Sewing - Around the Year

Dancing in 1870s Style at the First Bustle Era Victorian Ball, Bath

aroundTheYear — Wed, 21 May 2025 09:47:12 +0000

Earlier this month I was privileged to attend the PriorAttire Victorian Ball in Bath for the second time. This year the dress code was First Bustle Era (1868-1876) – and we showed up ruffled and trimmed within an inch of our lives. Here are some clips for the ball night:

Full Dances

In the course of the evening we danced in many different styles – beginning with a Spanish Waltz (no footage unfortunately) several different quadrilles, both in square formation and cotillion style, different waltzes, a polka and “Hast to the Wedding” which confused me terribly, and our whole set ended up in a knot…

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How Fashion Changed in the 19th Century

aroundTheYear — Wed, 14 May 2025 10:30:57 +0000

How fashion evolved over the course of the 19th century, and how to recognise which dress belongs to which period. Over the 19th century fashion changed drastically – we went from sleek grecian-inspired fashions during the regency period to voluminous crinolines and sleek walking suits. Watch the video below to see the changes in fashion in more detail.

The post How Fashion Changed in the 19th Century first appeared on Around the Year.

The Making of an 1870s Ensemble – Day Dress & Ball Gown

aroundTheYear — Thu, 08 May 2025 13:50:49 +0000

In preparation for the annual victorian ball in Bath (hosted by Izabela from Priorattire), I had to make an outfit from the first bustle era, so 1868-1876 roughly. Truthfully I started planning about a year ago, two or three weeks after I got home from the 1860s ball.

I absolutely loved this pink dress from 1869, so that was going to be my main inspiration for the day dress. After much research on Pinterest (see my board here) I cherry-picked from different fashion plates and extant gowns, to create my own version of this dress.

After further hours researching designs, this is what I did for the evening gown: Many fashion plates feature a white bodice and over-skirt, which was the perfect solution to make my hot-pink fabric suitable for evening-wear. Not that it generally would have been a problem to wear bright coulours, but since I am quite young, a lighter colour was more appropriate for me, and I really liked the idea of wearing partly white.

Finally, and I only remembered this days before the ball – someone had gifted me an old table-cloth to use for sewing, and I thought it would be great to make a dolman cape from it, to wear over my evening dress.

The post The Making of an 1870s Ensemble – Day Dress & Ball Gown first appeared on Around the Year.

Making a Victorian Bustle Cage from Scratch (+ Free PDF)

aroundTheYear — Sat, 05 Oct 2024 18:59:19 +0000

I’m prepping for an 1870s ball, and the first step was to construct a bustle cage! I didn’t use the pattern, and the process was mainly improvised, but here is how I did it:

Click here to get your free PDF template with all of the measurements and some diagrams to help you visualize the construction!

The post Making a Victorian Bustle Cage from Scratch (+ Free PDF) first appeared on Around the Year.

1860s Victorian Ball Bath 2024 – My First Historical Costume Event

aroundTheYear — Wed, 22 May 2024 11:17:15 +0000

Every year, PriorAttire hosts a Victorian Ball in the historic city of Bath, England. Over a cycle of seven years, all fashion eras of the the Victorian period have a chance to shine. The theme for this year was the crinoline era, which spans the 1850s to late 1860s which is one of my favorite fashions of the 19th century.

Photo by TimeLight Photographic

Depending on where you live, you might know this historical period by different names, such as Mid-Victorian, Civil War, 3rd Napoleonic Era. It coincided with the reign of naturally Queen Victoria, Empress Eugene and Empress Sisi, each of whom heavily influenced the fashions of her time. After jealously looking at the photos posted each year, this year I finally had a chance to attend myself!

There is a video at the end of this post, in case you would like to see some of the gowns in action!

Photo by TimeLight Photographic

The annual Victorian Ball hosted by PriorAttire is held in Bath on the first weekend in May, usually coinciding also with the Met Gala – we all know who had the better dresses! I arrived on Friday afternoon, in time to explore a little before getting dressed in 1860s day-wear for a historical evening promenade through the city.

A number of girls stayed in the same hotel as me, so the receptionists soon had to get used to women in hoop skirts coming in and out. The promenade was a great opportunity to meet the people and chat to other dressmakers.

Photo by TimeLight Photographic

Oddly enough, I felt very myself in my dress, it did not feel like I was playing a part. I guess wearing the (almost) historically correct underpinnings also helped make the dress “real” as opposed to an empty costume worn over of the true you. Many people stopped to talk to us about our costumes, asked for pictures, and – my personal favorite – a skateboarder lifted his baseball cap at us! Funnily enough, others felt “underdressed” when they saw us, instead of us feeling overdressed.

On Saturday afternoon we had a dance workshop, in preparation for that night’s ball. Dances were called, and we learned how to dance polkas, quadrilles and English country dances. Some women wore day dresses, but most of us just showed up in our crinolines with a petticoat. I simply wore crinoline and t-shirt. It was important to get a sense of the space dancing in our big skirts.

Photo by TimeLight Photographic

Some of us did some last-minute shopping, ribbons, flowers and the like. I miraculously found some affordable vintage evening gloves in an antique store, and also some historically plausible clip-on earrings at a little shop in the Guildhall market.

Then we helped each other dress, and again the atmosphere was amazing. Imagine five exited girls getting into huge dresses in very small rooms, and finally building a chain in the corridor to lace the dresses of fix their hair. We were of course running late, and the fact that a pizza delivery guy had to squeeze past us, didn’t exactly help either. But we made it!

Photo by TimeLight Photographic

Finally we were all done and ready to hurry to the ball. When we got there, I noticed that I had forgotten my evening gloves. After some hesitation I figured I could run back to the hotel to get them, as every one was still queuing to have their picture taken.

I didn’t want to miss my chance of an official portrait, but there were enough people in front of me to give me 10 minutes to spare. That meant I had a proper “Cinderella running” moment. I also encountered some other latecomers to the ball, the gentleman courteously lifting his hat. In return I gave a hurried bow, and then started running again.

At eight o’clock, the ball started with a procession of all the couples, who walked in, bowed to the hostess/dance instructor, before separating into lines of men and women walking around the perimeter of the ballroom, before rejoining their partner at the doors. and walking around the room again this time as couples. Once we came to the doors again, we joined a second couple, to form a set of four dancers, ready to kick off the night with a Spanish Walz, which smoothly transitioned into a Danish Dance. Polkas and Quadrilles, Reels and Country-dancing followed. We had a short break about mid-evening, before dancing again till almost midnight.

Sunday morning I met with a few ball-goers for brunch at Sally Lunns, a historic little restaurant in town. The bulk of the ball guests brunched at the Pump rooms, but they were already sold out. Then we wandered around town a little more, and I caught the 3:13 train home. The End.

Since this was my first time going to a costume event, I was really exited, but also a little worried about how my dress was going to look next to all of the gowns of more experienced dressmakers. I did look a little simpler than most, but that was only to be expected, and didn’t stop me from enjoying my weekend to the full.

Especially the dancing was amazing – even though due to gentlemen shortage I danced with women most of the night. But since the dances are danced mostly in sets instead of the lead/follow setup, that didn’t really matter. Instead we danced our hearts out underneath the brilliant chandeliers, while about 500 meters of fabric whirled across the old wooden floors.

Photo by TimeLight Photographic

The post 1860s Victorian Ball Bath 2024 – My First Historical Costume Event first appeared on Around the Year.

How to Research Historical Fashion for Accurate Costume Recreation

aroundTheYear — Wed, 03 Apr 2024 11:44:00 +0000

During the design stage of a costume, I would say 90% of my time is spent searching the internet for inspiration: fashion plates, photos, and extant garments. Pinterest is a great source btw, as it allows you to save the inspiration pictures to boards, and saves you time later.

But as we get more serious about recreating historical dress, we need a little more background information, specifically where historical sewing techniques and are involved. So here are some of the ways I research and fins inspiration for my (mainly Victorian-era inspired) costumes.

Finding Inspiration
Historical Research, Know-How & Sewing Techniques
Favorite YouTube Channels to learn about Historical Dressmaking and Fashions
The Design Process
In Conclusion:

Finding Inspiration

Nothing is more valuable to recreating historical fashions than first-hand sources from the time itself, be that artwork, fashion plates or extant garments. Through the internet we have all of this information at our fingertips. Have a look at museum exhibits, either in person or online. Even watching well-made historical dramas can be great sources of inspiration. But in order to be able and replicate what you see you will need to understand what goes underneath, and how the shape of the fabric was cut. This is where books and video tutorials come in:

Historical Research, Know-How & Sewing Techniques

The Victorian Lady’s Guide to Fashion and Beauty
The Victorian Dressmaker (by Izabela Pitcher from Priorattire)
Authentic Victorian Dressmaking Techniques
Keystone Jacket and Dress Cutter: An 1895 Guide to Women’s Tailoring (Dover Fashion and Costumes)
Victorian Fashions: A Complete Lady’s Wardrobe (A collection of sewing patterns for late 19th century fashions)
59 Authentic Turn-of-the-century Fashion Patterns
Historic Costumes and How to Make Them (Dover Fashion and Costumes)
Historical ladies magazines such as the “Godey’s Lady’s Book”, “Journal de Demoiselles” etc. copies of which you can view on Archive.org

Favorite YouTube Channels to learn about Historical Dressmaking and Fashions

Priorattire (Dressing-up videos for a wide range of eras, from medieval to Edwardian, showing the undergarments as well)
Bernadette Banner (documents her historical dressmaking process and techniques, often with very interesting tidbits of information about the era)
Crowseye productions (more dressing-up videos, lovely production quality)
Karolina Zebrowska
English Heritage
Vasi Birchwood

The Design Process

After picking out a few inspiration pieces, be they fashion plates or existing garments, it’s time to decide if you want to actually recreate a dress 1-to-1 or put your own twist to it. Whatever way you decide, you will probably need to make a rough sketch – don’t worry if you’re not good at drawing, this is for your eyes only! This is where you bring your vision to life. What colors, fabrics, trims do you want to use? It’s one of my favorite parts of costume-making.

A big thing to consider is the budget – so if you’re a beginner you might want to keep fabric choices simple especially if you’re a (relative) beginner.

Additionally, don’t let yourself be constrained by what you see on fashion plates. Often when I’m in the process of making a dress, I get an idea, like a specific shape of sleeves or neckline, I want to incorporate, but I’m not willing to compromise on historical accuracy. So I do reverse-research – I start looking at sources to find evidence of that specific detail existing in fashion during that time period! And most of the time it does not take long to find historical evidence to support a design choice.

In Conclusion:

Having an approach of historical plausibility instead of ironclad historical accuracy can be incredibly freeing. Even if you can’t find evidence it’s still not impossible to incorporate it – fashion design comes down to the dressmaker after all, and dressmakers have always been people with ideas just like yourself. So don’t be afraid to go ahead, and design the dress of your dreams!

The post How to Research Historical Fashion for Accurate Costume Recreation first appeared on Around the Year.

Thriftflip: Transforming a Lace Dress into a Mantilla/Chapel Veil (& WHY do we veil anyway?)

aroundTheYear — Sat, 02 Mar 2024 15:41:52 +0000

For a few weeks now, any kind of lace material has been on my Thriftstore wishlist. Recently I came across an embroidered black lace mini-dress on the £1 clearance rail, and though I was not quite sure if and how it would work, I brought it home, washed it, and started cutting it u, to remake it into a lace mantilla veil.

But Why Veil? It's the 21st Century Isn't It?
How to Start Veiling and How I Started
Veil Colors
Transforming the Dress into a Veil

But Why Veil? It’s the 21st Century Isn’t It?

Women of many religions still veil today, but in Christianity the practice has largely fallen by the wayside. In my Catholic parish, I am one of only two veiled ladies, and when I started about a year ago, I was the only one. Just to be clear, when I say to veil, I mean when inside a church or chapel and not in everyday life. I’m happy to say that this beautiful tradition is actually making a comeback among the younger generation (including myself). Would it be something for you too? Keep reading!

Veiling is a personal devotion, not a requirement. In the Catholic church, women were supposed to veil at mass from St Paul’s time (1 Cor. 11) till the Code of Canon Law of 1917. After the second Vatican Council in the 1960s, fewer and fewer women veiled, and according to the current Code of Canon Law (1983) the church neither condemns nor requires women to veil. Nevertheless, it’s a beautiful practice steeped in tradition, and it can be a wonderful way to practice devotion. So much for the rules and regulations regarding this issue.

“A woman who veils is like the tabernacle light, signifying the true presence of Christ.”
-unknown

For me, veiling is a way to embrace my femininity, by showing respect to the Blessed Sacrament by covering, instead of, like a man, uncovering my head for worship. This in no way diminishes my dignity, or places me “below men” as some think, but rather accentuates our dignity as women, in no way inferior to that of men but equal and complementary. It also helps to get me into a more prayerful mindset, the veil edges framing my face giving extra privacy, and help keep my gaze from wandering.

Other valid reasons to veil include to imitate the Blessed Virgin Mary, the model of a perfect woman, and for modesty and humility (let’s face it, most of us will be a little vain about our hair, especially if it’s long) so covering it in a beautiful way can be a little sacrifice to make. It’s certainly true for me. In fact, when I see women sitting in front of me, some veiled some unveiled, the veiled heads seem to blend into the church more, thus not side-tracking my attention as much.

How to Start Veiling and How I Started

If you’re going to a Novus Ordo parish, you’re likely not going to find many, if any veiled women there, so you might say to yourself “if I veil I’m going to attract attention or distract others”. If that’s the case, I would suggest to start with a plain veil that blends into your hair color. Most importantly, it’s irrelevant what other people think. Don’t talk about it unless people ask, and don’t look around you to see if other people react. Your choice to veil is between you and God, and other people have no say in the matter. You will see that no one is really going to care anyway.

I actually started my head-covering journey in winter by just “forgetting” to take my beanie off in church. Some women did that anyway, and for me it was a good test of intention, because I didn’t like the way I looked in it, as opposed to a beautiful veil. Then I started just wearing my winter scarf as a sort of hood, and then progressed to a thin dark chiffon scarf I happened to have, until finally now I’m confidently wearing lace, and even experimenting with colors. For more tips on veiling for beginners, read this post.

The most important thing is not to look for other peoples opinion. You’re doing this for God, so don your veil and walk into church, like it’s the most normal thing on earth, without looking for reactions. The less you think about the fact you’re wearing one.

I was a little nervous at first, afraid that our priests would not approve, since I had heard some horror stories about that, but no one paid any attention at all, until our priest during a conversation simply said to me one day that he “approved of the mantilla”. I was very happy, because I no longer had to be afraid of a confrontation. Since the I received some comments here or there, all very sweet, often saying how this reminded them of their home countries etc, and one lady was even inspired to start veiling herself. But for the most part, no one pays any attention whatsoever.

The mantilla is normal for me now, and I forget mine, which did happen, I feel naked and exposed during mass. Even (or especially) when I go to a chapel alone, I make sure to veil in the presence of Christ, because then it is 100% between me and Him, no spectators.

Veil Colors

As far as color goes, the Spanish tradition is white for unmarried, black for married women. As an unmarried girl I personally wear white as my “default color” and sometimes switch it up with colors to match the occasion, such as blue for Marian feasts. Sometimes I simply match the veil to my outfit, it’s really up to you. The only color I would not normally wear is black, except for funerals, on the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, in the month of November, which is dedicated to remembering the dead, and on Good Friday.

Transforming the Dress into a Veil

I actually happened to be in need of a black veil, so when I found a cute embroidered lace dress, I knew it was just the thing. First I removed the built-in slip from the dress, which I’ll probably end up wearing on its own. Then I cut off the skirt, which was cut open at the center back. This was the only way to get enough material out of this tiny dress.

There were some more applique flowers on the top, which I carefully cut out and reattached to the veil by hand. There was no need to hem the fabric, since it doesn’t fray, so I left the edge unfinished. I really love the way it turned out, and will be wearing it a lot next November. For funerals the flowers are a little bright, but you can actually wear it inside out for a more toned-down look.

A little later I came across a red lace top, that met the same fate as the dress – it was made into a Christmas infinity veil (see pictures). It cost me £3, very decent price for a mantilla!

The post Thriftflip: Transforming a Lace Dress into a Mantilla/Chapel Veil (& WHY do we veil anyway?) first appeared on Around the Year.

Embroidered Lavender Blossoms

aroundTheYear — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 17:11:21 +0000

This is the easiest way to embroider lavender blossoms: all you need is two basic embroidery stitches, and some purple and green embroidery floss!

The lavender blossoms are literally only groups of french knots, set on stems embroidered using a stem stitch. If you like, you can finish your bouquet off with acute little bow like I did, and you’re all done!

Supplies

Embroidery floss
Wooden embroidery hoop (the smaller the better)
Embroidery needles

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Celebrating Lucia from Home: Easy Traditions you can Start Right Now!

aroundTheYear — Tue, 12 Dec 2023 10:58:13 +0000

As a girl growing up in Sweden, St Lucy’s day or Lucia, naturally became a big part of my Advent. On December 13th the young people of the area would dress in white and perform the old Lucia and Christmas songs in the local church by candlelight. My first time being part of the procession was when I was 4 years old, though of course we toddlers were only carrying electrical candles.

After moving away to England 7 years ago, we kept the tradition of singing a few songs at home, and baking our version of the customary Lussebullar: since we prefer the taste, we simply make Cinnamon rolls, but roll them into the traditional s-shape required.

This year I found out that there are actually one or two Lucia events in London, but unfortunately it was too far away for me to attend weekly rehearsals.

Then last week, on an impulse, I sewed myself a white Lucialinne, the simple white shift dress worn for the festivities, which really resembles and Edwardian nightgown. Since it’s impossible to buy them here, and the dress is a really simple one, I decided to just make one, even though I wouldn’t be wearing it anywhere. Unfortunaltey I couldnt find a Luciakrona, the candle crown anywhere, and it was impossible to build one. They need to be quite sturdy and are usually made of metal, with either 5 or 7 candles. Often the bare metal is then wrapped in evergreens and secured with red ribbon. I did however make a normal wreath like the one worn by Lucia’s followers to complete the look.

I ended up shooting this short video, to capture the mood of the season:

Lucia: Symbolism and Backstory

The name Lucia or Lucy can mean light, and that together with her feast day on December 13th in the dark of winter helped her gain popularity in Scandinavia, especially in Sweden, where her feast day is celebrated as the Night of Light. Lucia is dressed in a long white gown (feel free to be creative with white skirts and long-sleeve blouses) with a red ribbon or sash tied around the waist, the ends falling down the front of the dress. Naturally the real St Lucy of Syracuse would not have dressed like that, the Lucia costume could be symbolical of her attributes (white=virginity, red=martyrdom), as well as being a crossover with a Christmas angel.

The first evidence of a a white-clad Lucia dates back to the 18th century, where she was depicted with angels wings, and carrying candles in both hands. However Lucia as a public holiday only came into fashion in the 1950s, in connection with the crowning of the towns Lucia, similar to a beauty pageant.

Men also participate in the Lucia procession and choir, usually as Stärngossar (star boys) inspired by the three wise men.

By Claudia Gründer – Claudia Gründer, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=3221537

Ideas to Celebrate Lucia from Home In Style

Watch a Lucia procession online (see a few of my favourites below)
Bake Lussebullar and serve with mulled wine or cardamon coffee
Light up your backyard (or a part of the forest) with candles – extra points for snow!
Dress as Sankta Lucia or a Stärngosse and serve your family and friends cakes or pastries
Sing “Sankta Lucia”

Luciamorgon i Kungsholms kyrka

Sankta Lucia – Celebrating Light in the Dark of Winter December 13th St Lucy's Day 2023

Lucia 2019 – Lucia morning from Gränna Sweden

Light in the darkness | Swedish Lucia Tradition

Lucia 2022 – Lucia morning from Gräfsnäs Sweden

LUCIA – The night of light

Lucia 2018 i Kungsholms Kyrka med Kungsholmens gymnasium/Stockholms musikgymnasium

A Salutation to Light in the Darkest of Nights

Jonna Jinton Lucia 2014 "Ljus i mörkret"

Helen Sjöholm & Benny Andersson Nu tändas tusen juleljus

Lucia – Ljus i mörkret HD jonnajinton.se

Lucia 2015 Sweden (Updated subtitles)

The post Celebrating Lucia from Home: Easy Traditions you can Start Right Now! first appeared on Around the Year.

Sewing Hacks to Make Life Easier You HAVE to Try (and Mistakes to Avoid)

aroundTheYear — Thu, 20 Jul 2023 12:05:26 +0000

These minor tweaks in your sewing process are going to save you so much time and headache!

Switch Your Patterning Paper

If you buy tracing paper for pattern making, you will usually get rectangular pieces, either pre-packaged or cut off the roll. The issue here is, that you will need to store them folded, and unfold and refold the sheet, every time you want to use it. Because of this, I switched to simply buying a roll of craft paper at my local craft store, which is a) a little cheaper, and b), I can just casually unroll as much paper as I need. One drawback is, that the paper tends to roll itself back up, so you will need to use weights to keep the paper flat while pattern-drafting.

Change the Direction you Stick Your Pins

Pinning your pieces like a normal person (aka parallel to the fabric edge), you’ll have to keep on removing the pins as you sew, and this is only possible if you have all you pin heads facing you while sewing. I have damaged countless sewing machine needles because of accidentally sewing over the heads of my pins, or even by hitting the pins themselves. If you place them at a right angle instead, it’s possible to sew over the pins without stopping the machine. Only make sure to allow the head to stick out far away from the needle!

Invest in Proper Sewing Machine Accessories

Specifically: an invisible zipper foot, and a blind hem foot! If you’re making women’s clothes, you’ll need them for almost every project. I used to try and sew my invisible zips using a regular zipper foot, and holding the teeth back with my fingers. Truth is, you can’t really sew a straight line, when using all your attention to keep the teeth open. So make the investment and GET THE PROPER PRESSER FEET for the seams you’re making!

Don’t Skip Pressing!

This mistake is what’s really the at the root of most homemade-looking clothes as opposed to handcrafted. Pressing open that seam or ironing that hem is going to be what gives your clothes the crisp lines and sharp edges you dream of!

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