Trumpets & Trimmings Has Moved!

As the title says, Trumpets and Trimmings has moved!

TRUMPETS AND TRIMMINGS

I had a lot of fun with this hosting platform but decided to make a jump over to wordpress in order to expand. I've got lots of great plans and posts coming up -- some are already up! Come on over and check it out!

Here's a sneak peak:

 

Fall fashion, first forays into corset-making, photoshoots, more HSM, and shoes!

Yo Ho Yo Ho, A Pirate's Vest for Jake (HSM #6)

For the June HSM challenge, I wanted to take the opportunity to really push myself so I decided to sew a waistcoat for my brother. Before starting, I decided that, no matter how long it took me, I would do it all by hand. I've done exactly two, much simpler garments by hand before but I wanted to focus on my technique. I started in the second week of May and finally finished it today - just in time to snap some pictures (albeit in the dark...with flash).

The garment will be worn for Halloween and he'll get an entire outfit to go with it...eventually. The idea behind his character is that he's an early 18th century gentleman-turned-pirate so he wanted his clothes to reflect that. This was my first time doing sewing a man's garment from that era so learning the fashion and sewing techniques of the day was a challenge in and of itself!

I used Simplicity 4923 (View C) for most of it, making little adjustments to the shoulder and back to fit him better. I also completely re-drafted the pocket flaps so that they curved along the top and came to three points instead of being flat across the bottom.

The front is made up of a teal synthetic fabric. It has a wonderfully subtle floral texture that you can see when the light hits it just right. The back and lining is made of brown linen. I know that the backs often had lacing or ties to tighten the garment, but I decided to not add any of it at this point in time. The fit was great just having taken in the side seams a few inches and I can always add it if the need ever arises.

 

The embroidery is done with material that I had left over from other projects. The gold detail around the edges is left over from my Halloween dress last year and is couched on with yellow floss. The embroidery on the pockets and buttons is done with metallic floss.

Sewing the pocket flaps.

One of the hardest parts of this project was all of the buttons. I'm terrified of buttons and buttonholes. That I'll mess up and won't be able to get them to line up and then I'll have ruined it! I put it off for a long time but eventually there was no way around it so I had to meet it head-on.

I bought three packs of cheap plastic buttons that were on sale for $0.40 and spent last Sunday covering 20 buttons with embroidered pieces of fabric. It took me literally all day. I was very slow at it at first, but I got in a good groove by the end. 

 

Pictured atop "18th Century Embroidery Techniques" by Gail March -- absolutely wonderful!

I sewed them onto the waistcoat that night but put off the buttonholes as long as I could.

I'd made buttonholes from the same era once before, but I was still very worried. I finally sat down today after work and worked my way through them. I'd done plenty of research beforehand and took my time to try to get it all right and, while they're passable, I know I still have a long way to go.

As a bonus, I spent an afternoon back in May to sew a neck stock out of a few inches of spare cotton I had lying around. It was a very quick project and I'm very happy with it. I feel like it adds so much to the overall look. I want to add a few rows of lace or ruffles to the bottom, though, to cover the small gap between it and the top of the waistcoat where you can see the ties on the shirt (from his Renaissance outfit from last year).

Overall, I'm incredibly happy with the waistcoat it turned out. I'm proud of all the detail I put into it and I would grade myself a solid B on the buttons. At least they all line up and I didn't ruin anything!

Next up pants and some proper photos!

The Challenge: Out of Your Comfort Zone (HSM #6)

Fabric: Teal, synthetic fabric and brown linen

Pattern: Simplicity 4923 

Year: Early/mid 1700s

Notions: Black thread, covered plastic buttons, gold trim. Teal, gold, and yellow embroidery floss.

How historically accurate is it? Pretty up there. Except for the synthetic fiber content. I'd say somewhere around 80%.

Hours to complete: A month and a half, working intermittently. 

First worn: Tried it on today. It will be worn in October.

Total cost: Pattern and gold trim from stash. One and a half yards of linen for about $6. One yard of teal synthetic fabric for about $4. Floss and buttons together totaled about $2. All together: $12.

1920's Day Dress - (HSM #3)

I spent a long time thinking about this month's challenge, stuck for several weeks. While I had plenty in my stash that I could draw from, I had a hard time finding any inspiration. I can't tell you how many times I sorted through my patterns and pinterest boards, looking for something that would spark my interest. 

Then, about two and a half weeks in to March, I happened upon a new show.

There are two seasons on Netflix and I'm already on my second watch-through.

It's about a female detective, Phryne Fisher, who solves crimes in 1920's Australia with the aid of her wonderful friends, the local police, and Detective Inspector Jack Robinson. The show is filled with fun mysteries, lavish sets, and some of the most amazing chemistry between I've ever seen. Not to mention gorgeous costumes.

     

    

And so I decided that for the third HSM challenge, I was going to make something from the 1920's. I have a set of instructions for the infamous "One Hour Dress," but I'd made it once before a few years ago and I wasn't happy with how it turned out. So, I turned to the internet to browse for a new method of construction.

I was a big fan of these dresses and I had a pattern in my stash that I could adapt to make a similar skirt.

Simplicity 1802. Last night I spent twenty minutes cutting out the three pattern pieces that I would use and sorting through my stash to pick out the fabric.

In doing so, I discovered that most of my stash is made up of quilting cotton, which was too stiff for this project. I wanted something sheer, but, in the end, went with a length of green fabric that I'd forgotten I had. I have no idea as to where it came from or its content, but it drapes nicely and I had enough of it to get a dress out of.

Fabric up close. It's less olive-y in person.

I used the bottom half of the pattern, dropped it down a few inches so it would start around my hips, and drafted the top part of the dress from a loose-fitting t-shirt that I have.

I cut it out in two pieces, front and back, plus the four u-shaped godets. Then, this morning, I sat down to sew.

It went pretty quick and I had it done early in the evening, though I would have been faster if I hadn't been distracted by TV while I was working. After a while I turned it off and put music on instead and worked much more efficiently.

Trying it on to check the fit of the top.

Trimming the bottom.

By the time I finished it was dark, so there wasn't enough light inside to get good photographs. But phone pictures will do until I'm able to take proper pictures of it with my Nikon.

It's a very simple dress, but I like it. It went much better than the last '20's dress that I made (too tight across the chest) and is very comfortable, especially with summer around the corner. It's nowhere near as fancy as Phryne's outfits from the show, but I could see her companion, Dot, wearing something like it.

The Challenge: Stashbusting (HSM #3)

Fabric: Green knit

Pattern: Skirt from Simplicity 1802

Year: 1920s

Notions: Green thread. No closures or anything; it slips over my head.

How historically accurate is it? Ummmm, 50%? That would be my guess. I went for more overall aesthetic than accuracy on this one as '20's styles aren't the most flattering on me.

Hours to complete: About 7.

First worn: Tried it on to take pictures. I will probably wear it on Thursday.

Total cost: Since everything came from my stash, $0. (I don't remember what I got the fabric for when I bought it but I know that I got the pattern for $1.)

Little Finds | An Afternoon Shopping Trip

Before I moved, I used to live pretty close to an antique shop that I visited often and soon became my favorite. I don't live as close anymore, but when I am in the area I make a point of stopping by to do some shopping. I had the chance to spend an hour there last week and I found some great things!

First up is this cookbook, New Delineator Recipes. It had been in the shop for a few months; I'd seen it on the self once before but ended up putting it back. This time I couldn't pass it up.

It's from 1930 and isn't in the best shape, but I prefer to view it as obviously well-loved. The first page was ripped halfway up but it was patiently taped back together and there are a few childish scribbles in and on the front and back.

One of my favorite things about it is the menus they suggest. The recipes are great in and of themselves, but I like to see what they were meant to be paired with.

Page 95 is marked with an old label from a jar of Crisco. After a quick Google search, it looks like the label comes from the 50's or the 60's, so this book was used and loved for a long time.

There are a few recipes printed on the back of the Crisco label, so it's too hard to tell whether it was saved for its own recipes or whether was saved to mark a recipe on the page. 

 

The next thing that I picked up was this embroidery kit. There were a few in a bin to choose from, but this design was my favorite.

I want to try it out on one of my many cardigans and, if it works out well, I may go back and purchase a couple others.

Lastly, I found three packets of sew-on snaps and some buttons that I can add to my stash.

So, in all, that trip was pretty successful. I had a fun afternoon and I'm really happy with what I found. Hopefully I'll be in the area sometime in the near future so I can stop by again.