Costuming is most fun when done with others. Fortunately, I live with lots of others.
This is where I started with the Outlander Cosplay, and here’s the first iteration of the costume. I had the main elements, but it was missing accessories.
Every year in California, there is a big thing called Costume College. It’s a weekend where costumers, especially historical costumers, get together to dress up, geek out, and learn how to better their craft. Even though I was terrified and felt ill prepared, I signed up to go this year.
Next up with my historical costuming adventure, a European bedgown, or Manteau de Lit. They are fantastically versatile, and much easier to make than the more fitted jackets from the 18th century, which required suiting up in all my underpinnings for fittings.
Stays. The first item you need for 18th Century costuming, and cruelly, the most complicated and time-consuming thing to make.
After much procrastination, using the size chart on the pattern envelope as a guide, I made a cereal box mock-up before cutting my fabric.
Many people who have made stays from this pattern have found it to be short-waisted. I have a long torso, so I added half an inch to the length of all the pattern pieces. The cereal box mock-up did not reflect the fit I later got with my fabric. While the length was fine, I ended up with stays that had a full 2 inches of ease at my waist and an extra inch and a half at my bust.
There are many ways you can have a long torso. Length from shoulder to bust longer than average? Or your hip-to-crotch measurement? Long rib cage? I think I have a long rib cage, but I’m not sure. More importantly, there is a really small distance between where my ribs end and my hips begin, which means where the tabs break became a bigger issue than the total length of the stays.
Advice: If you plan to make stays from either of the American Duchess Simplicity patterns, watch the entire AD stays video before you get started. I had the tab open on my browser with the video and even started watching it, but didn’t get very far. I came back to it after I started having issues while making my stays. The video answered most of my questions, but I had already made a couple of mistakes I couldn’t undo.
