Sewing Patterns for Turn of the 20th Century Historybounders

My version of Simplicity EA258101 with alterations, paired with a split skirt from Historical Emporium

I’ve been on a wardrobe-building bender lately (er, when am I ever *not* wardrobe building?) and usually in Summer I trend towards Belle Epoque and Edwardian for…some reason.

Maybe it’s the linen tailor-mades.

Or the linen lingerie blouses?

Anyway.

I’ve been making and buying 1890s and 1900s blouses, skirts, hats, and doing some tailoring on an 1890s jacket, with plans to start an Eton jacket and finish a velvet zouave vest…gosh…busy busy!

Edwardian #historybounding seems to be a rising trend in our world. I’m by no means an early adopter of trends, so I’m just picking up on this now, but loving it. I dig the Edwardian aesthetic, though – it’s easy to blend with modern clothing, so it doesn’t feel too costumey to wear everyday, and there are enough basic pieces available to buy or make to get a mix-n-match wardrobe up and running pretty quickly.

I’m still doing a fair amount of sewing, though, so I wanted to share my favorite patterns with you, if you too are feeling a little pull to the ‘fin de siecle’ or turn of the 20th century.

Blouses/Shirtwaists

• Wearing History – 1910 Camisole Corset Cover – very easy little pattern that can be worn as underwear OR outerwear (non-HA of course).
• Wearing History – 1910s Blouse – a very typical Edwardian pigeon-breasted blouse with collar and sleeve options.
• Wearing History – 1910s Elsie Blouse – Intermediate level. I’ve made this one in linen and wear it a lot. Has sleeve options.
• Black Snail – c. 1900 Sport Blouse – puffed sleeves, long tail, and collar options.
• Black Snail – Edwardian Blouse – this one’s top of my list. I love the two sleeve options and the yoked collar.
• Black Snail – 1890s Shirtwaist – pleated front, puff sleeves, and collar options.
• Truly Victorian – TV494 – 1894 Shirtwaists – I’ve made the plain version and like it very much. Here’s my video on it:

• Truly Victorian – TVE47 – 1908 Countryside Blouse – a nice pin-tucked pigeon-front blouse with a high collar.
• Folkwear – 210 Armistice Blouse – 1910s blouse with lapel collar popular in that decade.
• Folkwear – 205 Gibson Girl Blouse – beautiful blouse pattern with yoke collar and sleeve options.
• Butterick 4049 – Edwardian Blouses (out of print) – you can find this on Etsy or eBay. Good basic blouse with decoration options.
• Butterick 3417 – 1890s Blouses (out of print) – another to source on Etsy or eBay. High-puff sleeves and full front.

Jackets/Vests

• Wearing History – 1899 Sophie Jacket – this is an advanced pattern, but super cool. I haven’t made it up yet but Nicole has made a version of it here:

Abby wearing an ensemble made by Nicole using the Sophie jacket pattern by Wearing History.

• Wearing History – 1897 Victorian Bicycling Outfit – this is an ensemble pattern that has a jacket and bloomers. Advanced pattern.
• Wearing History – 1910s Suit – a jacket and a skirt. I’ve made the jacket and it was easy to put together, and looks great with everyday clothes too.
• Black Snail – 1890s Vests – I’ve seen fantastic makes of this pattern. Collar options, and tailoring information in the instruction.
• Black Snail – 1895 Jacket – the iconic ladies’ tailor-made jacket with leg o’ mutton sleeves.
• Black Snail – 1890s Jacket – high puff sleeves, double-breasted, and wide lapels.
• Truly Victorian – TV498 – 1898 Eton Jacket – this has two lengths and a couple collar options. Very typical little jacket for fin de siecle, and what I’m using for this Colette outfit:

It’s hard to choose a favorite from the “Colette” film starring Keira Knightly, but this might be it – a perfectly “everyday” cycling outfit with an Eton jacket, split skirt, shirtwaist, and boater hat.

• Truly Victorian – TV496 – 1896 Ripple Bodice – a wide-lapeled, flared and fitted jacket with leg o’ mutts
• McCalls M7732 – Angela Clayton – I adore Angela’s work and have this pattern. It comes with the jacket, skirt, and the dickie, and could easily be made to one’s own flavor.
• Butterick B6608 – Jacket and Skirt – a good basic blazer and gored skirt combo. There’s a lot you can do with this ith some minimal tailoring and switching out the sleeves if you so desire.
• Simplicity EA258101 Edwardian Dusters – (print on demand) – I am using this pattern for my latest 1890s Jacket. It fits well and goes together easily (though I’ll skip the double-welt-flap pockets next time).

*Sleeves – One of my favorite ways to retro-style a plain jacket or blouse pattern is to switch out the sleeves for something more bodacious and accurate. Truly Victorian has a sleeve packet with five 1890s sleeves in it here – Truly Victorian TV495 1890s Sleeves.

This is a good example of using a different sleeve. The sleeves that came with Simplicity EA258101 were significantly smaller in puff, so I just switched them out for a large leg o’ mutton 2-piece style. The glory of this type of sleeve is you just pleat or gather it to fit any armscye.

Skirts/Bottoms

• Black Snail – Edwardian Women’s Trousers & Gaiters – for those who don’t wear skirts regularly (me), the bloomers are super cute.
• Black Snail – Edwardian Bicycle Skirt – A beautiful calf-length skirt with great details. This one will fulfill your Colette cycling cosplay dreams.
• Black Snail – Edwardian Fan Skirt – Basic full-length skirt with a deep inverted pleat at the back.
• Truly Victorian – TV299 – 1901 Split Skirt – convertible skirt with button-front. Can be made full-length or calf-length.
• Truly Victorian – TVE21 – 1903 Trumpet Skirt – Typical turn of the century skirt with a fairly flat front and full back.
• Folkwear – 209 Walking Skirt – gored skirt with a full back.
• Buckaroo Bobbins – Wyoming Ranch Skirt – split skirt with front removable panel. I’ve made this a couple times and actually drove cattle in Wyoming in it, so can attest to its practicality on horseback!

Now, these are all patterns that I like and that follow my personal aesthetic. There are more from each of these companies and other makers as well, so don’t take this post as gospel!