Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Chemise Gown

Last night I met up with a group organized by Julie Rockhold for a dinner at Christiana Cambells.  I had purchased striped cotton lawn from B&T a couple of months ago inspired by the famous Antoine Vestier portrait.  Being hot and humid outside, it seemed like a good excuse for a summer gown!

The gown is cotton, but the long sleeves are silk taffeta.  There's also a silk gauze piece which shows in the neckline.

The gown bodice is unlined- the portrait is so sheer it couldn't be lined in front at least.  The sash is a vintage 6" ribbon.  I haven't tried lighting it on fire to find out if it is silk or not.

Most of the hair is my own- just the long curls are pieced on.  I'm not quite shoulder length, but it's not hard to get a good sized hedgehog with shorter hair.  There's also powder in it; a mix of the Bumble & Bumble spray and cornstarch since the spray ran out.

The original 1785 portrait.  One of these days I'll powder my hair that much.

The photos below are of the group at dinner and after.  The ones without flash are blurry and the ones with look like a bad ghost hunt, but I can't leave out my dapper tablemates!





This photo is courtesy of Lyze.  And, yes, that is her real hair!!  Also, note Julie photobombing perfectly.

10 comments:

Augustintytär said...

Adorable dress and I like what you did with your hair. You look stunning!

The dinner must have been lovely. Lots of familiar faces too.

Lauren said...

Gorgeous!!!! Looks like you had a lovely time! It's so neat to see historical clothing buddies all in the same place :)

Sarah said...

What a beautiful dress, and it looks like the event was a lot of fun as well!

Amanda said...

Love the dress! And your hair looks really good - I wish I could do 1780s hair that looks half that good. :)

Allison said...

I wish someone would do a chemise gown tutorial. It's seems like a good style to start with, as it's less fitted, but I haven't been able to find instructions online.

Time Traveling in Costume said...

*What Allison said!* I too have wanted to make one of these.
Beautiful job of recreating the painting.
Val

JGO said...

Simply beautiful!I love it all, the hair and the dress. You are one of those gals that can wear anything...

xox,
jacqueline

Miss N said...

Looks like a fabulous time! Williamsburg is always so fun. Your gown is gorgeous and looks perfect for those muggy Southern summers. And good to see so many familiar faces from the Living History crowd. :)

The Quintessential Clothes Pen said...

Your gown is simply wonderful! You look so happy and serene in it. I love the sash with bow! Great job interpreting the painting... You have such attention to detail and your work always bring pleasure to us viewers.

Best, Quinn

elisa.b said...

Gorgeous! I agree with everyone else though. I would love to see a tutorial and a pattern posted somewhere, because I would love to make one for myself.