Time for wig inspirations
Before I embark on styling Leonard’s wig, I want to collect and look at some historical images of wigs worn by Macaroni or fop men in the 18th century (a topic near & dear to my heart)…
Category Archives: 18th Century
Biting the bullet, buying stuff
I think I’m just gonna buy a shirt, because, bleh, who wants to make a frickin’ shirt? Not me, that’s who. I like this one on Etsy, and inquired if she could add sleeve ruffles and deliver by July 1. Considering this neck stock too, but waffling because, well, it costs as much as the
Waistcoat done!
After spending most of the weekend in Napa, I finished embroidering the other half of Leonard’s waistcoat. Whew, managed to mirror it pretty well! Have to assemble it all now and add some finishing embroidery touches. Now he just needs, oh, a coat, breeches, a shirt, shoes, a wig … y’know, little things! Managed to
Tool swap & an embroidered waistcoat
On Saturday, I swapped Mom’s embroidery machine for my wig-wefting jig from Williamsburg. It’s a win-win, well, for me, because late last night she emailed me saying she’s already woven 9″ of hair! I kinda think that’s as much of the human hair as they gave us in the class. Meanwhile, I embroidered one side
Buy Shoes for Leonard?
I think I may have a use for those Georgiana shoes after all … Maybe *those* could be my Leonard shoes! Dye them purple and wear with big rhinestone buckles. Sure, they’re fabric, which is not really common for men, but they’re not as totally girlie as the Fugawee Marthas (& I just couldn’t get
Shoes for Leonard?
All this talk online of the American Duchess shoes got me thinking — I should just get some Fugawees for Leonard! Because he deserves it 😉 Ok, well, I want it, and leather shoes are more correct than silk for a man, even a super-fop like Leonard (though according to his autobiography, he was *quite*
18th-Century Purple Silk Jacket, Made in One Week
I wore this jacket with a black silk petticoat already in my closet, a purple mini-tricorn I purchased a few years ago, and various vintage and new accessories. Photos were taken at Colonial Williamsburg. More photos from this Williamsburg trip on Flickr.
18th-Century Riding Habit
In January 2011, I modified the Rocking Horse Farm riding habit bodice to fit, then sent that re-drafted pattern, along with a red-black crossweave wool, some black velveteen, black braid, and black vintage jet buttons to Donna. In our seemingly endless barter stream, this became my new riding habit for our Colonial Williamsburg trip in
Sneak peek
Now there’s (crappy iPhone photo) evidence that I can make a jacket in a week! It’s finished with time to spare. All I have to do now for Williamsburg is dye my hair and pack.
Getting there…
I did a little bit of sewing today. Made gathered trim for the jacket’s sleeves and attached it to one sleeve. Should be pretty fast to attach it to the next sleeve, then sew the black velvet braid on top on both sleeves. I’m doing all the trimming by machine, which is a first for
Last-minute jacket!
Fueled by vast quantities of Kauai coffee, I started on a new jacket for Williamsburg. Yeah, I went there. Made from this purple-shot-with-red dupioni silk in The Stash. First, I dug out the J.P. Ryan jacket pattern I’d fitted last fall in planning for the Lumieres gambling party (but abandoned in favor of the stripey
Leonard – the beginning
I have a wild hair (hah!) to play Leonard Autie, hairdresser to Marie Antoinette, at the GBACG’s Petit Trianon event in July. Sarah will be the queen, Kendra will be Poliganc, and a bunch of our friends will be the rest of the court. When casting about for characters, I first thot Rose Bertin, but
Wearable and stripey
I’m set for the next Lumieres event! I finished the faro board and, most importantly, my dress and wig. As usual, my latest 18th-century outfit is far more fantasy than history. The *shape* is accurate and the materials are (for me, surprisingly) accurate. But the trim and color combo is all me, my crazy preference.
Slow sewing
[Insert interlude where Cynthia came over and convinced me I could squeeze a bodice and skirt out of my mere 3 yards of pink/white stripey fabric. She helped me fit the bodice pattern and piece one sleeve, literally a handful of scraps were left.] During the week, I did go sew on the sleeves of
Crap, I just had an idea
Hate it when that happens. First, I bought something from Jilli’s sale (DANGEROUS) — a fascinator with a glittery pink ship in sail, topped by black and white stripey sails (I think made by Noxenlux, or some other fabulous gothic milliner). I fully intended to put this in an 18th-century wig. But I just realized