minor adjustments to the center front.  I ended up using the mockup as the lining, as well.  Then I cut out my printed fabric!

I adjusted the layout to avoid some of the flaws in the printing, but didn't bother with trying to match up the designs at the seams.  I knew my printing was not nearly accurate enough to make that work, and I would just drive myself crazy trying.

Once I had the lining in the sleeves, I had to adjust the fit a couple times.  First they were too loose and baggy, but then I took in the seams too much and they were too tight.  Finally I had to settle for them looking (to me) a little too big at the elbows in favor of comfort.  After all, my shift sleeves have to fit in there, too.  I kept a 4" slit open at the bottom of both sleeves so my hands could fit through.

I stitched the lining to the fashion fabric all around the bottom and front edges, leaving the neckline open to turn it right side out.  I also hemmed the sleeves by sewing the lining and fashion fabric edges right sides together with the bottom edge of the sleeve linings cut 1/2" shorter.  With a 1/4" seam allowance, this turns up the hem of the fashion fabric 1/4" on the inside, and makes a really neat finished edge.  Then I stitched the edges of the slits at the regular seam allowance.

After I finalized the fit, I stay-stitched the neckline edges together, then added a bias tape channel to the inside for the finished edge.  I threaded a drawstring through this channel so I could tighten up the neckline a little to prevent gappage.  I also put a couple of narrow reed bones in the front.

One of the details I loved about this jacket was the little buttons at the wrists:

I made my buttons with wooden button molds from Burnley & Trowbridge, covered with scraps of my printed fabric.

These pictures are from Halloween, after I wore the ensemble to work all day:

And in case you haven't seen the pics of me wearing the jacket at Colonial Williamsburg, they can be found in my previous post and on facebook.  

Autumn in 1785

I finished a new 18th Century ensemble!  Remember my block-printed fabric?  This is what I made with it:  

 I was attempting to recreate this jacket, which I fell in love with years ago:

Woman's Linen Jacket, by Unknown Maker, 1785-90  Victoria & Albert Museum

Printing and Painting and Dyeing, Oh My!

I haven't been terribly prolific in the sewing department recently, but I have been VERY adventurous with color!  First I broke out my print block, with great success.  I'm still sitting on the in-progress photos of the item I am making from my newly printed fabric, but I am not above sharing a teaser shot that makes it look like I am really good at matching prints:

Then my birthday gift from Brian the Engineer arrived - ivory Hartfields!  I wore them around the house for three or four hours after opening the package, and honestly forgot that I had them on a couple times.  They are very comfortable.  :)

But I was not about to let them stay ivory forever.  After admiring them for a couple more days, I broke out the second part of my gift - a shoe painting kit, and got to work.  I mixed paint for about an hour before I was satisfied with the shade.  I was aiming for a deep, warm butterscotch color and trying to avoid mustard.  :p  When I was finally happy with the color (mostly sick of mixing paint) I followed the American Duchess tutorial for the painting process.  Sorry there are no in-progress photos, but I was focused on painting!  :(

I was pleased to see that after it dried, the honey-mustard colored paint I had ended up with did deepen and darken as it dried to more of a Werther's hard candy color.  And the more I looked at it, the more I loved it!

After three thin coats I let them dry overnight.  In the morning I liked the color even better, and I could also tell it needed one more coat.  After that dried I put on the finisher and started thinking about how best to dye the shoelaces to match the new color of the boots.

I had a couple of things I'd been meaning to dye that I'd been putting off for a while, and I decided to do both of them and the shoelaces all at once.

The first thing was a white ostrich feather that I had vague ideas about using on a bonnet.  For some reason I wanted it gold.  I will admit here and now that I had no idea how to go about dyeing a feather.  I still don't know.

I used Lemon Yellow and Tangerine RIT dyes.  This is how it looks now, after it has dried completely.  I cannot seem to get it to fluff back up again, so my thought is that there is still dye that needs to be rinsed out, possibly?  Anyway, it was a learning experience.  I moved on, as I had bigger fish to fry.

Next were the shoelaces.  To the previous orangey attempt at gold, I added more Lemon Yellow, more Tangerine, and just a splash of Kelly Green to tone down the brightness.  I also added more water and salt to the dye pot, mixed it more thoroughly, and tested strips of white cotton muslin before I decided I was satisfied with the color.  The shoelaces took the dye much more readily than the muslin, and when I rinsed them out they resembled whole wheat spaghetti!  But I was ok with them being more brown than orange.  I just didn't want them to clash horribly with the boots.  I let them dry for a full day, and lo and behold!

Once dry, they were the perfect color!  I was not expecting that.  :p

But I still had more dyeing to do.  This one was the big one, both in size and in scope.  Remember my green straw bonnet from last year?  Well, I loved it and all, but I wanted to be able to wear it with more things.  Specifically, this green ribbon sash I bought from Dames a la Mode:

See how horribly the two greens clashed?  Also, I wanted more contrast between the bonnet and my Blue Day Dress, since it looked too much like I was trying to match it and had failed.  So I decided to dye the bonnet to match the ribbon!  I knew it would be tricky, as taffeta catches the light so differently from cotton, but I would settle for a close approximation.

To my brownish-gold dye bath I added copious amounts of Kelly Green, testing swatches and adding more Lemon Yellow until I ran out entirely, at which point I began praying that I hadn't added too much green too fast.  I decided to be brave and test a scrap of the bonnet fabric, and it didn't look too bad!  I had actually been nervous that the bonnet fabric wouldn't take dye properly, as I'm not sure it's 100% cotton.  But it took beautifully!  I think I added a dash more Tangerine and then tested another scrap, this time taking it to the iron to dry it so I could see the final color.  It wasn't perfect, but I decided it was as close as I was likely to get!

Left to right:  undyed scrap, first and second test scraps, final color, ribbon of goal color

The moment of truth had arrived.  I prepped the bonnet by running it under hot water, being sure to saturate every part so that it would absorb the dye evenly.  (I forgot to mention I also did this with the shoelaces and feather before dyeing them.)  Then I gently added it to the dye pot gently simmering on the stove, and poked it down with a wooden spoon until it was thoroughly soaked.  After a few agonizing minutes of stirring constantly to ensure no part was left un-dyed, I took it out and rinsed it forever and ever under hot running water.  Then when I was satisfied(ish) that no more dye was coming out, I switched to cold water and continued rinsing to help set the dye.

(It is here that I will point out that before I started my dyeing shenanigans, I ran my plans past Brian the Engineer.  He warned me that the straw part would likely not take the dye in the same way as the fabric part, and that I might not like the result.  I assured him that I was prepared for this to not go as planned, and if it was an utter failure I would just make a new bonnet.  However, I was anticipating that the straw part would, in fact, absorb no dye as I was sure that it was not a natural fiber.  But I am pleased to say that we were both wrong!  Well, I was more wrong than he was.  :p  The straw DID absorb the dye in much the same way as the fabric, and I DID like the result!)

I was worried initially that I had let it soak too long, as it was much darker and greener than I was going for.  But I did know that I needed to let it dry before I could determine the final color.  Being impatient, I threw the thing in the dryer with a towel to help it along.  I am pleased to say that I LOVE the final color!  It is as close as I could have gotten to the ribbon sash, and I think it makes the design look much more cohesive and planned-out.  I do love it when things work out that way.  :)

It looks like a completely different bonnet!  For reference:

I'm definitely liking the new look better.  :D  And look at all of the things it matches now!

I am midway through hemming the paisley shawl, and I've worn the ribbon sash and the gloves together previously.

Before I poured my hard-earned dye lot down the drain, I threw in my remaining scraps of pre-pleated fabric leftover from making the bonnet.

I plan to use these to create fun shoe clip decorations for my Pemberlies.  Of course, it may be a while before I wear them again, as my gorgeous new Hartfields currently hold most of my shoe-related affection.

So pretty!  

I can't wait to wear them out and about!  :D  And now that I have the shoe-painting kit, my fingers are itching to start painting my other four pairs of American Duchess shoes...  Pinterest, here I come!

Block Printing Fun

I have finally used my print block! I've had it for over a year now, and it's about time I did something with it. I recently purchased fabric ink from Dharma Trading Co., along with a dry ink pad in the largest size I could find.

The colors I chose were Violet and Ruby Red.  For the project I have in mind, I wanted to match the color of a purple linen I bought a while back, and I had a suspicion that the violet all by itself would be too dark.  It turns out I was right.

Using a fingertip on a scrap of muslin, I tested the colors of each ink separately and then mixed a small portion of both together.  The third fingerprint was very close to the color I was trying to match!  I also tested just a corner of the print block to see what the flower would look like.  I ironed my samples to set the ink, and tested the fastness by running it under water.

The color held beautifully!  So now I had to mix enough ink together to fill the ink pad.  This took some trial and error, as I kept underestimating how much it would really take.

I also did a few trial runs of stamping on more scrap muslin to work out the kinks of the technique.  I'm very glad I did, because I learned a few things.

I started by using cardboard under the fabric to protect my table, but also to provide some give for the print block to press into.  I quickly discovered that this was not the best thing, as the cardboard I had was slightly warped and the design did not print evenly.  Brian the Engineer suggested rubber, which gave me the idea of using my yoga mat.  It worked wonderfully!  (On the plus side, I did learn from the cardboard trial that the ink would not bleed through my fabric and stain the yoga mat.)

I also didn't like the results I got by stamping right after filling up the ink pad with fresh ink.  It seemed to work better after I let it rest for a day, especially after I remembered to store it upside down.

Finally it was time to start printing for real!

It was surprisingly easy to line up the block with the previously-printed design.  I have to say whoever designed it knew what they were doing!

I certainly made mistakes, but I should be able to avoid the most obvious ones when cutting out my pattern pieces.

At the top of the piece I had to use more scraps to protect my yoga mat where the print block went off the edges.

Overall I think it looks pretty good!  :D