progress thus far

When last I posted I was attempting to understand the style and patterning of the Italian Renaissance. Thanks to some very great advice research and help from friends I can say I at least have a direction And you can see the concept to the right here. Although I am opting for a chemise that is cut similar to the bodice and shows just above the bodice with a little bit of embroidery or black work When time allows.



This past weekend I went and double checked the fit of my chemise and the test bodice. Ursula convinced me that my sleeves will most likely need additional length beyond what the pattern called for due to the pulling of the chemise sleeve up through the bodice sleeve in puffs. Surprisingly enough the bodice fit relatively well as did the chemise. With the initial fitting being complete, I've worked this week on finishing the chemise. To get the additional length I opted to add a 4 inch deep cuff ending in a ruffle. I will be closing this cuff with the use of ribbon strung through the cuff itself and tied after the chemise is on. This will give me a very tight fit on the cuff and insure that the fullness of the sleeves remains where it can be puffed easily and not caught down around my hands. The neckline still has not been chosen due to the fact that we want to show slightly above the bodice and fitting up the sleeves into the chemise will affect how the bodice fits. My goal now is to have a bodice ready to be fit this weekend in the hopes that Mary will be kind while she is here and fit me and then help me adjust the neckline of both the chemise and the bodice.



As I was showing Ursula the fabrics that I had to work with, as we had found some additional fabrics when we went thrift shopping, as well as the pictures and the pattern I was working from she noted the additional overcoat in one of the photos and we started drafting that. We did not finish the draft however because we recognized that how the chemise and the bodice with the sleeves fits is going to affect how the overcoat lays. Therefore we will finish drafting this piece on February 7, which gives me my next date of having things completed. to the right here you will see the new fabric that the over piece will be made of and to the left, the picture we are working from. at this point you will note that we have decided not to use the other bolder brocade as truthfully it was promised for another project.

And with that update I'll get back to sewing as I really do need a bodice I this weekend and they still need to do some cleaning before a welcome people into my home for sewing weekend.