I spent most of my time getting my costume ready for Day 2. This was the day of the ball, and I wanted to go as a Regency Gent (ok, I wanted to go as a rake. A cad. A rogue).
Menswear is a whole different box of worms. I still have a lot to learn, but I had so much fun making and wearing this outfit.
First day of the retreat was my Little White Dress in a lightweight Swiss dot cotton. I first wore it to the Jane Austen Tea put on by our local JASNA group, but I’ve been working on it since last summer. It’s a 1790’s number.
Over the weekend, I went to my first Ren Faire, a small local event at a farm we often go to seasonally for strawberry and apple picking. I planned to go with a friend in Tudor era fashion (1485-1603).
This summer, I finally finished my 18th c. banyan. I love it so much that I often swan around the house in it in the evenings. And now that winter here in everything but name, I’ve finally photographed it, too.
The fabric is cotton from Anuprerna on the outside, and Indian block print cotton on the inside. Outside and inside are relative, since it’s reversible.
Ever since I finished my rust-colored cloak, I’ve wanted to make a second, shorter one. It wasn’t till this fall that the fabric inspiration struck. When it did, I used the pattern from the book Costume Close-up, minus about ten inches of length, to make a second cloak over the course of two days.
I used a clearance wool blend I found online for $7/yard. The lining is my old favorite, shot cotton. I pieced the lining (mainly because I cut the lining for the hood too short). I prick stitched the lining in so that that the two layers of the cloak would move as one, something I didn’t do on the last cloak. I omitted the hand slits. With the shorter length, they didn’t seem necessary.
So in two paragraphs, I just told you everything you need to know about the cloak. So we’re going to talk about something else while I show you the pictures.
