All posts tagged: WWI

Building Your Own 1910s & WWI Wardrobe: Blouses, Skirts & Suits

Continuing on my series on making your own 1910s & WWI era wardrobe (with a focus on 1914-19), here are patterns for making your classic separates: blouses, skirts & suits. The patterns I’ve included here are from pattern companies I’ve made items from, or have helped students or friends make items from, and can recommend on that basis. I have not included pattern companies that I do not recommend, or pattern companies I have seen or tested in any way. I did not include patterns that are essentially modern blocks updated with a period aesthetic: I find that they rarely give the correct look. Other posts in the series include: Undergarments Dresses, Coats & Jackets Hope you find it helpful! Blouses: Multi Sized: Wearing History: Edwardian 1910s blouse & guimpe: suitable for earlier 1910s impressions, and less up-to-date and fashionable later 1910s impressions. Wearing History: Elsie 1910s WWI blouse: The perfect mid-1910s blouse Folkwear 1918 Armistice Blouse: I’m including this, but with caveats. The more I look at this pattern, and compare it to period …

Gossard Corsets ad, The Designer Oct 1916, thedreamstress.com

Building your own 1910s & WWI Wardrobe: The Undergarments

Published by The Dreamstress

It’s less than a month until Costume College 2018, and my instagram and facebook feeds are full of people panic-sewing for the event. I’m not going this year, but all the excitement has reminded me of the talks I did last year, and how I’ve never put most of that information online. In a timely coincidence, a number of people have asked me recently what my favourite Edwardian & WWI era patterns are, and how I built my wardrobe for my Fortnight in 1916 living-history project. One of my talks at Costume College last year was ‘The Great War Wardrobe‘: an in-depth exploration of WWI era home-front fashion, along with a guide on how to build a complete wardrobe from the period. I’m still working out how to turn the fashion history side of the class into workable blog posts, but will (hopefully) get those sorted and polished soon. For now, here is a quick series on where to get patterns to make a 1910s (with a focus on 1914-19) era wardrobe. Other posts in …

WWI era corset, 1910s corset, Rilla corset, corset pattern

The Scroop Rilla Corset on real bodies

Published by The Dreamstress

I’d hoped to show the Scroop Rilla Corset on models when I launched it, but unfortunately due to timing issues that wasn’t possible. Happily, we’ve now managed to do a full photoshoot with the Rilla, and I can show you how it looks on actual bodies! Both Jenni and I are wearing the Rilla Corset in size 38, with Average hip flare. Jenni wears View B in white coutil, and I wear View A in peach pink brocaded cotton. The size 38 in Average is a perfect match to my measurements. Jenni has an exceptionally small waist compared to her hip size, so the ideal Rilla Corset for her would be custom fitted to her measurements: shortened, as she is petite, and let out slightly in hip and at the underbust, to accomodate her amazing curves. I give guidelines on adjusting for fit in the Rilla Corset pattern, and will also be demonstrating custom fitting on Jenni in a later post. Although not an absolutely ideal fit, the standard pattern still fits her quite well. …