I see there was some discussion about the spelling of Ric Rac and Rick Rack… I think either way goes… I looked on Ebay and typed in Ric Rac and got 4300+ listings, and then typed in Rick Rack and got 4300+ lisings for it spelled this way too! So no need to correct your spelling when it comes to ric rac!
Several of you asked about the trim I used on Lea’s dress, thinking it was ric rac… it’s not, it’s just as I mentioned… a cluny lace trim…which is considered a bobbin lace made from a thicker cotton thread…it’s out there… you can find it in stores today. There are hundreds of different styles and designs… once you see a close up of my pictures, you’ll recognize it when you see it…
I’ve had these 3 hanks of it for several years and assume mine is probably vintage…I’ve had it that long! I have pink and a lighter pink and yellow.
Here is a closer picture of the pink… so you can see a little better the real color of it…
Here is a close up picture of the lace on the right side…
…and here is a picture of it shown on the back side…
I took a few more pictures to see if the color was any better this time…this one shows the cluny lace on the front pretty well..
This is how I added it to my dress and got it even. I cut my dress out a little differently than the Keeper’s Dolly Duds pattern said to. Instead of sharp scallops, I rounded the inside of them, and made mine more “wavy-like”… if you know what I mean… Then I took a glue stick and along the edge, maybe 1/8” edge or so, I dabbed it about 4 or 5 inches at a time and laid my cluny lace on that edge with the flat edge along the scalloped edge of the fabric. Then I carefully and kind of slowly stitched just enough to catch the waves of the lace… After that I used a zig zag stitch along the edge and then turned that zig zagged edge to the back, pressed it well, and then topstitched it on the front. Look at my picture again and you’ll see what I mean…
The next thing I worked on today was a slip to go under the dress… since it has dusty rose tones to it, I decided to use some ruffled rose colored netting for the slip… I added a small yoke to keep it from being bulky right at the waist. It’s very pretty! :o)
The snaps are all sewn to the back of the dress and the handwork is all finished! It can be tied in a pretty bow now!
Then I decided I wanted to add some bows to the shoulders, but I searched in some books I had to make sure it was “a thing” back at the turn of the century… fortunately for me, it was! Here are some pictures to show you the different ways it was done…
I happened to have some Baby Pink wired ribbon that was a nice color to match my Cluny lace… and this is what I came up with… I wasn’t crazy about how wide the boat neck of the dress was… and these bows help camouflage it.
I still haven’t decided how to fix her hair, but here are a few more pictures…
Lea found the shoe drawer and it didn’t take her long to find some pretty pink Mary Janes!
Well, that’s it for today!
I’ll see you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Lea’s dress is coming along nicely, Jeanne, and thanks for all the nice close pictures of the cluny lace and how you attached it. I use Roxanne’s Glue-Baste-It with the needle-nose applicator to attach trims that way–you can get a really fine bead of glue exactly where you want it that way. Then I stab-pin thru the trim and garment and into the ironing board as I move along the glue basting. It only takes less than a minute for the glue to dry enough that you can carefully remove the pins. Then I let it finish drying before I start sewing. I’ve used glue stick in the past, too, but it’s just not as precise. (Although it sure does come in handy in other sewing applications!)
I love Lea’s petticoat, too. So pretty!! And I actually liked the neckline of her dress as it was, but for a particular era, the bow treatment works better.
I will try to get some pictures loaded onto my computer tonight, and maybe send a few to Jeanne tomorrow or Friday, depending on how my time goes.
Hi Charlotte,
I just used the glue stick turned on its side to catch the very edge…
Well, presto chango… no bows on the shoulders anymore… call me fickle!
Thanks Charlotte,
Blessings, Jeanne
Have you ever tried Wonder Tape or Quilter’s Tape? They both come in 1/8″ wide. They come in very handy for holding lace, ribbon, etcetera for sewing. I use it a lot.
Hi Helen,
I do have some wonder tape but it makes the edges too stiff… the glue sticks dabbed every 1/2″ or so let the Cluny lace stay put, but was flexible enough to bend where it needed to…
Thanks… I have used it on lots of things too!
Blessings, Jeanne
Thanks for the Cluny (Rick Rack) trim. Spelling from the purchased package of the usual kind. 🙂 I hope I can find some like yours.
That slip is lovely with the dress. Wow. 🙂 I also like the neckline of the dress. Had to go back to yesterday to see it. I can see how the bows were used in the past with that lovely draping satin ribbon, but the new ones seem a little too wide or something. I might like them better if they were narrower and had the tails. Just my opinion. This dress is definitely going to be a delight for buyers. Love that fabric. 🙂
Hi Joy… well the bows are gone… maybe the back just needed to be finished up and snapped and the tie belt tied in a bow for it to look right to me.
As I was sewing the bows on, I thought they were going to work, but in my pictures, they did look too big, but it was after midnight and I just decided to see what the concensus was from everyone. I don’t think anyone will be disappointed the bows are gone…
Consider moving the bows out toward the shoulders, maybe centering them between the rows of lace to carry out that line.. I like the bows but in some pictures, they look like a collar. Moving them might not work, but I’d love to see if it did. The dress is one of the prettiest I’ve seen made from that pattern. The colors are lovely. The era seems to me to frequently emphasize wide sloping shoulders to make the corseted waist appear smaller.
As I looked back at my pictures, I did notice most of them were on the armhole seam line. I looked for some softer, more flexible ribbon in my stash but had nothing. I think if I kept the ribbons, I would need to use silk ribbon… I may need to buy some.
I’ll see what I come up with…
Thanks for your ideas…
Blessings, Jeanne
Thanks for the lesson on the cluny lace and the close up pictures. ( auto correct had it as “clunky” glad I checked) Your stitches were SO precise and look so perfect. I was expecting to see a wide lace that you just used part of it so the pics were a surprise. Don’t you just love shopping your stash and finding just the perfect thing? Her slip is a “wow” with that dress. You.
could even gather up the hem in places and let the slip show…but probably not on this dress🫣 her pink shoes are just right too. Hummm…..love the bow idea but they seem a bit big..maybe a single narrower bow?
Hi Kathie,
I DO love shopping from my own stash, and had the right color Cluny lace, but no ribbon in the right color.
I took the shoulder ribbons off and am “studying” the dress… I need about an inch wide silk ribbon
.. and I don’t have any…
Thanks Kathie,
Blessings, Jeanne
The slip for this dress is pretty enough to use alone. So pretty with all those ruffles and the color is perfect In the pictures you showed of vintage dresses it looks like the bows were on the sleeve/shoulder seam not at the neckline. I also went back to yesterdays post for another look pre bow and I liked it better without. But to each their own. Just a really lovely dress.
Hi Dorothy,
Thanks for the compliments on the slip… I think its very pretty too!
You’ll be happy to know I’ve removed the bows from the shoulders…
Thanks,
Blessings, Jeanne
Ah, I obviously couldn’t see the edge of the Cluny on the dress. Yes, I may have seen something similar at the antique store. There are two booths of vintage sewing stuff at one of ours.
As far as rickrack goes, according to Webster rickrack is the first spelling and ricrac is a variant, probably like each state has colloquialisms.
rickrack
noun
rick·rack ˈrik-ˌrak
variants or ricrac
Synonyms of rickrack
: a flat braid woven to form zigzags and used especially as trimming on clothing
And Wright’s is rick rack.
Since everyone is giving opinions on the bows i might as well give mine. I like the shoulder bows as well as the original bateau neckline of the dress. I’m with Joy and would make slight narrower bows with tails and move them so the bow edge is almost at the shoulder seam.
Hi Laura,
Thanks for the Ric Rac/ Rick Rack lesson!!
I didnt have any ribbon soft enough in my stash, and more narrow, and the right color, so I removed them…
I think it’s for the best…
Blessings, Jeanne
Hi Jeanne! I’m a bit late today, but I just didn’t want to say I didn’t care for the bows! Looks like a lot of people said or thought that, and I see that you removed them. Good idea! The idea was great, with all those pictures from long ago times, but this is a girls dress, and I think they would work more for an adult dress, So they are gone!
I do love that pretty crinoline and I think the dress is sweet enough without more things added to it. Can you use those bows for her hair? A pretty pink bow would be quite enough. Maybe some pretty lace gloves, and have her hold a nosegay.
Hi Linda,
You are probably in bed by now… :o)…
Yes, the bows have been removed…
The bows would be great in her hair…
My day was too busy to figure out much… thanks for your ideas..
Blessings, Jeanne
Love the slip! Where in the world did you find that fabric? I’ve never seen anthing like it in stores.