All posts tagged: Henrietta Maria

The Scroop Henrietta Maria dress with elastic waist thedreamstress.com

The Woodwold Henrietta Maria

Quite a few Henrietta Maria’s got made as I finalised my pattern, and many of them got left in the PHd pile, finished except for hems. (fess up, who else gets to that part and just can’t quite I make it happen…?) I’m slowly reducing the PHds, and adding the Henrietta Maria’s to my wardrobe. At this point my Costume College packing is going to be entirely Henrietta Maria dresses and historical frocks! Every time I finish a Henrietta Maria I love it more than the last one, and this one is definitely no exception! This is the Scroop Henrietta Maria with an elastic waist (tutorial here), in a poly crepe chiffon (it’s a very high quality polyester, and, thanks to the weave, breaths well). I’m calling it my Woodwold dress, because the print reminds me of the description of the amazing wrought-iron gates of Woodwold in Robin McKinley’s Spindle’s End. There are even tiny roses hidden in the print! This is one of those prints where no matter how you arranged the fabric, it …

How to add an elastic waist to the Scroop Henrietta Maria dress thedreamstress.com

How to add an elastic waistband to the Scroop Henrietta Maria dress

Published by The Dreamstress

It’s the tutorial you’ve all been waiting for! How to add an elastic waistband to the Scroop Henrietta Maria dress. It’s not hard to do: you mark your waistline, sew a piece of elastic in a circle, and sew it on while stretching it to fit the dress. You’ll need: A piece of narrow 1cm/3/8″ wide elastic as long as your waist measure A Henrietta Maria dress, finished except for hemming. Chalk or fabric markers for marking A french curve (helpful, but not necessary) Put your dress on inside out: Pin or tie your elastic so it sits snuggly and comfortably at the line where you would like it to sit on the dress: Using chalk or a fabric pen, mark the line of the elastic, front and back: >>> Tip: You can just use the waistline marked on the pattern, but trying it on and marking ensures the elastic will sit exactly where you want it. Take the dress off, and use a french curve to draw over your marked line, smoothing out any …

How to apply lace as an edge finish for the Scroop Henrietta Maria dress thedreamstress.com

Tutorial: How to apply lace as an edge finish for the Henrietta Maria Dress/Top

Published by The Dreamstress

One of the finishes I suggest for the Scroop Henrietta Maria dress and top is a lace edge finish. It’s a really fun and easy technique, and yields a gorgeous finish. Since it’s not a technique everyone is familiar with, I thought I’d do a tutorial. The concept is very simple: basically, you sew lace along the raw edge of a fabric, to cover the raw edge and keep it from unravelling. You can use it on seam allowances, and on hems so you only have to turn them once. On the Henrietta Maria, I like to use it on the neck and sleeve edges. For this tutorial all you need is a narrow (approx 2cm/3/4″), soft lace to finish your edges, and whatever you want to apply them to. I’ll be using a Henrietta Maria dress to demonstrate. Start by applying your interfacing pieces to the wrong side of your sleeve and body pieces: Set your sewing machine to a small length, medium width/height zig-zag. I have mine set to 1.8 & 3, respectively. …