1790s Striped Jacket – progress!

Oh hey, look what I found…

I walked into my local Hancock Fabrics this past Saturday, pleased with the huge “50% OFF!” banner hung on the outside of the building, and there, right in the door, right in front of my eyes, laughing at my face, was this fantastic red and white striped cotton. Well, that was it, I was done.

So I picked up the cotton, and 8 (4 packs) of wooden buttons. There was a poor selection of non-modern-looking silver buttons, so I’ve decided to faux finish these basic wood ones with a little silver paint.

Depressionista Tally:

– 2.25 yds. fabric $10.11
– 4 packages of buttons – $8.00

$18.11 is not bad at all for a jacket! I would say that yes, that is well under the $50 budget for this project!

Another technical decision that deviates from the inspiration garment: a side front seam, one of which the front placket is stitched in to, the other of which it meets when buttoned.

So of course I rushed home, finished my 18th c. stays, and bounced right into patterning this jacket, using a couple techniques I’ve picked up from other fabulous online costumers, and one or two I’ve devised for myself.

All hail the sharpie marker.

The pattern went together quite well, and even the sleeves are going to work this time (shocking, I know!). I used a two-part sleeve pattern from a Simplicity Victorian dress pattern I made a couple years ago. The sleeve is curved and slim-fitting, so quite correct for this jacket, and I got very lucky in that it fit my draped armscye exactly. Pure luck.

A rough estimate of the collar.

For accurate fit, I used a combination of both my dress forms, and my own body as well. I have found that my Not-So-Uniquely Me dress form (“Jane”) doesn’t squeeze down and reshape as much as I need her to. On the other hand, my Dritz Double (“Millie”) is also not quite the same size as me, and doesn’t reshape at all, but dials down to specific measurements. However, going back and forth between Jane and Millie somehow results in a pattern that fits quite accurately, and perfectly once double-checked on my own body-in-stays.

I decided to not include the point in the back, to help the back lay better, and because it compliments the squared-off bodice front.

So the fabric is in the wash, and I’m ready to start on this project tonight! More progress updates to come…