1912 Dress: Is that light I see?

I'm moving along and getting things done. I've gotten my second wind after some prodding from my husband. Here is what I have so far.

I started out thinking that I wouldn't add a collar and would instead use some lace to finish off the edge. After showing my mom the two options she pointed out that it just wasn't going to cut it.

 So I started out by cutting out a collar piece for the smallest size in the pattern. I pinned it to the dress and then took a pencil and drew what I wanted it to look like thus creating the collar above. It turned out alright.

Today I took apart the sleeve at the bottom of the arm hole and trimmed the width down by 1/4 of an inch. While I was at it I removed the cuff and replaced it with the contrasting fabric. Originally I'd chosen to not do that but after I put it together it looked so monochromatic. I decided that I had to change it.

I also pinned on a few buttons to get an idea of that it will look like once I get those on as well. I'm super excited about the buttons and I don't know why.  ;)

I'm sad to say I wasn't able to afford a pair of  of the American Duchess Astoria shoes. But my Mom found a descent pair that were on sale when we bought them for only $19.99. Go Mom!

To add to things I bought some crochet gloves. I totally ditched the idea of making gloves after about the 4th pair that turned out looking like poo. The pearls and gold broach is a hand me down as well as the necklace. I haven't yet made a final decision on jewelery. And the hat situation is up in the air.

1912 Shawl Collar Dress.....minus the collar....

I took the advice offered to me by Val from Time Traveling in Costume and purchased the pattern from Hint of History. It is as she noted a fairly simple design. However I for some ungodly reason left my brain somewhere the day I started sewing my practice dress. I must have read the directions a dozen times and spent a good bit staring either off into space or at the page uncomprehendingly. My first try just didn't go very well. Now that I've figured it out here is the mock up.

  I am having a small issue with the skirt being wide enough to accommodate my rather ample *blush* bottom. So unsure how to proceed I'm just toying with the idea of adding maybe 1 - 3 inches to all the skirt parts for a better flow.....for lack of a better word.

 My mom and I took a trip to Michael Le Vine in the LA gatmet district a few weeks back and I found this stripped cotton and I picked up the sheer at JoAnn fabrics. I'm actually pretty nervous about working with a stripe. It's new territory and I don't have immediate access to more fabric if I make a mistake. 

I did notice today while ironing my main fabric that there is a large section with what appears to be rust spots. They are small and I think that if I use it for the back of the skirt it might not be too noticeable. Especially if I don't point it out to anyone.

I was sewing the other day with Downton Abby on in the background and saw this dress. Super similar to the one that I'm working on. If I end up adding more to the back skirt piece I'd be able to give it a pleat or two I think. As for the neckline of my dress I still need to figure out a finish for it since I'll be omitting the collar. The deadline is approaching and I'm feeling lazy. A bad combination.

1910 Corset: Complete

 Here is my 1910 corset all put together and working out nicely. It does give a much better shape on me than it does on the dress form however. I'm pretty darn pleased with it.About the only part I really had any difficulty with was getting it enlarged. But in the end that turned out just fine as well.

If I try this again I'll see about taking out a few inches in the bottom to get the lacing gap even.

It isn't perfect but I don't attempt perfection and therefore I'm rarely disappointed. The directions and pattern are fantastic. I really owe my success to the detailed instructions.

Now that I have this done and out of the way I can finally move on to starting my 1912 dress.