#am sewing
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I'm deep in the process of sewing Halloween costumes for my two teenagers. My oldest wants to be Nyakuza Metro from "A Hat In Time," and I just got the jacket finished. I'll have to wait until he gets home from school to see if it fits. After that, it will be the pants for both my kids' costumes, which will use the same pattern. Yeehaw!
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Sewing Medieval Bathhouse Dress
I'm a big boob person and for me bras have always been very uncomfortable. They never support enough even with the metallic wire support as the elastic strap is not secure enough and that wire curve is also just uncomfortable. My shoulders are also always aching because of the pressure put on shoulders. But no bras is even more uncomfortable especially if I have to do anything else than sitting. Which is why I have been considering testing out historical options ever since I got into historical sewing.
When it comes to historical sewing (and to some extent sewing in general) I'm still a noob and so I have been quite intimidated by stays and corsets and I've figured I'll start with medieval supportive garments, like kirtle, as they are much simpler. Then I saw the video where Morgan Donner made a bathhouse dress and I immediately wanted to test it out too.
Some history
Bathhouse dress is a garment that appears around 14th to 16th century in central Europe, mostly around Bohemia, Austria and German states and their vicinity. Perhaps the most famous finding of this garment is the Lengberg Castle Bra found in Austria.
It's often called medieval bra because it has cups like bra. I think that's somewhat misleading as it was a full dress and this is just fragments of the dress. There's theory that there's only this left because the larger continuous pieces of linen were cut off and used for some other garment. The dress was quite different from shift, the usual loose undergarment that would be used under supportive kirtle around most of Europe at the time. It was sleeveless and tailored with lacing, usually on the side. The reason it's often called bathhouse dress is that there's a lot of depictions of it in bathhouse use, especially in Bohemia, and these depictions are sometimes referred as Bohemian bathhouse babes.
All of these types of garments didn't have cups like this example from 1389 Bohemia, and there were a lot of different designs. There's different shaped bodices, some had waist seem, some didn't. In German the garment with cups was called breastbag at the time. In the literary mentions there was often degrading tone when talking about it, and it seemed that the writers at least thought women who used breastbag were "showing off". When have men not complained about women's fashion in a patriarchal society? Perhaps with the other designs there wasn't similar derision. The writings and some other depictions of the garment suggest that it was used more generally as an undergarment and not just for bathhouse. Which would make sense as it would seen uncharacteristic for Middle Ages to tailor a supporting garment (not cheep) just to use in bathhouses.
Here's a potter wearing similar garment with different design from late 15th century Austria.
Another one from mid 15th century Austria of a woman putting clothes on and obviously wearing the dress as undergarment.
Here's a German example from late 15th century of a woman wearing it as a nightgown, which shift was also used for.
The sewing part
If you want a tutorial, go and watch that Morgan Donner video linked in the beginning, I'm not a good source on sewing, especially historical.
I wanted to make my version of the dress fairly historical, but I wasn't too concerned with making in exactly right as it's purpose is for daily use and not historical costuming. I hand-sewed it with historical techniques though, but the patterning part was quite chaotic and I basically came up with it as I went so there ended up being some weirdness in finishings as I didn't plan far enough.
So here's how it turned out. I very intentionally made it much shorter than it should be. Most depictions have it reach half calf. I was making it for daily use and not historical costuming and I have a lot of knee length skirts, so I wanted it short enough for that. I actually made the bodice and skirt into separate pieces that are just loosely whipstitched together so I can use them both alone too, especially the bodice with trousers.
The shape of the bodice isn't historical. The cleavage goes fairly high and is fairly straight in most of the historical examples (especially with the cups). Even the Lengberg bra originally had crochet covering the chest area. But again that wouldn't have fitted so well with a lot of my modern clothing, and my purpose wasn't historical recreation.
As I was talking about the pretty weird finishings, here you can see them. The result isn't very neat, but it's fine.
I have been wearing this now a couple of months and I'm in love with it. It's much more supportive while being also so much more comfortable. The lacing on the side distributes the force around the waist, so it doesn't put nearly as much pressure on my shoulders. It's made entirely out of linen and is very nice against skin and as it doesn't have any metallic wires it also doesn't press anywhere. It also is just much more flattering than bras at least for me. It doesn't work that well without the skirt, the waist starts wrinkling and moving up, but the skirt keeps it pretty straight. The bodice is also slightly too long and it doesn't sit exactly on my waist, so it adds to the problem. It's not a huge problem though, it's just a bit annoying.
I'm planning to test out a version where I'll reinforce the eyelets with synthetic baleen instead of cord and put baleen in the other side too and maybe in the center front so I could use it as a separate undergarment without the annoying wrinkling. I'm also planning on doing 16th century kirtle bodice or the full kirtle (or both maybe as separate but attachable pieces, like with the bathhouse dress) with either stiff interlining or boning and Regency short stays. I want to test out different types of supportive undergarments in my quest for better bra options. Maybe after I've done them I'm ready to try Victorian corset too.
#historical fashion#historical sewing#sewing#history#fashion history#historical clothing#dress history#bathhouse dress#medieval clothing#medieval fashion#historical undergarments#medieval#am sewing#my creation
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One of my favourite things about learning to sew has to be that I can just commit fucking crimes against fashion and no one can stop me
So I’m making mushroom pants
#am sewing#mushrooms#mushroom pants#crimes against fashion#no regrets#i should not be given this power yet here we are
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“Temporary stitches” all stitches are temporary if you have a pair of scissors and aren’t a coward
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literally obsessed with kanji. finally a good character for me to latch onto
#hes 15 years old. he regularly intimidates people multiple years older than him. his favorite hobby is sewing.#he chased an entire motorcycle gang out of town with nothing but his regular ass bicycle. he has debilitating social anxiety. hes gay#perfect character. incredible job guys#personal#i am a simple person. i see a character with incredibly poor social skills and i decide they are my favorite with no further questions
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i like this substack article I found while googling jamie loftus’s book on hotdogs. it’s like a poem on the subject of “you can do whatever you want forever” to me
#this is how I felt when I planned my first vacation without my parents and when I moved to nyc and every time I take a train on my lunch#break and when I wear something I sewed#etc. it feels like there’s a lot of things im getting away with and its a fun little reminder that sometimes you can just do things#my posts#unrelatedly obsession with Jamie loftus continues. jamie are you (six feet tall) free on Thursday when I am free
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triumphant sewing dinosaur.
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there he is......the man of the house
#mine#ough hello not posted in a while!!#im busy doin portfolio stuff so . not much cat drawinign going on THO i will. hopefully do one tomorrow hehe#i was gna get stickers for my next shop update but its hurting me head so. gna order new prints hopefully!! this week and then#do stickers n postcards next time. i am so low on stock sihfdkggwe#need 2 buy envelopes also....my least favourite thing 2 spend money on#what hve i been up to ....i made a blanket!! maybe i will post picture. it was gna b a cardigan i started it like last year#n then i went 2 sew it together n was like. this pattern is insane also this wool is too thick so. blanky :)#its very good. good lap blanket!!#what else what else....been re reading lotr. im reading it on ebook i lov ebook sm. i love printed books but i jus absolutely cannot#read them. dyslexia gang rise up !!!!#im reading it so much quicker tho n also actually remembering it ....would die for gimli#also started rewatching cr2 >:) i dont . actually like th new campaign so KSDFKJDN rewatch it is#even tho i dont like molly. not that thats gna b an issue for long sifubshbhebwj#im so seepy...so cold.....gna rest now probably n play skyrim hehe#cat drawings tomorrow >:)#okay bye
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there is a reproduced 1909 magazine story in this book I read recently (The Female Economy by Wendy Gamber it is amazing oh my god) that just makes my soul depart my body
it's about a woman who decides to make her own new dress undersleeves to save money, and enlists a dressmaker to do the actual sewing. but she can Totally Cut The Sleeves Out Herself With This Paper Pattern So She's The One Making It Really
for reference as to why this is absolutely insane, cutting/fitting is the single hardest part of Victorian and Edwardian dressmaking. this is where all the Mathing and Thinking and Make Two-Dimensional Shapes Into Three-Dimensional Garments come into play. and contrary to popular belief, while most women at the time were accomplished seamstresses- in the sense of "putting fabric together using stitches, and likely also mending" -they didn't necessarily have a clue how to shape a garment. especially not the highly fitted bodices and imaginative sleeve shapes of the day. custom-made clothes from dressmakers were commonplace for most social strata in urban and suburban areas; even lower-middle and working-class women had "lesser" dressmakers they patronized
you do start seeing commercial patterns and home dressmaking manuals steadily increasing throughout the latter half of the 19th century and the early 20th, but in general there was no reason to assume that a random woman on the street could make herself a properly-fitted gown- or even just sleeves -from scratch. (not even with a pattern, which were notoriously scant on instructions back then)
a modern hobbyist historical costumer probably has more knowledge of how to actually make clothing from 1909 than the average woman living in 1909
so anyway this lady tells the professional dressmaker to stop giving her advice, she's got this, she's FINE HONEST. and then gets pissed at the dressmaker for not telling her she needed to include seam allowance in her pieces
for more reference, that is...
...the absolute most basic Day One sewing knowledge
#sewing#history#I am on the astral plane#someone page instagram user Can You Sew This For Me#edwardian
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cats + art
#i cant find the artist or the name of this one#let chat angora by jean honore fragonard#no title but by clement burlison#can't find title but its by albert ranney chewett#for these i cant seem to find the titles but i do know the artists#but this one is by arthur rackham#cat churning butter 14th century germany#carl kahler is the artist but he did all cat paintings so i cant find the exact name#in a roman osteria by carl heinrich bloch#still life with a cat and a mackerel on a table top by giovanni rivalta#feline friends by agnes m cowieson#the butterfly and the cat by lily martin spencer#katzchen am fressnapf by julius adam the younger#the sewing box by henriette ronner#white cat watching a butterfly by arthur heyer#the milk dish by alfred brunel de neuville#the first lap by helen cridland#best friends by leon jean basile perrault#portrait of julie manet by pierre-auguste renoir#girl with cat by nikolaevich kramskoy#the nosegay by ford madox brown#my wife's lovers by carl kahler#magdeleine pinceloup de la grange nee de parseval by jean-baptiste perronneau#the sleep of the child jesus by charles le brun#jeune femme et petit garcon tenant un chat by john hoppner#cat and a toy ball by sophie wohl sperlich#a man feeding a cat by unknown#kitchen still life with fish and cat by sebastian stoskopff#two young women wrapped in yukata after a bath by kitagawa utamaro#the trespassers surprise by morley e
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I stayed up until 2 am to finish sewing this jacket just so I could wear it to the mutant mayhem movie today :)
#I am never doing that again#totally worth it tho#rise of the tmnt#rottmnt#tmnt#rottmnt april#rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles#mutant mayhem#tmnt mutant mayhem#pix’s sewing stuff
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I'm upgrading my Crowley cosplay to new and improved Turtleneck and Leather Vest (Under His Black Jacket) Crowley from Season 2. I'm super excited to wear this with the rest of my cosplay on Halloween and at Gen Con! For my first time sewing with leather, I'm super happy with how the vest turned out. The front is actually lambskin scraps from Etsy and the back is polyester suiting and satin scraps from my stash.
#am sewing#good omens cosplay#crowley#crowley cosplay#black turtleneck#turtleneck crowley#is the best crowley#david tennant#michael sheen#neil gaiman#good omens season 2#good omens 2#good omens#good omens tv
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Fruit Salad by Fig Tree & Company in Misc. Fabrics
#rosymothquilts#i am super proud of this one! my best table runner yet!#the binding top stitching really pulls it together#quilting#quilt#sewing#vintage inspired#cottagecore#fairycore#fruit#fruitcore#apple#pineapple#cherry#summer
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17th century gloves are. very good.
#17th century#gloves#I'm trying to get work done on other stuff right now but I CANNOT stop thinking about fancy gloves#I. want. to. sew. fancy. gloves.#and I have so so many different ideas for cuff decorations#I should be sleeping but I'm looking at 17th century gloves on pinterest and hhnnnghhhhhhhhhhhhhh#the ones I'm sewing are more 18th century but I am taking creative liberties with some pairs because I can sew whatever I want#and I'm going to be good and finish the waistcoat I'm working on before cutting out another pair of gloves#so as to not increase my unfinished project number#but I will be constantly thinking about fancy gloves as I work on that waistcoat#I have more lambskins and leather paint coming in the mail
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been chipping away at a new quilt
#textiles#quilting#sewing#i do not currently own an iron hence these being a little wonky lmao. once i can press the seams theyll prob look better#but i am enjoying this!! i'm just making a bunch of blocks without really planning what the outcome will look like#i'll figure out how to put them together at some point but it's nice to just sew some stuff together without an outcome in mind#(also its been really difficult to draw lately so this has been a nice relaxing creative outlet!!)
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Novice sewing pattern: Cut out shapes. Line up the little triangles on the edges. Stitch edges together. We've also included step-by-step assembly instructions with illustrations.
Novice knitting pattern: yOU MUSt uNDerstANd thE SECret cOdE CO67 (73, 87, 93) BO44 (63, 76, 90) 28 (32, 34) slip first pw repeat 7x K to end *kl (pl) 42 * until 13" (13, 13, 15) join new at 30 pl for 17 rows ssk 27 k2tog mattress lengthwise BO and sacrifice a goat to the knitting gods. WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU WANT "INSTRUCTIONS," I JUST GAVE THEM TO YOU
#knitting#no it's not a real pattern but I can't write one that makes sense because I have no freaking clue what any of that means#How do you make things that aren't basic rectangles#Why has every knitter I've asked for help just said 'patterns are easy; you just have to know how to read them' & then refused to teach me#Where do I even find a goat to sacrifice#How do I join the pattern cult#I am so confused#I've been knitting for almost a decade but I can only make scarves and potholders#I learned one (1) stitch by watching a YouTube video and none of my friends or family knit so I have no IRL resources#And nobody I meet seems to want to take the time to explain the rest to me#I taught myself to sew through trial and error but that doesn't really work with knitting because error is pretty much just... Unraveling?#Anyway sorry for the tag rant I'm just frustrated that I see pretty things I want to make but the instructions are in an alien language#And the gap between 'absolute novice' and 'intermediate' seems to be about 20 years of experience and formal instruction
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