Costume update

Today I went to my friend V. with whom I am going to Venice next February. She is sewing the costumes for five friends and I am helping her out a bit. As she is a real seamstress (not as a profession, but she went to a professional school for sewing) she could help me out with costume issues of my own.

While I was there I also had a good look through her extensive library on costume books and pulled Fashion in detail from the shelves. We were looking for ideas of how to make a bustle. She had made a bustle dress before so had some experience, but this time we were looking for something fresh, historical but with a little twist.

These two photos are taken from the book (sorry for the bad quality) and especially the top one gave us some ideas. Below your see a bustle made from real horsehair.

This totally fired up our imagination: my friend decided to make the bustle on top of the skirt instead of underneath it. Since she is making five costumes this might may be quicker in the making. She also had decided to make the skirts short, just above the knees, whether I decided to make a long skirt. This decision was based on the amount of fabric we have. My golden silk is like 7 metres so I have plenty of fabric to make a long skirt, but V. doesn't have enough for all the other skirts.

Above you see the status of my corset: I've cut and sewn three layers of fabric. I need to add the boning and then sew the edges with piping. After that I can finish off with cutting wholes for the laces. It looks like it is going to be beautiful!