I finished my first project about a week ago which was an 1830's dress which I made from old materials no pattern just made from photos. Unfortunately I couldn't tell from the picture reference how the front was and thought it opened at the front however when I tried it on I could'nt get into it. I visited the Costume Gallery at Platt Fields in Manchester rows saw it was should have been sewn shut. I then had to unpick the front and sew 3 rows of gathering at the top of the sleeves. I did however see 3lovely examples of corsets which had a pattern and were laid flat so you could tell how they were made. I also made an underskirt and cotton top. When I had it on it felt quite heavy it was certainly warm!
At the moment I have just finished a 1700s jacket. It went o.k except for the scolloped collar which was intricate, next time I won't sew the top of the scollop and oversew it by hand as it did't look neat when it was turned inside out. he pannier was a pain I
I made a 1700s panier but it was not wide enough so shelved two days work, I just finished another one yesterday. If I'd had a complete picture instead of one which was under the corset initially I would have realised it tapered at the front and open with a draw string fastening - the best thing to do is to research first - but would that ruin the fun of discovery I ask myself. Well it would have saved a lot of time and frustration!
