This was a pretty straightforward pattern with the exception of the pleated bertha overlay. I could not get this to look right. While the bodice pattern fit me perfectly the overlay looked bad, in addition this particular style was not flattering to me. So, I decided to go for a slightly later look and ended up using the bodice from Period Costume for Stage and Screen 1800-1909, Pattern Sheet #12, Bodice C. This bodice worked well with the Period Impressions sleeves and skirt.
Rated 5 out of 5
Jill Silbert –
Highly recommended, with some changes.
This dress works best as a skirt and bodice. Connecting the two only leads to misery when someone steps on the hem. Bodice – The ‘gathered’ sleeve will not stand up to washings only using pulled threads. Solution – gather, interface between fabric and lining, run regular stitching over gathered ones. Set each row to match. The pattern piece that is given for the ‘overlay’ looks very ‘funky’ and is actually worthless. Solution – take the pattern piece and throw it away, seriously! Cut a rectangular piece of material the same width and length as the pattern piece without the jagged edges. Place folds on this piece to compliment the bustline, and line up with the top edge of the bodice. Pipe the bodice neckline to finish off the edge and give a neat appearance to the top. This compliments the piped piece in the middle of the bodice and pulls the entire top together. These tops are fastened with hooks and eyes, add additional ones or substitute buttons for high activity. Skirt – This skirt shows gaging, I’ve done ‘quick gathering’ when the skirt is needed for the next day, and the waistband gets very bulky, not the way to go, unless it’s an emergency! I prefer knife pleating this skirt, although it’s not “period appropriate’, it looks much better due to the extreme amount of fabric used. Put this on a separate waist band, DON’T attach to skirt. To keep the two together in the back, I added a LARGE hook/eye on the skirt and bodice. All in all, I loved this pattern, and found that by using common sense, this pattern actually produced a dress that was pretty, and somewhat comfortable to wear. Of course, a corset adds to the overall view, but if you don’t want to wear one, you can still get by and look period appropriate.
Loren Dearborn –
This was a pretty straightforward pattern with the exception of the pleated bertha overlay. I could not get this to look right. While the bodice pattern fit me perfectly the overlay looked bad, in addition this particular style was not flattering to me. So, I decided to go for a slightly later look and ended up using the bodice from Period Costume for Stage and Screen 1800-1909, Pattern Sheet #12, Bodice C. This bodice worked well with the Period Impressions sleeves and skirt.
Jill Silbert –
Highly recommended, with some changes.
This dress works best as a skirt and bodice. Connecting the two only leads to misery when someone steps on the hem. Bodice – The ‘gathered’ sleeve will not stand up to washings only using pulled threads. Solution – gather, interface between fabric and lining, run regular stitching over gathered ones. Set each row to match. The pattern piece that is given for the ‘overlay’ looks very ‘funky’ and is actually worthless. Solution – take the pattern piece and throw it away, seriously! Cut a rectangular piece of material the same width and length as the pattern piece without the jagged edges. Place folds on this piece to compliment the bustline, and line up with the top edge of the bodice. Pipe the bodice neckline to finish off the edge and give a neat appearance to the top. This compliments the piped piece in the middle of the bodice and pulls the entire top together. These tops are fastened with hooks and eyes, add additional ones or substitute buttons for high activity. Skirt – This skirt shows gaging, I’ve done ‘quick gathering’ when the skirt is needed for the next day, and the waistband gets very bulky, not the way to go, unless it’s an emergency! I prefer knife pleating this skirt, although it’s not “period appropriate’, it looks much better due to the extreme amount of fabric used. Put this on a separate waist band, DON’T attach to skirt. To keep the two together in the back, I added a LARGE hook/eye on the skirt and bodice. All in all, I loved this pattern, and found that by using common sense, this pattern actually produced a dress that was pretty, and somewhat comfortable to wear. Of course, a corset adds to the overall view, but if you don’t want to wear one, you can still get by and look period appropriate.