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[lesmisloony]

Hi all!  I'm Loony, and I'm delurking a bit to ask some advice... or, I guess... feedback?  Something like that.

I've decided to venture into the world of sewing (and will have help from my very talented grandmother) this summer, and of course I want a robe à la française.  This will be my first attempt at a ballgown, but with the help of google I'

Comments

[isara]

JP Ryan is going to be your best bet for the gown, as nothing even comes close, but I'll warn you - it's really, really not an easy pattern. You will want lots of fitting help for that one. demode has her construction diary here: 1760's Robe a la Francaise. Do check out her other construction diaries for this era - the other dresses she draped, but they have great construction advice.

For the underthings, JP Ryan's stays are faaaabulous. They went together a dream for me. Stay away from the Butterick or Simplicity stays. My construction notes from putting together the strapless stays are here (with supplies list) and the finished project here.

I used JP Ryan's pocket hoops pattern, too. Very easy to put together, but I think they're a bit big, or are angled a bit high. I'm going to make them again, a little smaller with the angle a bit downward. And yes, they can fit bottles of champagne...

For the reed, I went to The Caning Shop. I prefer the flat oval reed, but many other folks use the flat reed. I used the 1/4" in my green stays, but I think I'm going to try the 3/8" next time.

Oh, and I ordered all of my patterns from JP Ryan directly, and she was very helpful when I had questions via email.