Tablecloth Gown
I found a 30.- CHF tablecloth at my local supermarket, and since it has wonderful natural texture, is 95% fairtrade cotton and has lovely striped patterns on it, I saw it as a sign that I needed to buy it and do something with it. After a quick wash, sewed a gown with it the very next day. A dress in a day! I didn't think it was possible, but it became so because I already have the pattern, and there are no time-consuming details, apart from lining up the fabric patterns.
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I had drafted the pattern to my measurements in costume school using the instructions in Elizabeth Friendship's excellent book Creating Historical Clothes. It is the basic pattern to create a Robe à la francaise, the basic shape from which you can then create a sack back gown. The fabric made me think of a working class person, so I chose the simplest version of it. I had to do some piecing with the fabric to fit all of the pieces, which is perfectly historical for a modest-income 18th century woman.
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Here are a few pictures of the making process, or scroll down for the final reveal.
The tablecloth was 240 by 170 cm and I used it all up, there were only these tiny little scraps left at the end! I had some matching linen fabric that i used for lining the bodice.
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Wait. Tabs? Out of fashion fabric? On the outside? I know that apparent tabs at the waist like this are not very historically accurate, but I wanted to do something on the bottom of the bodice and didn't take the time to research a clever solution. So there's sewn in tabs. And I am perpetuating a fashion history misconception. Sorry. I have no good excuse.
I might have gotten carried away with accessories... In total, I made 5 more things to wear with the gown, starting with a frilly bonnet, an apron and a lacy kerchief. Then i realized I would have to shoot this outfit in the dead of winter and it got me wondering about how a woman in this century would keep warm. I found another woolly scarf that worked perfectly, and undertook the daunting task of knitting a pair of mitts. Knitting is not something I am good at, so I'm not thrilled with the result...
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Finally, my favourite elements: I made a hat and a hood! The hat was adapted from an existing one, which I choose on purpose because it is made out of a straw braid, which I knew I could unstitch and restitch into the shape I want. I began by removing the inner band and embellishments. Luckily, these were stitched and not glued, so there are no glue residues.
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This kind of hat is made by stitching a ribbon-like braid of straw into a spiral shape starting from the center of the hat and making its way out to the edge of the brim. The brim was the size that I wanted, so I began to undo the stitches in the middle of the crown, being careful to keep the straw threads it was sewn with. Once I had the brim on one side and the very top on the other side, connected with a length of braid, I restitched the braid in a spiral to extend the brim inwards a bit, then made a smaller and more shallow new crown. It is an incredibly satisfying process.
Finally, I dyed it a darker tone to lessen the beige-black color contrast, and added twill tape to the crown and underside to make ties. This tape is in fact the one that the tablecloth came bound up in, which was the perfect length, and a matching color. Waste not! I also added a bow in velvet ribbon because I couldn't resist the urge to give my working woman just a touch of luxury.
I am so happy with how it turned out!
And what about the hood? This is where I finally did some proper research. What did a woman wear on her head to go out in freezing temperatures? a straw hat has too much of a summer vibe to it, I needed something properly warm. And then I came accross this picture in Auguste Racinet's Costume History. He conveniently includes what looks like a front and back view of it and we can see the bonnet peeking out from underneath it. I was determined to try and reproduce it. It took a few tries, but I managed to make a pattern that works well to reproduce this shape out of simple rectangles of fabric.
