#historical costumes

[s-u-w-i]

Of course, the final dog has to be our dog Rituška!🦴 She is a mix and wears whatever I’m usually wearing when I take her for a walk.   I would like to thank again to everyone who bought some of the dogs. In the end, we managed to gather about 930USD which I donated yesterday to these three organizations (to help wild animals, dogs, and humans) - @hajnyzmakova @packaproutulkace @charita_cesko THANK YOU SO MUCH! 💖 And in case someone still wants to adopt a dog, these are left - Afghan Hound, Australian Cattle Dog, Xoloitzcuintle, Husky, Brabançon, Brittany, Pekingese, and Chihuahua 🐕🐩

[onegirlatelier]

Song Camisole, intro + tutorial | December, 2023

(Text below)

A camisole was the inner most layer of a Song lady’s outfit. Camisoles from the Song dynasty are simply named 宋抹sòng mǒ by modern historians (literal translation: Song camisole). The little camisole discussed in this post is based on the sample excavated from the tomb of Ms. Huang Sheng (full maiden name; she died at 17 in 1243 after being married for one year) in Fuzhou, China, hence it is in late Southern Song style. As far as I know, this is the only surviving sample of Song camisole in this style.

From the excavation report:

The artefact has one seam down the centre front. It has an outer layer and a lining, both in plain silk. It is 55cm long and 39-40cm wide. The shoulder ribbons are 34-35cm long, and the waist ribbons are 35-36cm long. From the report and the photograph which I can access, there doesn’t seem to be any dart. Perhaps Ms. Huang Sheng was flat-chested so a dart was unnecessary; nowadays traditional costume makers and wearers usually like a dart in the middle (usually via shaping on the CF seam) to better fit the bust.

I made this pink one nearly two years ago. You might be able to see a little bit of fabric being taken in on the top of the CF seam, which is the dart/shaping I was talking about.

Below is a tutorial for making one of these. It works for smaller bust sizes – you can add darts on the sides to do a full bust adjustment.

Pattern

You need two measurements:

The front half of your chest circumference (which is NOT the full chest circumference divided by two). If you want, you can add 1~2cm of positive ease to this.

The desired length. It has to be long enough to be tucked into a skirt.

The dart (for me) is usually 1~1.5cm on each side of the CF seam. If your fabric is wide enough, you can just make a dart and eliminate the CF seam. I’m not sure why the shoulder ribbons on the artefact are so short, since the common way of wearing this camisole the ribbons need to be at least 80~90cm. The depth of the armscye apparently depends on your body shape, but it shouldn’t be too low—usually the little side loops are on the same level as the bust point or just a little bit lower. The shape and size of the little triangles depend on your taste.

All figures in the sample below fit a pretty standard European size 36 with a total height of 160cm. (EDIT!! I made a mistake. It should be European size 34 i.e. bust circumference 80)

(Also: how you would arrange the pattern pieces on a traditional kimono bolt, if using kimono silk for this.)

Fabric

You’ll want something drapey and smooth that feels nice on bare skin. I’d always recommend silk, but a cotton/silk blend or a soft cotton also works fine. For synthetic fabrics, some viscose fabrics (or their eco-friendly relatives such as tencel) could work. For the pink one I made, I used repurposed kimono silk. The yellow one is a Chinese jacquard from a blend of silk and viscose.

If you are using redeemed kimono silk (or new kimono silk) with a width of approx. 33cm, one meter is about enough. This is very convenient because one meter is a common length of kimono sleeves and you can find fabrics sold in individual lengths in stores that specialise in this. If you are using a Western fabric, you only need to consider the length of the ribbon and whether you are willing to cut it on the weft. If cutting on the warp, you’ll need one meter. (They don’t need to be cut on bias though you can.)

You also need a lining fabric for the main body. I usually use a half-half cotton/silk blend about 12momme thin (I buy it in bulk because I use it for a lot of things.)

Sewing

First, sew the ribbons.

I starched the yellow fabric for the ribbon part because it was just so slippery and refused be folded. After I starched it, I was able to fold it right side out and sew with an invisible stitch. However, I would recommend starching as little as possible and making your starch as diluted as possible, because starch can be SUPER hard to wash out and leave your silk stiff.

Sew the CF and the dart, if any, respectively for the lining and for the shell.

Sew the little triangles. If you cut your triangles on grain, the hypotenuse edge is likely on bias, which means it is likely to be stretched out, leading to a gaping neckline (which is a pet peeve of mine). There are two ways to prevent this. A) Since you have a lining and a shell, you can cut the lining with its hypotenuse edge on grain, so that each of the three edges of the triangle is stabilised by one layer of fabric, which is what I did for the pink camisole. B) You can add a tape to the seam allowance, which is what I’m showing in the yellow camisole. I used a thin silk ribbon (usually used for silk ribbon embroidery) and pinned it to the seam allowance, making sure not to stretch the seam so that it’s at the right length. You can sew it down to both layers of the allowance or just one.

After stablising the hypotenuse edge, you can sew the triangle by placing the fabrics right side together and sandwich the shoulder ribbon in-between. The bottom edge needn’t be sewn. Turn it right side out when you finish.

I also add tapes to the underarm edges, which are also on bias.

Place the body layers right side together, sandwiching the triangles, loops and waist ribbons between them (baste in place if needed). Sew all around, leaving only a small opening on the bottom edge so that you can turn the whole thing right side out.

I do a little fold for the bottom edge so that the lining fabric does not show.

I whip-stitched close the small opening. It is also possible to do an invisible stitch, if your fabric is stable enough.

And there you have it~

When I wear the camisole, it is never without an outer layer of clothing that covers my back, which is mostly for historical accuracy, and unfortunately for safety and privacy too because I can never know if someone decides to pull the ties loose. So that’s my last bit of suggestion!

[lizzy-bonnet]

Baby's first embroidery, with the help of DMC Magic Paper because I can't freehand draw for shit. This is on a triangle collar which I have gifted to the curator of the living history museum where I volunteer/make costumes for. Done on cotton voile.

[la-belle-histoire]

~subtle pink tones in period dramas~

Little Women (1994)

A Room with a View (1985)

Far from the Madding Crowd (2015)

À la recherche du temps perdu (2011)

Marie Antoinette (2006)

Pride and Prejudice (2005)

[some-cold-and-some-violence]

Trying to channel that one pic of Albert Ball and his tartan slippers

[vraisetzen]

The stunning Machida Keita as Fujiwara no Kintō!

Kintō's robes are black (left) while Tadanobu and Michinaga's (not pictured) are scarlet, as he is of a higher rank.

[bylislbr]

This is and remains a work in progress. Every two years I take it out and make it a bit better, more "period" and just try to achieve my vision. The goal is to present as a middle class woman of the first half of the 16th century un southern Germany on a fine day out. But it still needs to be wearable in the very hot summers of the 21st century (thus the cotton and linen). I'll keep working...

[fouryearsofshades]

book review 我在明朝穿什么

by 陆楚翚

ISBN 9787214271518

A new book on garments and costumes of Ming Dynasty.

The book was separated by occasions, e.g. summer at home, weddings, formal visits, funerals, festivals etc.  - so, an outfit for each occasion.

I like that it also talked a lot about different types of accessories.

It also includes process of some functions such as how to politely visit someone.

It was mostly told from the angle of the master and madam of an officer, with some chapters on commoners, children etc.

However, it didn’t specified which era (maybe sometime in the middle of Ming?) and which rank the master was.

So, this book was suitable to grasp a vibe of Ming Dynasty fashion, instead of being used as a serious reference book.

It also used a lot of reference photos from other dynasties.

Most importantly, no reference list.

I don’t particularly like the prose and language. Too oral.

Also the it seemed to be printed in coated papers. Heavy and I don’t like the smell as well.

[mask131]

Video sharing of the day. Let's have some appreciation for the costumes of Crimson Peak.

There's also another video about it here:

[s-u-w-i]

And here goes the last batch! 😌 Thanks everyone for bearing with me and sorry to everyone whose requests I didn’t manage to do, there is too many dog breed in the world! Originals again for purchase (also I’ll keep you updated about the postcards and booklet!) ✨

Afghan Hound, Australian Cattle Dog and Xoloitzcuintle left! And there are still a few left in some of the previous bunches, so check it out! 30USD is the minimal price (shipping included). All the earnings will be sent to a charity, partly to help abandoned people and partly to abandoned dogs. 🐕 Anyone eager to adopt one of the dogs message me here or at s.u.w.i@email.cz

Thank you!   

[newhanfu]

Qing Dynasty Chang Yi

The collection of The Palace Museum

[torchwood-99]

What I would love to see in period dramas post 1850 is examples of the heroines in Aesthetic/Artistic fashions. These fashions were a rejection of Victorian fashions that feminist heroines in period dramas are often framed as rejecting, for similar reasons. They were looser, had a more natural silhouette, and were more comfortable. 

They were also inspired by romanticised medieval fashions, which would allow some gorgeous costumes, that would stand out from the more fashionable characters, perfect for a heroine who should stand out. If the heroine is to go on a journey, the progress from mainstream fashions to freeing aesthetic dress would be provide an excellent visual progression.

It would also be awesome if these heroines, often derided for rejecting corsets and other garments and being dismissed as anachronistic and ‘not like other girls’, would be shown as being involved or interested in dress reform, a real movement to make women’s clothes more comfortable and practical, especially in regards to undergarments. 

I don’t want historical heroines to stop rebelling against fashion and social mores, I want the heroines to have their rebellions to be grounded in fact, especially now parts of the audience have gotten to a point where any heroine who doesn’t conform to every aspect of society, whether it be dress or behaviour, is treated as utterly unrealistic, or mere pandering to modern audiences.

Rebels have always existed, and people have always expressed themselves and their rebellions in their clothes.

[heaven-is-in-your-arms-series]

I love that they made these for the film Love Destiny. 😆

Maidservant Pi is absolutely serving charisma, uniqueness, nerve and talent 🤣

This Thai film takes place in the same time frame as Man Suang and features a famous individual that I absolutely included in my story as well.

[crazyfanofmassculture]

Many thanks to Lottie Andrésen (https://pin.it/6Wv5bZk) for spending their time and energy searching for where these wonderful shots came from! This is the series «Rainbow Romance» episode 67

[verdantvulpus]

'Ineffable Decades' begins today with 1900's Red & Azi! This collection showcases our beloved 4 in historical outfits! Each decade will have 4 pics, (TV, Book, Fem!Angels, Fem!Demons)uploaded to Patreon 2x a week as I finish them each decade. They'll be public 2 weeks after that.

patreon.com/verdantvulpus