A few more pictures of the Edwardian Gown

Seeing as I am ever so proud of this gown I decided to post a few more pictures of it. This side view really shows the sleeves off, and shows the typical Edwardian silhouette too. This is quite hard to reproduce on a modern dress form, and I believe this was due to sheer luck, truth be told.














This photo shows the intricate details of the bodice. Notice the lace on the collar and the top part of the bodice. There is rosettes down the front of the bodice and also at the back of the collar as well as at the belt fastening.

I only wish this gown would fit me, but being a size 10 this gown is several sizes too small :(

I think this dress would fit a petite size 6, perhaps a size 8.










The skirt is absolutely lovely. It is gathered in the back as you can see in the picture, and it has a hook and eye fastening.

Edwardian Gown; pictures

I am finally posting a few pictures of the edwardian gown. Behold the exquisite beauty =)

Wedding date

Joyous news. We have decided upon a wedding date. The new date is September 14th 2007. It will take place in Paris, at the Norwegian Embassy. So start saving money, and prepare to celebrate with us =)

Edwardian Gown III

It has been quite a while since I last posted news on the restoration project, partly because I have been doing research, partly because my wrist acted up on me, and partly because I have had my hands full being trained in my new job at yahoo. I mentioned in the last posting that I would be reading up on how to clean antique clothing, and I have. This made me positive that leaving it as it is is the best option. Apparantly the netting might go limp, and generally speaking, one never knows how the fabrics will react to water and detergent. The discoloration under the arms cannot be removed, I read the explanation, and if I understood it correctly, it has to do with chemicals reacting with- well- something. It was quite technical...

I have peaced the whole bodice together, except for the collar. The lining was let out (by ripping two of the darts), I stitched it up the way it originally was, as attatching the ecru overlayer to the bodice in its let-out state would have been both difficult, ruined the shape of it, and the bodice would no longer have matched the skirt in size. The belt would not have fitted either.

I attatched the overlayer in four steps. First I attatched the lining sleeves to the outer sleeves, I then sewed the lining sleeves to the lining bodice. After this, I pinned the top and bottom of the ecru outer bodice together and hand stitched it to the lining (as many edwardian bodices, it has a circular piece draped over the upper back, shoulders and chest, and a somewhat baggy part under, collected at centre front). This was quite easy as the cotton satin in the lining still had tiny holes in them depicting where the seam was before the bodice was taken apart. After taking in the darts again the original bias binding that was used to bind the bottom of the lining bodice fitted again, and I used it to bind the bottom edge. The corresponding ecru edging was also among the parts, and I stitched it directly above the binding. After this, I gathered the bodice, using the folds in it as guideline. Now the only things that remain is stitching the overlay in place, and finishing the collar. The collar might take me some time, seing as the lady who took it apart cut away a fair bit of the seam allowence. This means I'll have to amend it somehow. And find a way of doing it that will not show.

I do not have any pictures as of yet, but the bodice is quite similar to the blue one in this picture.

Edwardian Gown II

I have been working on the skirt, and while measuring the two parts (the yellow underskirt and the ecru overskirt) it became clear that the yellow underskirt has been shortened, and that the tucks was not originally there. The overskirt was quite a bit longer than the yellow both in front and especially in back. I ripped up the seams of the tucks and let the skirt down again. I'm only wondering how she was planning to shorten the overskirt. That would have been hard, as it is made of netting, and already covered in fabric work.

Befor starting on the bodice I decided to read up on the edwardian tailoring techniques, and consulted my "Authentic Victorian Dressmaking Techniques" which is a reprint of an 1905 manual. From what I can see, whoever made this gown must have been updated on the latest techniques, as all the little bits and bobs on the dress match the recommended way of doing things in the book. In all likelyhood this must have been a very expensive dress, a weddingdress, I'm quite sure. (there is a chapter on the making of wedding gowns in the book)

I have managed to get hold of a poly-cotton in the same yellow colour as the bodice lining, and I'll be using bias strips to attatch the sleeves to the torso of the bodice, as well as hemming the inside of the bodice. The boning needs to be covered at the bottom or else it will be extremely uncomfortable to wear. But before I put the bodice together I need to read up on how to clean it. I'm not even sure it can be done, but best check it as there is some discoloration under the arms, and the cuffs as well as the collar are a little dirty.

When the dress is finished I'll se if i can get hold of a manneqin and display it in the livingroom. Or perhaps store it till we get a bigger livingroom...

Edwardian Gown

We all have different things to make our day, as of me, my aunt just made my decade, sending me an Edwardian gown from ca 1904. Whoever owned it probably grew out of it and decided to let it out on her own. She never finished the job, and now it's mine (my precious....). I have documented all the different pieces (yes, the butchered it), and I am going to piece it all together, and restore it to its original state. It really is excuisite, I think it must have been a wedding dress, back then. It has the typical Edwardian structure, which is a seethrough layer of netting and lace on top of a coloured base. The skirt therefore is actually two skirts, both equally elaborate. The base is a vibrating yellow, it has two rows of tucks at the starting mid-calf, and it has a row of accordion-pleating at the bottom. It has a few stains, which I hope the overskirt will be able to hide. As the fabric is more than a hundred years old, I am reluctant to cleaning it. One never knows how the fabric will react to it. The top layer is ecru-coloured netting with lace inserts. It has narrow vertical stripes of pin-tucks, several rows of piping, and two rows of gathered netting and lace also starting at midcalf. Both skirts are trained, the ecru skirt seems to be longer in the back then the yellow one, and I've begun to wonder if the yellow one has been altered. Maybe the owner didn't want it to get dirty?

The bodice is very pretty, and also the part of the dress that needs most work done. It consists of a yellow structural bodice, and an ecru draped overbodice.The lace on the ecru bodice was tattered, but that was easily fixed. The real problem is mounting the two layers together. The infidel owner has cut the sleeves off the bodice instead of ripping the seames, which means there is no seam allowence. That troubles me. I haven't decided how to deal with that problem yet, but I'm leaning towards using a length of bias binding to join the sleeves to the torso. The neck is also a problem, I have no idea how it looked originally, I only know that there is a standing collar with hooks on it that needs a base to be mounted onto. I've looked closely at the neckline of the bodice, and I can't se a seamline, nor loops for the hooks. Which leads me to think that there must have been a binding along the neckline, with loops for the hooks, and it has most likely been cut off. Which again meens, there is no seam-allowence. Whoever did this was certainly not a seamstress.

So I have my work cut out for me, that's for sure. I'll do the skirt first, as that is the easiest part, and then start assembling the bodice. I will post the pictures as soon as possible.

Thoughts on corset construction

I have been thinking for a while about the many pittfalls of corset construction. I learned the gentle art of corseting from this web site http://web.archive.org/web/20030605225317/http://waisted.com/ . The owner of the site gives a thorough introduction to creating custom fit corsets, but what isn't covered is how extremely important it is to have some basic knowledge of how the different styles of corsets are cut and constructed. If you do not know what kind of silhouette and era you're after, you're likely to end up with a corset that either doesn't fit properly, or emphesizes the very things you wanted hidden, or moulded into a different shape. The first thing anyone wanting to create their own corset should do is get hold of a book about the subject, such as Corsets and Crinolines by Norah Waugh. Just to get an idea of the different styles and take a note of how the pattern is cut. Especially if you're thinking of making one of the really complicated ones, such as the edwardian. After that you're ready to fetch the duct tape and an old t-shirt to create the mould, so to speak.

Another thing which isn't discussed much in this site is how *^^&*$%£ annoying and hard work fitting a corset can be. First of all, you'd think after having done the whole ducttape thing that you have the perfect shape which can be easily turned into the corset of your dreams. Allow me to rectify that misapprehension right now. First of all, the waist of the duct tape mould is never tiny enough, the lower abdomen always needs to be taken in, and quite often you'll find that it is too tight over the bum. So this is something you need to keep in mind while cutting the pattern. When you've successfully put the whole thing together and you think you're happy with the look and shape of the corset, you need to sit down on a chair in front of a mirror and make sure you like the way it looks from the front as well as the side. When looking at the side view what you want is the busk to curve slightly inwards at the waist, and cup the tummy. If the busk pokes outwards, you need to alter it. A good trick is always make the corset a little longer than you intend it to be, because it tends to end up shorter in the front due to the fitting.

Last but not least, if you have spent 100€ + on a fabulous fabric, make sure you make a mock up of the corset first. It saves both time, stress and precious fabric.

Two of my own corsets

This is one of my edwardian underbust corsets, the first I ever made, comt to think of it. I found the fabric at a curtain-store in Tromsø way back when i was a student, at a bargain price. The fabric is marvellous, you can actually use both sides of it, and the corset binding as well as the boning channels are made of the fabrics reverse side.


My 1860's wine velvet corset. I really like this corset, it is comfy, pretty and very, very flattering.

1880's bodice jacket

I made this jacket of a fantastic green velvet curtain I bought in Iceland (trust me to track down the thrift stores ;o). I kept the fabric for quite a while before deciding upon what to do with it. I finally decided upon a bodice jacket with a bustled back. The cuffs and lapels are made of black velvet, and it is lined with black satin.

Jetta and Gunn Venches corsets

Jetta is proudly showing off her new corset which I must admit is quite a masterpiece. It is an edwardian overbust, made out of a fantasticly baroque fabric. It has a wowen floral pattern quite unlike anything I've ever seen, and was quite timeconsuming to work with (all 12 pieces had to match up). But as long as the end result is as nice as this is, the extra hassle is worth it. The corset is lined in my all time favourite, black cotton canvas, the waist is reinforced, and it is double boned througout. Not that she needs it. The waist line of the corset is 20 inches... I decorated the corset with black soutashe trimming, to accentuate the curves, and added lace along the top of the corset.


Gunn Wenche decided upon a mix of the 1860's scarlett o'hara and the edwardian. The corset has a straight front and comes up to the nipples, it is made for serious waist-reduction and it nips in the waist considerably. It is longline, and hugs the hips. Her choise of fabric was an unusual mix of satin and velvet. The pattern seems to be cut velvet, but if you look at the back of the fabric it becomes quite clear that it isn't. The motif is floral and reminds me of fleur de lys. She wanted it trimmed as well, and seing as the fabric is very dark, I decided on a lighter coloured trim, to pick up the highlights in the fabric. Very pretty.