Tiger Lily's Threads

If you've been following my Instagram @tiger.lilys.threads , you've probably seen the massive project I've been working on for the Museum of the American Revolution; I started working on the project on the first weekend of May.  Normally I sew 18th and late 19th century gowns and hadn't really taken on a project like this before, however, I was thrilled when I was considered to be part of the project. In fact, I saw it as a challenge I wanted to take on. To use my skills to reproduce a 5x7 foot flag meant for a Sloop. As soon as I received the materials, I immediately got to work.   First, I laid out at least 20 seperate pieces on the floor to get a feeling of what the flag should look like. Using the diagram and drawings as a reference, I interchanged the colors to red, white, and blue, then started piecing everything together to make the long strips. At first glance, this fabric looked like lightweight linen as it was coarse like linen and frayed heavily (more on that...

In all my years of sewing dresses primarily from the 18th century, I've always wanted to make my own Robe à la Française, but many times have been intimidated by it's construction to be able to do it. I've looked at fashion plates, photos on Pinterest, and read countless blogs that some of my friends in the costuming and reenacting community have made of their own gowns, bought the pattern from American Duchess, looked through their dressmaking book for more detailed instructions (more on that later-trust me, you'll NEED the book), and lastly, stocked up on 9 yards of cotton fabric from a really good sale at JoAnn's' for me to experiment with (silk taffeta would not be the best option for a first time project). Keep in mind though, I started this project on September 19, 2019 in hopes I could get it ready for the Francaise Dinner in March 2020.  I was MORE than prepared... but still apprehensive to give it a try. So, all of the materials just sat in my sewi...

Earlier this Summer, I wanted to work on some stash-busting! So, I made myself an early 1780's cap drafted from the American Duchess Guide to Beauty.  I really enjoyed making this cap not only because I got to expand on the size of the lappets to make it resemble a Moon Jelly resting on my head (lol), but also I enjoyed creating the design around the crown by making two different sized puffs and intertwining them around one another. I do plan to wear the cap with high hair style sometime in the near future once it's safer to participate in public reenactments and events again.  

Earlier this month, I had the honor of performing for the Center For Education Reform at the George Washington University Jack Morton Auditorium. TCFER is a foundation based in Washington DC whose mission is to "expand educational opportunities" for students all over the nation. The program in which I participated in was called "Why America". This program is an interactive field trip in which students and teachers use resources in and around the Nation's Capital and is broken down into 5 categories  The Constitution & Its Origins  Hamilton's Vision  The Father Of Our Country & Presidency  Women Abolition & Suffrage Movements In The President's Neighborhood   Military Memorial & Flag Days "The Father of Our Country & Presidency", spotlights the executive branch of government and why Congress made the imperative decision to elect George Washington as 1st President; why was he the perfect candidate to lead the new ...

Like with any women's undergarment, there's always wear and tear and the occasional body fluxuations that make you want groan but have to bite the bullet and make a new pair or shopping for a new set. The corset and stays are no exception. After remaking my first pair of fully boned stays 2016 and a pair of half-boned in 2019, it was time for me to make a 3rd pair (this time switching back to the full-boned). Using my favorite pattern from J.P. Ryan, I made this new pair of stays out of cotton tweed fabric. I also elongated the front and sides of the stays by 3 inches, as the original pattern I used to make my first pair of fully-boned stays were a bit too short for my torso. Compared to my last two pairs of stays, where I used metal boning (which definitely retained a lot of heat) and zipties (flexible, but not enough rigidity), this was the very first time I used reed canes for boning. I was a bit hesitant to use them at first, as the bones were so lightweigh...

This year so far, Maryland has experienced a very short and mild winter. With Spring arriving quickly, it's getting close to the point where I'll have to put away my winter wear. With that being said, I never really got the opportunity to really take some good photos of the new wool capelet that I made in January. This capelet is perfect for any time period  Initially this capelet was a result of a de-stashing project. I had 1.5 yard of left-over wool fabric that I wasn't planning to do anything with, and instead of donating it to GoodWill or selling it, I decided to make a winter capelet based off of a couple of 18th century examples I found on pinterest. Now, what made this project most interesting was that while many of the wool caplets and silk mantelets I have seen were hooded and were lined with fur, there were a few that surprisingly did not require such.       This was a fairly easy project to do. I laid out some leftover Waverly fab...

I'm WAY behind schedule with keeping my posts up to date. So, I will try my best to remember everything that happened - or at least go over the highlights. Back in early November, Gadsby's Tavern in Alexandria, VA, hosted a Harvest Ball. I had a really great time that night and put my ballroom shoes to good work as I danced the night away with many friends who attended.  This event, I decided to pull out the old (but revamped) Waverly gown I wore back when I attended my very first ball at Gadsby's in 2013. Not much of a difference in color choices, but the zone front style look personally amiable to me rather than late 70's style the dress donned at first; also, upgrade on the accessories.  The evening started with me staying over my friend Beth's house in NoVa. She was a wonderful hostess, and I cannot thank her enough. Once we were ready for the evening, we headed into Alexandria and had dinner at Jackson's 20; By 7pm, we arrived at Gadsby...