Lookit!

My entry is up!

Topping Off

I spent more time that I should anguishing over this hat. In my mind, it had to be teeny tiny, like many of the Schiap hats I saw. The trouble is, I'm not a milliner, so this would have to be sewn, rather than felt blocked, made from straw, or other milliner tricks. It didn't help that for ages I couldn't find a decent pattern.

Bleuette to the rescue! I found a 1930 Bleuette hat pattern that I enlarged, pinned, and tried on Kozu, in a plain wig for optimum streamlining. Initially she looked like an owl:

Hakama Time

Time till the deadline is short. Thankfully, the hakama, a Japanese lower garment that was popular with Meiji schoolgirls, is pretty simple. It's all rectangles, with the front and back tops pleated to fit. I measured a purchased hakama I had on hand, but a little too late. Here's my first, partial attempt:

I'm not sure how clear the picture is, but the hem is cut on a selvedge, the circumference is too narrow, and the entire thing is so long that it extends above Kozu's breasts. The good thing is that these problems are easy to solve.

A Study in Pink and Black

The bolero's design is heavily influenced by this ensemble here. In truth, much of my outfit is taken by the narrow black skirt and shocking pink with black bolero. Intense pink and black go well together in my mind, so why not go with it?

As for trim, I'm using a kind of looped braid initially bought for another project. The sleeves I'm very loosely borrowing from a Vogue January 1st, 1939 jacket, the front comes from nowhere in particular, and the back is from a (mumbles) Charles Worth sunburst gown. I didn't want this piece to be fully symmetrical.

Bolero, Bolero

Now comes the little jacket for the outfit, draped and ready to go.

 Here's the back.

Now She is Collared

As it turned out, I didn't care for how the collar looked sitting on the dress. I've turned it into an independent piece that can sit on top of the dress for an additional look. The practical result is that instead of sewing the two pieces together, I just added a hook and eye to the meeting corners.

Here's a back view.

On to the Collar

With the dress done, I began work on the collar. I took a wide piece of ribbon, added tucks, and used it as m template for the collar. Not much to see here, I'm afraid.

Shocking Embroidery Nearly Complete

I wanted to commemorate the look of the embroidered dress without the collar. Enjoy.

Shocking Embroidery

To give the embroidery a kimono flavor, with will have a wide collar and wrap front. I've also made it a point to made the Schiaparelli inspired motifs asymmetrical, as is common in Japanese designs. As a nod to Schiaparelli, I'm doing it all in her beloved shocking pink. 

Everything is marked,

Here it is partially done.

Making the Meiji Dress

Phase two of the project is to make a high waisted Regency inspired dress. On page 110 of "Impossible Conversations," she says that she turned to this era again and again for get ideas. The facing page, 111, there's a 1938 photograph of one such design. The light coloring, column-esque skirt and focus on the bosom reflects Schiaparelli's "Statement."

On page 115, the conversation turns to nature, and the Schiap explains her Pagan collection and its leaves and flowers on classic gowns.

With these in mind, and the desire to create a sort of white blouse for the dress, this dress will have a white background, simple lines, and floral embroidery. To give it a kimono flavor, with will have a wide collar and wrap front.

Below, Kozu models the draping I've done.

Slipping Around

Here is the slip, in all its glory.

First Layer

I got the idea in my head that this outfit could do with some undergarments. Since I'm not sure how well wafuku (Japanese) underwear would fit under something with a Western cut, I'm going with Western underwear, circa Schiap's design reign. There aren't too many research sources I know of for 1930s underwear. I saw plenty of ads in back issues of Vogue, though they're largely for girdle/slip/bra combinations. My dolls aren't squishy, so I find most foundation garments superfluous on them. There was a helpful article from the 1920s detailing slips, though they didn't have the line my outfit has.

Thankfully, I came across a book called Vintage Lingerie, and I gave it a flip through. There was a 1930s slip with princess seams, and I'll give that a shot.

After taking Kozu's measurements, I drafted a body block and used it to draft a preliminary slip.
I cut off the shoulder straps, which I'll replace later with ribbon, and lowered the neckline in front and back. I also divided the new block into 3 pieces, with a front (I'll cut it on a fold,) a back and a side piece.

The next step is to pin it together and see how it fits on my girl.

I forgot to photograph her from the front, but so far, everything fits as it should.

Giving In To Temptation

There is a sewing contest afoot, and dolly sewers are welcome to compete! I hope to make an outfit along the "My Favorite Things" theme.

With me being a fan of many things Japanese and particularly school clothes, picking that was a no brainer. As this is supposed to be historical costuming, and I don't know what the era limit is, I'm erring on the side of caution. The Meiji era ended in 1912, and the website covers clothes up to the 1920s, so I'll be going with a Meiji schoolgirl look.

That said, the first idea that came to mind was an outfit along the lines of Elsa Schiaparelli. Alas, while I squeed inside over her outfits I dug up, nothing clicked until I decided to mix her with with an older, foreign style. This outfit, this embroidery, and this hat especially grab my fancy.

The books I'll refer to for this project is Kimono: Fashioning Culture by Liza Dalby, Schiap's autobiography A Shocking Life, and Impossible Conversations by the Met Museum.