If you’ve been watching this project finally come together on my YouTube channel, you’ve watched me take numerous bizarre Edwardian era measurements, and you’ve seen me use a lot of pencil lead and brain power drafting a precise 1902 era pattern, and then tracing off the pieces.
So what happened when I mocked up and tried on the Peacock Dress bodice this month? You might be surprised. Check out the results in the July update:
NB. I haven’t posted here in a long, long time. I’ve been writing to everyone on my mailing list every week, however – and then people started asking me how they could link to what I was writing and send friends to me. So here I am, writing in public again. 🙂
Love how Cathy does the whole process I really enjoy watching her. The concentration and the doings inspire me and helps me to have some confidence to try myself.
I love being included in this historic process! I sewed all my life and I am 70 now so it is fun to watch you, and remember.
Watched you CosTube update today. A thought – ball gowns are strapless. If they appear to have straps, they’re often effectively decorative. The ones on the Peacock Gown certainly look frou frou. Mighty far off the shoulder to carry all that metal purl.
When I was a debutante I was fitted for a serious dress ( in 1980)by a seamstress so old she would have been trained by women who worked with Edwardian gowns styled after Worth (cause fashion) Straps didn’t count, my dress was hung on an elastic corsolette thing, it needed a real corset. But this was common practice.
Said seamstress spent her career on these gowns https://youtu.be/xBNUNCPqFvw
The gold one should be of interest, and she’s wearing a bum pad! I know the girl, she wasn’t shaped like that.
The bodice will be heavy, the straps are small and offset, it’s a suggestion and may be an easier fit to look at this dress structurally as strapless. The corset carries huge heavy skirts, and it’ll carry a heavy bodice too. The dresses in the above are craftily made to support heavy dress and giant Medici collars. But not from the shoulders.
You can flip up a piece of trim and pin the dress to the undergarments, we used pearl head corsage pins. Or could get fancier… But that wasn’t invented in New Orleans.
What a story, thank you for sharing Elizabeth! And oh no! Those straps won’t take any weight. But they need to fit so as not to fall off the shoulder. 🙂
I am thoroughly enjoying watching the process of your reconstructing the Peacock dress. I aspire to be a better seamstress and you help give me the push I need. Your words of encouragement and support each month are so very helpful. I am a HSP and didn’t realize that was even a thing until you suggested reading the book by Dr. Elaine Aron. It has helped tremendously and I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Hi, Cathy – I’m posting here rather than on your most recent update because I want to avoid any pile-on that may develop there. While I do see that you’ve taken all of your PD videos out of your public-facing YouTube page, the video in this post is still active. Additionally, this is the only post available in the PD tag, and I think you would be better served by making your apology the only post in the tag instead.
I’ve been following you since the LiveJournal days and the Haiti trip with Random Acts, and I’ve always believed that you were acting with the best intentions. But we all know what road those pave, and I fully support your decision not to move forward with the project. I’ve been trying to face down some of my own inbred bias and racism as well.
Best wishes to you always.