At least two years ago, I was inspired by the HBO series Gentleman Jack (2019) to start a jacket with the intention of recreating this outfit worn by Anne Lister: I mean, really, I already had a vintage top hat! So I started with a basic Period Impressions pattern, fitted it to me, and cut
With Bridgerton still on my mind and a massive longing to travel again after being cooped up in my house by myself for a year and a half, I took a leap of faith and bought a ticket to the Empire Party at the Grand Trianon of Versailles. Which meant making another 1810s-ish costume, a
Of all the things to help bring back my costuming mojo during the pandemic, I never thought it would be a Regency romance! But Bridgerton is so ridiculously over-the-top and plays with historical fashion in a way that sang to my DGAF-ness of the times. Also, it’s a known issue that I despise the typical
I randomly bought this gown from Armstreet — they call it the “Found Princess” Chemise — during a brief window when it was available in black. I’m so glad I did! It’s made of a soft, floaty cotton-blend fabric that feels delicious and, though sheer, has enough substance to not be obscene. While made as
The global pandemic, quarantine, lockdown, and all that really put a damper on my creativity and any interest or motivation I had to sew. I had one spurt of sewing-related energy back in April 2020, and I made this 1940s retro pattern, Butterick 6266, in bat-print fabric. All stash materials except for the belt buckle,
I bought this 1920s dress from LaVieDelight on Etsy several years ago, and I’m so pleased because it’s an actually flattering and also appropriate period shape. Many ’20s styles don’t work well on curvy bodies, but somehow this does. Plus, being a ‘little black dress,’ it’s perfect for accessorizing for different events. Which I’ve done!
One of the events I planned to attend at Venetian Carnevale 2020 was the “red party” held by friends — it was a dinner where guests had to wear a little bit or a lot of red. I went through quite a few costume concepts for this one because I thought I’d wear something from
One of the events my friends and I planned to attend at Venetian Carnevale 2020 was the Napoli Ball, and 1860s evening attire was requested. But Victorian ballgowns bore me, so I decided that Leonard should branch out from the 18th century. I bought a black wool tailcoat tuxedo, a waistcoat, and a shirt. I
For Venetian Carnevale 2020, I wanted some kind of harlequin outfit because that’s so iconically “carnevale.” But it had to be in my favorite gothic colors, and I couldn’t find any fabric remotely close to that. The obvious solution was to make my own, but wow, that sounded difficult! So I talked to my mom
Many of us have seen this delightful painting with an 18th-c. gent wearing leopard-print breeches and waistcoat. It’s the generically named “An Interior with Elegant Company” by Venceslao Verlin (d. 1780). While I can’t find much about this specific painting, there are other images from around 18th-c. Europe of men and a few women wearing
Meaning, my 15th year of attending CoCo. OMG, yes, it’s true. Back in 2004, I randomly decided to fly solo (literally) to this L.A. area event that I’d heard about from fellow members of the local Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild. I’d been to Costume-Cons and SF/F cons before, but I knew nothing of Costume
For several years, I’d planned to recreate a costume like those worn in the Chinese TV drama The Empresses in the Palace (2015), aka The Legend of Zhen Huan (2011). I reviewed the shortened Netflix version of the series for Frock Flicks and was in love with the costumes, of course. Based a smidge of
The final gown I wore to the Portland Vampire Masquerade Ball turned out pretty close to my vision. My mom helped out by doing a lot of the appliqué of the motifs on the forepart (though once I saw how the bat-shaped sequins looked, I had to sew them all over the stomacher myself). Accessories
I had dreamed of returning to Venice’s Carnevale for my 50th birthday — I’d gone for my 40th birthday and wanted to bookend the decade in an even more spectacular style. Alas, I’m spending this birthday in the middle of a divorce and having just moved to a new house, which used up all my
Specifically, this is a review of Patterns of Fashion 5: The Content, Cut, Construction, and Context of Bodies, Stays, Hoops, and Rumps c. 1595-1795 by Janet Arnold, Jenny Tiramani, & Luca Costigliolo with Sebastien Passot, Armelle Lucas & Johannes Pietsch, to give the full title and credit to all involved. It’s on sale exclusively from