The Great Pattern Review
Kannik's Korner
#4101 - Man's Shirt 1750-1800
Hazel Dickfoss - Highly Recommended
Another pattern I found easy to work with and fit beautifully. I especially like the fact that the men's shirt pattern has the re-enforcing piece across the shoulder from front to back which encloses the raw, gathered edges of the sleeve at the shoulder.
Paul Dickfoss - Highly Recommended
This pattern is very easy to make, even for beginners. There are easy-to-follow directions with clear pictures to illustrate the steps. A reference section is included with directions and illustrations for each stitch used. This is the only 18th century men's shirt pattern I know of that includes a full cross-stitch alphabet with directions for marking your shirt. Original shirts are very well made inside and out for durability. This pattern has you finish all the inside seams which is consistent with original garments.
#4304 - Man's Outer Breeches "Slops" 1750-1820
Paul Dickfoss - Highly Recommended
This pattern is very easy to make and the options included are all very well documented. Easy to follow step-by-step directions are great with clear pictures to illustrate the steps. A reference section is included with directions and illustrations for each stitch used so that even people unfamiliar with hand sewing can sew this by hand. The pocket slits are reinforced with twine so that they are very durable.
#6001 - Stockings, Pockets & Mitts
Theresa Eacker - Recommended
To date, I've only done the mitts. The pattern has great documentation and description of extant items, including textiles and colors used in period. The documentation includes very useful details on how to fit the mitts to a variety of hand sizes. There is an illustrated section on period hand-stitching techniques This is a very detail-oriented project, especially sewing in the thumb piece, so allow time and an extra dose of patience! I did very simple chain stitching on the outside (since I intended these for Rendezvous events, they didn't need to be fancy), but these could be more heavily embroidered for a more upper class, urban look The result is they do wrinkle ( wrinkles are period, n'est-ce pas?) but, surprisingly, add that layer of warmth for shady, windy events and they keep the sun off the skin and add a lovely, distinctive touch to one's attire.
#6102 - Woman's Shift, Second Half of the 18th Century (1750-1800)
Hazel Dickfoss - Highly Recommended
Easy to work with and it fits beautifully.
#6501 - Woman's Bedgown, "Manteau de Lit" - 1730-1770
Amdrea Cesari - Recommended
The pattern and instructions booklet are very well produced. Everything is clean and legible. A 1769 French Tailor's Manual instructions for making a bed gown are quoted and translated. There is a good bibliography of documentation. I found the cutting layout incomprehensible for some reason. The front and back are cut in one piece but, the layout illustrations made this confusing to me. The pattern pieces fit together correctly and the markings all line up; particularly important for the diamond-shaped underarm gussets. I sewed the gussets entirely by hand which makes sewing some of the odd angles very easy. You may want to consider a combination of hand sewing for the tricky bits and machine sewing for the long seams. The sewing instructions and illustrations are very good and complete. A beginning sewer would probably be less confused if she has a sewing buddy to help puzzle things out. Caveats: Take careful measurements of yourself and the patterns pieces before you decide which size to use. A bed gown should be loose enough to allow easy movement but, not huge. Using my bust measurement, I cut my bed gown out in a size XL and it came out on the huge side. The instructions specify using 1/4" seams for the bed gown and 3/8" seams for the lining on the theory, I think, that this will make the lining hang well. In my case, this caused the lining to be too small to be whipped down flat to the bed gown as instructed. If I'm understanding the translation correctly, I believe the bed gown should be flat-lined, which is more accurate for the period. Do take the time to make the pleated sleeves; they look terrific and will keep you from trailing your sleeves through the butter at breakfast. Do also consider pocket slits in the side seams (this assumes you've got pocket slits in your petticoat and pockets tied around your waist) as there is no graceful way to hike up your bed gown to get at your pocket. with this excellent pattern now available, there is no reason why the bed gown should not be much more widely worn.