Historical Sources Holiday Gift Guide

Hey everyone!
I always get so excited when I start seeing annual gift giving guides: it's so much fun to see the various businesses grow and change over the years! There's so many wonderful businesses that cater to the historical costuming, re-enacting and cosplay communities, and in addition there are some great small businesses that provide quality supplies to these (and other) communities!

I decided to join in this year with a small Historical Sources Holiday Gift Guide introducing a few of my personal favorite sources where you can find great items this holiday season! Here's a short list of some of my go-to's for ready-made accessories, jewelry, supplies, fabric, silk ribbon, vintage and more!

1-InTheLongRun, 2-Hatsperiod, 3-LadyDetalle, 4-Historical
Designs, 5-1800'sMillineryShop, 6-Queen&Cavendish

Millinery and Foundations:
1800s Millinery Shop - limited shop stock selection, though this mother/daughter combo create beautiful Regency thru Victorian bonnets, and do custom commissions when they have time
Hatsperiod - Jane's Georgian and Victorian perchers are to-die-for, and this lovely British costumer blocks her hats then decorates them with vintage and antique buckles, Papilionaceous silk ribbons and delicious feathers & flowers
Historical Designs - lovely and affordable corsets and stays, shifts, etc. from helpful shop owner Beth - plan ahead as her corset commission schedule is planned months out

Historic Jewelry and Accessories:
Queen And Cavendish - blingly bling jewelry, get some sparkly glam here from the lovely Kim! (currently listed as closed until Jan)
IntheLongRun - elegant, affordable designs from talented photographer and costumer/cosplayer Gloria
Bohemian Belle - Regency customer commissions and custom-dyed accessories plus a bit of everything - beautiful work and run by the lovely Julia in Europe
Sign of the Gray Horse - wide variety of lovely jewelry & accessories from Kim Walters and supporting rescue horses
LadyDetalle - and of course, my shop (*smile*), historic jewelry & accessories with a mission of supporting Historic Design & Detail - I'm having so much FUN with my historic jewelry line, including The Grape Collection, Royal You, Royal Bees, Victorian chandeliers & mourning, a huge variety in PEARLS, rhinestones, and so much more! I'm wearing my jewelry designs daily and so inspired by all the lovely antique examples and portraits/fashion plates to keep designing more! (I also sell ready-made reticules, portrait muffs, LD original patterns, some supplies and vintage sari & dupatta)

1-BohemianBelle, 2-VeryVictorianStudio, 3-RegencyTea,
4-Garibalid'sNeedleWorks, 5-LadyDetalle, 6-RoyalVintage

Sewing patterns, fabric and supplies:
Truly Victorian - Victorian patterns that are easy to follow, go together well, and Heather is helpful and responsive if you hit a snag and have a question
96th district fabric - my go-to for coutil, and also wool, silk and silk ribbons - they are on my "must" list at Fort Frederick Market Fair every year
Burnley & Trowbridge - my go-to for my well-stocked basics like twill tape (white, black, etc. in mulitple sizes), wax, and linen thread, in addition to wool and silk fabrics, and a handkerchief line that is droolworthy
FabricMartFabrics - keep an eye out for their amazing silk deals from time to time, where you can pick up stripes, plaids and checked silk taffeta for $8-12 a yard
Fabric-Store - my go-to for linen fabric, their selection of colors is impressive and their quality is great
SilkyWay - I've been purchasing silk ribbons from this supplier for years: quality, affordable and Anna is great to work with.
TheSewingPlace- my go-to for Petersham ribbon: huge variety in widths and colors

Embroidery:
RSN - worthy of a mention: their mission is to keep traditional embroidery techniques alive, and they offer multiple certificate and day courses across the globe, and also have a great gift shop and online store
Garibaldis Needle Works - great source for goldwork supplies, especially their gold passing (they source it from the UK)
Sew Stine - this shop is taking a long break but Christine's machine embroidery digitizing is amazing and she's super great too
Romantic Recollections - Hand and machine embroidery designs from the lovely Denise

Vintage and Antique:
Very Victorian Studio - amazing deals on antique and vintage finds and also stocks some handmade historical hats, reticules, etc. (I carry reticules and sashes from Very Victorian in Lady Detalle) - Linda is super nice and responsive and is a long-time historical costumer herself
Southern Lady Estates - great finds at great deal prices and very responsive and helpful

Totally worth a mention: 
I also love these businesses for their outlook, dedication to historical accuracy AND fun, and how they provide encouragement to folks to join in our fun community! 
Historical Sewing - Jennifer makes it her mission to help others with sewing and creating their visions: she is so encouraging and super nice to boot!
TheDreamstress - I love her patterns and designs, and her Historical Sew Forthnightly/Monthly is spot on with encouraging folks to research and create: she's also a huge sweetheart!
If you're looking for a little girl's princess dress or awesome hard-to-find Harry Potter fabric, check out Lady Rebecca Fashions on Etsy

Also worth a mention, two small businesses that I haven't personally purchased from yet, but whom I love seeing their lovely creations (and plan to purchase in future):
Virgils Fine Goods - her tiny hand-rolled silk and linen hems on her Colonial and Georgian caps are lovely, all handmade by the lovely Amber
Shocking Bad Hats - gorgeous designs by Rebecca, each one is truly a treat for the eye! Some day I won't be able to control my drool...lol

And lastly, my favorite item this holiday season:
Royal Vintage - this is my first purchase from the retro side of American Duchess, but I'm in love with the comfort and style of these Retro Aspen Winter boots in red - I just wish they were on sale!

And of course, I love to drink TEA while I sew! This is my tea brand, Regency Tea, visit for customer favorites Cream Earl Grey or Sticky Toffee Pudding!

This is definitely by no-means an all-inclusive list, but I hope that by sharing some of my favorites shops and sources with you, you'll get some new places to check to fill your historic costuming needs, or purchase a great gift for the historical costumer in your life!

I hope you enjoyed reading and Happy Holidays all!

Love,
TheLady Detalle

My first "buh, buh, buh, buh"...BUSTLE!!

*SQUEEEEEEEEE* I finally made my very first Victorian bustle.......aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!

TADA!

My first late 1880's Victorian bustle gown in blue and red plaid Jomar silk dupioni
(photo by InTheLongRunDesigns)

My first mid-late 1880's bustle! This is a big deal for me, since I've only been planning it for over a decade (seriously, ridiculous - can you tell how much I dislike making foundation garments, lol). I FINALLY made it happen this year in October, thanks to gentle prodding and encouragement from my dear friends Judy and Kat. And Carolyn. ;)

Also a promise to finally get bustle for a friend's annual Victorian party private event done sometime this year, plus Carolyn from The Modern Mantua Maker was hosting a Big Bustle Birthday Bash in October (the pictures in this post), where bustle was preferred but late 18th century "big butts" were acceptable also! If I couldn't get my outfit together, late 18thc was my back up plan, but I pushed and pushed to finish before Carolyn's event and I'm so glad I did!

I literally finished sewing my bodice an hour and a half before Carolyn's event started (so stressful) and immediately started doing my hair so I could get dressed for the event! I'm pinned into my entire outfit (no time for sewing closures). We had a picnic in a local park, with a really good turnout, it was quite an enjoyable day! 

Bustle from the back (photo by InTheLongRunDesigns)

"Why yes, shocked I DO like wearing bustle!"
(Photo by InTheLongRunDesigns)

Back-side view, er, um, side-back view?! LOL

It was a super fun event, other than a few pushy and persistent yellow jackets, which kept insisting on invading my personal space. *shudder*...we had a lovely time though, the weather was warm yet cool, muggy yet not too bad: lots of delicious food and enjoyable company, with beautiful bustle dresses everywhere!

Really fun dress to wear, I enjoyed how the dress and silk fabric moved, and the gathered ruffles, it was just really enjoyable to wear, and just somehow felt "right."

My dress is a blue green and red plaid silk (Jomar find!) using TV460 Curaiss Bodice, with TV261 Four-Gore Underskirt, with TV305 Apron Overskirt. With TV101 Petticoat with wire bustle foundation (underneath, not pictured), with TV170 Victorian petticoats in cream silk petticoat (underneath, not pictured). Also TV110 Late Victorian corset (underneath, not pictured) in embroidered blue linen. Accessories: mini tricorn I made a few years ago, hair by me, with a red brown Lioness curly wig mixed in with my hair. Jewelry: real pearl and gold bow earrings plus matching real pearl bracelets by Lady Detalle, with a vintage pin I picked up years ago at the bodice neck. Cream lace parasol from Loren of Costumer's Closet in a purge she did years ago, and black velvet reticule by VeryVictorianStudio. American Duchess 'Balmorals' in black finished the look!

All my photos from The Big Bustle Birthday Bash are here. A lovely day of fun, thank you, Carolyn! 

American Duchess book on 18th century Dressmaking is now available

It's not often that a new fashion book is added to my core historical fashion collection, but this one is well worth adding!

"The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking" by Lauren Stowell with Abby Cox includes all sorts of tips and tricks, as well as pattern grids for various accessories, and from what I could tell, how to build/sew a gown the 18th century millinery way.

I've not dug in very far yet, and although I'm likely to use it more for inspiration than a straight how to (since I love 18th century and have made quite a few outfits to date) - still, looking forward to learning and trying things from here at a future point!

Late 1790's transitional period

You can get it on Amazon, thru American Duchess or many other sources I'm sure.
Recommend picking one up as a resource if you're interested in 18th century sewing!

Last bits of sewing for 2015

I had grand plans to get a whole bunch of sewing done during Christmas break, but family time then some other life stuff got in the way, but I got in a good full day today plus another half day of sewing yesterday before the end of 2015.

Here's what I did!

First, I took my blue American Duchess Antoinettes, and fabric dyed them light aqua blue...well, I 'tried' to dye them light aqua blue: they came out a little more green then blue, but I think they're pretty, so it's fine. I also sewed white marabou around the edges, to make them really fun. 

First, here are the finished shoes:

'Antoinettes' - fabric dyed & added marabou

And some 'in progress' pics:

The original shoe - American Duchess 'Antoinettes'

Fabric dye - round 1

Fabric dye - round 2

I still plan to do a little more with painting the heels later, but otherwise they are done!

Next up, I created two little face masks for my husband and I - I needed a little project on the half day sewing when I was still not quite full energy, so I decided to create these from some scraps/leftover fabrics, and even cut a little into a very soft silk for the insides.

Black fleur-de-lis face mask

Pink quilted silk face mask

Silk backs of the face masks

My hb's mask in progress

My mask in progress

For some reason I adore making things from tiny scraps of fabric: it feels like I'm doing what they used to do, because I'm sure they did the same!

And I also made more progress with the black fleur-de-lis men's waistcoat: it's all put together now and just need buttons/buttonholes, so I'm calling it done for now (since it can pinned for wear). It's made from a black with gold fleur-de-lis poly fabric, lined with thick black cotton and the back fabric is a thicker silk taffeta.

Black fleur-de-lis Men's late 18thC waistcoat

View of the back of the waistcoat

I also spent some time prepping my Edwardian skirt for Saturday: it needed fastenings and a gathering channel, so I knocked that out too. 

And that's the last bits of my sewing for 2015! I'll do my Year in Review soon,

-Stephanie

New necklace and earrings set from Dames a la Mode

I just wanted to take a minute to share a recent purchase with you: a necklace and earrings set from Dames a la Mode on etsy, for historical costuming!

My new necklace from 'Dames a la Mode'

Opening the box is so exciting: folding back the tissue in the gift box and uncovering the sparkly awesomeness. I'm already thinking about saving up for another one.

I absolutely love this set! I bought it to wear to an upcoming late 18th century costume event in the spring (and use a bunch in future), but it also went perfectly with a top I wore to a holiday party this past weekend, so I wore it with modern outfit also this past weekend: I love it when costume jewelry can do double duty!

Please check out all her lovely jewelry here: and American Duchess & Dames a La Mode are doing a giveway for a $100 gift certificate: wish me luck!

Love,
TheLadyDetalle