If I Had My Own Blue Box:

I still have all the ribbons I won at the Genesee Country Village and Museum’s Agricultural Society Fair. Believe it or not I actually won a blue ribbon for my handwriting. Go figure.

This year I’m entering a variety of sewn goodies.

First is my pair of sewing cases, also called housewifes. I do like this little pair. They will be entered under the sewn items category.

Under the “Quilted Projects” category, I’ll have a pieced article of clothing and a quilted article of clothing. For a pieced item, I’ll be entering my quilted pocket.

The quilted article of clothing entry will be the quilted hood I am working on.

For my sewn article of clothing I keep changing my mind between one of my little purses or the capote hood I teeter-totter from liking to disliking.

I find I am a bit more productive and less likely to wander off on tangents when I may my to-do list public. Last month went pretty well. Lets see for this month:

Green updates from Friday with one week until first August event; Blue updates from Tuesday before the event. Post Arcade additions.

Sewing

• Little sister’s underpinnings – she needs petticoats and chemises– One petti done, borrowing chemises & cage, hoping to alter a second petti. Still need to get to that second petti to alter.
• Little sister’s brown dress – plaid brown with red cotton shirting – gauged skirt, with a V neckline, gathered bodice and short sleeves – Mostly done, just needs closure and collar, maybe undersleeves for short sleeves. Done and redone, with collar
• My 1830s travel dress – brown semi-sheer cotton which wants to be a wool – cross-over V neck, dropped late 30s sleeves – Cut, skirt together. Part of one side of the back top-stitched on & buried in a box.
• Patriotic accessories for upcoming event
•                    2 aprons
•                    2 Cockades?
•                     2 red belts – One done and one rosette. Two red belts with rosette done.
•                    On train projects – possibly a handkerchief and/or patriotic shield needle-book. Several NBs planned materials lacking
• Tweak one of my bonnet’s flowers
• At least one rolled sewing and/or structure case for Etsy
• At least one little purse for Etsy
• At least one needle-book – Two made (shell and bellows) Five more made (3 shells, 1 shield, 1 bell)
• Special project with 4 to 5 components – Measured and layed out
• Take apart and redo straw bonnet that smooshed
• Draft a new drawers pattern for hubby
• Repair slippers
• Replace buttons on hubby’s pants and both of my paletots (one just lost one, one needs all new)
• Repair sleeve
• Repair trim pulled of black paletot by train
• Darn stockings
• Make a pair of slippers for someones sore feet
• Add to dress wish list – sacque/petti combo in tbd fabric (possibly in a real travel fabric)
•  

Writing

• Talk points for travel project – Sorta
• Finish “Why this is Good” & put on blog – in progress
• “moving into fall” blog post – all in my mind
• “Keep it Simple, Keep it in Budget”

Locate or re-locate

• Drawers that will fit little sister – skipped
• Extra bedding from storage – skipped
• The barn-board box – found
• Rugs x2 – found
• Drinking pottery – no luck
• where is my food box? Where is my toiletries box?

Since it has been 2 years since my little sister has been able to attend a history event with me, she is in need of new clothes. She will be 13 this next month. So, she’s in those between years. That can mean lots of options and lots of confusion.

Luckily, Catherine was kind enough to send back the clothes that don’t fit her anymore. Let me tell you my surprise when my little sister, tall & thin little sister, fit into the dress I wore in my late teens and early 20s. She could have a little more flesh on her torso and shoulders, but over-all it fits rather than falls off of her. So, the skirt will get some age appropriate tucks. The bodice will get some pinches in the seams. I think this skirt might get a sheer white bodice since she liked the one Marta sent from Kay’s site. I’m picturing something like this body/bodice or this bodice/body just with short sleeves. I like the sleeve treatment of the first. This does mean I need to either do an under-body or a half-high lining or a corset cover for her. Something like this but with a straight waist sorta would work, but is a bit off of what I have in mind as I’m pretty sure this is for evening wear. (While we are talking white sheers, this is one I would really like for myself.) The skirt/body combo will need a belt in black or red. I have a nice MOP buckle which will work. Or we can do a back closure. This dress and skirt/body combo will work nicely for ‘better’ wear.

She has two cotton shirtings coming thanks to mom’s ordering. (I know the first one is the right one; I’m not sure I have the right photo of the second one.)

There is enough of each for a dress thanks to the wider width. The first will be a dress. The second is intended to be a skirt  combined with a shirt. I’ll decide if that is happening when I see the quality of the cotton. (I’d rather see a sheer body with a silk or high-end cotton.) I haven’t decided on styles yet of either. I should really get on that. For the green, likely it will be a basic dress with tucks in the skirts up to lower calf or upper ankles. The sleeves will be comfortably short. The bodice might get to be a yoked bodice with a jewel neckline. That could be really cute while appeasing my desire to make a yoked bodice. (okay, I confess, I really wanted this fabric.)

 She also needs all new underpinnings with the exception of drawers which should fit. That hopefully will be easy. Now the cage… I have my fingers crossed on.

Oh, just remembered. I need to fix my other boots for her to wear. Hope it doesn’t rain that weekend since I’ll only have my wool boots.  

There just isn’t enough time or organization to do every sewing project on our lists. Here is some of my sewing wish list.

This Bonnet Bag has been on the list for a while. I like my pasteboard box bags very much. I have a plan for this type of bag, I just have to get around to it.

I am rather intrigued by this style of flat, round bottom bags. It may be that bit of structure. The version I like even more has the flat bottom and structured sides. They look like they are built around pasteboard.

I don’t know if I will ever be up to this level of needlework. Okay, I highly doubt it. But, this little slipper shaped bag is just to cute not to make at some point.

There is something about these multi-sided shaped bags. There several different shapes found in Godey’s and Peterson’s for both lady’s bags and men’s tabacco bags. Some have these central embroidered designs on each side, some have full/all-over needlework while others have braidwork. I don’t know which I will do. The idea of the personalized embroidery is very apealling. But, so is doing some braid work.

I’m determined to remake a broken fan I have (somewhere) into a Jenny Lind fan like one like this or this. While I’m at it, it would be nice to replace my feather fan that died. Granted, this one is a bit Wow. I wasn’t aware making a fan from painted pasteboard was an option. Then I saw this one. Tempting. 

A pasteboard box or bandbox from scratch

A ribbon cockade – There are some amazing, I should say AMAZING, reproductions out there. I just want to take a try at one or two.

I’m bound to find a way to make my own thread winders out of recyled MOP, bone or such. I just have to find the right material and the dremel tool (hopefully it still works after getting wet during the move.)

I will learn to make my own gloves for my challenging to fit hands.

After finding it uncomfortable to sit the whole day in a mid-century chair sewing, I will make a period cushion for sitting.

This apron.

At one point I was under the dillusion that I would make my husband this beautiful white shirt for his birthday. But, as it t turns out shirts intimidate me. Instead, I went looking for a print for him, an eagle print since he likes eagles. What should have been an easy task wasn’t. There were so many nice prints. But, none of them spoke to me. None, that is until I came across the piece called Wings over Antitiem by John Neal Mullican.

This print was just right. It had the eagle Dan loves and it had to do with the Civil War. (For those of you who don’t know, he and I met reenacting years back.) The print itself just has that nice feel to it. It had to be the one for his birthday. So, I ordered it.