Governor’s New Clothes

Carla and I have been busy working on the Governor’s New Clothes these past few weekends.  Trim has been hand sewn onto the burgundy silk, and the finger weaving has been completed for the green suit.  I was hoping to get things more assembled this weekend, but we still have some eyelet holes to make.  I  pinned the tabs on the doublet so we could see where the eyelet holes needed to be placed.  So far, we’re pretty pleased with out it’s turning out.

Carla pinned the trunk hose to the ironing board so we could see how the “poof” poofed.  She still has to cartridge pleat the top onto the waist band, but they are looking quite spiff as well.  I love the detail at the waist band, but it’s hard to see in the picture.

Carla/Olivia Carlyle showed off, at Night Out of Town, the finalized trim pattern and wrapped button choice for the olive wool doublet for the Governor’s new clothes.

Sandy/Eleanor was working on wrapped buttons at the event

Neat color combinations, right?

Originally posted by Sandy Toscano at http://eleanors-closet.livejournal.com/

Style and Pattern

To get started on the Jamestown Suit Project we all reviewed lots of images of the period and looked through our trusty Janet Arnold Patterns of Fashion books.  The Jamestown staff had decided on a fancy silk suit and a nice wool suit.  Finally in January, we drafted out pattern 19c on page 85 for the doublet and the trunk hose on pages 75 and 91 for pants.  We’re keeping the doublet pattern the same for both, but they are getting very different trim treatments.

Fabric type and selection (and color!)

We knew what types of fabric, silk and wool; we just had to source them.  While that was fun, cost had to be kept in mind.  It’s amazing the quality of silk fabrics out there and the expense to go along.  I ordered swatches from 5 or 6 different online retailers of silk and wool.  We were interested in a fine weave with enough body to drape (or poof) properly (important for the pants), trim, and put up with metal buttons. We finally settled on JB Silks as they had a Duchesse Satin/Peau de Soie that has a beautiful hand for the fancy suit and silk/wool blend shantung for the not so fancy, wool suit.  These are gorgeous fabrics.  We’ve selected heavy linen as the interlining, and a light wool flannel for padding.

Trim – what and where

The silk suit is a rich burgundy/mulberry color.  It is getting silk ribbon trim in a tan color.  More labor to stitch down the trim as we’re doing two rows of narrow ribbon, but I think it will be worth it.  The original ribbon color we selected wasn’t available in the narrow size, so we ordered something lighter in the hopes of being able to dye the ribbon to something closer to the right color.  We did 5 or 6 test batches of various colors and gave up.  We ended up ordering the tan color that works well, just not what we originally wanted.  Yea, we now have a lot of pink ribbon that will be sold at the Gardiners Company Store.  Live and learn.
The silk/wool suit will get finger woven trim.  The suit is a dark green, very pretty color.  We ordered silk yarns from an on-line source and then ended up at our local yarn shop.  A lace weight two-ply silk yarn in green and rust was a very cost effective way of getting enough yardage in the right colors.  This will be a single row of trim in the usual places.  Lots of finger weaving has to take place over the next few months.

Buttons

Buttons for the silk suit are going to be hollow/pierced, brass buttons from Bucklecastings.  We’re going to have them gilded by Lesley Wilson at Darkwood Armory.  So that’s all in the works.
We’re going to make thread wrapped buttons for the silk/wool green suit, using the silk yarn we have for the finger weaving.  I think that will bring it all together.  There are just some really long sections to make, so we’ll have to work out how to accomplish that.  Probably a two-person job J.

Construction

We’re still sorting out what sort of lining material to use.  While we were cutting out the burgundy silk, we abandoned the cream silk taffeta we were going to use for a gold silk taffeta I had in my stash.  It just looked better with the tan silk ribbon we ended up with for the trim.  We’ll see how the cream silk taffeta looks with the green silk/wool.  Maybe we’ll dye the cream silk a peachy color and see how that goes
J.

This is the basic shell sewn together and the tan ribbon placed.
So that’s where we are with the Jamestown project thus far.

Originally posted by Laura Mellin at http://attack-laurel.livejournal.com/

I’ve finished the drawn-work on the cuffs of the gathered shirt while so pinned (to the couch), though, so it hasn’t been an utter waste of time.  Also, I got the embroidery pattern for the nightcap nailed down today, and I’m ridiculously pleased with it.  It will go on sale through Reconstructing History as soon as I’m done with the cap itself, maybe sooner, I don’t know.  But it’s pretty, and I’m pleased with it.

Originally posted by Laura Mellin at http://attack-laurel.livejournal.com/

Gardiner’s Company, of which I am the Education Officer (it sounds fancy, but all it really means is I HAVE THE POWER OF LIFE AND DEATH OVER EVERYONE’S CLOTHES MUAH HAHAHAHAHA give advice to newer members on their kit), has been asked by the Jamestown Settlement and Yorktown Victory Center to create two entire suites of clothing for the new Governor’s House in the living history Fort.  They’ll be displayed, and they will actually be able to be worn, but the person in charge of the project says they can only be worn if we’re all very, very good.

This is really exciting.  Gardiner’s and Jamestown, we go way back.  We’ve had some really good times together.  I, personally, have been a volunteer interpreter since before I was with Bob.  Other members of Gardiner’s have been volunteers there since before there even was a “Gardiner’s Company”.  It’s a lovely place.

But now, it’s getting even lovelier with the new Governor’s House, which has been furnished with gorgeous pieces (including an amazing four-post bed with soft furnishings that some members of Gardiner’s have also been consulting on).  We are going to provide two shirts, two suits (matching doublet and pants), a set of ruffs, a set of falling band and cuffs, stockings, leather gloves with embroidered gauntlets, and a nightcap.  We are going to be paid, even.  I was so excited, I threw in the nightcap gratis, because they really, really wanted one, but didn’t think their budget would stretch that far (and they’re right; the nightcap would eat up about 3/4 of the budget in time alone).  But we get to make clothes for a museum!

WE GET TO MAKE CLOTHES FOR A MUSEUM!!!!!!!eleventy!!!!

The suits are going to be made by Eleanor Hamilton (SCA) and Olivia Carlisle (SCA), I’m spearheading the linens, with help from Victoria Dye (Esther Pickering in the SCA), and others TBD.  Eleanor and Olivia have drafted all the clothes patterns (suits, shirts), and I drafted the accessories (hey, cutting out rectangles is hard.  Stop laughing), and, more importantly, I’ve designed all the embroidery patterns.

I plan to blog my part of the proceedings here, with the tag “governors new clothes”.  Gardiner’s is also on Facebook, but I am not, so Eleanor will post links there.

We’re all madly excited.  We got final approval on the drawings at the February training weekend.  Our due date for the main pieces is mid-June, so expect me to get more and more panicky, or, if I’m a good girl and do my work, more and more smug.  The secondary pieces I hope to deliver by November, for Foods and Feasts.

This is a huge honour for Gardiner’s and a huge honour for me.  I’m so excited.