Busy indeed! I'm having trouble even getting started on the handful of sewing projects I have. :D Do you have any recommendations for costuming fabric sites, btw? I've found some 1860s reproduction fabrics that I really like... but they're quilting cottons, and I really don't want to pay $10 a yard if I don't have to.
Hmm... it depends slightly on what style you're wanting to make; some things are suitable only in wools or silks. Reproduction cotton prints tend to run about $9; that's unfortunately the expected price nowadays. I've found them sometimes at Hancocks, where you can at least use a coupon
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Thanks! Actually, since I'm planning to represent the German immigrants in the area, I'm aiming for something like this--"a high-necked bodice with white blouse, a colorful skirt and a cotton apron." So quilting cottons will work fine, I think; most of the fabrics I've seriously considered are Moda, which is good quality. They're just expensive!
Oh, how interesting! Where are you going to do this? I love traditional dress, and it's always interesting to see how certain groups added their own touches to fashionable dress.
That's the idea (I'm hung up on leather - because that's expensive and so hard to sew, and leather substitutes are So Icky to wear)... and I'm not sure about that one, either. Any ideas?
Well, the Grays have to be leather or something that LOOKS like it -- Doc Smith has Spoken! I suppose if one was re-imagining it you could just look for some kind of light gray and dark-gray military uniform design that looks cool.
I could imagine how to BUILD one, but there's nothing I can imagine that LOOKS like one to start with.
Well, I've always assumed that Doc Smith meant smooth leather, which has a shine or dull luster. However, sueded leather is historically more common for garments (particularly for trousers) than smooth leather. And unlike smooth leather, suede has more than a few good textile imitations. So suedecloth of some kind I can do. I just have the lingering concerns about appearance.
As for the uniform itself, the original cover illustration of Gray Lensman is pretty clear: jodhpurs/breeches and high-collared short tunic. (Also it's shiny. One strike against the suede idea. :/) And very very formfitting. But I have a pair of vintage jodhpurs that fit me very well, except for being too short; it won't be hard to take those half apart and make a pattern from them. And the tunic/jacket won't be hard either. Plus matching boots, but gray has been pretty popular this year. It's mainly the material that I'm hung up on
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Do you have any recommendations for costuming fabric sites, btw? I've found some 1860s reproduction fabrics that I really like... but they're quilting cottons, and I really don't want to pay $10 a yard if I don't have to.
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I could imagine how to BUILD one, but there's nothing I can imagine that LOOKS like one to start with.
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As for the uniform itself, the original cover illustration of Gray Lensman is pretty clear: jodhpurs/breeches and high-collared short tunic. (Also it's shiny. One strike against the suede idea. :/) And very very formfitting. But I have a pair of vintage jodhpurs that fit me very well, except for being too short; it won't be hard to take those half apart and make a pattern from them. And the tunic/jacket won't be hard either. Plus matching boots, but gray has been pretty popular this year. It's mainly the material that I'm hung up on ( ... )
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