All posts tagged: Raspberry Swirl 1850s dress

The Raspberry Swirl at tea

I loved the chance to get the Raspberry Swirl out for the Afternoon Tea talk at Premier House.  It’s had so few proper outings, and I still can’t decide if the evening bodice is actually ‘finished’ or not. Does it need a bertha?  I’m beginning to think not.  As a cotton dress, an evening bodice is never going to be properly historical, and there are examples of plain evening bodices, sans berthas and much in the way of trimming, in the 1850s. So then all I really need to do is actually make the day bodice that was always meant to go with this skirt! Some of you may be wondering what a paisley evening gown has to do with afternoon tea.  It gave me a chance to talk about the continued links between England and India, and the cultural cross-pollination that characterised Victorian England. It also gave me a chance to talk about the re-thinking of manners and mores in the mid-19th century.  In the 1850s Queen Victoria attended official day events in evening …

Five for Friday: Questions I’m bound to be asked at a talk

Whenever I give a talk there are certain questions I can be almost certain I will be asked. How long does it take to make one of these dresses? A long time.  A long, longtime.  But it does depend on the dress.  A Regency, even hand-sewn, can go together in 12 hours.   I actually counted with the tea gown, and it took between 32-40 hours from draping to hemming.  The Ninon dress was much longer, thanks to all the hand-sewing and bodice boning.  The Japonisme dress would have been relatively quick, were it not for the hand-appliques obi motifs.  Are the dresses (and corsets) uncomfortable to wear? Chiara in Ninon said “Yes!” much too enthusiastically to this question this time, much to my chagrin.Certainly cramming all five us into a car for the ride from dressing to Premier House didn’t help with the comfort factor.  I like to say that they are ‘differently comfortable’.  Like a suit isn’t the same as jeans, but you wouldn’t necessarily say uncomfortable.  How do you sit in them? …

Taking tea and talking about tea fashions at Premier House

Monday was the much anticipated (at least by me) afternoon tea charity fundraiser for Save the Children at Premier House, where I gave a talk about the history of tea, and the way it has influenced fashion. It was a fabulous day: the event completely sold out resulting in a sizeable donation for Save the Children, the sun shone brightly all morning, Premier House looked wonderful, and so did my models. I wore Japonisme, the chintz pet made its ‘soft debut’, Julie debuted as a model in the Raspberry Swirl, Chiara looked beyond amazing in Ninon (as always), and I also debuted a new 1900s tea gown that I haven’t told you about yet.  Lots of excitement! With everything I do, there are so many people to acknowledge.  Save the Children for having the event of course, my models for being gorgeous and supportive and keeping me calm and putting up with my running around like a crazy women during the dressing.  Most of all, there are the people who contributed and supported in the …