ballgown

I have to admit that I wasn't very excited about this dress before I started. I am a big fan of renaissance dress. This wasn't my thing. But, as I worked up the design I got excited. I used a beaded purse that my mother had made for me as inspiration. Lavender bridal satin is the main part with blue velvet for the trim. A two layered underskirt is made of thin lemon yellow satin and sheer light lavender fabric on top. I even wore period drawers and a corset. I will admit the corset wasn't period. I didn't have enough time to make one but I will fix that before next time.

Here you can see the back of the medici girdle (belt). I wore a wig with this to cover my short hair. After making a bun in the hair, I put the flowers and feathers in. I used a small vile (like the ones that come on single stem roses) for the flowers. Even 4 hours later they were as fresh as when I took them out of the garden.

This was the reason for the gown. The Blue and Grey Ball at the Civil War Weekend in Peterboro New York. My husband and I attended as Mr. and Mrs. James Doyle. Square dancing was a challange but I survived. My mom even sent me with dance cards to hand out, complete with little pencils. My husband's suit was one of his real suits that I changed the buttons to silver metal ones and re-ironed the collar. Shirt had the same treatment. I also made him a waistcoat with a watch pocket. He was much more graceful at the dancing than I.

Since I had a few minutes and a piece of fabric I loved and didn't know what to do with I made a new ballgown. This one could be for an older lady or even a fancy dinner or visiting gown. From what I have gathered ladies wore light colors for evening functions. Mostly because of the poor lighting by candles and lamps. You wouldn't want to wear a black gown and get lost in the shadows. I don't know the fiber content of this fabric is but it has a look of silk satin. The color is what I call clear sky blue. In some light the shadows change to a lavender color. This dress was made with only 4 yards (65 width). The entire thing was lined with a very light blue cotton. I borrowed an idea from the Elizabethans for this dress. I used rings and ribbon to tie the skirt to the top. when I tried it on the skirt kept sliding down on the corset. Tying it together kept my under stuff from showing. There is one stay up the front to keep the glass pearl buttons in a line.

The dress fits me better than my dummy. Dummy is still the size I was at 16. I think I have added a few inches since then. The top was a Past Patterns pattern. I had to add a piece to either side of the tail. It didn't work right in the pattern. My mistake or theirs I don't know. It has 6 glass pearl buttons at the back. If you wore a small bustle you could use this for a 1870's or 80's impression.

Here I am. I forgot my gloves! You can see the 3 tiers in this picture. The dress was intended to be worn with a very small hoop. Mine was only 82 inches at the bottom. It could be worn with 4 or 5 petticoats to give it the correct silhouette. It was a very comfortable dress and having a smaller hoop helped during the dancing in a small hall.