18th century chemise
Perfect timing! I just received this 16" wide embroidered net vintage trim in the mail and I need to start work on my chemise tonight.
I'm following the pattern provided by La Couturiere Parisienne, one of my primary sources for patterns and inspiration on 18th Century French fashion (it is, ironically, a German website with an English version. No French as far as I know!). The site also covers earlier and later eras, but the 18th Century section has been particularly helpful for me.
Instructions
Pattern
Basically, take a rectangle, add on some triangles and some trim, and you have a chemise. Voila!
According to the site, the ruffles seen at the elbow under the main fabric of a robe à la française were often attached to the chemise itself, instead of to the dress.
Thus the trim!
When I was in Los Angeles for the holidays, I was specifically looking for some sort of decorated voile fabric. After searching several stores, I finally found one which sold nothing but natural fabrics and carried wonderful things and wonderful prices. The embroidered voile I selected (after a half hour of comparing and hand-wringing) is very sweet and fairly appropriate for this era of chemise:
closeup:
($4.99/yard, for the curious)
Now to iron the lot of it, determine the measurements, and get to work! With any luck, I may have the main body done tonight, though the neck hole I should get some help with. Since the embroidery runs along both edges of the fabric, I will need to join the fabric at the shoulders, instead of simply folding it over and cutting out a hole in the middle. An extra step, but nothing difficult. More difficult will be cleaning off my studio table to actually get to work!
I'm following the pattern provided by La Couturiere Parisienne, one of my primary sources for patterns and inspiration on 18th Century French fashion (it is, ironically, a German website with an English version. No French as far as I know!). The site also covers earlier and later eras, but the 18th Century section has been particularly helpful for me.
Instructions
Pattern
Basically, take a rectangle, add on some triangles and some trim, and you have a chemise. Voila!
According to the site, the ruffles seen at the elbow under the main fabric of a robe à la française were often attached to the chemise itself, instead of to the dress.
Thus the trim!
When I was in Los Angeles for the holidays, I was specifically looking for some sort of decorated voile fabric. After searching several stores, I finally found one which sold nothing but natural fabrics and carried wonderful things and wonderful prices. The embroidered voile I selected (after a half hour of comparing and hand-wringing) is very sweet and fairly appropriate for this era of chemise:
closeup:
($4.99/yard, for the curious)
Now to iron the lot of it, determine the measurements, and get to work! With any luck, I may have the main body done tonight, though the neck hole I should get some help with. Since the embroidery runs along both edges of the fabric, I will need to join the fabric at the shoulders, instead of simply folding it over and cutting out a hole in the middle. An extra step, but nothing difficult. More difficult will be cleaning off my studio table to actually get to work!