masquerade ball garb

[Crimson]

TRF will start a masquerade ball this year.  I'm excited to go.  I'm already thinking about new garb for this.  I'm stumped...  I'm not a very frilly girl, I'm not much for hoop skirts.  What kind of gab for a ball could I make that would not make a date feel like he's at the ball with another guy.  I'm also on the plus side so drappy, flowy dresses might not work so well either.  Ugh, I'm stumped...

Any help and ideas are appreciated.

[gem]

Venetian, of course!!  Look here.

More inspiration: Realm of Venus





This is one of those gown styles that actually seems to look even better in real life!

[isabelladangelo]

I would love to see a proper Elizabethan/Jacobean fancy dress outfit.  You can see period depictions of them on this site:
http://www.elizabethancostume.net/masque/

A lot of them are pretty crazy - but aren't necessarly overly complicated.  It's more about the layers.



This is actually your basic Turkish costume with a sheet over it, tied at the shoulders.   Turkish is a lot of fun - it was worn in Italy as well- and very easy to make.  It's really a t-tunic with short sleeves and with a button front closure. 

[Crimson]

Funny you say that, Gem.  As I looked through pictures I kinda settled on that style.  I already have the bodice and sleeves sketched out.  Now I have months to gather materials as they go on sale.  And I need to settle on a color scheme...

[Lady Kathleen of Olmsted]

OOOHH!

Color scheme? Blood reds with Gold trims, and Gold/Black contrast fabric. Lots of pearling. Heads will turn when you walk by.

[Rani Zemirah]

Gem and Isabella, I know you will both have insight to offer, so I'll ask you both...

I love the look of the Venetian, particularly with the flattering deep V of the bodice... but how supportive is it?  Those delicate looking narrow laces just don't look like they would hold up very well to much, in a pinch.  I presume that it's necessary to wear a sturdy pair of bodies underneath, if you are more well endowed?  Or am I mistaken (which so frequently happens, I'm afraid)? 

I have also read a couple of dress diaries that mention using a "false camecia front" to hide the front of the skirt under the point of the bodice (if you elect to not cartridge pleat the front, anyway).  Is this something that would be attached to the bodice in some way, or would it just sort of... "float", I guess, for want of a more descriptive term?  Be tucked into place, is what I think I'm trying to say, anyway. 

Oh, and in perusing the wonderful search results you posted, I ran across Silverstah's Red Venetian, and thought we should all ogle those incredible demi-sleeves (or whatever the actual term is) that she made for it!  They are soooo lovely, and seem so very practical for warm weather!  They add plenty of eye-candy to the dress, and raise it solidly into the noble category, and yet it still looks light and cool and easily wearable out in the heat!  I love the look, and I think it would actually be very easy to attractively attach an extra length to the bottom to make it a full sleeve. 

I'm not sure if I should post the photo here, so I will just post the link, itself.  Well worth the click, though! 

http://www.silverstah.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Venetian_gown___back_view_by_silverstah.jpg

Speaking of red and gold, LadyK... 

[DonaCatalina]

If you look through portraits of this style dress you will see that the width of the lacing varies quite a bit. Many of them also appear to have fabric that if not heavily interfaced, is supported in some way. Look especially where this bodice meets the waistline in front.

[Crimson]

I was going to ask a similar question.  I will most likely add boning to the bodice (both to hold in my squishy parts and to support the girls) and I wondered about the strength of the front lacing.  The diaries I've read are for women in sizes much smaller than I. 

Lady K, I love the idea of reds and gold!  I also kinda like blues. 

[isabelladangelo]

With the Venetian:

I can't access my photos at work but I have worn the 1550's-1580's Venetian style many, many times.   I do not wear a pair of bodies with them - in extant documents, it's suggested that ladies in Italy didn't wear a pair of bodies at all under their garments due to the heat.  Instead, many of the doublet gowns had curved fronts for support.

Construction of the bodice, instead, is key.  Yes, you will once in a while see a lady wearing some sort of stomachered front.  This was not the norm, however.  The painting Dona posted shows a lady wearing a chemise, partlet, and gown.  This was pretty much the norm.   

The bodice has layers.  You have the lining, the interlining - sometimes two layers here-, and the fashion fabric.  The key is to place the boning channels only on the interlining and lining - not the fashion fabric.   Just sew them before sewing the fashion fabric to the lining and then put the boning in.  I used shoelaces for all my lacings and haven't had a problem.  I've tried making my own lacing twice now - it broke both times under just 20 lbs of pressure.  Ie, can't sneeze using those!  Period lacings I've seen from a bit later appear to be nothing more than thin twill tape.  Those would hold up but, really, they look like cotton shoelaces that are more "ribbon" sized.

There are a few early (pre-v-front) portraits that suggest a sleeveless chemise, then bodies, then a camcia, and a gown - but that may now be simple the "bodice bras" of the late 15th/early 16th century and not what we would think of as a pair of bodies. 

I hope that helps!

[CalliopeCC]

One thing I like about the Venetian style is that (generally) there's not a lot of beading or frou-frou trims to be done on the main portion of the gowns. The fabric of the garment is left to stand on it's own.

When I did this year's ladder laced gown, I did a boned stomacher that I actually laced onto the outer bodice at the side seams. This not only took some of the strain off the ladder laces, but kept the stomacher in place.

I'm a big girl, and well endowed too, so I use a healthy helping of boning (both plastic and metal) to achieve the look I want. My tailoring was a little off on this bodice, however, so instead of a V, I ended up with more of an hourglas once I had it laced. Humph. 
https://www.facebook.com/tracy.selak#!/photo.php?fbid=671419146218830&set=t.1529337326&type=3&theater
(if you can see this, I'm the one on the right.)

[isabelladangelo]

I'm a big girl, and well endowed too, so I use a healthy helping of boning (both plastic and metal) to achieve the look I want. My tailoring was a little off on this bodice, however, so instead of a V, I ended up with more of an hourglas once I had it laced. Humph. 
https://www.facebook.com/tracy.selak#!/photo.php?fbid=671419146218830&set=t.1529337326&type=3&theater
(if you can see this, I'm the one on the right.)

Please don't link to Facebook - it doesn't work.     I don't have fb and never will so I just see...a persons page.  No photo of a dress.  Instead, upload your photos to any one of the many photo sharing sites.  I love ipernity - a thousand times better than flickr- but I know many use picasa or smugmug.   

[CalliopeCC]

Sorry about that -- I'm in the same boat, no access to pictures here at work. When I have time, I'll figure out another way...

Happy Sewing, everyone!   

[TiaLD77]

I Love my Italian gowns I used this tutorial to create a curved bodice that does give decent support but is still comfy. http://cottesimple.com/fitted-dress/anatomy-bodice-pattern/