>Hi, I'm making an 1865-70 bodice (first bustle era) starting from the Truly >Victorian ball bodice pattern, and I'm having trouble with the fit around the >armholes -- there's a horizontal stress line about 1/2" above the bottom of the >armhole (right at the top of my corset) it extends about 3" into the bust, and >about the same length across the back. I'm not sure how to get rid of it -- the rest >of the bodice fits beautifully... I also had this problem on my princess-line tea >gown using their pattern... But I thought it was due to the weight of the fabric, but >that can't be the case for my current bodice... Does anyone have any >suggestions for how to handle this fitting problem?
Hey Sunny, Sounds like your dress materials are just a smidge too tight. Did you make a liner to take *all* the stress? The outer satin should just "blow into place" then be merely tackstitched. In truth the corset takes 99.9999% of the stress, the fitted lining carries the small stress of closure. > Should I make the armhole >bigger (and if so, should it be lower side front, lower side back, or the bottom? No, never! the smaller armseye gives mobility! Dash out to one of the vintage clothing vendors in your area and look inside a few bodices. Even a waist from one of those black traveling gowns from the 90s will show what you need to see about fitted linings. >I'm >afraid if I widen the armhole it'll just pull the armhole out of shape due to the >pull...) should I let the side seam out a little bit? I thought about putting padding >inside the bodice there, but there is very little room.. "Dress improvers" read bodice pads are correct to the period, so much so that most every ladies mag issue will feature an ad for such. Shapes are usually kidney & elipsoid. One layer of batt & construct like a modern shoulder pad. They fit into the body hollows. >. And the bodice is satin so >it shows every little crinkle or dent - unfortunately >you can even follow the line of >the lace on the chemise if you look closely. Sounds lovely! --cin Cynthia Barnes [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- --cin Cynthia Barnes [EMAIL PROTECTED] _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list [email protected] http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
