18th Century Flat Hats -- Covering a Hat Blank With Silk

There are several different options to considerfor covering a flat hat with silk prior to purchasing your fabric:

•      The hat can be covered with one color or it can have a contrasting color on the underside of the brim.
•      The hat can just have the top covered or only the underneath lined with silk.
•      The covering/lining can be flat or pleated.
•      The edges of the brim can be bound with ribbon.

These instructions are for a flat covered hat (one with no pleating) and clean finished hemmed edges.

I will be copying the hat in the portrait at the upper left.

We will be covering the crown using 2 pieces as shown in the extant example below:

Materials:

½ yard silk taffeta for single color hat

½ yard silk taffeta in two colors for hat with contrasting lining

Silk thread to match fabrics

1 ½ yards 1 – 2 inch silk ribbon for ties. 

Chalk for marking

If you use manufactured hat blanks, you can make a pattern as you go.  We will be making the cover to custom fit your hat blank.

For flat brim cover, lay your hat on the fabric and trace around hat with tailor’s chalk.  Add 5/8 inch for hem and cut out. Repeat for brim lining.

Press under the hem on the brim lining piece and set aside.

Measure the diameter of the hat crown.  Fold your brim crown piece in quarters to find the center and draw a circle the same radius as the crown using tailor’s chalk. 

Add 5/8 inch seam allowance inside the small circle just marked.

Cut away the inner circle and snip the seam allowance to the chalk line.

Open up the circle and place on hat with the crown coming through the center opening.

Place hat on ironing board, wrong side up. Fold cover hem allowance to the wrong side of the hat and press.  Stick pins in to secure.

Lay lining lining piece on wrong side of brim and pin over the brim cover hem.  Appliqué stitch lining and brim cover together around the perimeter of the brim.

Stick the point of your scissors into the middle of the lining at the crown and cut to the crown edge.  Make 8 – 10 of these cuts and smooth your lining as you pin the wedge shapes into place.  Thread your large straw needle with thread that matches the outside of the hat.  Stitch a running stitch to secure the inside wedges and the snipped part of the outside fabric, securing it to the straw base.

Cut a circle the diameter of the crown. 

Measure the height of the crown and the circumference of the crown.  Add  1 ½ inches to the crown height and 1 inch to the crown circumference and cut a strip of fabric to those measurements:

Height + 1 ½  inches   by circumference + 1 inch.

My strip is 1 + 1 ½  by 15 ½ + 1.  The strip is cut 2 ½ X 16 ½.

Make a ¼ inch seam in the short ends of your strip.  Then mark the quarter points on the strip and on the circle.  Run a gathering stitch ½ inch away from the edge of your strip and pull the gather thread so that the strip fits the circle, matching the quarter points.   Adjust the gathers and pin in place.  Sew a ½ inch seam. 

Turn under ½ inch on the straight edge of the strip and stretch the crown cover over the hat, pinning in place by stabbing pins through the cover and the straw.  This is somewhat fiddly and you will have to play with it. 

Once you get the cover to fit, stitch in place either with a whip stitch or stitch the crown cover close to the edge using a running stitch going  through the straw.

Once your crown cover is in place, your hat is ready for ties and trimming.

You will finish the inside of the crown after it’s trimmed.

[Note:  You have the option of making the brim cover and the crown cover and stitching them in a seam right sides together before putting them on the hat.  Then adding the lining. ]

I decided to decorate this hat like the one in the upper left at the beginning of the blog post. I cut a crossgrain silk strip to measure twice the diameter of the brim.  I scalloped the edged using the instructions in this post, marked the strip in quarters and marked the hat in quarters with pins, then gathered 1/2 inch from each edge of the strip, pinning it to the brim with the outer scallops hanging off the edge.

Using large spaced backstitch, stitch the ruched strip to the hat cover over the gathering lines.

The crown was trimmed using 6 yards of lightweight silk double faced silk satin ribbon 1 1/2 inches in width.  I started at the side and stitched the end of the ribbon down then I played with it to see what size loops gave me the desired effect.  Then I placed pins at 3 inch intervals the length of the ribbon (marking a couple of yards at a time.  I stitched the trim by going through the straw hat--bringing the needle up at the base of the crown, running a gathering stitch across the ribbon at the mark then putting the needle back through the straw in the same place.  The next loop was made the same way by bringing the needle up about 3/8 of an inch away.  I made one round that way then made a second round of loops above the first spacing the loops a little farther apart so as not to run out of ribbon.  I added extra loops at the side as shown in the period illustration.

After trimming is complete, the inside of the crown will be finished by cutting a circle of the lining silk that is 2 inches larger than the diameter of the crown.  Turn the edge under ¼ inch then gather the very edge using small running stitches.  Place the circle over the crown area and adjust the gathers to fit.  Whip stitch the circle in place.

To attach the ties, I made a 1/4 inch double hem at the end of each ribbon and whip stitched it to the lining using matching thread. Note about attaching hat ties to silk covered hats:  When attaching the ties to the underside of the brim, you must take a couple of anchoring stitches through the straw otherwise the lining will be pulled away from the hat form when tying.  I decided to make a neat row of running stitches in the black thread that went all the way through the straw and top fabric.  The stitches cannot be seen on the top of the hat. 

Here is the finished hat along with the inspiration image.

I was pleased with the way this turned out.  In retrospect, I would've done a couple of things slightly differently--mainly I would've wrapped the white lining around the brim instead of wrapping the black around as you can see the seam allowance through the white, though it is barely noticeable. Also, I would suggest treating the pinked edges with a fray block as they did start to ravel from handling them during the application. The hat does pull down a little on the sides like the period image which doesn't show unless it's being worn.  I think I'll get a lot of wear out of this one!

Edit:  Here is the hat being worn with my mourning ensemble:

Regency Era Framed Reticule

I've been fascinated with the little framed reticules that I've been seeing in some Regency fashion plates lately so I decided I'd explore a little more.  Here are some examples of extants I've found:

1820-21 silk and gold thread bearing the cypher of Queen Caroline

ca. 1820 woven silk

Early 19th century crochet

1810-20 silk and glass beads

French, knit 1820

Beaded silk 1800 - 1820

Some of the fashion plates:

1814

1820

To make a framed reticule, you will need:

• a frame
• silk or other outer fabric--scrap
• linen or other lining fabric
• silk twist thread
• paper

First--using a pencil, trace around the frame--the inside and the outside.  Then extend the outside line to make the shape you want for your reticule.  Note that the extants above do not have gussets so this one will also just be flat.

Add 1/4 inch seam allowance all the way around the piece.  Note where the hinges on the frame will also fall.

Cut out your pattern, fold it in half lining up the top where you traced the frame.  You need to make the pattern symmetrical.  Place it on a folded piece of paper, draw the pattern and mark the point where the hinge of the frame is.

Cut out the new pattern and lay the frame on it to check the fit.  The pattern should extend past the frame by 1/4 inch.  Mark where the frame ends.

Place outer fabric right sides together and stitch below the hinge mark in a 1/4 inch seam.  Pin the lining the same way and stitch in a 1/4 inch seam, leaving the bottom open for turning.

Turn the outer fabric right side out and slip it inside the lining so the pieces are right sides together.  Stitch the top of the bag together using back stitch.

Turn the lining to the inside of the bag by pulling the fashion fabric piece through the opening in the bottom of the lining.  Whip stitch the opening in the lining closed. Press the bag.  Insert the top of one side of the bag in the slot of one side of the frame and use silk twist to stitch the bag in place through the holes using a back stitch.  I actually took two stitches between each hole for strength.  Repeat on the other side.

You may decorate your reticule with tassels or beads.  I chose to keep this one simple.
When you are finished with your sewing, add a chain to the frame.

I was pleased with the way this turned out.  I've found some other frames and hope to experiment a little more with making these.  Overall they're nice little one day projects.

1799 - 1800 White Muslin Gown

I decided it was time to make a late 1790's muslin gown so that I could also make some over gowns out of saris.  Here are some images of what I had in mind style wise:

As you can see, these gowns all share similar style characteristics:  gathered bodice (apron or drawstring), straight elbow length sleeves and a gathered front--all characteristics of 1790's gowns.  I purchased some of my favorite voile from Renaissance Fabrics which is gorgeous fabric.  It's the sheerest voile I've ever used and it has a lovely sheen, even after washing. 

I decided to use my favorite pattern which is the Sense & Sensibility Elegant Ladies Closet drawstring gown pattern.  I've adapted this pattern a number of ways to make it more appropriate and I construct it using period techniques.  You can see details in how I construct this pattern in this post and in this post.  I also had to cut away 2 inches from the lower neckline edge because this gown pattern is cut way too high.

I decided to add 3 tucks to the bottom of each sleeve and to the hem with a small ruffle below the tucks.  I cut out my gown, allowing for the tucks and the ruffles.  I also cut the lining out of shift weight white linen.  The back of the gown is flat lined with felled seams.  The front has a separate lining caught at the side and shoulder seams.  Because the voile is so sheer, I added a full 14 inches to the front of the gown, placing the pattern fold line 7 inches from the fabric fold.  I also decided that I would not use binding to make the neck casing.  Rather, I turned in the neck edge 1/4 inch twice and made an eyelet at the center front--much like the casing sewn in the back of an 18th century cap, using narrow cotton tape for the drawstring there.

I constructed the sleeves first, deciding to make the tucks before sewing the sleeve seam.  I pressed 3 horizontal lines 1 inch apart on each sleeve then I used a running stitch to make tucks that were 1/8 - 3/16 in wide.

The tucks were pressed down and the sleeve seam was stitched in a small French seam.

I cut ruffle strips about 2 inches wide by twice the sleeve width, sewed the ends together in a small French seam and roll hemmed one long edge.

The strips were gathered to the sleeve and stitched right sides together.  The sleeve portion of the seam allowance was folded over to encase the raw edge.

Finished sleeve:

The hem ruffle was prepared the same way using 4 strips of fabric seamed together then hemmed.  I marked each section of the strip in the center, thus dividing the entire piece into 8 sections and put it aside.

The bodice was constructed as per pattern instructions along with my modifications from previous gowns.  I tried the gown on to determine where to place the hem tucks, then I made the tucks in the skirt.  I did this by making one tuck.  Then I measure up one inch from the first tuck's stitching line for the next fold.

I divided the skirt into 8 sections and marked them with pins then I gathered the ruffle, matching the ruffle marks with the pins on the skirt.  The seam was offset about a half inch then the ruffled seam allowance was trimmed.

The flat edge of the seam allowance was folded over twice and secured with a running stitch to finish the seam allowance.

Here is the finished bottom of the skirt.

1/2 inch wide silk ribbon was used in the drawstring at the waist seam and thread loops were stitched onto the back of the gown for the ties.  Here she is waiting to be pressed.

I haven't had the occasion to do a proper photo shoot but my pics will be updated when I do.  In the meantime, here is the gown on my dress form worn over a strapped petticoat.

Overall I'm really pleased with the gown.  It can be worn with a simple ribbon sash or with an over gown.  I have several saris set aside to make some over gowns so this gown will take on a number of different looks.