A Floral Lawn Dress for 1870

Last week I finished this very fluffy new dress!

We were having a Victorian Picnic, and I have been wanting something light and summery - with lots of ruffles of course!

My friend Laura took most of these pictures. I handed her my camera and asked if she'd be my photographress. (Thanks Laura!)

This dress was SO comfortable on a hot day. I wore it with my crinolette/hoop bustle thing and it really kept my legs free and breezy! The open sleeves were nice, too, and of course the fabric was just so fine and breathable.

The crinolette really gave me a shape I loved. I finally feel like I have enough volume for those huge 1870s dresses! My lower hoop is about 85" around and I made my skirt about 130".

The plans for this dress all started with the fabric: a light printed cotton lawn. We received it at work by mistake, and I got a great employee deal on it. It was 57" wide, and I had about 10 yards. 

The colors are a bit off in these detail shots, but you can see the pattern. Flowers and butterflies!

There was a wide border print. I wasn't super fond of the brick red color but it ended up being a nice contrast. I used up every scrap of the border for ruffles!

A little of the progress. I started with the crinolette. For the skirt I used a formula I came up with ages ago, consisting of three pieces (Front, Side Front, and Back) and drafted to measurements. Leveling it on my own body is always an exciting challenge!

For the bodice, I used the pattern based off the one I call Bodice X, the same as my wool polonaise, but with a narrow V neck. I sewed the darts as tucks for a softer look. I made a new sleeve pattern that widened into a bell below the elbow.

The skirt ruffle. I machine-hemmed all the ruffles using dark red thread to blend into the border stripe. The skirt ruffle was gathered with a bit of a frill on top.

Starting to come together! The dressform was very helpful for figuring out the trim layout and general look.

The overskirt was pretty much just a big rectangle, longer in the back, with rounded front corners, gathered to the bodice waist. For the overskirt ruffle, I stitched the gathered ruffle right sides together with the skirt, then flipped it. Same with neck and sleeve ruffles. I closed the CF with hooks and bars.

I made a few pleats along each overskirt side seam to froof it up.

I bustled the back with tapes. 3 tapes, caught in 3-4 places each. I could definitely nitpick this a bit, but it's okay.

I trimmed the neckline and sleeves with a wide embroidered net lace, cut a bit narrower at the neckline. I tea-dyed it just a bit first because it was a very stark white. I wore my green-trimmed straw hat and gold Etruscan-revival-style earrings, and carried my gold silk reticule. My hair is just my own hair, done up in a braided bun.

I love how this dress turned out a lot and it was a dream to wear!