Year in Review: Costuming in 2017

Well another year has flown by so quickly.  I look back on 2017 and I can see that costumes I choose, make divisions in the year, like chapters in a book.

So how did 2017 pan out, compared to 2016?

The Edwardian Bathing Suit

This outfit was for a Victorian / Edwardian Beach day.  I loved these Edwardian bathers from the Gemeentemuseum The Haag.

I didn't have a pattern, check out here how I made them.

To be honest I wasn't very happy with this costume. My mistake was, I didn't do a fitting. The idea was there, but I didn't execute it to it's full potential.

 The Edwardian Suit

The Edwardian suit was originally constructed for a punting day at Royal Botanical Gardens here in Melbourne. 

Check here, how I made it. 

I was extremely happy with this costume. Comfortable to wear, the fabric was a delight to sew with and I felt this costume suited me well, (excuse the pun).

I think by this stage of the year, it finally clicked with me, to search for good quality fabric. Also do a fitting!!!!

I wore the suit again, when we visited the Dame Nellie Melba Estate in Coldstream, Victoria.  It was a real thrill when I saw someone in an old photo at the museum wearing a similar suit to what I was wearing. 

Photo Credit: Coombe Yarra Valley 

A Robe and a Stole

This costume was a commission.

My mother who is a funeral celebrant was conducting a funeral for a woman who follows the Wiccan faith.  The woman requested that my mother wear a purple robe and red stole at her funeral.

It meant a lot to me, that this would be suitable for funeral service. Even though it was a simple garment to make, I still felt a bit of pressure making it, due to thinking, would it be ok.

Overall happy with it.

The Georgian Ensemble

I made the Georgian ensemble of items for a Georgian / Regency High Tea, to be held at The Gables.

I was extremely happy with this outfit.  I was amazed with myself that I completed all the components on time.

Thankfully this costume was very comfortable to wear and easy to drive in!

To see how I made each component check out my posts here:-

Georgian Costume - Part 1

Georgian Costume - Part 2

Georgian Costume - Part 3













So 2018, so what will you bring me now?

Half way through a late Victorian Bustle outfit
Edwardian Dress for a Picnic at Hanging Rock event
Maybe start on my 2017 outfits off the list I made back in 2016 LOL
1920's Costume
1932 Costume
Regency Custom Order

Making a Georgian Costume - Part 3 The Accessories

"It's the little details that are vital. Little things make big things happen".
      John Wooden

Continuing from Part's 1 and Part 2, we have the accessories.

Lover's Eye - The Jewellery

Lover's Eye also known as eye miniatures were all the rage in Georgian time. The jewellery was thought to be started by Prince of Wales later to be George IV.  He sent a token of his love to Maria Fitzherbert. This act was frowned upon by the court, so he hired a painter only to paint the eye, so there was anonymity and decorum.  

I really find Lover's Eye fascinating and creepy at the same time, chuckle. So of course I had to have my very own Lover's Eye for my Georgian outfit.

My first step was to find a frame, this was a harder task than I thought it would be. Luckily I was able to find a suitable piece at my local Op Shop. So next step, to make the jewellery look more Georgian was to glue some fake purls around the frame.  Lastly an 'eye'. I couldn't find a small enough image of my husband's eye, and he wears glasses. So I went the quick way about it, and just printed off an eye off the net.


Thus end result, my own version of a 'Lover's Eye'.

The Spectacles

I wear glasses, and I was tired of wearing modern day glasses with my costumes. So when I discovered one could purchase reproduction Georgian glasses, I had to do this.  

I found some spectacles which I liked the look of, I purchased them from an American company called Townsends .  So I decided to buy the 18th Century Reproduction glasses. 

I was VERY happy with these glasses,they are sturdy and fit to my head really well.  Now the lenses, this was the expensive part.  Lucky, my local optometrist could change the lenses to my prescription lenses. The optometrists loved the glasses and of course asked where I got them. Luckily I was able to get new lenses put into them. They said they were so small, it was like replacing lenses for a child's set of glasses. 

The Shoes

I purchased some second hand shoes from my local Op Shop, that had a heel that looked Georgian. I then proceeded to cover them with a dusty rose fabric. Then later I put some green trim on them (not seen in photo)

So that is it.  Another costume done and dusted.  I hope you enjoyed Parts 1, 2 and 3 of my Georgian costume journey.

2018 Victorian Reading Challenge

Well it's that time of year when I start to think of what Book Reading Challenges I will attempt for the next year.  Scanning through Pinterest I found the 2018 Victorian Book Challenge, perfect I thought.  Checked out this reading blog by another Becky (spelt with a c) and she has so many reading challenges.  Great! 

The Challenge!

Victorian Reading Challenge
Host: Becky's Book Reviews
Duration: January - December 2018
Goal: Read a minimum of 4 Victorian books

Sign up in the comments (If you have a blog, please leave your blog address. If you have a Goodreads profile AND if you review regularly on Goodreads, then you may leave that as well.)

I'll have quarterly check-in posts. I'll be posting check-in posts March 25, June 24, September 23, and December 30. You may leave links to your reviews on any of those four posts. If you want to share your review with me BEFORE that, AND if you have twitter, feel free to tweet me a link @blbooks.

Option A.  Read alphabetically A-Z with authors OR titles OR a blend of authors/titles. I've decided that from now on X in reading challenges stands for multiple authors. I'm flipping my "x" to a "+".

Option B. Choose one author to read exclusively for this challenge; perhaps challenge yourself to read chronologically OR to read through an entire series in one year.

Option C. Do as many books from the checklist as you can. Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. 

Option D. Make the challenge completely your own and read as YOUR whimsy dictates.

IF you love Victorian literature AND you happen to love tea...consider joining my Share-a-Tea reading challenge.  

Feel free to copy/paste this. You can replace the _ with an X or a ✔ (copy/paste it) when you finish reading a book. If you list the books you read, that may help other people decide what to read.

This year's checklist:

1. _ A book that was originally published serially
2. _ book published between 1837-1840
3. _ book published between 1841-1850
4. _ book published between 1851-1860
5. _ book published between 1861-1870
6. _ book published between 1871-1880
7. _ book published between 1881-1890
8. _ book published between 1891-1901
9. _ nonfiction published between 1837-1860
10. _ nonfiction published between 1861-1901 
11. _ A book published between 1902-1999 with a Victorian setting
12. _ A book published between 2000-2018 with a Victorian setting
13. _ A fiction or nonfiction book about Queen Victoria
14. _ Biography of a Victorian
15. _ Nonfiction book about the Victorian era
16. _ free choice
17. _ place name in the title
18. _ character name in the title
19. _ book in a series
20. _ drama or melodrama
21. _ gothic, suspense, mystery
22. _ romance or historical
23. _ comedy 
24. _ science fiction or fantasy
25. _ adventure, crime, western
26. _ poetry collection OR story collection
27. _ happily ever after
28. _ unhappily ever after 
29. _ children's book
30. _ translated into English from another language
31. _ a book under 250 pages
32. _ book over 500 pages
33. _ a book over 800 pages
34. _ A book that has been filmed as movie, miniseries, or television show
35. _ memorable heroine
36. _ memorable hero
37. _ British author
38. _ Irish author OR Irish setting
39. _ Scottish author OR Scottish setting
40. _ American author
41. _ reread
42. _ book with a subtitle (the longer the better!)

© 2017 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

MY AIM

I will only choose a minimum of 4 books, seeing I'm a slow reader and I need time to construct my costumes, thus Option D.

Making a Georgian Costume Part 2 - Caraco Jacket and Skirt

So continuing on with my journey of constructing a Georgian costume.

Once the corset and hip /bum pad were completed I decided to make a Caraco Jacket, which is short
version of an 'a la francaise' (without pleats) that end at the hip, giving the look of a peasant jacket.

Many months before I found this gorgeous fabric which I felt was perfect, (for me), for a Caraco Jacket.  The teal quilt fabric is designed by Di Ford-Hall and is part of the Bally Hall collection sold by Andover Fabrics online.  However I was fortunate I could buy it at my local Quilt Shop.

I am one of those costumers, who needs a paper pattern to work off. I had the American Duchess / Simplicity Outlander inspired Pattern 8161, but it did not have the peplum. So I went to Janet Arnold's 'Patterns of Fashion 1' to seek inspiration and a pattern. So to achieve the look I combined the Simplicity and Janet Arnold Pattern to get the look I wanted.

I decided to use the peplum from the B Caraco Jacket describe in Janet Arnold's book, on page 26 and 27.

I combined the Janet Arnold peplum pieces to Simplicity's Outlander inspired paper pattern. It all worked out quite well. So this simple solution has given me the confidence to think about combining patterns in the future.

Lastly the petticoat was to be made.  I used Simplicity's pattern for this, very straight forward and clear instructions.  At first I didn't know what colour to choose, thankfully I had a friend help me choose a mustard yellow to complement the gold highlighting the birds in the Bally Hall fabric.

Our cat, admiring my finished outfit. 

Stay tuned for Part 3 - the accessories.