Sewing Update

Do you sometimes wish I adhered to a theme on this blog?! I'm afraid my life is too unfocused for that to happen.

The knickerbockers for Boston are a polyester (yuck!) gray stripe suiting from Jo-Ann's. They look like menswear suiting. I wanted something washable and inexpensive. I prefer natural fibers, but a linen would wrinkle too much, and wool wouldn't be washable. Well, there are washable wools, but that would be more money than I wanted to put into this project.

I actually learned a lesson on Ridley's dress. I bought a $2/yard solid cotton in the quilting department, and it did not sew well. Every stitch mark where I unsewed was visible. It was better after washing, but I won't buy that cheap a fabric again for any project. I put too much work into these garments!

Sunday night I took the knickers over for Boston to try on. The Burda pattern had them ankle length! That's not quite what the lyrics mean when they say "does he rebutton his knickerbockers below the knee?" So Jaci and I determined what the length should be. Back home they came, and the cuff was removed and about 8 inches removed from the length of the leg. I cut and interfaced new cuffs. Tomorrow night I'll attach those cuffs, finish, and make buttonholes. I'll also had a trouser hook to the waistband to supplement the button and make it align better.

I ordered suspenders from RainbowConnection.com and will sew buttons on the knickers for the braces when they arrive. Every photo I see from the period shows boys wearing braces. The knickers also have belt loops, in case that's the preference.

By Friday, the knickers will be finished and I'll be on to another dress to give Jaci some choices.

I'm really loving this project!