All posts tagged: 1780s

Pet-en-l’aire and petticoat

Having finally finished my 1780s pet-en-l’aire I was eager to do a photoshoot in it, but I delayed it for a few days so that I could do one more quick project: make a 1780s walking length muslin petticoat to go with it. I’m so pleased that I took the time to complete the ensemble! The pet ruffles (particularly the little twists at the front ends) are just delighting me, and the petticoat is much better with the outfit than the old long one I’d paired it with before. For the photoshoot Madame O and I got dressed up in our respective yellow pet-en-l’aires and headed out to a park for end-of-day photos. It’s been a very dry summer in New Zealand, and the whole country is in varying stages of drought, so the photos are ochre when they would usually be green. It didn’t look much like our usual vision of pretend 18th century Europe, so we just pretended we were in Provence. Unfortunately we didn’t see a single other person at the …

The fully embellished 1780’s Indienne silk pet-en-l’aire

Published by The Dreamstress

‘Tis done! Fully and completely! Finally, after over a year, the pet-en-l’aire is fully sewn, fully embellished, the correct front ribbons sourced and custom dyed, and the insides finished to perfection (really, they are almost as pretty as the outsides). Whew! I tried a number of options for the sleeve ruffles, and finally settled on a pattern that, while not historically documented, I felt was best in keeping with the overall aesthetic of the pet-en-l’aire. I found white silk cuffs too distracting, and engageates clashed horribly, and defeated the idea of fashion moving towards a more casual and informal aesthetic. I did like the idea of a slight bit of volume at the edge of the sleeves, and so my pleating pattern released below the sleeve end, to balance the fullness of the side pleats and back of the pet-en-l’aire. Alas, I couldn’t find a historical example to back this pleating pattern up, but every step of this garment has had to be a balance between historical examples and modern fabrics. It’s been a lot …

Thoughts on late 18th century pet-en-l’aire trimmings

Published by The Dreamstress

In preparation for the upcoming High Tea charity fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House I’m trimming my Indienne chintz pet-en-l’aire. I’ve dyed pretty new rayon and cotton ribbons (the closest I could get to silk) to replace the nasty synthetic ones on the front, and am figuring out how to do the ruffled trim. Earlier mid-18th century pet-en-l’aires, like this yellow example, have pinked ruffle trim: But later 18th century examples, the era I am aiming for, have flatter trim that is finished or turned on the edges: I’m trying to figure out exactly how the ruffles are made. I have 3.5 options to make the ruffles shown in the examples above: Option 1: The ruffles are cut in strips more than 2x the width of the ruffles, the sides are folded back and overlapped in the middle, and then the ruffles are sewn down, with the raw edges hidden on the middle underside of the ruffles. Option 2: The ruffles are cut in strips the width of the ruffles, plus turning allowance, and then the …