In Timely Fashion: Fashion in Film--Jenny-Rose recreates Cynthia's Ball Gown

The Bodice
At this point in my sewing career I do not draft my own patterns; I usually alter an existing pattern to death instead. I'm reading and learning about drafting from scratch, but I'm not there yet. So, to begin with, I looked around for a commercial pattern suitable for Cynthia's dress.

There are several good scaled patterns for this period in "Period Costume for Stage & Screen 1800-1909", by Jean Hunnisett, that I could have used but I wasn't in the mood to enlarge a pattern.

Instead, I used Sense & Sensibility's Regency pattern. The pattern needed some altering, but Cynthia's dress is a transitional garment from the Regency period so it wasn't too much of a stretch.

The First Toile
For my first toile (1 of 2), the only alteration I made was to lengthen the bottom of each bodice piece 5". This turned out to be way too much for my model's petite figure but better safe than sorry, right?!

The first fitting went well, but for some reason the bodice was a bit tight in the underarm / bust area. Perhaps because of the period corset my model was wearing? Anyway, enlarging the armhole 5/8" took care of that. The neckline also needed adjusting; I squared it off in the front and added an extra inch in the front and back for modesty (also to ensure the chemise would not show).

Creating an Inset
I originally intended to use darts in the bodice front, but when I got the toile on my model I decided against it. Instead, I used princess seams and created an inset similar to the original dress.

To do this I simply drew up the fabric, like a dart, and pinned. I then marked along the pins with a pen, trued the curves and cut along that line. I then discarded the excess fabric and added a seam allowance to the new seams.

first toile

truing curves

adding seam allowances

inset & side bodice

It was a very easy alteration, particularly as I do not like dealing with darts. If you want darts instead, my recommendation is to use a total of four (both waist and bust darts) for the best fit.

The Second Toile
Once I had cut the new bodice pieces and corrected some other little things, I cut out a second toile. The second toile fit just about perfectly; it only needed some slight fitting at the waist along the inset seams.

Constructing the Bodice
I sewed the bodice together using the S&S Tea Gown instructions. I used taffeta for both the bodice and the lining. The only change I made was to sew the bodice and lining back seams together, as I wasn't using a zipper. This created finished back edges that I could later mount my hook & eyes onto.

Hunnisett book

S&S Regency

first toile

second toile

cutting bodice

the hooks

The Sleeves These took a little pondering and experimenting to figure out, but they were a lot of fun. I basically spent an evening playing around with muslin toiles and working out my design ideas with fabric. "Drafting" the Sleeve Patterns I used the "long sleeve" from the S&S Regency pattern as my pattern base. The sleeves were made up in three layers. The bottom layer, made of white organdy, served as the base of the sleeve. The middle layer, of white chiffon, is the layer that is all "puff". The top layer consisted of pink taffeta bands. All of the layers were joined at the arm hole and finished with a sleeve band. The "pattern" for the bottom (organdy) layer was easy. The S&S long sleeve pattern has a cut line right below the arch. This line is actually for cutting the bottom for use as a detachable sleeve but it came in handy for me, as it gave me a straight line to shorten the sleeve by. I measured 3¼" down from the cut line to create the shorter length I wanted. The middle "puff" layer took more effort. For the first toile, I used the "bottom layer" pattern, adding 11¾" in length. I then ran gathering stitches up the length of the piece, sewed the sleeve together and pinned it on Narcissa, my dress form. It was too narrow, but I was on the right track. For the second "puff" toile I used the "bottom layer" pattern again, but this time I split it in three pieces (as shown on S&S) and added 8¾" in total to the width. I added the 11¾" in length, ran 4 gathering stitches, sewed the sleeve together, and pinned it on Narcissa. Much better! Constructing the Sleeves I began the sleeve construction by marking the gathering lines on the chiffon. I did this with a washable pencil. I then sewed up all the gathering stitches on the chiffon and organdy, including those marked on the original pattern at the top and bottom. It took forever to sew all the gathering stitches on the chiffon layer. When I designed the layer to be gathered just about everywhere, I forgot what a pain it is to work with chiffon. - Icky! The next step was to sew the two pieces at the bottom. I basted the bottom and middle layers together and then gathered up all the rows on the chiffon. After I had distributed the chiffon as evenly as I could to match the organdy layer I basted the two pieces along the other three sides. I then pinned the taffeta bands to cover the gathering stitches (these bands I had sewn and pressed ahead of time), and continued constructing the sleeve according to the S&S Regency pattern instructions. Once the sleeve was ready to be inserted into the bodice, the bands were trimmed at the top and tacked down along the gathering stitches. I did this by hand, tacking them in 4-5 places. Slight Sleeve Rant To be honest, I'm not totally happy with these sleeves. I should have made them a tad shorter in length, and the bands should have been wider. They don't look quite like Cynthia's, and it bugs me. Oh well!	sleeve pieces
	"puff" toile #1
	"puff" toile #2
	the patterns
	marking
	pinned together
	more basting
	with bands
	one sleeve down!

The Skirt I based my skirt on the c1820 skirt in "Period Costume for Stage & Screen 1800-1909", by Jean Hunnisett. The skirt consisted of a slightly shaped front panel, a shaped side panel and a square back panel - simple enough. I didn't want to stop and actually scale up the pattern so I faked it. For the front panel I measured 2" in from the bodice side seam and used that measurement (10½") for the top width. Based on the difference in the Hunnisett pattern's top and bottom, I added 1½"to my top measurement (= 13") to make my bottom width. After adding seam allowances to my numbers, I divided all the numbers in half so I could place my "pattern" the center front on the fold. I laid out my fabric and marked the top and bottom. Using a yard stick, I drew a line between the two measurements and cut away. Easy! For the side panel I used the S&S Regency skirt back lining piece. It was basically the correct shape and "close enough" worked for me! The only change I made was to draft out the shaped curve at the top. I made it a straighter line to better match the Hunnisett pieces. The back panel was a simple piece; length measurement by fabric width. After looking at the finished dress I think the skirt should have been a little fuller at the bottom, but oh well! Constructing the Skirt The skirt was simple to put together. I used French seams, because the taffeta had some serious fraying issues. There were only four seams so it wasn't a big deal to do the fancy seam finish, despite my time constraint on the project. After finishing the back opening with a narrow hem, I attached the skirt to the bodice across the front only, (side seam to side seam). The remainder of the skirt I left unattached, simply pressing a seam allowance down. I then cartridge pleated and attached it to the bodice by hand. Pleating Cartridge pleating, or gauging, creates extra handwork but, in my opinion, it really is worth the effort. There are several good online tutorials on the technique of cartridge pleating, but my favorite is from The Renaissance Tailor. The fabric and pleat-size used in that tutorial are different than this period of costuming obviously, but the basic process is the same. I did not mark my gathering stitches, but free-handed them so they were about 3/8" in length. I have found the trick to cartridge pleating is to have each row match exactly, not to have each pleat exactly the same size. I ran three gathering rows, about 1/8" apart. I also sewed both parts of the pleat. The first half I pinned 1/8" down from my seam allowance / finished bodice bottom. The second half of the pleat I tacked at the finished bodice bottom (1/8" above the first one). These made the pleats "fluff" out a bit more and made for a very pretty finish.	measuring the bodice
	skirt front
	skirt side
	pressing seam allowance
	back opening
	front attached
	three rows
	pulling gathers
	sewing first half
	sewing 2nd half
	a close-up

The Finished Gown

Period Touches
This dress is a modern interpretation of W&D. If you wanted to look more "period" here are some suggestions:

add small self-fabric piping to the bodice seams - if you look closely at Cynthia's gown, you will find that most of the seams are finished with rows of tiny self-fabric piping. This is typical of the period. The sleeve bands should also be finished with piping on either side of each band.

add a fabric belt - this is often seen during this period and can be found on Cynthia's gown. The belt should be attached to the bodice, not covering the cartridge pleats.

shorten the length - the length of my gown is too long for the period. Evening, dancing, and ball gowns were typically ankle length.

add decoration to the skirt bottom - again typical of the period and seen on Cynthia's gown. Hem decorations were usually fabric; either the skirt fabric or a another fabric seen on the gown (in Cynthia's case, the sleeve fabric). The fabric can be looped, pleated, ruffled, or any combination of the three. Also popular was padded decoration, in the shape of leaves, latticework, etc. Silk flowers can also be applied. For further ideas, I recommend browsing through Ackerman's Fashion Plates, edited by Stella Blum (published by Dover).

pad the hem - this method of stuffing the bottom 2-4 inches of the hem was used both as decoration and to help support the full skirt (like an early crinoline or hoop skirt).

wear the proper undergarments - my gown was worn with a period corset, but with modern slips. It should also be worn with a matching petticoat and small rump pad in the back.

Modern Touches
While this dress is already a modern interpretation, there are ways to modernize it even further. Here are my suggestions:

wear modern undergarments - my gown was worn with a period corset. The look of the gown would be updated a bit if worn with a modern bra or bustier.

change the color & fabrics - one of the most "old fashioned" aspects of this gown is the colors I chose. You'd be amazed how much a modern color palette would change this gown. Imagine the design in navy blue with embroidered gray organza at the sleeves, or all white with a red band at the waist and hem ect...

update your accessories - the easiest way to update an outfit is by changing the accessories. Instead of pearls set in gold, wear pearls set in a modern silver setting. Or skip the pearls and wear diamonds, semi-precious stones, or perhaps a vintage "retro" piece . Instead of dancing slippers, wear some cute platform heels or sparkly evening mules . Add a crushed velvet shawl or a beaded clutch purse. Find accessories you like and go for it - there aren't any rules here!

update your hairstyle - another easy way to update an outfit is to update your hair. I gave my model a historic hairdo with a bun, curls, and pearls. But, the whole look would change if her hair was in curls piled on top of her head, or a half ponytail etc. This gown has almost a 1950s feel; why not try a "Grace Kelly" style or a French twist?

To Conclude
I'm sure there are better and easier ways to make this dress. I made many mistakes in the course of this project. I'm certainly not an expert or even a trained seamstress, so I learned as I went along. That was the fun of it.

I hope you have found something helpful in this article. At the very least I hope you are inspired to go out and make something that will challenge your skills and make you feel like a princess when you are done!

Fashion in Film Main | Shoppes | Forum | ContactOctober 9, 2006or="#008080" size="1" face="Georgia">. .Updated October 9, 2006 . .
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The Fabric The fabric is a polyester-taffeta I found in our fabric stash. The warp threads are purple and the weft threads are pink. Unlike most "shot" fabrics, however, it doesn't change color as it's moved. The different colored threads do give some depth - something impossible to capture with my scanner. The sleeves were made from white polyester-chiffon and white organdy.	concept sketch
	the fabric

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