How to get plastic boning to lie flat in less than two minutes:

Simple Secrets:

(Chuckle) ---- I have read so many websites about how to get boning to lie flat that are really complicated.  My favorite involves a boiling pot of water, tongs, paper towels, and several heavy books.  Really people there is an easy way to get boning to lie flat and it only takes a few minutes...

I'm not going to make you read the entire blog to find the answer: It's simple--Iron it.  Yes it is that simple.  Iron it... use the steam function... it will lie flat every time.

If you want further explanation see the rest of the blog.

The who's what's where's why's and how's....

Question 1: What exactly is boning?  

Answer: Boning's technical term is "stay" or "stays."  In order to get a corset or bodice to retain its shape a stay is put in place between the outer fabric and the lining vertically.  Think of it as the same function as a flexible tent pole.  It is the pole that actually gives the dome tents their shape.  It also makes sure that the tent does not collapse.  Without boning or not enough boning the bodice of the dress or corset collapses and folds. (See the picture to the right)  Boning can also be used to add strength to a fabric, so it can be used to cinch... usually the waist line.

Question 2: Where did boning come from?  Who invented it?  

Answer: The purpose of boning has changed throughout the years.  A majority of the change in purpose is connected to the shape desired during each fashion period.

Catherine de Medici is credited with the creation of the corset.  She used it as a tool to gain information via her Flying Squadron.  (A group of beautiful young women who infiltrated the French nobility and reported back to her and problems that might upset her son's and more importantly her empire.  The fashion of the time turned the woman's body quite literally into an hourglass.  The farthingail (hoop-skirt)  made the lower half of the body into a cone shape and the corset made the top half of the body into a cone shape as well.  These two cones were connected by a very slender waist line, thus the hourglass shape.



Interesting Note: The corsets of Catherine de Medici were made of iron.  Eeek....

The fashion style stuck and by the time we get to the Elizabethan era it is as much as a fashion staple as the bra is today.

Question 3: What is boning made of?  How is it used?

Ivory Busk

whalebone busk

Wooden busk

Answer: As I said above, Catherine started the fashion trend with iron.  Not surprisingly this didn't stick for too long.  Whale bone was a popular choice by the time we get to the Elizabethan era for those who could afford it.  When you couldn't afford whale bone, you used reeds.  Ivory, horn, or metal could also be used.  Wood and reed busks (carved thin knife shaped slats of the materials I mentioned above) were inserted into channels made in the lining.  Unlike the boning of today these busks could be reused over and over with each gown. (A major advantage in my opinion.)  There was an easy replacement factor as well-- another major advantage.  During the 18th century the steel busk was invented and would be used until World War I when the US Government asked women to stop buying corsets to help save on metal for the war.

Steel Boning

In 1910 the steel boning which was basically a metal strip was replaced with spiral stays.  Spiral stays are more flexible so the wearer can turn from side to side.  (Point of note) because they can move they are intrinsically weaker than flat steel boning.  They will eventually break in the middle.

Spiral stay

Rigiline or nylon boning is the modern version of boning.  (Though if you buy a quality corset, it still has steel)   Nylon is not strong enough to make a modern corset though it is perfectly fine for boning an Elizabethan bodice, provided you're not trying to change your shape too much.  Mostly nylon boning is used in strapless gowns and lingerie to keep the bodice from changing its shape, folding, buckling, etc.  Most mass manufactured dresses use it because it is inexpensive compared to steel boning.

Question 4:  Why isn't it flat in the first place?

Answer: Boning comes in a coil or a loop.  When you buy it  it looks like a coil of fabric covered plastic.  The fabric covering the boning can be black or white.  I personally remove the covering, because I detest bulk.  However you can choose to simply sew the casing of the boning to your lining or I suppose your bodice or dress (though the seams would drive me crazy).  

For me, I cut two of every lining and sew channels to contain the boning.  I then insert the boning into the channels, cutting each to the correct size as I go.  If you want your boning to be flat doing this-- iron it before hand.  I don't mind the curve at this stage.  

Once you have inserted the boning the corset or bodice takes on a curved shape.  It doesn't lie flat and no matter how many books you put on it it will not lose it's spring.  As I said above, there are various websites that explain how to straighten these out...

Without a need for anything other than your ironing board and the iron, turn on the iron to the lowest setting where steam can be used.  (or higher if the fabric can take it)

Note: the boning must be encased, so either do this with the fabric casing on it, or when it is in the lining.

Put the iron on the boning and press for several seconds.  You may want to pump the steam but you can do it without going that far.  After a moment the boning will lie flat.  No drama... just iron it.

Adapting a Pattern: Fun with Sleeves

Personalizing Your Dress Through Sleeves: 

The single biggest problem with using a pattern to create a renaissance dress is that when you go to the fair there are quite literally hundreds of dresses that are the exact same dress.  Two patterns tend to rule the fairs... Simplicity 8881 and 2589.  Simplicity 8881- (the infamous Shakespeare in Love pattern) has been declining in recent years since Simplicity discontinued it while 2589 became an instant favorite when most historical costumers hailed it for its accuracy.  (It is a very good pattern)  Fortunately, different colors, boarders, bead work, ribbons, laces, etc. make enough difference that no one feels like the duplicate dress on the red carpet; however, the dresses that really look unique all have one thing in common.  They have adapted their sleeves

If you are a novice at sewing, changing a pattern can be terrifying.  Patterns are safe, reliable, and they contain directions.  For some, it is terrifying to break away.  This tutorial will be a little more comfortable, because I will be showing you how to use sleeves from other patterns to create the look you want.  

I was taught this method when I was first beginning to sew.  My mother always combined pattern pieces to form the silhouette she wanted.  I was surprised when I found out that most people don't know how to puzzle piece a dress together.  If you are interested in learning the technique, the sleeves are a great way to start.  

Okay, let's get started: 

As in the previous posts, I am building this dress for my cousin Melissa.  One of the requests she made was to have ribbon sleeves.  Basically this is a exaggerated puff and slash sleeve. 

Puff and Slash was a decoration that the Elizabethans took from German soldiers and basically made it theirs.  The idea behind it was after you make a garment, you slash holes in it and pull the under-sleeve out through the hole, giving it a little puff.  It is a time consuming process, because you have to finish every hole.  I think Hollywood first came up with the idea of cutting the sleeve into strips, completely finished, and hooking them together.  I really can't see any portraits of the time where I believe this was done.  Though there are many people who will disagree.  

In creating the silhouette for this dress, I wanted to do something that stepped outside of what I have already seen at the fairs.  I knew I wanted to highlight the amazing red and gold fabric my cousin selected.  Since I didn't use it on the bodice, the sleeves really needed to highlight the fabric.  I also needed to tie in the sleeves with the outer dress.  My cousin was clear that she didn't want the bell sleeves that came with the pattern I've been using (Simplicity 2589)  so.... perfect time to teach puzzling in a sleeve.

I've selected two sleeves to insert into the dress: 

The first is the skinny sleeve (one time called the cigarette sleeve) from Simplicity 8881.  There is a problem with using this sleeve... and it brings up an important point:  When puzzling a pattern together it is important to see how the sleeve is initially built.  In this pattern there is a puff which connects the skinny sleeve to the bodice.  This allows the arm to move.  Without this piece it will be impossible to move the arm above the head.  The adaptation is fairly easy.  I'll explain how below.

 The second is a ribbon sleeve I have always admired from the McCalls 4107 pattern.

I purchased this pattern a while ago when patterns were on sale.  I specifically wanted this sleeve.  It is also a bonus, because my cousin wanted wings off the shoulders.  The wings exist in this sleeve---BONUS!

There are a couple problems with this sleeve as well-- 1.  The ribbons in the pattern are actual ribbons.  I'll have to make some ribbons out of the blue fabric for the dress.  2- If you look at the placement of the sleeve, you'll see that the shoulder is a separate piece from the rest of the bodice.  That means a portion of the sleeve will be totally useless and I'll have to figure how to insert it into the armseye.  Again, it is actually pretty easy, and I'll provide my tricks of the trade in this blog.

Shall we get to the fun?

The cutting table: Inner Sleeve

Ugg-- Looks like I deleted the cutting of the 8111 pattern piece.  So I'll give you the basics.  Look at the 8881 pattern vs a standard sleeve.

Notice the strange top on the one above.  The roller coaster shape is designed to connect to the puff... The sleeve below is a standard sleeve shape.  To make sure the person wearing the sleeve can move their arm properly, all you need to do is adapt the top of the pattern you will be using to have the arch that you see in the pattern below.

You may notice that the bottom of the patterns are basically the same.  Technically I could have simply used the standard pattern shape above to create my skinny sleeve.  However, I only retrieved it to explain how to adjust the sleeve.  Live and learn.  :)








Okay, so I cut the skinny sleeve out of the burgundy and gold fabric.  I added a gold stripe of ribbon I bought at Joanne's fabric to give it even more contrast and sewed up the inner arm seam.


Note: Normally I would hem the cuff of the sleeve before I seamed the inner arm; however, since I will be sending this to my cousin in the mail, and it is important to have it fit correctly, I decided to leave it unfinished.   But... it is much easier to do it before you sew the inner seam.

I french seamed the sleeve... which means I sewed down the seam once with the wrong sides together, then turned the sleeve and seamed it again with the raw edges encased inside the seam.  It makes it finished and it looks more professional.

Puzzling Together the Outer Sleeve: 

There are four pieces to the ribbon sleeve from Pattern 4107.  For this dress I only need pattern pieces 12- the cuff, 8- the wing- and 11- which is the guide for the ribbons.  The fourth pattern piece is the strap for the shoulder on the bodice.  At this point, I'm going to set aside the directions for the bodice pattern.  

Terrifying to some, but not really that difficult to do.

I know what the cuff is going to look like.  The shoulder piece I was planning on adapting in anyway, and the ribbons I'm making rather than using ribbon-- so not so terrifying after all.  

I cut out the shoulder and the cuff fabric and some interfacing to give it some strength.  It is important to follow the arrow guide on the shoulder.  I wasn't sure how I was going to work the stripes, so I followed the arrow.  It ended up being fantastic   The arrow will provide you with a nice look if you have a specific pattern to your material.  

I'm only using the guide for the ribbons, right now to get the length I need.  I want the ribbons to have some strength and presence.  I also want them to follow the same look as the stripes on the dress.  

The stripes on the fabric were about the same width as the stripes on the guide, so I cut out five pieces of fabric as long as the pattern guide.  I made sure the dark blue was in the center and I cut an equal width on either side.  Basically, I cut a light blue strip, a dark blue strip, and a light blue strip in one cut the length of the pattern guide.  

Pinning the edges of each strip together I sewed a single seam down each ribbon.

I turned all of the ribbons inside out, pressed, and top stitched each ribbon.  Leaving me with ten very nice ribbons for the sleeves.  I could have at this point added embellishment such as a patterned ribbon down the center of each strip, but my cousin wants to bead her dress.  I left it plain so she could do what she wanted with her sleeves.  

Cuffs and Shoulders: 

Using the ribbon guide, I laid all of the fabric strips and cut them to match the guide.










The shoulder wing was simple.  After ironing on the interfacing, I pressed the sleeve in half and laid the ribbons out, pinned them in place along the curved edge of the sleeve, and sewed them in place.


It is important as you are doing this that you routinely pin the sleeves in place with the bodice to make sure you are getting the right look.  I think of it as the same thing as cooking... When you cook you need to routinely taste your food.  When sewing you need to routinely look at what you are making to verify it is turning out the way you want.  


This also give you a way to start problem solving how you plan to put the rest of the dress together.  As you can see at this point, I pinned the inner sleeves and the ribbons onto the dummy with the bodice and the underskirt.  I haven't added the cuffs yet.  I've decided that they will be added as one of the last things I do on this dress.    I like the way the shoulders look and the look of the sleeves, so I'm ready to put them together with the bodice.  At this point I had a brilliant idea about how to hide the seams.  I will be sewing the inner sleeve to the lining and the outer sleeve to the bodice.  That way the raw edges are in between the two.  

Putting it all together: 

  First I pinned the inner sleeve into the lining.  THIS IS IMPORTANT-- you need to make sure that you are pinning in the sleeve backward.  Remember when you put the lining on the dressmaker's dummy or when you put it on yourself, the finished edges-- meaning the side without seams needs to be facing the dummy or your body.  

  The sleeve needs to be inside out and pinned, so it extends toward your body.  That way when you pull the sleeve right side out, it is facing away from you.  You will be pulling it through the bodice when you connect the bodice and lining together.  

It may be when you insert your sleeve that the sleeve is too big for the armseye.  That happens.  

• If the sleeve is many inches wider than the arm opening, you will need to gather the sleeve.  I suggest the top of the sleeve.  If you do not want a puff, you can always pleat in the sleeve on the top.  For a flat look make the top of the sleeve flat and add matching pleats on either side.  
• If the sleeve only has one or two inches extra, you can ease the sleeve in.  Easing means that you add a little extra fabric between each pin... as I have done in the picture above.  I usually use the tip of my finger to add the extra fabric between pins.  Provided you don't add too much fabric between pins, you won't get and folds or gathers.  

The outer sleeve is a little more tricky.  Folding the wing in half I found the center and pinned it onto the top of the bodice's armseye.  Notice in the picture above that the wing does not fit the entire circumference of the opening.  This is not a problem.  Once I connect the bodice and the lining together I'll stitch the two together where these two connect.  

The last job is to connect the bodice and the lining together... I'll explain this process in more detail in the next blog entry, but basically you pull the inner arm of the lining through the bodice opening, pin the lining to the bodice, and top stitch them together.  I'll use bias tape to bind the edges, so it is finished.  

The sleeves are finished by hand stitching the two together so the lining's raw edge and the bodice's raw edge  are hidden between the two.  I don't have a good picture of this, but once you put the two together you'll see where it needs to be done.  I use a simple whip stitch to sew them together.  

Whip Stitch: 

1. Make a knot in your thread.  
2. Using your fingers tuck the raw edge of the lining and the bodice toward one another. 
3.  Pull the thread through and insert the needle again going in the same direction as you did when you inserted needle the last time.
4.   Continue until you have gone around the entire sleeve.  

Adding the Cuff: 

To make the cuff, first I pressed on the interfacing.  With the wrong sides out, I sewed around three sides of the cuff-- the right side, the top edge of the cuff (the one that will be on the outside edge of the sleeve) and the left side together.  Clipping the corners, I turned the cuff right side out and pressed it down.  I like a finished edge, so I top stitched my seams.  

Once that was done, I had to insert the ribbons.  None of my pictures worked out the way I wanted...  Flipping the cuff right side in again, I put the ribbons in place.  If you made your strips the same size as the cutting guide, they will fit in the cuff perfectly.  You may need to overlap.  You want to make sure you slide down the non-interfaced side of the cuff away.  This will fold over to encase the raw edges into the cuff when you turn the cuff right side out again.   

Sew the ribbons onto the cuff.

Turn the cuff right side out again, tuck in the loose edge of the cuff, and top stitch it down.

I love how the sleeve turned out.  The wing is amazing and was so easy to do, I plan to use it again to make the riding coat for my project that is on hold.

In the end it is a really beautiful look for the dress.  I hope this tutorial helped you puzzle new sleeves into renaissance dresses.  As always, if you have questions just ask.  :)

Here is the finished dress minus hemming.  I'll explain the skirt, bodice, and underskirt in upcoming blogs.  

Cheers!

Katie

Adapting a Pattern: Slimming Down a Tudor Bodice

Working with the Tube: 

As stated before Elizabethan Bodices are basically a tube with sleeves.  If you use a Tudor Bodice the front panel is quite wide almost measuring from armseye to armseye.

(Above) Tudor gown-- Notice the front panel is wide going from sleeve to sleeve.  

(Below) Not a Tudor Gown-- Here the front panel is narrow.  It is still Elizabethan, but it is not Tudor.  (By the way the colors are WAY off of Elizabethan colors.  There was no hot pink and no electric orange in the Renaissance.    

Tudor Gowns can be Embellished to narrow the waist, but notice the front panel still goes from arm seam to arm seam.  

 This wide front can be narrowed with adornments, beading, ribbons, etc.  But what if you want to have two colors of fabrics?  For example: My cousin's dress is mostly blue, but I wanted a splash of the maroon fabric from her underskirt in the bodice.  Can it be done?  Do you have to resort to using Simplicity Pattern 8881  and step away from authentic Tudor--Like the one above?  The Answer-- No, you can adapt your pattern.

The technique is a little tricky, but if you're following my posts, then you're up for thinking outside the box.

For this Tutorial, we will be using my Mock created in the last post for my cousin's new dress.

Fold in the sides of the fabric equally to make the desired center piece for your Tudor gown.  Pin it in place.  

Turn over the pattern so you can see the other side of your center front, below what you have pinned.

Flip over the fabric and pin it in place to match your original line.

Open the fabric and look at the middle section.  Is it what you want?  If not, start over.  If you like it, continue on.  

Here is the underside of what I created.  Note: when you cut out your center front, really all you are going to use is half of this pattern.  I like to make sure the entire pattern is the same on both sides, just in case I need to lay the pattern flat.

Lay the pattern down on the fold like of the fabric you wish to be your center pattern and pin it into place.  

Cut it out, making sure to leave a seam allowance along the side.  Notice, I added the two inches required by my pattern notes to the bottom of the bodice. 

Always read your pattern notes.

Next: Design the Side pieces: 

Slid a piece of paper under the folded section of your Mock.  Pin it into place.  Taking a pen, outline the shape of the angle and line of the bodice.  

Because the bodice is longer than a standard sheet of paper, you will need to make an additional piece.  

Cut the paper down the middle and slide it so the point of the angle touches the fabric where it will connect to the fabric.  (See the picture below)

Take the second half of paper and slid it on top of the piece you just moved.  

Using your pen trace the top portion of the folded material including the top of the bodice. 

Unpin the paper, making sure to keep the two halves pinned together.  I usually take a piece of tape and tape them together to make sure that they stay the right length.  

If you have done this section correctly, when you lay the paper piece next to the bodice, you should have the correct bodice front that matches with the original pattern.  

Lay the paper pattern on the material  and cut it out.  Make sure you leave a seam allowance on both sides of the piece.  You won't need to add the extra inches to this pattern piece, because you already cut it to match the pre-cutout front piece.  

Because I am using stripes it was important to make sure that the stripes matched on both sides.  To make sure that happened, I laid the fabric down putting the stripes together so the pattern would automatically fit.  I also intentionally placed the pattern so the seams were over the larger stripes.  That way if I miss manage my seams, the bodice will still have continuity.  

At last, I check my front bodice with the two side pieces.  I overlapped the seam allowances and then placed the pattern on top to make sure the measurements are correct.  Everything worked out just fine.  Proper Tudor front piece with a slimming effect.  

Last, I cut out my lining.  This is a little more tricky but not by much. 

Place the cut fabric and the pattern together so the center front point lines up.  Place them on the folded lining.  Cut the bottom of the lining to match the pattern to the full width of the front of the bodice.  Follow the line up and cut straight across the top where the cut fabric is... This will result in your lining matching the full width and length of the finished bodice.  It is best to keep your lining with as few seams as possible since seams make putting stays in a real effort.