Chiton/tuncia discovery/observations on belting and draping

Jun 13, 2009 19:22

In my earlier postings on embroidering the red roman tunica, I mentioned having to turn it upside down, because the embroidery really needed to be on the bottom to be visible under the palla.

Well I finally removed all the buttons off the top. It made working on what is now the bottom hem much easier.
I had planned on waiting until I had gotten all the way across the front with the embroidery before trying it on to see how it looked at a distance.  But I decided to go ahead and try it on during a break because I had embroidered so long this morning that my eyeballs were literallly sore and throbbing.

So I grabbed a bunch of safety pins and pinned up the new top edge and tried it on. This time I had the first set of pins at the very corners so it would form more of a "sleeve". And I belted  up high and tight right under my breasts.

I was amazed at what a difference it made. I always wondered why in so many depictions on statuary that the spaces between the buttons/pins have such a nice gap.. It's because the fabric is being pulled down but   in front and in back by a tightly tied belt. When  you tie it up under your breasts and pull the fabric snug, it's just like a bra and the pressure of the pull drags the space between the buttons open.

It also causes the center of the front neck opening to drape in a more dramatic V. I thought it was because the fabrics were filmy, and that is the case, but even with my not so filmy lightweight linen, the pull makes it behave so.

I will need a full length mirror to be sure my hem is even though, that takes some tweaking. It also has the feel of the Josephine gowns, which were also emulating Greek and roman costume. That adds to the feeling of rightness.

The drape on the hem looks much better with it tied up high. It pleats and drapes more evenly than when it is at my hips. I still look big, but belted from up high has the same advantages as when you wear Italian Ren with the high waist.

And I am soooo happy with how the embroidery looks from far off. Because it's near the ground it looks like a vine pattern from regular eye level... you can't tell it's acutally bees till you look closer. I am soo soo happy with how it looks. Now if my eyeballs will just hold out till I get finished!

costume, tunic/stola, embroidery

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