…I just might get this Civil War dress finished. :o) I think it’s going to be that way for a while, but I’ll keep you updated on what I manage to get done.
Since we last met, I finished off the neckline with a very narrow piece of bias trim.
I was going to add the lace along the upper edge like in my inspiration picture…
…but it seemed a bit too much. It seemed like a much neater finish to use the bias. It’s stitched on, trimmed to about 1/8″ and then folded over and whipstitched down.
Okay… WHO SEES WHAT I SEE? Anyone? Notice anything? It wasn’t until I saw it in my pictures that I realized it!
Look at the lace corners… one is folded down and one is folded up… see it? I’ll have to fix that…it’s sort of like an optical illusion and makes one side look lopsided…
I’m going to see if (my) Rebecca might make her a pretty necklace to match the colors in this fabric.
I gathered up the skirt and pinned it around the waist just so you could see what the bottom is going to look like…I realize you’ll have to use your imagination quite a bit on this one, but I hope you like it so far…
There is still plenty to do to make it even prettier! Hope you’ll stick around to see it to the end!
See you when I can,
Blessings, Jeanne
Now that you mention it, Jeanne….yes I did spot it! Like you, I would be correcting it also.
Well, at least you did get something done on the dress today–sometimes even just 15 min. in the sewing room can make a difference in your whole day!! I do like the bias binding on the neck–very neatly done! I agree, more lace would be too much (unless you had chosen narrower lace–something to think about for a future dress); the bias binding is “just right”.
The late Nancy Ziemen wrote a book, “10…20…30 Minutes to Sew”, teaching us how even short bursts of sewing can get a lot accomplished over the course of several days–and it is certainly better than waiting for a “big enough” chunk of time for sewing! (I don’t know about you, but no “chunk of time” is Ever going to be big enough to get all done that I want!! LOL)
I hope George is continuing to improve; I know some days progress seems infinitessimally small, but I’m sure it’s there! Prayers continue.
So pretty so pretty, Jeanne! Yes, the lace around the top would be too much, unless it was a thinner piece, like Charlotte mentioned.
It’s amazing what you can do in a small amount of time if you keep at it. I know you can’t spend all day in the sewing room, much as you would like, but every little bit helps, and I can see the makings of a sweet, summery dress already! Just by adding the skirt really shows how it will look soon. I can’t wait to see the other little things you might be adding, and how you will be “doing” Rebecca’s hair, with a hat, bow, or something special? I’m pretty sure this outfit needs some fingerless lace gloves too!
Keep cool if you can!
Well, for goodness sakes, I forgot to tell you that I just got a new doll yesterday! She’s a stunner, AG # 49, with medium skin, black/brown hair, and most of all, she has beautiful blue eyes! Can you believe I have never had a blue eyed doll? So now my collection of dolls is finally complete……..well, for now at least!
Congratulations on your new doll, Linda. A new friend for your girls will be so much fun. Do you have a name picked out already? Are you making her historical or modern?
How nice to have a blue-eyed girl. Three of my five, Caroline, MG and Nellie have blue eyes. I didn’t plan it, it just worked out that way. I wanted MG and Caroline for the unique mold, unique eyes and unique eyes, respectively and Nellie is my favorite Josefina mold with freckles.
Laura, my new doll is modern. I have enough historical dolls, and Ivy needs someone to share her clothes with and to stand with. It works out really well. However, they don’t have any modern items to stand by, just the two of them and their pets. I have no room for more bigger things,and the newer items that AG is making aren’t to my liking.
I love the bias trim. Will this dress have short puffed sleeves? With bias bands on the sleeves? I really am liking the bias trim. A necklace will be pretty with this neckline, and Linda’s suggestion of lace gloves seems perfect to me. Have you chosen buttons for the back?
Even if your time is limited, with your experience, you can work quite quickly and the dress will be done at the perfect time — paychecks are coming out today and Monday.
I hope yesterday’s flowers are still going strong. That was such a pretty arrangement. What did you decide about the wall clock? The black rim on the clock should look nice with the new hardware for the cabinets. You have so many things happening at once that — how do you keep all of them going at the same time?
Congratulations to Linda on her new, blue-eyed doll. Every outfit looks new on a new doll.
Yep, found the error, but only after you mentioned that there was one. 🙂
I too find the bias perfect on this dress. I’m glad you didn’t add more lace either. I like this fabric with less fuss.
I think the small segments of time spent sewing are good ones. If you look at it as better for the eyes and the body it even adds to the appeal.
Congrats to Linda on the new dolly. A newbie arrived here yesterday too. So, now we have two red headed boy dolls who are brothers. Both bought from the same lady and they are now getting used to their new home together. Actually, the first one saw the second one and told me I just had to buy him too. 🙂 These are Sylvia Natterer dolls 13″.
And I’m with Marilyn on the clock. Hope you are keeping it or if not, have a new one in mind.
I wonder if anyone has their crew dressed for the 4th?
Happy July 4th extended weekend.
I saw it and actually went back later to make sure it was just pinned as an example of how it would look and not sewn but thinking I would seem bossy if I pointed it out. Next time maybe I’ll speak up. I wonder how it would look if a very narrow zigzag stich was used and the triangle cut off very close to the stitching. What do you think? Might be worth a try on a scrap. It’s a lovely dress already. As everyone says, can’t wait to see the accessories you always come up with. I don’t think it needs sleeves as it would take away from the summery look of the dress.
Hope you get more sewing time and have a relaxing weekend.
What a lovely start to the dress. It’s going to be enjoyable to see what you do with this one. I knew you would ask Rebecca to make one of her gorgeous necklaces to enhance this dress.
Even with just an hour of sewing, you have accomplished a great deal. I gree with Linda, fingerless gloves are the perfect touch.
How beautifully Rebecca’s dress is turning out, Jeanne. The bias around the neck edge is just right. Your work is admirable.
I trust that whatever time you find to sew, you’ll feel satisfied. Trusting the daily routines are continuing smoothly and more efficiently as the days go by.
Blessings.
Oh, Rebecca’s dress is so beautiful so far! I love how you did the bodice. The lace is gorgeous!
An hour a day moves you along, Jeanne, even if that’s all the time you have.
I mentioned before, I’m spring/summer cleaning different parts of our house, one project at a time. I’ve cleaned and sorted out cupboards above the washer and dryer, the drawers underneath the washer and dryer. The cupboard under the laundry room sink, the storage cabinet in the garage, the closet under the basement stairs, the kitchen pantry and cleaned the fridge and sorted out two dressers and a huge closet in the guest room!! It’s taken me two months practically and I’ve packed many items for a pet spay and neutering yard sale in August. I have taken my time so I don’t run out of steam and I feel so excited with all I’ve accomplished. It had to be planned though- every step. I still have more to do but I’m organized!
Jeanne, you’ve had so much on your plate this year, but you’re prepared and you do what you can, which is all anyone can do. You’ve planned well which prepared you.
Linda, how exciting to add another lovely doll to your group. She sounds beautiful. I’ll have to look her up. Have you named her?
Paula, yes, I named her. It is Scarlett Rose O’Malley! Her mother is Mexican and her father is Irish, which explains her last name. I just like the name Scarlett and the Rose goes with it nicely as a tribute to her mother’s Mexican heritage. She is medium skin, and has beautiful blue eyes. I have sent pictures to Jeanne, so maybe you will see her soon!
I just heard that a lot of Carbondale is without power. I hope that’s not you. No power means no sewing, no new column, and maybe no cooking. No AC. A refrigerator-full of food spoiling. Definitely not good. If all or any of this is true, you probably can’t tell us, but you will as soon as you can. Good luck to all of you in Carbondale and the surrounding area. The grocery stores are going to love helping all of you restock as soon as they can restock themselves.
On sleeves or sleeveless for your newest creation, do you know when sleeveless dresses first appeared? They were fashionable in the 20s. So — a little research. Apparently sleeveless dresses appeared between 1910 and 20, and during the 20s, they began to be acceptable for day wear.
Bare shoulders were acceptable at various time earlier than that, and, in a book about Charles Worth, I read that court dress required bare shoulders. When fashion required covered shoulders, fashionable ladies pushed their dresses off their shoulders at court, leaving red marks that showed. This was considered better than having special dresses made that would be dowdy outside of court. I would have thought that they would have had the special dresses made and then worn them elsewhere to indicate that the dresses had been made for court, sort of like post-revolutionary French women wore red ribbons around their necks to indicate that they had lost someone during the revolution — meaning that they were related to dead aristocrats. Fashion is a wonderful thing.