Double Breasted Waistcoat: The Construction

So, this is the construction page for the Double breasted waistcoat I started in May of 2015, and finally finished at the end of January, 2016.  Nope, there won't be too much information on the garment on this page--already did that on the documentation post.  Sadly, there are also photos missing because they either got lost, or I forgot to take them.

HSM January--Procraftination: Double Breasted Waistcoat

This is a fairly simple project--which turned out to be frought with complications that lead to my procrastinating for a good while.  This project is a men's double breasted waistcoat in a brocade and is my entry into the Historical Sew Monthly: Procrastination.

The Find and Sources
This project was based on one residing in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.  This particular example is from New York, 1853, and is no longer on view.  Naturally, the image of the garment on the museum webpage is my primary source.  I used a 1890s cutting system to draft it.

Revenge of the Pluderhose; the Madness Returns

UPDATE 3-19-18: I am currently reworking this drafting system to streamline and make it a bit simpler to measure.  While I was going to just edit this one, I will have to take all new photos as well, so I will work on publishing a fresh version (which will be linked here).  I did change a few things before I made this decision, so if this makes less sense than you might think, then it's my bad.

This is the first of an intended series of posts on drafting and making up a suit of German (or Swedish) Renaissance men's clothing.  Later in the century, that is--Elizabethan era, not Lansknecht--although the patterning could be used for that as well.  Last time I wrote on this, it was part of a mad frenzy of sewing the Svante Sture suite

The garment is somewhat complicated, and I am sure has been the cause of many grey hairs in reenactors--partially because there are no patterns or instructions for them online (ok, there is one, but it is not remotely period--it seems to be based on pajama pants).  Reconstructing history also sells a pattern, which I have no experience with, and no desire to.  So, when I (for some unknown, warped, reason) decided I wanted to make another suit, I figured it would be a good thing to show how I draft a pair, since last time I made them I didn't have the blog.  Plus, the last pair didn't have the foundation breeches.  This pattern is based on the pairs worn by Nils and Erik Sture (mostly Nils, because Erik's pair of foundation breeches is stretched in a way that happens with the sewing.  You'll see).

I figure it will take around three parts--one each for the foundation breeches and the shell, and one on making them up.  The foundation breeches were made of a fine leather, similar to chamois or a soft deerskin--sadly this isn't an option for me, and I will likely use a heavy cotton (either canvas or ticking).  Depending on the particular style, the foundation breeches can be full length (and sewn to the legband at the bottom), as in Nils or free at the bottom (as I believe Erik's was).

Arnold, Janet. Patterns of Fashion 3.  Pp. 64

Fabric Covered Buttons, a la Georgian

UPDATED 3-27-17 with photos using the correct materials.

In the Georgian period (which encompasses Regency), you often see fancy embroidered buttons on various garments--justaucorps, waistcoats, and breeches.  For those of us who prefer plainer garment, there are also plenty of examples of plain ones--especially towards the end of the 18th century and beginning of the 19th.  Obviously, these are embroidered on cloth...but how do you take the cloth and turn it into a flat button without visible stitches?  It's really not difficult, and how else are you going to have buttons covered in the same silk as your coat or waistcoat.

Mariner's Cuff on a Coat.  1785-1790

Projects of 2015, a Review

I didn't get nearly as much done as I would have liked last year--I had major motivation issues.  I found that when I work on a single project, I tend to maybe work on it for a couple of hours at a time, then set it up, having gotten tired of it--which really isn't too productive.; which means, when I have a project that takes a couple of months, my total number of projects goes down drastically.  I can say that I finished a couple of major projects, at least.

This year, I will try the opposite--work on multiple projects at a time, with varying (or no) deadlines, and discuss my planned projects for 2016 (although planned is such a strong word...hoped for would be better).  But to start, I will go over everything I remember making this year.



A pair of Norse shoes, based on the Oseburg 303s.  They look terrible.  In part this is because of the leather, but also because I made them for winter wear--to wear over multiple layers of socks--so they are somewhat loose.
11 hours of construction time, and many, many more patterning.