SheBit Bennett!
Just to be clear:
SheBit + Bright Ideastm = madness
My latest Bright Idea? I'm going to try to make a Spencer jacket. And, just to add to the madness, I'm not buying a pattern, I'm just replicating one I saw online - how hard can it be to enlarge a drawn pattern about forty times?
Boredom at work this morning meant that a short time was spent building a paper model of the jacket, to check that the pattern works. The model's actually rather cute - suitable for a six inch Bennett sister who's really into natural fibres. And by natural fibres I mean printer paper.
So, I'm going to have a go at drawing up the pattern full size to see how much cloth it'll need, then next week hopefully I'll get enough calico from the shop around the corner to build a toile, with which to tweak the pattern and get the fit just right.
This page gives a detailed, illustrated step by step on putting the jacket together, including a bit on adding a skirt to turn it into a longer, drapey jacket. If the first one works out I can see myself making a few with a variety of lengths, colars, sleeves and details.
So, seamstresses out there, how mad is this Bright Idea of mine?
Also, if the first works, if I could find frogging braid and dome buttons I would so make a Regency military detailed one - because apparently the design was originally for men (including the Earl of Spencer, who gave the style his name), so military styled early examples were quite common. And how good would a riffle green, black braided, silver buttoned Spencer jacket look?
SheBit + Bright Ideastm = madness
My latest Bright Idea? I'm going to try to make a Spencer jacket. And, just to add to the madness, I'm not buying a pattern, I'm just replicating one I saw online - how hard can it be to enlarge a drawn pattern about forty times?
Boredom at work this morning meant that a short time was spent building a paper model of the jacket, to check that the pattern works. The model's actually rather cute - suitable for a six inch Bennett sister who's really into natural fibres. And by natural fibres I mean printer paper.
So, I'm going to have a go at drawing up the pattern full size to see how much cloth it'll need, then next week hopefully I'll get enough calico from the shop around the corner to build a toile, with which to tweak the pattern and get the fit just right.
This page gives a detailed, illustrated step by step on putting the jacket together, including a bit on adding a skirt to turn it into a longer, drapey jacket. If the first one works out I can see myself making a few with a variety of lengths, colars, sleeves and details.
So, seamstresses out there, how mad is this Bright Idea of mine?
Also, if the first works, if I could find frogging braid and dome buttons I would so make a Regency military detailed one - because apparently the design was originally for men (including the Earl of Spencer, who gave the style his name), so military styled early examples were quite common. And how good would a riffle green, black braided, silver buttoned Spencer jacket look?