Once upon a time I made a pink taffeta polonaise and trimmed it in organza, a very 1770s thing to do. At the time, I tried hand roll hemming and found it…
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1765 Robe a la Bon Bon – Progress on the Gown
The sacque back is looking swell I’ve been sewing on-and-off on my new sacque for a few weeks now. I only have the weekends to fiddle these days, but luckily progress happens…
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1760s Robe a la Bon Bon – The Petticoat
Finished sacque petticoat over pocket hoops I’ve been steadily progressing on my new sacque, using the Simplicity 8578 Robe a la Francaise pattern we released December 2017. Since I already had pocket…
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A *New* 1760s Robe a la Bon Bon (or Sacque-a-Macarons?)
I have a confession to make. I admit to feeling quite jealous whenever I see Abby dressed in the pink and white 1768 sacque from The American Duchess Guide. To me, that…
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A Little History of “Mansfield” Regency Riding Boots
Howdy! Today on our “little history” posts, I’ll be giving you some background on our wonderfully exciting new late 18th century and Regency era riding boots. Oh yes, I said riding boots!…
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How to Lengthen/Shorten 18th Century Stays
The #1 question we receive about Simplicity 8162 (and will with Simplicity 8579 as well) is how to lengthen or shorten the stays. Particularly with Simplicity 8162, the body block used came…
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Patterns and Books for 18th Century Stays
Simplicity 8579 Stays, 1700 – 1770. With the release of our book, The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking, we’ve given you patterns and instructions for a great many lovely 18th…
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What is an 18th Century Milliner / Marchande de Modes?
La Marchande des Modes (The Modiste) – Studio of Francois Boucher – c. 1746. Wallace Collection When you’re just starting off in the world of 18th century dress, terminology can be *so*…
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2017 – Costuming Year in Review
Jane Austen Festival, 2017. Photo by Tony Tumbusch. It’s that time – that year-end-year-beginning-blog-post time. This year I feel I was a terrible blogger. One of the side effects of building out…
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CORRECTION – 1780s Cap Pattern – American Duchess Guide
Hi gals! We’ve been alerted to a flaw in the 1780s cap pattern from “The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking,” so before you all tear your pomaded-and-powdered hair out trying…
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{Video} Wherein Lauren & Abby Get Racked
…or Racked gets Lauren’d & Abby’d. 😉 In early December, Abby and I took our annual trip to New York City to do *all the things.* One of the things we had…
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A New 1780s CandyStripe Italian Gown
Italian gown – The Met – 1785-87 C.I.66.39a-b Well, I just can’t stay away from the late 18th century (can you blame me?). There is just so much to be explored in…
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The Robe a la Turque – Part 4 – The Kurdi Polonaise
The last major piece of my take on Guimard’s 1790 Turkish stage costume was the fabulous fur-trimmed blue robe. I pondered over this piece for a long time, trying to decide just…
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Simplicity 8578 and 8579 – TWO new 18th Century Patterns!
Ladies, we are SO excited to finally announce two new 18th century American Duchess patterns from Simplicity! Simplicity 8578 is the Robe a la Francaise (Sacque) and petticoat and Simplicity 8579 is…
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BOOK RELEASE: The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking
Today’s the big day! Our book, The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking: How to Handsew Georgian Gowns and Wear The with Style has officially been released! While you can buy the…
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The Robe a la Turque – Part 3 – Shalwar Puffy Pants
Before I forget about all the trials and tribulations (and sometimes fun) I had making my Turkish costume for Costume College 2017, I better tell you about one of the most enjoyable…
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Jane Austen Festival in Pictures
How remiss am I in sharing photos, proper photos, from the Jane Austen Festival. So remiss! In fact, when I opened up this draft post to see how far I’d gotten, this…
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Abby’s Jane Austen Fest Dinner Dress – Done!
Hello Lovelies! Abby here and I am in full “July has been full of travel and awesome but now I need a nap nap” mode over here at American Duchess headquarters. There…
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Abby’s Jane Austen Fest Dinner Dress – a Lesson in Plan B…or…C?
Hey Lovelies — So the last time I blogged about my Jane Austen Fest Dinner Dress I was totally jiving on this idea of making a tunic and turbany/chiffonettey thing to wear…
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Abby’s Austen Fest Dinner Dress
Hey All! Abby here! As some of you know, Lauren & I will be attending Jane Austen Festival in Louisville, KY this July (soo excited to go home for business! woo!). As…
