Review of Truly Victorian Ripple skirt TV296 and Eaton Jacket TV498 with gigot sleeves TV495. The RIPPLE skirt goes together easily. But don't think this is a quick project because of the simple lines. The skirt is underlined and has a hem facing. Because of this, the hem will need to be sewn by hand. A true fabric hog. I cut out my usual size (36 waist). What is nice is that she tells you what the finished hem length will be (42 inches) Too long for me. You need to make your alterations to length before you draft your hem facings. I did get into some trouble there. My length adjustments still left it too long, not on the front panel but the sides to back. Also there is some bias involved so you will want to let your skirt hang before you hem it. I decided to let it hang on my mani overnight and then just trimmed at the hem to the proper length. Not fun, but it all worked out ok. I was not able to use the drafted hem facings because they wouldn't fit anymore due to my length adjustments. So I ordered some 6 inch wide horsehair braid to use as my facing. It worked great. The skirt has a length of twill tape from sides to back that hold the ripples in shape. You will need to pin and drape to get the ripples just so. This was a fun skirt to make. Bear in mind you are hauling around a tremendous lot of fabric. There is 6 yards of sweep at the hem. My skirt weighs almost 4 pounds. I used a midweight cotton double weave. It looks like wool but is all cotton. I don't know when I will make another one. I would like one in black but may just go with the walking skirt for that.
EATON Jacket, fun to make! I cut my usual TV sizes G back H front. Did my standard adjustments. There were no surprises. Goes together quickly. It is fully lined. I chose the large GIGOT sleeve from the TV495 patterns. You will want to make a muslin because the lower sleeve is very tight. I added an inch to the width in mine. These sleeves are very bulky and heavy. You will need lots of netting and I even put in an extra header of crinoline (looks like buckram). Because the sleeves were so heavy I also added shoulder pads because my shoulder was collapsing and it looked sloppy. Between those pads and the extra header it made a huge difference. Looking at the back of the jacket I could have padded out the upper shoulder area where those wrinkles are. In Joi Mahon's fitting book she talks about padding out when alterations aren't going to do enough. Like in this case with very heavy sleeves.
Side note the corset belt is TV492. Easy to make. Right now I have ribbon lacing but I will probably trade it out at some point. The sleeveless blouse is Wingeo 1890s blouse. Runs HUGE! But I like the gathered front. Hat is a Lynn McMasters pattern. I am very happy with my outfit. I will be wearing this to the Steamposium tomorrow.
Beneath it all, 2 petticoats, chemise, corset. I could use one more petticoat but I don't have the time. Not gonna sweat it though!
