Having the pieces cut out, I finally began the 'fun' bit and started the sewing. The body of the gown went together pretty quickly since the lining and outer shell each only had 3 seams. When trying them on together (before being sewn together) I was really pleased with the 'weight' of them. And the flannel is lovely and soft!
The hem is hanging all wonky in the picture, but this is roughly how the dress would look if I did it the period style and didn't put sleeves on it. That said...I want SLEEVES!!! And, it was my desire for sleeves that presented my first problem -- how to put them in the dress. Option 1: Sew the outer sleeves to the outer shell, and the inner to the inner, then invert the lot and hand sew the cuffs of the sleeves. Option 2: Put the outer and inner sleeves together and THEN attach them to the coat.
Option 1 seemed the best option as it would allow for a more 'finished' look. However, I was leaning toward option 2 because I want to eventually take the sleeves apart and make them button from the shoulder to the wrist so I can poke my arms out if I get too hot.
So, I compromised. I put the inner and outer sleeves together and finished the cuffs, before attaching them to the outer shell only. The sleeve caps are quite big, so they had fat pleats along the top which were a pain in the rear to pin and place -- but turned out terrific!
The picture on the left shows how long the sleeves are - sort of. When my arm is hanging down, if I don't hold them up, they hang WAY over my hands. Not necessarily a BAD thing at a cold event, but not convenient either. The picture of the right shows the cuffs rolled up - which is how I think I will wear them as it keeps them on my wrists and provides an added 'wind gap' measure -- that is, less wind can whip up the cuff!.
I have two options here. Option 1: wear the coat with the rolled purple cuffs, and for added flair, sew the front edge as it is shown here, with the hint of purple lining showing. Option 2: Be conservative when I sew my velvet hood and try to have enough velvet left over for both the collar AND faux cuff lining so that I have a black velvet turn back to match the black velvet outer collar (which has yet to be put on).
Hmm...decisions decisions. I'm leaning toward the velvet idea, since my colors are red, black and gold, I'd really like to have my coat be those colors. That said, for the moment I will probably just line the collar in flannel and save the velvet for the hood, because after the event I would like to soak the coat in a black dye bath and see if I can't get it darker (and I don't care if the purple changes color).
Next steps -- adding the collar, hemming it and adding the fasteners down the front! :) Whohoo!! Should have a wearable coat by Friday night!
