Chemise Photos

Finished the Chemise de la reines and took the photographs.
They are all posted on my flickr acount here;
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rachaelscostumes/

Sleepy Hollow Riding dress update

Well, i have finally found some fabric that will do for the skirt of the sleepyhollow riding dress. As suspected, i couldnt find any fabric that had a pattern of any similarity to that of the actual dress, so instead i am using a plain two tone, teal and grey, taffetta-ish fabric. It is slightly lighter, i think, than the original fabric and not the exact right colour as i think its a bit less saturated and the colour is a bit brighter than i wanted, but its the best i could find and i really want to start it now. I cut out the toile of the bodice just now so i will make that up tomorrow hopefully, and post pictures obviously.

Also, i have finished the White Chemise de la Reine dresses and the plan currently is to take photographs on monday so i will post an update on that once they are done. I really LOVE my dress, more than i thought i would. Its exactly what i wanted :) I am not as keen on esthers dress though. I fitted it on her last week and while she looked lovely i have gone off the way i have constructed the dress. I wish, instead of a neckline that is gathered in the way it is, if i had made a sturdy bpdoce with a gathered front but maybe a similar collar trim than mine. Anyway, its made and i will know for another time that this technique, whilst not being awful, doesnt work as well as i hoped it would.

Off to bed now, photos of toile will follow in the morning.

Chemise Photos

Just a few quick photos from my first fitting of my Chemise de la reine. As it was made from one of my old patterns that i had made previously, with alterations obviously, it fit perfectly :) The photographs arent great as they were taken by my mum in her lunch break so it was all a bit rushed. Anyway, here you go.









To see larger images, you can click on the photos and see the full size.

My Chemise de la reine

I have made some more progress on the two chemise dresses, I have sewn together the basic shape of my chemise de la reine. Unlike esthers, it has a straight front instead of a gathered front, but it has a gathered trim around the neck. Which i had at first thought i had made too long, but i have changed my mind and decided it is perfect. :) I am really happy with how it looks so far. Esthers dress is at a stage where i cant do anything more without fitting it to her, and as she doesnt finish her exams untill friday, it wont be before then. But i will make the sash for mine and add the sleeves tomorrow and then they are both very close to completion. Yay :)

Esther Chemise de la reine

So i finished my A levels on wednesday (Yay!), and have finally been able to make some progress on the Chemise De la reine I am making for Esther and i have cut out the fabric for the Chemise i am making for myself.
Esthers Dress is made from really thin white fabric with tiny flowers on it, its lovely :) I think its coming out okay, although the gathering on the back is bit odd and needs some fxing. Basically the gathering around the entire neckline is a bit wierd and needs a bit of a rejig. But other than that, htink its coming along nicely. :)



PS, the photos of the sleepy hollw dress are still delayed because I have been revising non stop for the past two weeks and then i had a formal leavers dinner to get ready for yesterday so...no time for dressing up. Excuses, excuses i know. But soon, i promise.

Ignore that last post
Next thing i am going to make are two chemise de la reines for me and my friend esther, because with revision and stuff i have decided i dont really have time to start a robe ala francais, so i am going to go for the simpler garment first and tackle the other dress in the summer when i have more time to take time over it :)
Also, i really love the chemise de la reines and just found the perfect fabric for esthers dress :)

Chemise fabric

This is the white fabric that i found that i am planning on using on the white chemise dress...

Chemise De La Reine - Underwear to outerwear....

The Chemise began as underwear, worn beneath a women's dress, but nearing the end of the Georgian Era the Chemise De la Reine was the height of fashion. The fashion was started by Marie Antoinette who, whilst visiting her private get away the Petit Trianon, insisted on wearing loose fitting simple gowns, in stark contrast to her ostentatious extravagant styles from her early years as queen. This new style of gown was made of cotton lawn or muslin. The early versions of this gown were much like an actual chemise, made of four rectangular cotton yardage, gathered at the neck and waist and tied with a broad sash. Sleeves were full and gathered, stopping just below the elbow. The dress also frequently had a gathered fabric or lace collar.
Portrait artist Vigée le Brun scandalized the masses in 1783 by producing a painting of Queen Marie Antoinette in what appeared to be merely her underwear. However, the queen and women of quality had been going ‘en chemise’ for many years and not just in the privacy of their boudoir. However, as the classes didn't mix, the masses had not been exposed to the new styles of the aristocracy. Ironically, the shocking aspect of the portrait was the lack of formality shown by a monarch, one who had already become infamous for flouting tradition. The Queen was shown without any of the outward symbols of her position and status and, to the culture of those times, naked before her people. At the time this was taken as an insult to her position as queen and the mother of her people, however it also influenced the changing styles of the Georgian era.
Le Brun was forced to remove her painting from the public eye, but like all scandals, it inspired rather than deterred and the Chemise became the symbolic frock of the 1780’s

Chemise dresses

This morning i was sorting through my fabric that i have stored in my garage, most of it is just scraps of leftover fabric from previous costmes, but i came across about five metres of self stripe really light white cotton fabric which should be just enough to make a costume from. I cant remember buying it or why i originally got it, although i must have only got it this year, but i have now decided that in the summer i would really like to make a chemise de la reine.


Introduced by Marie Antoinette, they are generally white, simple dresses and i think they are really pretty. I would like to make some for me and my friend esther possibly. I want to make mine with a more fitted bodice, 3/4 length sleeves and gathered neck trim (like the one shown in the screenshot from the duchess) out ofthe white striped fabric that i already have. Then i want to make one with the gathering on the front of the bodice out of some maybe muslin/cotton lawn fabric.

I cant wait for summer! so many ideas that i want to do!