The Ornamented Being
Ornamented: -verb: Adorn; beautify. Be·ing: -noun: Fulfillment of possibilities; essential completeness.
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Thank you to Stéphane Casali for his beautiful portraits from the Hodson event. The rest of the gallery can be seen here.
I have one class left in this semester and the Tudor Tailor book launch (I can’t wait to see our hard work in print!) on Friday. I promise I will start keeping up with my blog! I still have to tell you all about the Titanic II London Launch, I’ve been terrible I’m so sorry everyone!
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I’m home! I feel that I must apologize in advance as this week is going to be extremely busy and I won’t have much time to blog! I have to be in class tomorrow, go in Thursday and try to prepare for a final fitting next week on my WWI Nurse, and prepare for the London launch of the Titanic II on Saturday!
I was going to make one post and talk about my costumes that I made for the Hodshon Huis Ball in Haarlem but I’m a bit rushed on time this week. I’ve been terribly naughty by not updating The Mended Soul and once life settles down I’ll get on that right away!
Until then I’ll post a sneak peek of my very first pelisse (see! I do smile in photos!), the dinner, and my favorite lemon tart! I was offered one slice and instead I passed my slice to the waiter (technically they were called our servants but I wasn’t very comfortable with that term) and took the whole plate from him!
Many of my friends have very kindly told me that I resemble Hortense de Beauharnais and so I decided that it would only be fitting to base my ball gown on her portrait.
I hope these will suffice until I am able to make a proper post!
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I’m home from the Ball!
You may have noticed that I ended up reworking my gown from Bath but to change it up just a little more I made an evening spencer to go over the gown. I will try to post more about this costume later this week on The Mended Soul!
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When I started this costume a week ago I channeled the theme Starry Starry Night. My mom sent me two different types of fabric but I felt a deeper connection with the blue and I think that was reflected in the way the costume came together.
The bodice was draped entirely on the stand. The hardest part of this period is that there really isn’t a wide selection of patterns available.
Unfortunately I only had a little under a yard and a half of 54” fabric and with some very smart cutting I managed a trained skirt with almost no scrap fabric left over.
For the skirt I altered the Thornton’s pattern I used for all my skirts I wore in my 1912 fashion lectures for the Titanic Memorial Cruise which can be found here .When I danced I pinned the train up under the triangular panel of my skirt. Otherwise it would have been impossible to dance!
There was about a 5” selvedge edge that was plain so I ended up staying up for the better part of two nights stitching what I lovingly called a constellation design onto the sleeves. I wasn’t able to take a photo but on the drape the crosses near my heart I did stitch an actual constellation. I’m not sure if anyone remembers the post I wrote about the connection I have with Orion but it can be found here.
And as a first class passenger I made sure all my jewelry carried on the theme of the Stars. The crescent moon is from 1912 so I felt very special wearing it! (See! I did put that box to good use).
Sadly I didn’t take any making photos. This gown was mostly made in the early hours of the morning after I had finished working on my University work. I will still update The Mended Soul but for now this is all I have to share!
Edit: The train pinned up during the Mississippi Cakewalk
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I owe a debt of gratitude to Owen Benson from Owen Benson Visuals for this photo taken of me during the Jane Austen Festival Masquerade Ball in Bath.
Keep an eye on the Mended Soul for an update on this gown but until then here is the longer front and back view!
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About ten minutes ago there was a knock on my door from the Royal Post. He cheerfully handed me a package and I came back in completely curious as to what was in my hands. I don’t normally get packages unless I’ve been naughty on ebay (Scouts honour I have been very good lately).
When I opened the package I wanted to cry. I truly am blessed with the kindest friends. One of the ladies that has adopted me in the UK found this beautiful length of fabric that had my name woven in the fibers.
I am now happy to say that I have a new gown in the making for The Horncastle Regency Festival in May! For more information please join the facebook group here or on the website here.
I’ll be posting a bit more information on the type of gowns I am planning for the Festival on The Mended Soul in the coming months but if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to ask me! I would love to see some of you there!
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I apologize for having been absent from my blog for so long! Without further delay I present my ball gown worn for the 2012 Jane Austen Festival Ball in Bath, England held at the Pump Rooms in the Roman Bath. I was sewing on it up until the last night but I am very pleased with how it turned out!
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After much debate I am pleased to announce that I will be attending the Regency Ball held during the Jane Austen festival in Bath on the 23rd of September.
I have started a mood board of ideas but they mostly revolve around gold and ivory. These are just a few of my favorite inspiration pieces.
The first is a detail of the Napoleon cameo in a portrait of Josephine. The next photo is the entire painting of Josephine by Andrea Appiani.
I am very inspired by the gown worn in the portrait of Elisabeth Alexeievna by Jean-Laurent Mosnier, 1802 Russia and by Catharina of Württemberg, 1807.
What are your favorite paintings from this period?
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“I am like a falling star who has finally found her place next to another in a lovely constellation, where we will sparkle in the heavens forever.” Amy Tan
While earthbound mortals watched the darkened heavens for a celestial display from the Perseid meteor shower, I found a few solitary stars that landed in a grassy field in Rock Castle, Tennessee. They hovered for a while in the half-light and danced in unison on fairy feet to the sound of a muffled symphony. Just for these few moments their radiance illuminated my soul and brought a warmth to my heart. Thank you to the members on the Regency Society of Tennessee for inviting me to the August Regency Ball and allowing me to be a part of your effervescent revelry.
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Tomorrows theme is “Masquerade, paper faces on parade.”
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Mrs. W. K. Vanderbilt at a fancy dress ball. In the latter half of the nineteenth century, fancy dress events became more common, and costumes could be found at department stores.
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Aha! I knew I had a photo of the actual dress being worn! It took some digging but voila!
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Masquerade! Paper faces on parade, Masquerade! Hide your face so the world will never find you. Masquerade!
-Cake Opera
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I’m currently working on a petticoat and a drop front gown for the Jane Austen Festival in Bath. I thought for tomorrows theme I would share a few of my favorite Regency items with you!
Circa 1820
V&A: “Women saved their most elaborate dresses for special occasions such as balls. Lavish gowns embellished with gold thread or sparkling beads glittered in the artificial light of the dancing room. Thin, gauzy materials created a soft dreamy look. These light materials also prevented the wearer from getting too hot while dancing in stuffy, overcrowded spaces.”
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“Extra period gown by Adrian from Romeo and Juliet. (MGM, 1936) Grey textured woven period gown, red velvet sleeves with gold dome sequins and feather design drapes on shoulders. Paper tag label “V-5.” Fabric is soiled. “
The photo above shows cast members that will appear in the ballroom scene of Romeo and Juliet. Even the supporting cast were given high quality costumes for the MGM productions
And that is another reason I watch old black and white movies. No expenses were spared. Extras who wouldn’t even be seen on film were dressed as well as secondary casts and in some films even as well as the main cast.
