Golden Age of Travel Dream Birthday -- Wardrobe Planning Week One

Back to wardrobe planning.  This Birthday Trip is going to require one doozy of a wardrobe! Leaving aside the underwear, nightwear, sportswear, outerwear, and incidental items, for this 19-day voyage I have determined that I will need:
  • 11 formal evening gowns
  • 4 semi-formal dinner dresses
  • 15 day dresses or ensembles
  • 3 suits
That's 33 outfits. It's also 33 weeks until the Queen Mary 2 departs New York for Southhampton on 2 October, 2012. How convenient! *collapses from imagined exhaustion*
Okay. Let's get down to business here. That means I have to make one outfit every week from now until we leave. The good news is that I have some outfits that are already started and other outfits that just need finishing. So those we'll save for the weeks I'm busy with other things and can't sew. So it's Week One.   This week's outfit is a set of separates that can be worn to luncheon or around the ship during the day. skirt from RH1050This is the skirt from RH1050 — Ladies' 1910s Empire Costume. It is a high-waisted skirt with a narrow (not quite "hobble skirt") profile. I had exactly 59" of 60" wide navy blue gabardine, so I laid out the pattern carefully, reduced the seam allowances to ¼", and ran up the skirt.  It took about two hours from laying it out on the fabric to attaching the hooks and eyes to the opening. The skirt is complete except for hemming (which I will do once I figure out which shoes to wear with it).  Don't you think it screams "Lady Mary from Downton Abbey"? Of course now we need a top to go with it. I found some silk habotai in my stash and pulled out my RH1048 — Ladies' 1910s Magyar Blouse pattern. I made a few modifications to this pattern.  But they are modifications of omission, so they're easy for anyone to do.  I cut the pattern as drafted, but I didn't make the darts in the front and back of the pattern as shown in the instructions.  Frankly, I put it on my dress form before I sewed anything and just liked how it looked.  So I didn't sew those two lines you see on the pattern cover. Also, I didn't want a collar so I skipped that part. And then I realised that I laid out the pattern backwards!  LOL  Just goes to show that even professionals can make mistakes.  I laid out the pattern for a front closure rather than a back closure.  But that's okay because I really like the look of a front closure on this blouse. I french seamed the side seams and roll hemmed all the edges of the habotai blouse.  Then I closed the front of the blouse with the smallest snaps I could find so it wouldn't distort the line of the blouse. And... Voilà!  Week One Outfit One.  Done!

Tomorrow:  More wardrobe planning!


© 2012 Kass McGann. All Rights Reserved. The Author of this work retains full copyright for this material.