The Victorian Heritage Celebrations have been held in Oamaru for over 30 years in November and are a highlight not only for the city but also all of the wonderful people who make the journey to attend it. If you've heard of the Heritage Celebrations (it's also sometimes referred to as the Oamaru Victorian Festival,… Continue reading Unofficial Guide to the Oamaru Victorian Heritage Celebrations
Striped Tissot Dress: The Overskirt
After completing the Underskirt for the Striped Tissot Dress it was time to move onto the Overskirt - hopefully with less liberal use of the seam ripper. I decided to use the Truly Victorian Bustled Overskirt (TV305) pattern, which is the same pattern I used for my Pretty Princess Dress. I had shortened the pattern… Continue reading Striped Tissot Dress: The Overskirt
Striped Tissot Dress: The Underskirt
The first part of my Striped Tissot Dress that I made up was the underskirt. This turned out to be a bit more complicated than I expected due to my stubborn perfectionism, and liberal use of the seam ripper as I undid and redid some parts. I used the Truly Victorian 1870s Underskirt pattern (TV201)… Continue reading Striped Tissot Dress: The Underskirt
Tissot’s 3 Striped Dresses
The striped dress I am currently working on is just one of three striped dresses that feature in some of James Tissot's paintings. You can read more about the dress I'm making here, but let's have a little look at the other two... Grey and White This lovely dress appears in Spring Morning, c. 1875,… Continue reading Tissot’s 3 Striped Dresses
Striped Tissot Dress: Introduction
Still On Top c.1874 From the first moment I laid my eyes on a picture of James Tissot's painting Still On Top (which is held in storage at the Auckland Art Gallery) I was absolutely smitten with the amazing striped dress featured. I wanted that dress in my wardrobe so badly - and I first… Continue reading Striped Tissot Dress: Introduction
A Visit to Kate Sheppard House
Late last year, the Kate Sheppard House, the house where Kate Sheppard lived, and held meetings regarding the movement to win women the right to vote in New Zealand, was opened to the public. Naturally, of course, I was interested in visiting it, when I next had an opportunity to travel to Christchurch, though I… Continue reading A Visit to Kate Sheppard House
2020 Mid Year Check-In
Is it really June already? I would ask the rhetorical 'where has the year gone?' question but I think everyone living in 2020 knows where the last two or three months have disappeared to. Time has gone a bit wibbly-wobbly because of Covid-19 and the resulting Working From Home, Lockdowns, and other No-Longer-Normal situations. I… Continue reading 2020 Mid Year Check-In
Oamaru Victorian Heritage Celebrations 2019: Part 3
Friday Waking on Friday I felt a mixture of excitement and nervousness. Today was the day that I was debuting the Pretty Princess Dress. I can’t help but feel a little nervous when wearing a new dress out in public for the first time – I’m not sure if that’s because I’m concerned that something… Continue reading Oamaru Victorian Heritage Celebrations 2019: Part 3
Oamaru Victorian Heritage Celebrations 2019: Part 2
I've been a terrible blogger recently and haven't written anything for weeks (weeks? More like months - whoops!). And it's not because I have nothing to write about - I've just been busy, lazy, sick, or throwing myself into new sewing projects. But, it is about time that I rectify that and jump back into… Continue reading Oamaru Victorian Heritage Celebrations 2019: Part 2
2020 Vision
It's a Brand New Year full of brand new possibilities and potential projects!Because I have a couple of major non-Historical-Costuming events later in the year (my best friend is getting married, and my parents will be celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary), I am hoping to get ad much of my sewing done earlier on in… Continue reading 2020 Vision
Miss Temby 