Stitch Witchery

[Mrs. V]

Yup. I got picked on this weekend for my attire. Now mind you, I did not know this person, but she literally came up to me and said,
"Let me tell you what is wrong with your dress". From the fabric..cotton should have a print! To the sleeve shape..seriously. I held my tongue, as I strive to be a genteel woman. Now, I make my dresses, using period correct patterns and techniques, so I was very offended by this person. Am I new to the business? As a reenactor, yes, as a person who does Living History presentations, no.

That said? I did have several very nice "costume" experiences. One, my drawers were evidently meandering their way to my ankles while I was dancing..we'll just say some adjustment to the closure is in order..had a lady ask me to come outside with her for a moment..so I did..reluctantly. She said, you're about to lose your drawers, how can we help you?" I basically told her to shield while I shucked! She did, and with no one the wiser. I appreciated her kindness and concern. Tripping over my drawers would have been beyond embarrassing!

Second..Sunday morning I wore my new summer sheer, and after song leading for a worship service, visited a gal who was set up with her sewing machines. She was so incredibly kind. She told me how wonderful my dress looked, and said to me that she wanted me to look even better in it, and I could do it with a few easy tweaks.."You're short waisted, so bring the waist up, you can gather the bodice even more", and she confirmed for me that the arm syck is too low..to be honest, I didn't feel as pretty in it as I do my other pieces..

And that folks, is how you Help someone. So to the two kind and helpful ladies, and really all the welcoming people I've met at these reenactments,
Thank you.

 

[Nathanb1]

Yup. I got picked on this weekend for my attire. Now mind you, I did not know this person, but she literally came up to me and said,
"Let me tell you what is wrong with your dress". From the fabric..cotton should have a print! To the sleeve shape..seriously. I held my tongue, as I strive to be a genteel woman. Now, I make my dresses, using period correct patterns and techniques, so I was very offended by this person. Am I new to the business? As a reenactor, yes, as a person who does Living History presentations, no.

That said? I did have several very nice "costume" experiences. One, my drawers were evidently meandering their way to my ankles while I was dancing..we'll just say some adjustment to the closure is in order..had a lady ask me to come outside with her for a moment..so I did..reluctantly. She said, you're about to lose your drawers, how can we help you?" I basically told her to shield while I shucked! She did, and with no one the wiser. I appreciated her kindness and concern. Tripping over my drawers would have been beyond embarrassing!

Second..Sunday morning I wore my new summer sheer, and after song leading for a worship service, visited a gal who was set up with her sewing machines. She was so incredibly kind. She told me how wonderful my dress looked, and said to me that she wanted me to look even better in it, and I could do it with a few easy tweaks.."You're short waisted, so bring the waist up, you can gather the bodice even more", and she confirmed for me that the arm syck is too low..to be honest, I didn't feel as pretty in it as I do my other pieces..

And that folks, is how you Help someone. So to the two kind and helpful ladies, and really all the welcoming people I've met at these reenactments,
Thank you.

Awesome! Unfortunately, there are a lot of those "thread counters" out there and instead of being helpful, just criticize. We had one of those once, who apparently didn't like my "name" and accused me of being a man--and being unknowledgeable to boot. She's not here any more. I hope we're a safer place than that! I would never walk up to someone and whale away at them like that--plus, I'd love to see your dresses!

 

[Mrs. V]

 

[Mrs. V]

 

[Mrs. V]

View attachment 327035

@Nathanb1 your wish is my command!

 

[Nathanb1]

Wow. That first woman was an idiot. Jealousy, maybe? Those are amazing!!!! (And I have a degree in this stuff, so THERE.)

Edit: I was going to add she's full of something found largely around cavalry camps. Just sayin'.

 

[Mrs. V]

Wow. That first woman was an idiot. Jealousy, maybe? Those are amazing!!!! (And I have a degree in this stuff, so THERE.)

Edit: I was going to add she's full of something found largely around cavalry camps. Just sayin'.

Thank you. I should have asked her what her primary sources were....*snerk* and since I ride, I know exactly what you are talking about...The first dress is linen, and I hand sewed the cannon pleats and all the lace trim. Second dress is a semi-sheer that has a tone on tone vertical stripe. I have another dress that I made maybe 8yrs ago? I like the way it looks and will probably do up another using the same pattern..I have some lovely coral colored cloth...

 

[Nathanb1]

Thank you. I should have ask her what her primary sources were....*snerk* and since I ride, I know exactly what you are talking about...The first dress is linen, and I hand sewed the cannon pleats and all the lace trim. Second dress is a semi-sheer that has a tone on tone vertical stripe. I have another dress that I made maybe 8yrs ago? I like the way it looks and will probably do up another using the same pattern..I have some lovely coral colored cloth...

I think your fabric choices are wonderful. I am not picky about what "style" anyone is wearing, unless it's obviously from MUCH later. To me, the giveaways for modern fabric are modern dyes (for example, colors that didn't exist until after WWII) and obviously modern combos with cotton. There's a sheen a cotton-poly blend has that 100% cotton--no matter how well-pressed--will never have. It's jarring to me. Styles? I'm from the wartime frontier of Texas (as we call it, the line of civilization) and a long line of poor folks. You save, re-sew, etc. I'm pretty sure you would likely see a wide variety of re-purposed items if you were in the real world of 1860+ How can anyone not figure that out? Did they not read Little Women? The constant re-making of garments, especially in the South during wartime or away from big cities would have to go on all the time. Of course, the most famous example:

On a more serious note, my grandmother's family migrated from Mississippi after the war. She was a talented seamstress--and so were all her daughters, although my mom would prefer being horseback. My mother grew up during the depression...I rarely had "new" clothes other than those they made...if I hadn't had an aunt who owned a children's clothing store (Tots to Teens ) I probably wouldn't have had new clothes. But man, was I well-dressed!