Dress Patterns

[Gerkin]

Ladies,

I come here knowing absolutely nothing. I am wanting to sew my girlfriend a dress for her birthday in November and figured I should get a head start since I know nothing about dresses. Could you just point me in the direction of a few good dress patterns? If you could that would be great.

Thank you for your time.

[ElizabethClark]

Re: Dress Patterns

There's most likely a lot to be made before the dress, unless she's been at the hobby for a bit: chemise, corset, drawers, petticoats, skirt support, underskirt, then the dress!

What is her level of involvement and typical impression? What sorts of activities will she be doing while at events? Is she a girly-girl, or more tailored?

In general, Past Patterns http://www.pastpatterns.com are a great place to start for dress patterns. The 701 (Gathered Bodice) is what I recommend for initial dresses, as it has a typical sleeve and easy-to-fit bodice.

Making a dress for a woman can't involve surprise--you'll need her for fittings. There are some techniques, like gauging, and setting pleated skirts, that you'll want to learn before hand (there are on-line tutorials for these, I'll add links later).

What level of sewing do you find yourself at, currently?

[Gerkin]

Re: Dress Patterns

I am pretty experienced in sewing. I have made plenty of shirts, drawers, a few pair of trousers. I think I can take it on. She is really more towards the farby side, and I am hoping to get her more interested in authenticity. And, she has been reenacting for some time. Someone PMed me and told me to read your books as well, I plan to do that. Thanks.

[ElizabethClark]

Re: Dress Patterns

Okay, so she's been at it for awhile: what does she have currently? Some of it may be salvageable, but other bits won't be (the poly-cotton bits, for instance). Does she own a good corset? If not, and she's wanting to upgrade, that's the prime thing right there.

The actual construction of a corset it not rocket science--I'm of the opinion men take to the engineering aspect of it more readily than do most women, so you have a good shot. :)

Let me say out front, though: if she's mainstream/farb level, and this isn't her idea, you're likely to meet with a good amount of fuss.

Are there any good civilian groups in your area? Having another woman or two to mentor her, getting her going to some different, progressive events, etc, is one way to inspire the upgrades, without being "controlling," or any of the other snotty little buzzwords people use when they hear something they don't care to do. LOL

If you can handle the back construction of men's trousers, and gussets in a shirt, you won't run into much in women's sewing that you can't handle. Lack of fear is a big asset. I'd repeat that Past Patterns is a great base, both for corsets and dresses. Most event sutlers carry Past Patterns, as do the "stable" merchants in the Gettysburg area, etc, and you can buy them direct from Ms. Aultman, too. You really only need a bodice pattern to get the right shapes and a generalized size; skirts are rectangles, stitched together, hemmed, and treated at the waist, then attached.

What sort of impression does she undertake? That will affect cloth choices, etc.