Maroon & Gold Gentleman

My first gentleman’s ensemble, per Margo Anderson

Starting from the skin out, the shirt is made of white cotton, no ruffles, laces at the neck, with hooks & eyes at the wrists.  It’s straightforward, and we both like the way it turned out.   The pattern was easy to follow until it was time to attach the sleeves and close the side seams.  I’m not sure if the sleeves are supposed to be on the inside or outside, so I sewed them to the body with the right sides together and finished the seams on the inside.  My only other issue was material based: my current package of fusible interfacing won’t fuse, so I had to pin and pray to get the collar and cuffs to act right.  The Intended is pictured below in his kilt and new shirt.

9/13/08

The Intended’s noble garb was finished to faire wearable status as of last night.  Here’s a recap:

The goal of this project was to create a complimentary ensemble to my own, so I had hoped to use the leftover bits from my gown.  Unfortunately I had to piece some bits together and return to the store for the remainder of my fabric, which happened to still be in stock.  Sizing the slops (long, with legbands instead of canions) was pretty simple; I was able to add the necessary inches to account for his height easily.  I made a mock-up of the base fabric, which is white cotton duck.  The underlay is gold taffeta.

Putting the panes together was tedious, but I only used four on each leg, so it could have been much worse.  Gathering the base layers and the panes was difficult because they slipped and shifted so much.  At a couple of points, I managed to stitch pins into the layers and had to painfully retrieve them afterward.

I used scraps of netting that I had from various other projects to stuff the base.  We agreed that stuffing wasn’t necessary, but that it would give width to his lean frame.  The stuffing hangs only low in the legs.  The legbands and waistband were straightforward.  I officially do not like hooks and eyes, but a codpiece was quickly voted against.  Onto the doublet.

I had already decided on a design using both the small and large print fabric that I had to contend with during construction of my dress.  I chose the doublet with front seams and used the small print down the center.  The large print makes up the rest of the top.  Fitting was simple, even though I had to deal with his small waist and broad chest and shoulders.   I chose not to bone the doublet since he really doesn’t have anything to hold in.  I flatlined the fashion fabric with heavy weight linen and lined the doublet with a light weight cotton.  The doublet has wings and plain skirting. Again, I despise hooks and eyes, but I needed to attach closures the night before his debut, so they won.

Current plans are for paned sleeves, possibly in black.  I will also apply the black and gold trim that I have on my gown to the front seams.  There has been talk of sewn pearls, but I’m on the lookout for something more exciting.

UPDATE 10/13/08: I applied the black and gold trim to the front seams and decorative gold buttons down the front.  Pictures will come after the next wearing.

UPDATE 9/19/09: Here is the doublet’s current state of trim.

Unfortunately, my hero popped a few hooks and eyes saving me with flair for prizes, so I’ll have to install more durable closures.  That, and I have to figure out how to wash it….

UPDATE: 9/20/09

His entire ensemble can be washed without casualties!  Yay!