I've found it really liberating to read sartorial advice books from various periods. When it comes down to it, unless you are a person who has had significant surgical modification, there were people who were shaped like you who had to live through these periods of time with supposed "unflattering" designs, and they managed by making design choices that emphasized and deemphasized the relevant features to look as good as possible. I have yet to see a historical photograph or painting where I felt "eww, she should just give up on clothes for the next decade."
I have been plotting a Regency summer dress for modern wear for years. It keeps being pushed aside by other things, but one of these days, I swear it will happen!
Regency and the 1920's are my favourite fashion eras, and it always makes me sad that they don't get enough love. Thank you for a lovely video and cute baby hands at the end :)
1920s robes de style need more love - they were specifically designed for those who felt the fashions of the day would not be flattering on them. I have a naturally low waist and wide hips, so I'm thinking I should totally rock one. :D When I finally get around to it - too many ideas, too little time!
It's funny, the only two fashion eras that I like, Regency and the 1920's are the hardest ones to find information on because apparently, no one likes simple, unfussy clothes. The dress you made is beautiful, and the sleeveless spencer is fantastic. I'll always love to see more fashion from this era. 😊
Thank you! Yeah, there is definitely a bias toward "pretty pretty princess" dresses, and those are great, too, but I love historical daywear and fashion eras that were less fussy. I'd love to do more regency costumes, I'm in desperate need of some good regency accesories.
I do Regency and I think part of the problem is also that it was such a transitional and experimental period so there was a lot of ways to do the same thing, in a manner of speaking. So while the clothes are simple, the research isn't - it's hard to research a period that people were confused about even in period, e.g. when it comes to stays (as opposed to the way stays styles changed relatively slowly in the centuries before that). And I suspect it might be the same with the 1920s... although at least with that it's a lot easier to find primary sources from the period what with pattern magazines etc.
P.S. In this era of TH-cam, Pinterest and Instagram, old-fashioned blogs are your friends when it comes to Regency. kleidungum1800.blogspot.com is a must-read. :-)
This dress is lovely and you look picture perfect, especially with those fancy ringlets! 😉 I always thought the 1830’s styles were awful until I was inspired by the American Duchess Gigot Girl Gang. Sometimes you just have to embrace the weird, hilarious styles and step outside of your comfort zone! I have also been very wary of the Natural Form era for body/self-conscious issues. Those skirts are so narrow, I always felt like I’m too short and thick for that to be becoming on my body type. Maybe I should give it a go?
Thanks lady! I, too, have learned to appreciate the craziness of the '30s over time. But I've never been drawn to natural form either. Those long bodices don't really do it for me and one thing that turns me off of it is the proclivity to add bows right in the middle of the bum or worse - at crotch-level in the front. Seriously, check out some fashion plates from like 1879 - so many bows in the worst places. That being said, if I ever do natural form, you can bet I'm gonna add a big bow! And you should, too! (do natural form, bows or not)
I recently decided to make a 1920s Poirot ensemble. I have a pronounced hourglass shape, and avoided the decade, because wide clothes with straight lines make me look very short and wide. But then I came to the same conclusion: People with my bodytype also existed in the 1920s.
Thanks so much for trying out this pattern! I've had my eye on it (and a few of their Edwardian patterns) for a while. I'm glad to hear you liked it so much. And, it turned out really pretty!
Hello. I've been looking for reviews of this pattern and your channel popped up. I'm so glad! Thanks for sharing your construction process and your thoughts. It's been an absolute goldmine :) My dress is still in the making. The wearable muslin needed quite a few alterations, but it's a great design and I can't wait to complete the dress. Regency is my absolute favourite era (alongside 1950s) and I'm currently working on adapting quite a few patterns for every day wear.
I literally can't believe this page doesnt have more subscribers. You're rocking it girl. Made me excited to try my first ever project which will be a regency dress.
Your dress looked lovely - I didn’t get maternity vibes from it at all lol. And having been on a Pride & Prejudice and Sense & Sensibility binge fest over the last few days, the timing of this video was perfect.
I’m about to use the same pattern and I just gotta say, you look INCREDIBLE in that dress. Your hair and accessories are also lovely and accurate so you look like you popped right out of a novel.
Loved the dress! I've been making Regency apparel lately for my best friend (an English professor) because she likes it, but I haven't really wanted to do it for myself because of the exact reasons you've mentioned. Maybe I'll give it another go. The one Regency I made for myself I thought just made me look dumpy and fat, but it was from a "commercial" pattern which of course rarely gets things correct. The pattern you used looks like it would be a lot more flattering, so I might give it a try. Thank you for filming this, it was really interesting!
Oh, no, I've never had much success with the Big 4 costume regency patterns, either. "Dumpy" would perfectly describe how I felt in those dresses before I heavily altered them, and even then, I didn't love the final garments. If you want to try another good pattern, Laughing Moon makes an excellent apron-front dress pattern that has a flat-front skirt which I feel lessens the maternity-look. Thanks for watching!
It's such a beautiful dress, wow! And it suits you perfectly! I have the same feeling about the regency silhouette, but in the end it suits many types of figures as I've seen in various costumer videos. You look almost like Anne Elliot in the 2007 Persuasion adaptation in those staircase shots, stunning! And the spencer is just spot on! Love it all, thanks for the video!
I’d love to try out Rococo fashion, I don’t see how having a wall for hips is attractive or convenient. I’m also not huge on the insane bustle that looks like a shelf from the 1870-80s.
I actually go to an 1812 reenactment every year with my family, and while my sister looks slim and wonderful in the styles, she hates the emphasis on the bust they have! Hates it. She looks fantastic but she hates accenting her chest. I on the other hand, tend to look pregnant. One year they named the pregnancy "bump" I got from sitting down. I still like the styles even if they don't work on me as well. And I'm hoping that a new set of stays - with a longer torso to help flatten the fabric - will help too! haha
Excellent commentary at the end. I have typically agreed about the look of that dress tending toward maternity, yet ironically you make it look perfectly lovely! Probably how it was intended back then! Just an airy, floaty dress! I love how you styled it too!
I made a mistake like that recently. I was making my niece a princess dress (Merida from brave) and I bought the fabric four inches too short, when I went back it had sold out I eventually went back and bought a patterned fabric in a very close color and gave it a very big wide hem and did the same for the cuffs. So it's gorgeous and actually address I wanted to make since I was little before they used it on a princess and I learned a way to get around making drastic mistakes like that with fabric.
I’m currently making my first regency dress and Spencer. I have finished the Spencer and all the underpinnings and , man I feel like a brick house. I’ve always had a broad back and this period just accentuates this. I need to get over feeling like a 5’3” tall Amazon 😩😩😝
This is beautiful, thank you for sharing! It's my dream to make a regency day dress, similar to one Elizabeth Bennet wears from 1995 version of Pride and Prejudice. This helped me learn so much!!
This is a great video, thank you! I've been planning to make my first Regency gown (or maybe two) for some time now, but finding a well-constructed pattern has been a stumble block. I have eyed both Laughing Moon patterns, especially the apron front dress you mention in the comments here, and the basic Black Snail dress that your video is about, so I'm delighted to see that you recommend both of them.
I love the 1930s. On everyone else. Anything that hugs the lower half of my body makes me want to cry. I’m bony in all the wrong places and have fat in all the places I don’t want it. But I love the fashion - and maybe if I get the undergarments right, I can at least get a satisfyingly period look, if not necessarily one that flatters me.
Lovely video! I bought the same pattern and some cotton muslin and can't wait to get started. Will be referring back to your video when I get confused. I'm making a regency dress for when we read pride and prejudice in the spring. I plan to wear it to school the day the book is introduced. It's a small Christian high school but mentally preparing for all the stares lol.
Funny about the material still not wanting to be enough. Glad you overcame the jinx tho as this looks great on you! The drawstring arrangement makes a lot of sense.. Otherwise it’s just going to want to be a chemise. Interesting to hear your conclusions about being more venturesome in the future. I always like hearing about things costubers have learnt as the result of a project.
Thanks for sharing this video. I'm inspired to make a Regency dress within a year. The era is something that I can use as an inspiration for a modern dress which I would wear for a date night or as a party dress. It would be nice to wear to the symphony, ballet, opera or theater. Often it feels like I'm the only one to bother to dress up for such occaisions. Victorian or Edwardian S shapes are out of my comfort zone but I might try making an evening dress. Need to research the styles of the Bohemian set.
I love your point about "unflattering" costumes. I absolutely hated 1830s fashion when I first found out about it (and some of the later victorian intense shoulder styles) becuase I've always hated how I feel like my natural shoulders are broad. making them look even bigger?? god no. But! the big skirt would balance it out and honestly, I think it might be worth trying out anyway because I do historical costuming to have pretty dresses that fit w/eras of style that I think look gorgeous, not to try and fit modern beauty standards. And padding is a goood point. I'll give the late victorian era at least one try for sure. Maybeee one day the 1830s too. I even had this issue with late 18th century clothing because I felt like the stays squashed my chest a bit which made my upper torso look broad. However 1. I have been informed this was entirely in my head, and 2. it is my favorite era for clothing. I love the pocket hoops, I love the ruffles and lace and the style of the sleeves and dress tops. I love a variety of the styles from the 18th century and so sofar I've been mostly making those styles (currently finishing up a robe a la francaise, and my next project is a chemise a la reine). Trying to perfectly fit modern beauty standards by sacrificing wearing the clothes you actually like, isn't worth it anyway. Thank you for mentioning this issue :).
For the last two years I have been scared and nervous to make a Regency dress because I do have large busts. And I have always hated "flaunting" that, thus I focused on flat busted garments. But I suppose it is good to get out of your comfort zone. So I think I'm going to try Regency out and try other things that I first thought I was never going to dare try. Thank you for this.
While I think you're right about shaping, and think people should wear what they want, fashion almost always favors one or more body types while simultaneously shaming and/or making things difficult for others. I grew up in an era where being ultra thin was key to most mainstream looks. It took becoming an adult and having new, more flattering styles come into fashion to realize that the problem wasn't my body, it was the unflattering clothes. Just because every body type existed in the past doesn't mean every body type was respected and treated as beautiful. I think we should all keep in mind that people in the past were no less creative than today, regardless of what evidence has survived. Most times I see depictions of styles from my youth, they're extreme and terrible. Very few people get how people made the era's looks work for them, and _none_ get how certain eras came back in certain groups, like how 1920's styles influenced a lot of people.
I couldn't get a flattering regency dress until I made long stays. Suddenly it works and I could make the neckline low enough to flatter me. I've failed and thus avoided 1920s for ages because I only saw evening dresses on boyish figures. Whereas I have recently started doing late 19teens clothes and suddenly the 20s makes sense. I've realised to make it work for me i need to think loose and comfy not flat, fancy and slim. So lots of knitwear and untucked loose blouses.
When I first started with Regency I made short stays because I thought they'd be easier and had the problem of the chemise poofing out from under the stays and making the dress look lumpy. The long stays really made the difference. I love the late teens look for that reason but I've yet to make an outfit for that era, someday soon I hope! I think a lot of modern interpretations of the 20s try to make the style learn more body-hugging than was actually the style of the time (modern beauty standards trying to force themselves on past fashion).
I wish I could make some thing mid-1400s. I feel like the combination of the contemporaneous art style, the way the ladies pose, and where they hold up their skirts makes it look a liiiiiiitle bit like maternity wear, butI think those dresses could be really beautiful even to the modern eye if worn in real life.
I instantly imagined exactly what you mean when you mentioned that pose! Like, they're leaning back (usually praying) so their stomach sticks out. I always thought those poses looked funny in the paintings but I do love the mid-1400's kirtle shape
oh look.... I've just cut out this exact pattern to make up. Not using period fabrics though. Purple duchess satin. Your dress looks fabulous. I hope i can make mine as easily. If you don't have the right silhouette for what ever era, thats what the period correct padding is for. Doubt many people had the correct shape right out the box. I cannot do any period that has a hip length corset/stays. Which is unfortunate as I love the victorian era. But being a very squishy in the hip area plus sized wheelchair user its not comfortable and the skirts dont look right being shortened to avoid entangling my front wheels. I can, I think, get away with shorter skirt and less volume the back.
I've always been scared of trying 1920s fashion because I have a pretty large bust and small waist so I think it would be unflattering on me, maybe someday though!
I'm a 17th-century fashionista, at heart. So big complicated marshmallowy sleeves are already in the cards for me. Going over the top doesn't bother me, much - regardless of whether I have the figure to 'carry it off.' Instead, I actually think the hardest for me would be Natural Form dress - partly because it's so stiff, and partly because it's so flouncy, but also because looking at photos or even fashion plates from the era for more than twenty seconds, I start to feel that something about the silhouette is 'off' in a way that gives me the heebie-jeebies. I think it falls into the uncanny valley, for me, where my eye becomes weirded out by what small changes to the silhouette there are (and ironically, make the look at least on closer examination feel deeply unnatural). And that is my reaction to *other* people in the fashionable silhouette. I think having that sort of reaction to my own body in something might be very hard for me. Whereas I might have trouble maintaining motivation for sewing an 1830s gown, but if someone had one that might fit me, I would wear it in a heartbeat. I don't expect it to be at all what I am used to, so it doesn't surprise me when I have no internal point of reference for looking that way, myself. It becomes a self-referential look with its own unique barometer. I kind of wonder if your problem with Regency might be adjacent mine with Natural Form. It is too close to modern silhouettes to be self-referential, so the eye assumes it knows what will happen if this feature or that are included. It's not an uncanny valley phenomenon, but similarly, the proximity is the problem. A Regency gown looks enough like the kind of garment or silhouette that you have been trained to critique on your body that critique ensues.
That is a really amazing regency dress. Although Regency is my least favorite historical fashion era, but that was a really great dress. I hear that is the best era to start historical costuming with, so I will be trying it i suppose.
Hi! I love your videos! They are so helpful! Quick question… was making the spencer difficult? Did you follow the pattern and did all of the lining attaché Kent by hand? Thank you so much!
It probably isn’t your printer. It is probably the way the software on both the printer and computer is set up. Most software will not allow the printing to go all the way out to the edges of the paper. As long as you have the print margins on your document are set to the narrowest setting, that is probably going to be the best you can do. There is usually an overlap between pages on most printable patterns.
Hmm, could be... I haven't found any way to adjust the margin settings through the software. At this point I'm so used to just a little bit being cut off that I can usually guesstimate how much of a gap I need to leave. Still, annoying but such is life
The 1950s and any era that does mid-calf hems. I am short, overweight, with short legs. Mid-calf lengths make me look like my legs are 3 inches long. I prefer either just below the knee or floor-length. I am leaning toward floor length now, as I prefer to not show my legs. I usually wear pants, but am trying to get away from them.
Yes, that would be referring to the drawstrings. I used 1/8th wide twill tape but you could use thin cord or ribbon as well. It gets inserted into a casing along the back neckline and a casing at the back waistband. Then you tie the drawstrings to keep the back of the dress closed. Hope that helps
I came here here hoping to find out more about the cute little Spencer in the thumbnail, where can I go to see you make it? Is there a video on your channel?
Hey, I didn’t film the making of the spencer, I just included it as a little bonus. But I believe Rebecca of Pocket full of posies made this same pattern and also did the spencer in her video. You can search for her channel.
Fun fact: the 1920s boyish silhouette was partly a result of the western population starving during WWI :( Which is why the UK was so proactive with rationing and food production in WWII. Anyway, great instructional video!
I'm honestly struggling so much with this pattern. It has bugger all images, and is mind numbing for me to try and understand. Step 5 is all rolled into one but it needs to be individual steps with pictures for each, not just one diagram with everything in one. Like I literally just don't get it... I'm so stuck, trying to attach the front to the lining but my brain can't take it. I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing... Could you pleaaaase help 😭
Hey, sorry you're having trouble! I know it's a little late but maybe you're still working on it? Black Snail likes to do those "combo" illustrations. Try focusing on each labeled letter on the illustration to see which part is which. Are you doing the handsewn method? I deviated from the instructions a bit since I did mostly machine sewing.
@@DixieDIY I managed to get through what I was stuck on, eventually! Yes hand sewing, my first ever real project so I'm not surprised it's been.... Difficult...! Haha. I'm about to start sewing the skirt pieces together to attach to the bodice, sooo close to being finished. Thank you for replying 🙏I'll hit you up if I get stuck again! Lol
I have a problem getting my boobs to regency height - size 34K will sit where they want lol! But I've found that my silhouette vastly improves when I remember to have GOOD POSTURE!!
The history of fashion is what it is because people thought it was beautiful. I think there is a way for ALL body types to look absolutely beautiful in all eras of fashion. As you said, we have existed in these same bodies forEVER and it is down in black and white that this is what was worn in history. Regency only looks maternity because that is what we (and fashion designers) have decided what maternity wear is in modernity. In most of our history "maternity" wear wasn't really a thing. You just adjusted your normal clothes to fit a growing belly while still wearing period appropriate clothing. I kind of hate that in modernity we have created maternity wear... why should pregnant women be delegated to a certain look or style. Anyway, Regency and the 1920's are my favorites. I wish SOOOO BADLY I COULD FIND MORE INFO (especially about regency, 1920's isn't too bad, but sheesh it is hard to find regency). There are so many women with these wide hips who say they will never wear 1920's fashion and that it will/does look horrible on them. I whole heartedly disagree. Every vintage picture or modern picture I have seen of a women with really wide hips rocking an extreme drop waist dress from the 1920's looks amazing. Though they do have to be wearing the period correct undergarments. It gives this lovely wide-low-waist-band look that i think looks great. I tell them to embrace their body in that particular set-up. In modernity people are just so quick to see "potato sack" or "unflattering angles" that didn't really exist back then because there weren't people telling you what styles looked good on what body types. Nowadays we are absolutely obsessed with wearing specificly "flattering" clothes for specific "body types." But what do you think looks pretty? Do you think those wide hipped women thought they looked awful in those 1920's garb? No they thought they looked amazing and even boxier then everyone else! Screw other people and embrace what you love. If you really hate it, then don't wear it, but not because modern society says it doesn't "flatter" your "body type." But because you don't like it.
I think that's what I've been looking for, I'll probably end up making that. Thank you. Ps. maybe you were more happy with a front gathers cause you didn't use as much fabric in the front as you did previously. Just a hypothesis for your scientific study. Pps. You look really cute in that.
I swear every video of regency dress making i watch theres a disclaimer that the creator doesnt like regency very much and it makes me sad. It never reads like a maternity gown to me because thats the standard of the silhouette and everyone looks like that. Just seeing the silhouette gives me warm fuzzy comfortable feelings and i'd love to have a regency style gown one day, minus the puff sleeves bc I dont like those in any era
1830s are my horror dress story! I hate the mutton leg sleeves with wide necklines and on me? I’d be eight feet wide! I suppose you could always turn sideways to preserve social distancing though!
See, I've always thought that since Regency styles de-emphasize the curve between the waist and hips (which is where I'm curviest), a larger bust contrasts with the straight columnar effect below. Like, if you don't have a big difference between your full bust and under-bust measurements you can end up looking like a stick - or at least that's how I've personally felt about it.
@@DixieDIY Hmmmmm...... I guess this is just one of those styles that everyone has hang ups about. And really relies on the underwear. I love the style, but I have never wanted to put enough effort into getting the underwear together, since it didn't seem like it would be worth it. But maybe I should....
@@kzisnbkosplay3346 certainly seems like it. and you're right about the underwear. I need to make a new set of stays because my current ones aren't doing my bustline any favors. regency stays can take a long time to make so I understand not wanting to do it, but if you like the style I think it'd be worth giving it a shot!
I appreciate the unflattering convo, and I am indeed one that dislikes a very particular fashion era because I think it doesn’t match my body type. That era being the 1920s. But- it really, really doesn’t. Women with my body type back then had to bind their breasts hardcore, and they’d still look super boxy. Which is the point of the 20s, I guess, but I still hate it. There’s also some very old trauma from having to wear a very boxy drop waist (why do they call it that, it’s drop-hip!) uniform, right after I’d gotten a very different body shape to my peers. Shapeless drop waists are great if you’ve got a pre-pubescent body. I... did not. It was traumatising. It’s how I know for a fact that the style is the opposite of flattering on my natural body shape. And that’s the worst possible time to force a young girl into something like that- it really didn’t help my body image! And I’ve hated 20s fashion ever since. So while I’d normally agree on the “just branch out and try it” thing, when it comes to the 20s, I stay far, far away!
Wow, thanks for sharing this story. Girls' bodies are too often policed into restrictive dress codes or uniforms that are unfair, demeaning, or not body inclusive. These rules often reinforce already negative standards of beauty and only make girls feel self-conscious. I'm so sorry your experience was traumatic. Exploring past fashions should be a creative way of learning about history, not a source of trauma. I would stay way away from the 20s, too, if I had your experience. And while as costumers, we may wear undergarments to shape ourselves into different shillouetes, we don't have to make ourselves uncomfortable for what ought to be a fun costume. In this case I'd say you're not avoiding the 20s style because you've already tried it, and found it's not for you. Hopefully there are other eras that are more appealing. Thanks again for a great comment!
Love the dress and the video, but maybe in the future you could try to find more "appropriate" music... The prelude and the cello suite no.1 by Bach were composed in the 1720s, so wayyy before the regency era. Also there is a fugue which is supposed to be played after the prelude - so if you insist on having Bach in your video, maybe play both parts instead of repeating the prelude again and again and again and again and again and again... Sorry, I've played the prelude way to often myself on the piano, so having to listen to it over and over in this video was slightly annoying - but I admit that I'm biased 😅
![เป็นไปได้ไหม - WanMai [Performance Video]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Eh5hItD4Mr0/mqdefault.jpg)
I wear 1890s clothing every day, and I personally don’t feel dressed unless my sleeves are at least twice the size of my head.
That's some major #stylegoals for me right there!
This comment made me snort. I love it.
I've found it really liberating to read sartorial advice books from various periods. When it comes down to it, unless you are a person who has had significant surgical modification, there were people who were shaped like you who had to live through these periods of time with supposed "unflattering" designs, and they managed by making design choices that emphasized and deemphasized the relevant features to look as good as possible. I have yet to see a historical photograph or painting where I felt "eww, she should just give up on clothes for the next decade."
exactly, that's a great way of looking at it
The neat thing about regency is that you can modify them slightly, skip the period appropriate underwear, and have a cute sundress.
Totally right!
I have been plotting a Regency summer dress for modern wear for years. It keeps being pushed aside by other things, but one of these days, I swear it will happen!
Skipping isn't apart of the era you are just modifying amd making it your way not doing how it's actually supposed to be andbthats no fun
Regency and the 1920's are my favourite fashion eras, and it always makes me sad that they don't get enough love. Thank you for a lovely video and cute baby hands at the end :)
The 20s definitely need more love! And thanks, glad someone stuck around to the end for baby hands :)
@@DixieDIY btw I thought you were Dixie DIY because you were in the South - yep - then I heard your name.. 🙃
1920s robes de style need more love - they were specifically designed for those who felt the fashions of the day would not be flattering on them. I have a naturally low waist and wide hips, so I'm thinking I should totally rock one. :D When I finally get around to it - too many ideas, too little time!
It's funny, the only two fashion eras that I like, Regency and the 1920's are the hardest ones to find information on because apparently, no one likes simple, unfussy clothes.
The dress you made is beautiful, and the sleeveless spencer is fantastic. I'll always love to see more fashion from this era. 😊
Thank you! Yeah, there is definitely a bias toward "pretty pretty princess" dresses, and those are great, too, but I love historical daywear and fashion eras that were less fussy. I'd love to do more regency costumes, I'm in desperate need of some good regency accesories.
I do Regency and I think part of the problem is also that it was such a transitional and experimental period so there was a lot of ways to do the same thing, in a manner of speaking. So while the clothes are simple, the research isn't - it's hard to research a period that people were confused about even in period, e.g. when it comes to stays (as opposed to the way stays styles changed relatively slowly in the centuries before that). And I suspect it might be the same with the 1920s... although at least with that it's a lot easier to find primary sources from the period what with pattern magazines etc.
P.S. In this era of TH-cam, Pinterest and Instagram, old-fashioned blogs are your friends when it comes to Regency. kleidungum1800.blogspot.com is a must-read. :-)
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Not for Regency, but there are 1910s and 1920s boks.
This totally made me want to try Regency
Thank you my love. I am a long in the tooth seamstress but this pattern instruction was just eluding me. You have made my day ❤
This dress is lovely and you look picture perfect, especially with those fancy ringlets! 😉 I always thought the 1830’s styles were awful until I was inspired by the American Duchess Gigot Girl Gang. Sometimes you just have to embrace the weird, hilarious styles and step outside of your comfort zone! I have also been very wary of the Natural Form era for body/self-conscious issues. Those skirts are so narrow, I always felt like I’m too short and thick for that to be becoming on my body type. Maybe I should give it a go?
Thanks lady! I, too, have learned to appreciate the craziness of the '30s over time. But I've never been drawn to natural form either. Those long bodices don't really do it for me and one thing that turns me off of it is the proclivity to add bows right in the middle of the bum or worse - at crotch-level in the front. Seriously, check out some fashion plates from like 1879 - so many bows in the worst places. That being said, if I ever do natural form, you can bet I'm gonna add a big bow! And you should, too! (do natural form, bows or not)
I recently decided to make a 1920s Poirot ensemble. I have a pronounced hourglass shape, and avoided the decade, because wide clothes with straight lines make me look very short and wide.
But then I came to the same conclusion: People with my bodytype also existed in the 1920s.
Thanks so much for trying out this pattern! I've had my eye on it (and a few of their Edwardian patterns) for a while. I'm glad to hear you liked it so much. And, it turned out really pretty!
Thank you so much! It's still one of my favorite projects I've made and I def want to try some of their edwardian patterns, too.
I love the way your dress came out. I hope mine looks as pretty as yours!
Piecing is period. I remind myself that every time i need to make anything without the right amount of fabric lol.
i love Black Snail patterns, i got her fan tail skirt and i love it
I think her patterns are really well priced. I've bought up like half a dozen of them on sale! Haven't tried the fan tail skirt tho
This turned out perfect! Thanks for sharing the construction and also your thoughts about different silhouettes and eras.
Hello. I've been looking for reviews of this pattern and your channel popped up. I'm so glad! Thanks for sharing your construction process and your thoughts. It's been an absolute goldmine :) My dress is still in the making. The wearable muslin needed quite a few alterations, but it's a great design and I can't wait to complete the dress. Regency is my absolute favourite era (alongside 1950s) and I'm currently working on adapting quite a few patterns for every day wear.
Thanks for watching! Glad it was helpful. I hope your muslin alterations are successful - good luck on your sewing!
I literally can't believe this page doesnt have more subscribers. You're rocking it girl. Made me excited to try my first ever project which will be a regency dress.
Your dress looked lovely - I didn’t get maternity vibes from it at all lol. And having been on a Pride & Prejudice and Sense & Sensibility binge fest over the last few days, the timing of this video was perfect.
Thank you, and now you've got me wanting to re-watch the '95 P&P...
I’m about to use the same pattern and I just gotta say, you look INCREDIBLE in that dress. Your hair and accessories are also lovely and accurate so you look like you popped right out of a novel.
Beautiful job on this dress! It looks lovely on you.
Loved the dress! I've been making Regency apparel lately for my best friend (an English professor) because she likes it, but I haven't really wanted to do it for myself because of the exact reasons you've mentioned. Maybe I'll give it another go. The one Regency I made for myself I thought just made me look dumpy and fat, but it was from a "commercial" pattern which of course rarely gets things correct. The pattern you used looks like it would be a lot more flattering, so I might give it a try. Thank you for filming this, it was really interesting!
Oh, no, I've never had much success with the Big 4 costume regency patterns, either. "Dumpy" would perfectly describe how I felt in those dresses before I heavily altered them, and even then, I didn't love the final garments. If you want to try another good pattern, Laughing Moon makes an excellent apron-front dress pattern that has a flat-front skirt which I feel lessens the maternity-look. Thanks for watching!
@@DixieDIY Thank you!!! I'll definitely look for the Laughing Moon one!!!!
This came out so nice!
It's such a beautiful dress, wow! And it suits you perfectly! I have the same feeling about the regency silhouette, but in the end it suits many types of figures as I've seen in various costumer videos. You look almost like Anne Elliot in the 2007 Persuasion adaptation in those staircase shots, stunning! And the spencer is just spot on! Love it all, thanks for the video!
Love this! I've always thought that regency clothing could never look good on me, but this is making me reconsider
I have recently bought this very pattern, so thank you for this very helpful video. You look fabulous.
I’m glad TH-cam suggested your channel to me. I’ve enjoyed your videos so far.
I'm glad you're here!
Lovely dress! I can't wait to get my fabric stash from one state to the one I currently live in. I have so many ideas and things I want to try out!
I’d love to try out Rococo fashion, I don’t see how having a wall for hips is attractive or convenient. I’m also not huge on the insane bustle that looks like a shelf from the 1870-80s.
"Wall for hips" LOL! Well, I could see it as convenient if you really want some personal space in a crowded ball room...
This is quite possibly, no no, this IS the most beautiful Regency dress I've seen on utube. Stunning!
Thank you so much!
Great video! Thanks 🤗💖
Beautiful ❤️
I love historicaly 'inspired' garments but ultimately I might sew a mashup that I like.
Oh my, I think this is my favorite regency dress so far! It looks very elegant! I am going to go have a look at that pattern site right now!
Thanks so much!! Black Snail has a bunch of good patterns
I love it! The finished dress is lovely. I have plans for that pattern too!
Thanks! I saw you made Black Snail's other regency dress and it turned out great!
@@DixieDIY Thanks! ♥️
I love it .. it is a beautiful dress👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽👏🏼👏🏼😃😃😃
I actually go to an 1812 reenactment every year with my family, and while my sister looks slim and wonderful in the styles, she hates the emphasis on the bust they have! Hates it. She looks fantastic but she hates accenting her chest. I on the other hand, tend to look pregnant. One year they named the pregnancy "bump" I got from sitting down. I still like the styles even if they don't work on me as well. And I'm hoping that a new set of stays - with a longer torso to help flatten the fabric - will help too! haha
I think I would look good in Regency era clothes. The Empire waist style is slimming on me.
Excellent commentary at the end. I have typically agreed about the look of that dress tending toward maternity, yet ironically you make it look perfectly lovely! Probably how it was intended back then! Just an airy, floaty dress! I love how you styled it too!
Thank you! That was definitely the look I was hoping for - airy and floaty, not maternity.
I made a mistake like that recently. I was making my niece a princess dress (Merida from brave) and I bought the fabric four inches too short, when I went back it had sold out I eventually went back and bought a patterned fabric in a very close color and gave it a very big wide hem and did the same for the cuffs. So it's gorgeous and actually address I wanted to make since I was little before they used it on a princess and I learned a way to get around making drastic mistakes like that with fabric.
I would love to make one of these dresses specifically for pregnancy! They look so comfortable and I'd imagine would frame a belly in a cute way.
Regency dresses are super maternity friendly!
I’m currently making my first regency dress and Spencer. I have finished the Spencer and all the underpinnings and , man I feel like a brick house. I’ve always had a broad back and this period just accentuates this. I need to get over feeling like a 5’3” tall Amazon 😩😩😝
The finished dress is beautiful! I love your videos!!
Thank you so much!
I’ve just found your channel and I’m binge watching your videos. That baby hand was the cutest!!!
Hey thanks! Welcome!
This is beautiful, thank you for sharing! It's my dream to make a regency day dress, similar to one Elizabeth Bennet wears from 1995 version of Pride and Prejudice. This helped me learn so much!!
Thank you! Funny you mention P&P, I *just* rewatched it on HBO max the other day! There're some great costumes in that series.
@@DixieDIY Agreed!!
This is a great video, thank you! I've been planning to make my first Regency gown (or maybe two) for some time now, but finding a well-constructed pattern has been a stumble block. I have eyed both Laughing Moon patterns, especially the apron front dress you mention in the comments here, and the basic Black Snail dress that your video is about, so I'm delighted to see that you recommend both of them.
I love the 1930s. On everyone else. Anything that hugs the lower half of my body makes me want to cry. I’m bony in all the wrong places and have fat in all the places I don’t want it. But I love the fashion - and maybe if I get the undergarments right, I can at least get a satisfyingly period look, if not necessarily one that flatters me.
Lovely video! I bought the same pattern and some cotton muslin and can't wait to get started. Will be referring back to your video when I get confused. I'm making a regency dress for when we read pride and prejudice in the spring. I plan to wear it to school the day the book is introduced. It's a small Christian high school but mentally preparing for all the stares lol.
Thanks! Good luck on your dress, I bet it'll be beautiful!
Funny about the material still not wanting to be enough. Glad you overcame the jinx tho as this looks great on you! The drawstring arrangement makes a lot of sense..
Otherwise it’s just going to want to be a chemise. Interesting to hear your conclusions about being more venturesome in the future. I always like hearing about things costubers have learnt as the result of a project.
Thanks, and I'm glad some else likes to listen to me ramble ;)
Thanks for sharing this video. I'm inspired to make a Regency dress within a year. The era is something that I can use as an inspiration for a modern dress which I would wear for a date night or as a party dress. It would be nice to wear to the symphony, ballet, opera or theater. Often it feels like I'm the only one to bother to dress up for such occaisions.
Victorian or Edwardian S shapes are out of my comfort zone but I might try making an evening dress. Need to research the styles of the Bohemian set.
I love your point about "unflattering" costumes. I absolutely hated 1830s fashion when I first found out about it (and some of the later victorian intense shoulder styles) becuase I've always hated how I feel like my natural shoulders are broad. making them look even bigger?? god no. But! the big skirt would balance it out and honestly, I think it might be worth trying out anyway because I do historical costuming to have pretty dresses that fit w/eras of style that I think look gorgeous, not to try and fit modern beauty standards. And padding is a goood point. I'll give the late victorian era at least one try for sure. Maybeee one day the 1830s too.
I even had this issue with late 18th century clothing because I felt like the stays squashed my chest a bit which made my upper torso look broad. However 1. I have been informed this was entirely in my head, and 2. it is my favorite era for clothing. I love the pocket hoops, I love the ruffles and lace and the style of the sleeves and dress tops. I love a variety of the styles from the 18th century and so sofar I've been mostly making those styles (currently finishing up a robe a la francaise, and my next project is a chemise a la reine). Trying to perfectly fit modern beauty standards by sacrificing wearing the clothes you actually like, isn't worth it anyway. Thank you for mentioning this issue :).
You looked perfect in the dress!
Beautiful dress and looks beautiful on you too
For the last two years I have been scared and nervous to make a Regency dress because I do have large busts. And I have always hated "flaunting" that, thus I focused on flat busted garments. But I suppose it is good to get out of your comfort zone. So I think I'm going to try Regency out and try other things that I first thought I was never going to dare try.
Thank you for this.
Go for it! I think it's all about fit, if you can get that right the dress will look great. Thanks for sharing your story
I find regency adorable
To avoid the maternity look prob- move the gathers to the sides of the front with only a few loose gathers in the center
That's a good option
While I think you're right about shaping, and think people should wear what they want, fashion almost always favors one or more body types while simultaneously shaming and/or making things difficult for others. I grew up in an era where being ultra thin was key to most mainstream looks. It took becoming an adult and having new, more flattering styles come into fashion to realize that the problem wasn't my body, it was the unflattering clothes. Just because every body type existed in the past doesn't mean every body type was respected and treated as beautiful. I think we should all keep in mind that people in the past were no less creative than today, regardless of what evidence has survived. Most times I see depictions of styles from my youth, they're extreme and terrible. Very few people get how people made the era's looks work for them, and _none_ get how certain eras came back in certain groups, like how 1920's styles influenced a lot of people.
I love how it looks on you!!!
By hand would be needle and thread
I couldn't get a flattering regency dress until I made long stays. Suddenly it works and I could make the neckline low enough to flatter me.
I've failed and thus avoided 1920s for ages because I only saw evening dresses on boyish figures. Whereas I have recently started doing late 19teens clothes and suddenly the 20s makes sense. I've realised to make it work for me i need to think loose and comfy not flat, fancy and slim. So lots of knitwear and untucked loose blouses.
When I first started with Regency I made short stays because I thought they'd be easier and had the problem of the chemise poofing out from under the stays and making the dress look lumpy. The long stays really made the difference.
I love the late teens look for that reason but I've yet to make an outfit for that era, someday soon I hope! I think a lot of modern interpretations of the 20s try to make the style learn more body-hugging than was actually the style of the time (modern beauty standards trying to force themselves on past fashion).
Very nice
I wish I could make some thing mid-1400s. I feel like the combination of the contemporaneous art style, the way the ladies pose, and where they hold up their skirts makes it look a liiiiiiitle bit like maternity wear, butI think those dresses could be really beautiful even to the modern eye if worn in real life.
I instantly imagined exactly what you mean when you mentioned that pose! Like, they're leaning back (usually praying) so their stomach sticks out. I always thought those poses looked funny in the paintings but I do love the mid-1400's kirtle shape
oh look.... I've just cut out this exact pattern to make up. Not using period fabrics though. Purple duchess satin. Your dress looks fabulous. I hope i can make mine as easily.
If you don't have the right silhouette for what ever era, thats what the period correct padding is for. Doubt many people had the correct shape right out the box.
I cannot do any period that has a hip length corset/stays. Which is unfortunate as I love the victorian era. But being a very squishy in the hip area plus sized wheelchair user its not comfortable and the skirts dont look right being shortened to avoid entangling my front wheels. I can, I think, get away with shorter skirt and less volume the back.
It turned out beautiful :)
Thanks!!
I've always been scared of trying 1920s fashion because I have a pretty large bust and small waist so I think it would be unflattering on me, maybe someday though!
I'm a 17th-century fashionista, at heart. So big complicated marshmallowy sleeves are already in the cards for me. Going over the top doesn't bother me, much - regardless of whether I have the figure to 'carry it off.'
Instead, I actually think the hardest for me would be Natural Form dress - partly because it's so stiff, and partly because it's so flouncy, but also because looking at photos or even fashion plates from the era for more than twenty seconds, I start to feel that something about the silhouette is 'off' in a way that gives me the heebie-jeebies. I think it falls into the uncanny valley, for me, where my eye becomes weirded out by what small changes to the silhouette there are (and ironically, make the look at least on closer examination feel deeply unnatural). And that is my reaction to *other* people in the fashionable silhouette. I think having that sort of reaction to my own body in something might be very hard for me.
Whereas I might have trouble maintaining motivation for sewing an 1830s gown, but if someone had one that might fit me, I would wear it in a heartbeat. I don't expect it to be at all what I am used to, so it doesn't surprise me when I have no internal point of reference for looking that way, myself. It becomes a self-referential look with its own unique barometer.
I kind of wonder if your problem with Regency might be adjacent mine with Natural Form. It is too close to modern silhouettes to be self-referential, so the eye assumes it knows what will happen if this feature or that are included. It's not an uncanny valley phenomenon, but similarly, the proximity is the problem. A Regency gown looks enough like the kind of garment or silhouette that you have been trained to critique on your body that critique ensues.
That is a really amazing regency dress. Although Regency is my least favorite historical fashion era, but that was a really great dress. I hear that is the best era to start historical costuming with, so I will be trying it i suppose.
Thanks! It wasn't my fave era either but the more I worked in it the more and more I liked it
I'm about to buy this
Hi!
I love your videos! They are so helpful!
Quick question… was making the spencer difficult? Did you follow the pattern and did all of the lining attaché Kent by hand? Thank you so much!
The spencer was pretty simple. I mostly machine sewed it and I did fully line it.
I love it! That is the nicest fabric. Can you pass the pattern name and the fabrics name with where to purchase
It probably isn’t your printer. It is probably the way the software on both the printer and computer is set up. Most software will not allow the printing to go all the way out to the edges of the paper. As long as you have the print margins on your document are set to the narrowest setting, that is probably going to be the best you can do. There is usually an overlap between pages on most printable patterns.
Hmm, could be... I haven't found any way to adjust the margin settings through the software. At this point I'm so used to just a little bit being cut off that I can usually guesstimate how much of a gap I need to leave. Still, annoying but such is life
Dress is beautiful
thank you!
The 1950s and any era that does mid-calf hems. I am short, overweight, with short legs. Mid-calf lengths make me look like my legs are 3 inches long. I prefer either just below the knee or floor-length. I am leaning toward floor length now, as I prefer to not show my legs. I usually wear pants, but am trying to get away from them.
... sleeves bigger than your head. So good.
I'm trying this dress pattern, but I'm missing where it explains how the dress closes at the back....is it tied with the "narrow cotton tape" ?
Yes, that would be referring to the drawstrings. I used 1/8th wide twill tape but you could use thin cord or ribbon as well. It gets inserted into a casing along the back neckline and a casing at the back waistband. Then you tie the drawstrings to keep the back of the dress closed. Hope that helps
Did you sew the dress you're wearing in the intro? Its stunning... If so, could you share what pattern you used?
The rainbow one? It's the Fringe dress by Chalk and Notch, thanks!
I came here here hoping to find out more about the cute little Spencer in the thumbnail, where can I go to see you make it? Is there a video on your channel?
Hey, I didn’t film the making of the spencer, I just included it as a little bonus. But I believe Rebecca of Pocket full of posies made this same pattern and also did the spencer in her video. You can search for her channel.
Fun fact: the 1920s boyish silhouette was partly a result of the western population starving during WWI :( Which is why the UK was so proactive with rationing and food production in WWII. Anyway, great instructional video!
where do you buy your fabric pls?
If I remember correctly, the silk is from Silkbaron.com and the white dress fabric is from fabric.com (but it is no longer in stock).
Ultra low rise jeans of the early 00's?Oh wait, been there 🤦♀️
Not listed in the materials links, but desperately wanted: where you got the twill tape for that price! Lovely dress, looks amazing on you!
I can't believe I forgot! Twilltape.com
@@DixieDIY Thank you!! 💙
Where on earth did you order that twill tape, I've been looking for more
I'm honestly struggling so much with this pattern. It has bugger all images, and is mind numbing for me to try and understand. Step 5 is all rolled into one but it needs to be individual steps with pictures for each, not just one diagram with everything in one. Like I literally just don't get it... I'm so stuck, trying to attach the front to the lining but my brain can't take it. I have no idea what I'm supposed to be doing... Could you pleaaaase help 😭
Hey, sorry you're having trouble! I know it's a little late but maybe you're still working on it? Black Snail likes to do those "combo" illustrations. Try focusing on each labeled letter on the illustration to see which part is which. Are you doing the handsewn method? I deviated from the instructions a bit since I did mostly machine sewing.
@@DixieDIY I managed to get through what I was stuck on, eventually! Yes hand sewing, my first ever real project so I'm not surprised it's been.... Difficult...! Haha. I'm about to start sewing the skirt pieces together to attach to the bodice, sooo close to being finished. Thank you for replying 🙏I'll hit you up if I get stuck again! Lol
Eu amo o seus vídeos, você poderia enviar me o molde 😍
how big is the pattern you’re using?? i want to make this for a young girl (aged like 13), but i’m not sure if it’ll work.
The smallest bust size for the pattern is 31.5" which is a size 8. I think I did a size 12 which is 34.5" bust.
@@DixieDIY thanks!
Time for a new printer, methinks!
I have a problem getting my boobs to regency height - size 34K will sit where they want lol! But I've found that my silhouette vastly improves when I remember to have GOOD POSTURE!!
Good posture is a necessity!! The big wooden busk in my stays certainly helps with that
hi! i was just wondering how the dress fastens up at the back?
It has drawstrings at the back neckline and in the back waistband
Baby hands! Now I understand the comment!
lol! points for sticking around to the end ;)
The history of fashion is what it is because people thought it was beautiful. I think there is a way for ALL body types to look absolutely beautiful in all eras of fashion. As you said, we have existed in these same bodies forEVER and it is down in black and white that this is what was worn in history.
Regency only looks maternity because that is what we (and fashion designers) have decided what maternity wear is in modernity. In most of our history "maternity" wear wasn't really a thing. You just adjusted your normal clothes to fit a growing belly while still wearing period appropriate clothing. I kind of hate that in modernity we have created maternity wear... why should pregnant women be delegated to a certain look or style.
Anyway, Regency and the 1920's are my favorites. I wish SOOOO BADLY I COULD FIND MORE INFO (especially about regency, 1920's isn't too bad, but sheesh it is hard to find regency).
There are so many women with these wide hips who say they will never wear 1920's fashion and that it will/does look horrible on them. I whole heartedly disagree. Every vintage picture or modern picture I have seen of a women with really wide hips rocking an extreme drop waist dress from the 1920's looks amazing. Though they do have to be wearing the period correct undergarments. It gives this lovely wide-low-waist-band look that i think looks great. I tell them to embrace their body in that particular set-up. In modernity people are just so quick to see "potato sack" or "unflattering angles" that didn't really exist back then because there weren't people telling you what styles looked good on what body types. Nowadays we are absolutely obsessed with wearing specificly "flattering" clothes for specific "body types."
But what do you think looks pretty? Do you think those wide hipped women thought they looked awful in those 1920's garb? No they thought they looked amazing and even boxier then everyone else! Screw other people and embrace what you love. If you really hate it, then don't wear it, but not because modern society says it doesn't "flatter" your "body type." But because you don't like it.
All of this - yes!! Agreed, and as a wide-hipped girl I appreciate your comment on 1920s in particular.
I think that's what I've been looking for, I'll probably end up making that. Thank you.
Ps. maybe you were more happy with a front gathers cause you didn't use as much fabric in the front as you did previously. Just a hypothesis for your scientific study.
Pps. You look really cute in that.
I swear every video of regency dress making i watch theres a disclaimer that the creator doesnt like regency very much and it makes me sad. It never reads like a maternity gown to me because thats the standard of the silhouette and everyone looks like that.
Just seeing the silhouette gives me warm fuzzy comfortable feelings and i'd love to have a regency style gown one day, minus the puff sleeves bc I dont like those in any era
Wonky. A descriptive I often use.
1830s are my horror dress story! I hate the mutton leg sleeves with wide necklines and on me? I’d be eight feet wide! I suppose you could always turn sideways to preserve social distancing though!
lol, just combine 1830s sleeves with 1860s hoop skirts and no one will be able to come near you for the duration of the pandemic!
I have always blamed my large bust for why Recency is unflattering. On me, they just look shapeless.
See, I've always thought that since Regency styles de-emphasize the curve between the waist and hips (which is where I'm curviest), a larger bust contrasts with the straight columnar effect below. Like, if you don't have a big difference between your full bust and under-bust measurements you can end up looking like a stick - or at least that's how I've personally felt about it.
@@DixieDIY Hmmmmm...... I guess this is just one of those styles that everyone has hang ups about. And really relies on the underwear. I love the style, but I have never wanted to put enough effort into getting the underwear together, since it didn't seem like it would be worth it. But maybe I should....
@@kzisnbkosplay3346 certainly seems like it. and you're right about the underwear. I need to make a new set of stays because my current ones aren't doing my bustline any favors. regency stays can take a long time to make so I understand not wanting to do it, but if you like the style I think it'd be worth giving it a shot!
I appreciate the unflattering convo, and I am indeed one that dislikes a very particular fashion era because I think it doesn’t match my body type. That era being the 1920s.
But- it really, really doesn’t. Women with my body type back then had to bind their breasts hardcore, and they’d still look super boxy. Which is the point of the 20s, I guess, but I still hate it. There’s also some very old trauma from having to wear a very boxy drop waist (why do they call it that, it’s drop-hip!) uniform, right after I’d gotten a very different body shape to my peers. Shapeless drop waists are great if you’ve got a pre-pubescent body. I... did not. It was traumatising. It’s how I know for a fact that the style is the opposite of flattering on my natural body shape. And that’s the worst possible time to force a young girl into something like that- it really didn’t help my body image!
And I’ve hated 20s fashion ever since. So while I’d normally agree on the “just branch out and try it” thing, when it comes to the 20s, I stay far, far away!
Wow, thanks for sharing this story. Girls' bodies are too often policed into restrictive dress codes or uniforms that are unfair, demeaning, or not body inclusive. These rules often reinforce already negative standards of beauty and only make girls feel self-conscious. I'm so sorry your experience was traumatic. Exploring past fashions should be a creative way of learning about history, not a source of trauma. I would stay way away from the 20s, too, if I had your experience. And while as costumers, we may wear undergarments to shape ourselves into different shillouetes, we don't have to make ourselves uncomfortable for what ought to be a fun costume. In this case I'd say you're not avoiding the 20s style because you've already tried it, and found it's not for you. Hopefully there are other eras that are more appealing. Thanks again for a great comment!
Your kids will grow up thinking this is what people just wear, lol!
In my opinion, if you don't look pregnant in an early regency front gathered dress then you're doing something wrong.
Love the dress and the video, but maybe in the future you could try to find more "appropriate" music... The prelude and the cello suite no.1 by Bach were composed in the 1720s, so wayyy before the regency era. Also there is a fugue which is supposed to be played after the prelude - so if you insist on having Bach in your video, maybe play both parts instead of repeating the prelude again and again and again and again and again and again...
Sorry, I've played the prelude way to often myself on the piano, so having to listen to it over and over in this video was slightly annoying - but I admit that I'm biased 😅