Jane Austen Ball part 2

Last summer, I bought a Regency day dress off the rack. Where you might ask?!? At a costume resale event hosted by Atelier Mela, a hat shop in Fullerton, CA. Totally random walk by, I know, but the dress fit and I thought I was set for the ball. It even came with a gold velvet Spencer jacket.

The fabric is a lovely sheer Indian cotton lawn with a tiny gold medallion print and border. There were a few alterations to make for perfect fit. I wanted to take the long sleeves off, add beaded trim and make undergarments to convert this gown for ball readiness.

A few months pass and I realized that in the amount of time I would spend converting this dress I could make myself a new one in ball-ready fabric. I remembered that I had a lovely iridescent bronze raw silk Dupioni in my stash. It and a matching sheer velvet floral cutout fabric were purchased years ago and intended for a 50's style cocktail dress that never got made. I had 5 yards of each. Perfect for the gown I was now envisioning. Of course, lots of time was also spent on Pinterest looking at ideas.

This picture shows the start of the collection of materials. Folkwear pattern for period-correct dress and McCall's for sheer overlay option. The shiny gold fabric at the bottom of the picture was intended for a shawl that never happened.

These are other bits I had to gather as I went along. Ribbon for ties, bias tape, buttons, horsehair for hems, woven trim for decoration, etc. And, yes, armpit pads for sweat protection!

I started with the underdress. I bought a soft white cotton fabric. So many pieces for just the bodice.

The skirt was 3 pattern pieces, center front, side and center back panels. I French seamed these pieces. Long straight seams are easy to do this way. The bodice raw edges are all overlocked. I know, not period-correct but easy to sew!

Most Regency garments have center back openings. I thought it would be a good idea to convert to a side opening so I could dress by myself. I moved the neck drawstring opening to the center front. I also moved the center back placket to the side along with the underbust drawstring. It took a bit of finagling as I made the alterations as I sewed the pieces together instead of re-drafting the pattern. I wanted to see how the garment fit without having to rip out too many stitches if it did not.

Bodice before the neckline drawstring was inserted.

Close up of the tiny button hole I sewed in the center front.

Close up of finished side opening. Small hooks and bars keep the side closed.

Bodice with neck drawstring pulled.

Finished underdress. Turned out it fit perfect. No adjustments needed.

I used my sewing machine to assemble the dress. It occurred to me after the garment came together quickly that had I been making this dress in 1789, I would have sewn all the seams by hand. That would have taken MUCH longer to do.

Jane Austen Ball part 1 can be found here.

Jane Austen Ball part 1

Yes, that's right...a Jane Austen Ball.

I'm a fan of Jane Austen's books. Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibilities are some of my favorite stories. But I'm not a super fan. Apparently. Because I had no idea that there were giant events and conventions all about Jane Austen and her writing.

There are week long events in Britain, Regency Society groups around the world, and lots of dancing and balls where one can dress up in the style and have fun. I found this out as I did research poking around on the internet after a friend invited me and a couple of others to attend a ball with her.

For my friends and I, the event was about the costumes we made. I will share that story in succeeding posts. For everyone else who attended, it appeared to be all about the dancing! Formal original line dancing. Just like in the movies!

There were over 200 people dancing. Lots of men, too. Men in kilts, tuxedos, frock coats, period military uniforms. Women in day dresses, cotton, linen, plaid silk, taffeta, brocades. A few were in modern formal dress but most everyone was in Regency period costume. Because it was about the dancing, most folks wore comfy flat shoes. Some even wore slip-on tennis shoes.

This is the music program. It was fun to hear these OLD pieces of music. We had a live five piece orchestra and dance caller.

The ball took place at the Pasadena Masonic Lodge in the great room. It was amazing to see it full of regular people dancing in sync, who just happened to be wearing period clothes. This event has been taking place every January for 22 years!

The ball is hosted by The Evening with Jane Austen.

The Historical Tea & Dance Society is another local group. They host events all year long featuring different time periods. My dancing friend has attended a couple of Victorian Balls with this organization.

I had a BALL!