It felt strange to wake up today, in a new year, but any moment I feel at ease is a moment I let happen, and be thankful. So I’m looking at a day of gently encouraging myself to think about my projects with a bit more kindness and appreciate that they are not easy, but they are fun, and I have a really good base to all of them even if progress is stalled on some due to needing a few more supplies (tape casings for the Marie Antoinette hoops for example so I can store them safely between wearing.)
My entire North Rhine wardrobe is getting an overhaul, so they have been pulled apart to have necklines, hems, and linings changed.
This is being remade into this, a bit earlier than my now 1540s wardrobe but this fit and neckline is in range.
I have never gotten a nice photo of this dress sadly- as it is for summer and it’s frankly hot and stuffy and this photo is very distorted by whatever my camera was doing at the time! But I do think the tube sleeve look works. It will require a fair bit of careful planning for the lack of a CF seam in skirt and bodice.
This stained glass portrait may depict something else, and I seem to have dropped the reference. There are big gaps I need to fill in in this timeline to be fair.
If this seems familiar it’s because this figure is from the Quentel Modelbucher but was also copied into other modelbucher in other languages. I have all the copies of her, and other women clearly in dress of Cologne.
These tube sleeves are also worn by children of the same decade.
As I have so little of this red left I’ve tried to overdye fabric to match, but can’t. so I’m making the liste deeper (the wide guarding at the hem- often fur, but in some cases velvet.)
And my original inspiration portraits.
It is hard to tell, but this portrait definitely shows the list is higher than her knee!
And you can use the narrower guarding here to work out how high this liste reaches as well!
This gown is proving to be very hard to sew, I have used a very plush velvet for the guarding. So the entire skirt needs to be basted in parts.
And there is some piecing that may need to be very carefully aligned as well.
I’m also tidying all my accessories, and rebuilding my linen gear. I think I need to adapt my Lengberg chemises a bit as they do a lot already, but I think I can adapt them even further to suit my area.