All posts filed under: Scroop Patterns

Two women in 18th century dress stand in front of a fence. Behind the fence are a pair of Highland cattle.

Georgian Frolics in the Country

A few weeks ago my historical costuming friends and I rented a cottage in the country for our fifth(!) annual Historical Sew & Eat Retreat. On Sunday we took a drive along the back roads in 18th century dress and admired some cows and explored the delightful Hattenburn Gardens. The cows were interested in our grass, but not brave enough to eat it out of our hands… I wore my Extremely Exuberant Amalia ensemble, and Nina wore her just-finished Angelica gown in the same fabric, in a slightly less exuberant colourway. (fun fact: this fabric is made by the same manufacturer as the in/famous Our Flag Means Death breakup robe!) Other than me, it was an Angelica fest. Mme Kez wore the sample Angelica she modelled, and Averil sported another just-finished Angelica, in country appropriate linen, altered to be front fastening with hooks. And somehow we all, excepting Nina, forgot our bust bows. I don’t know how. Mine was sitting on my dressing table, complete with pin, when we got back. The Hattenburn Gardens …

Call for Pattern Testers for 18th century mantle patterns!

Published by The Dreamstress

UPDATE: due to an overwhelming response, applications to test this pattern are now closed. Thank you to everyone who took the time to apply! Amber of Virgil’s Fine Goods and I have been working on a particularly adorable and exciting new 18th century pattern collection to add to the Scroop + Virgil’s Fine Goods historical pattern collaboration – three 18th century cloak and mantle patterns which will be available individually, or as the ultimate awesome pattern bundle. Our pattern is almost finished, but we want to check that it’s as fabulous as possible, so we need testers to help us check it out! If you’d like to apply be one of them, keep reading to learn more! Please note that we always get significantly more applicants than we have spots available, so we are not able to include everyone who applies in the testing pool. The Patterns: The Marie Mantle: 1740-1779, is an unlined short mantle with two body views and an optional small hood. The pattern includes instructions on self-fabric trim variations, as well as instructions on …

The inspiration behind the Angelica Gown

Published by The Dreamstress

We thought you might enjoy seeing some of the inspiration behind the Angelica Gown. Every Scroop + Virgil’s historical pattern starts with research. We look at extant garments in private collections and museums. We assemble huge inspiration boards of items from online databases, noting details and similar design and construction elements. Then we start parsing and sorting. What elements are commonly seen together? What aesthetic features do we really want to include? What construction features do we really want to include? Is there a particular garment that is the starting point for the whole design, or are we mixing common elements? Here’s what we ended up with for the Angelica Gown! The Angelica Gown pattern is available as a digital download from ScroopPatterns.com, and as a paper pattern from Virgil’s Fine Goods. View A Front: This was an easy pick! I absolutely love the neckline of this gown, and the waist edge, with its sharp curve and truncated point. This shape shows up on other extant garments, and in fashion plates, so it was a …