Where Am I and How Did I Get Here?

Several months ago, a friend invited me to join her at a tea April 14 to commemorate the sinking of the Titanic in 1912.  The catch was that everyone will be wearing 1912 garb.  In my continuing effort to stop overthinking everything, I said yes!  This friend of mine is an avid historical sewer and reenactor, and I asked her where one would find patterns.  And this is when I learned that there are two ways to approach dressing in the apparel of a different era.  One is to buy 21c patterns that are made to be worn over 21c undergarments, and the other is to use period patterns and wear them over period undergarments. Still basking in the rosy afterglow of making such a quick and bold decision, I chose the latter.

This is the story of my subsequent descent into madness.

I began looking online for patterns and was amazed by the wealth of historical sewing resources readily available.  I mean, really, who knew there is all this information out there?   Who knew there are multiple patterns available to make a late Edwardian corset? Who knew there are shops specializing in corset making supplies?  Who knew how many different kinds of lace are required to make Edwardian undergarments?  Who knew you can find ostrich feathers in a wide variety of colors on Etsy?  

I settled down to look at images of dresses from the target period.  I learned there was a lot to learn, and so much research to be done!  I realized there were several significant fashions shifts across the 1910s, which means I need to be careful to choose looks that would have been worn about 1910-1912.  I spent hours online searching for photos of period clothing from museums, fashion plates, and photos from the era.  A chic Edwardian woman changed her attire multiple times each day and her wardrobe had to include morning dresses, walking suits, afternoon dresses, evening attire, and ball gowns.  Because so many of the extant dresses are opulent evening wear I had to search still harder to find images of afternoon dresses.  

As my research continued, the implications of my bold - or perhaps rash - decision
became distressingly clear. In addition to a dress and a corset, I will need a chemise, a corset cover, split French drawers, a petticoat, a highly adorned hat, silk hose, a reticule, maybe a parasol and perhaps a jacket because, well, April weather.  Oh, and gloves.  And shoes.  Did you know there are sites that sell period correct *new* shoes?  

To get things kicked off I ordered the patterns for my undergarments.  I found a pattern for an Edwardian corset, a princess slip and an E-pattern for a chemise.  (As a side note, I can now add to the ever-growing list of lessons learned from this project that I absolutely hate printing out and assembling E-patterns.) I also found patterns for a corset cover, split French drawers and another petticoat that I liked better.  Wait, what?  What are split French drawers?  

After doing some more research, I found that in the mid-nineteenth century, most women’s drawers were split leggings about knee length with no crotch seam.  With long corsets and petticoats, it was not really possible to pull everything down when a woman had to answer the call of nature.  Split drawers allowed her to stand straddle over a receptacle and do what she needed.  As will I, apparently.

I spent the next week delving into a study of typical embellishments of Edwardian undergarments.  I determined this effort had to expand into a study of sewing techniques necessary to implement embellishments such as pin tucks, lace insertion, lace shaping, lace entre deux, and use of white-on-white embroidery.  And here inspiration struck: I have an embroidery machine!  I spent many happy hours searching for art deco machine embroidery designs that I could use to further beautify my undergarments.  My petticoat could be incredible!!  I kept searching images and contemplating the fantastic heirloom sewing I could do.

The next step in this journey, clearly, was to find lace - and lots of it.  I started searching and was astounded by the variety of vintage lace available online.  Who knew?  Yet more hours were spent combing through Etsy in search of yards and yards of narrow eyelet edging, beaded lace edging, insertion lace, wide cotton eyelet edging and anything else that might look useful.  The possibilities were endless, and the options were dazzling.  It was so exciting to imagine the finished garments!  Then I took a moment and pulled myself back from the brink.  l decided that my undergarments would be made reasonably beautiful.

I am not admitting to anything, but I may have completely lost track of what lace I’ve ordered and for what purpose.  I may also have become pretty addicted to receiving mystery packages almost daily. And I definitely have not yet learned the lesson to check the point of origin prior to ordering.  So far, I’ve received lace from Austria and South Korea. Yesterday I found that there is one order that hasn’t arrived even though I made the purchase a while ago.  Upon closer inspection I saw it’s coming from NSW.  Yes, Australia.

Next installment: Spoiled for choice