The Dreamstress

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The Cassandra Stays Sew Along: Assembling the Panels & Adding Bones

Previously on The Cassandra Stays Sew Along:

In this instalment of the Cassandra Stays Sew Along your Cassandra Stays are finally going to start looking like a pair of stays. That’s right: we’re sewing the panels together and adding bones!

Assembling the Panels

This isn’t the final sewing-together of panels: this is just a quick assembly so you can do a final fitting before the final assembly of the stays. You’ll need to either re-sew the seams with stronger stitching if you’re using the Theatrical construction methods, or whip the channels together if you’re using the Historical constructions methods.

You have two options when adding bones and sewing the panels together. You can either bone the panels first, and then sew the panels together, or sew the panels together, and then add bones.

If I’m sewing the seams by machine, I prefer to bone the panels after I’ve sewn them together. This method doesn’t work with all styles of stays, because some boning layouts don’t allow you to add bones after sewing the seams. However it works well for the Cassandra Stays.

I’ll be sewing the final seam-joins by hand using the historical instructions. For the purpose of fitting, I’m speeding things up and using a machine.

I sew all the panels together:

And then I press the heck out of all the seams:

(never trust a sewist who doesn’t press more than they sew!)

And now that I have assembled stays, I can add bones!

Boning the Stays

When boning the stays I just re-use the bones from my fully boned toile:

Some of my bones are longer than the boning channels. I’m keeping that extra length, just in case I decide I want to keep the seam allowance length for my final stays:

Since I’m keeping the length, and will need to do a final trim and shorten of my bones, I’m just cutting down and sanding one end of the bones to be smooth:

If you find that it’s very difficult to insert the bones into the channels, use a pair of pliers:

Hopefully you were careful in measuring your boning channels and don’t need to do that!

And here’s my toile, all limp and de-boned, and my nice stiff fully-boned stays, ready for a final try-on

The Scroop Patterns Survey – please tell me what you think!

Published by The Dreamstress

Help shape the future of Scroop Patterns!

I’m planning the next few years of research and patterns. I want to know more about the people who buy, or have thought about buying, Scroop Patterns, and what you want from your patterns.

If either of those describes you, please take the first Scroop Patterns survey!

Your input and opinions will help me focus on making the patterns that you want most, and that include all the things that you love most in a pattern.

The survey takes about 10 minutes to do.

It can be done completely anonymously, or you can choose include your email, in which case you will be sent a code for 15% off a purchase from ScroopPatterns.com.*

Scroop Patterns has grown and changed from my original vision when I launched Scroop Patterns with the Henrietta Maria dress & top 8 years ago.

As I look towards the next 8 years I want to focus on the things that make me happiest, and that make you happiest. The survey asks questions about what types of patterns you buy, what types of patterns you want to buy, and size ranges. All of this information will help me to streamline the process, and to create patterns you’re excited about.

I’m excited to hear what you have to say!

Please take the Survey!

Massive, massive thanks in advance!

*excludes gift cards, cannot be used with any other promotion, code valid for 90 days from the day the email is sent

Evening dress by an unknown maker (possibly British), 1913-1914, silk, linen, glass, metal, National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Oslo

Rate the Dress: Salmon pink and bold black, 1913-1914

Published by The Dreamstress

It’s been another exciting week for me, with way too much work (luckily I love my students & patternmaking), and way too many chores to do, and then a plumbing disaster on top of everything else.

But I finally have an evening to relax, and am sitting on the couch in my new favourite pants, with Felicity curled in a contented ball in front of the heaters. Bean soup is simmering on the stove (which means I won’t have to cook for the next three days – the dream!). All is, if not right, at least momentarily not-terrible with the world. And it’s the perfect time to write Rate the Dress.

Last week: an 1860s dress in pale pastel pink with bold black trimmings.

Last week’s pink and black colour scheme won universal approval, but you were less unified on what parts of the dress you liked, and what parts you didn’t like. Some of you loved every part of the dress. Some loved the bodice but thought the stripes on the skirt were overpowering. And some thought the skirt was perfection, but the black bertha was just-too-much.

But everybody liked at least something about the dress, so that’s a win!

The Total: 8.5 out of 10

A point and a decimal point up from last week! That’s an improvement

This week: A 1913-1914 dress in salmon pink and black with silver lace.

I’m sticking with the pink and black colour scheme of last week, but pushing out the boat with a deep salmon pink that is almost orange, and adding in some ivory and silver, as well as a bit of patterning, with this evening dress from 1913-1914:

Evening dress by an unknown maker (possibly British),1913-1914, silk, linen, glass, metal, National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Oslo

This dress has all the most fashionable features of 1913-14: a bold colour scheme, high-low hem, square train, tunic effect, metallic lace, pointed peplum (also seen in more casual garments like the Selina Blouse), slightly-higher-than-natural waist, kimono sleeves, V neck over-blouse over a straight under-bodice, tasseled sash, and layers of fabric and texture. It’s the absolute epitome of high-end evening wear of its era.

Evening dress by an unknown maker (possibly British),1913-1914, silk, linen, glass, metal, National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Oslo

Some online sources state that this dress was worn by Queen Maud of Norway, but I can’t find a definitive source for that, and it’s not one of the garments in Style and Splendour, the book about her wardrobe.

Evening dress by an unknown maker (possibly British), 1913-1914, silk, linen, glass, metal, National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Oslo

Whoever wore this dress, they weren’t afraid to stand out, or to embrace every single design fad, all at once.

Evening dress by an unknown maker (possibly British), 1913-1914, silk, linen, glass, metal, National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design, Oslo

What do you think? Is this a gown suitable for a Queen…of fashion?

Rate the Dress on a Scale of 1 to 10

A reminder about rating — feel free to be critical if you don’t like a thing, but make sure that your comments aren’t actually insulting to those who do like a garment. Phrase criticism as your opinion, rather than a flat fact. Our different tastes are what make Rate the Dress so interesting. It’s no fun when a comment implies that anyone who doesn’t agree with it, or who would wear a garment, is totally lacking in taste.

As usual, nothing more complicated than a .5. I also hugely appreciate it if you only do one rating, and set it on a line at the very end of your comment.