So I was looking at the kind of dress that I want to wear to the Hoggetowne Faire on our big trip with Sophia this year. I want Elizabethan style with a low, wide neckline. And I was thinking about what the hell kind of bra I’d need to wear with it, because one of the downfalls of aging is that I now have to wear a bra when I dress up. Anyhoo, no modern bra that I could think of would work with this neckline. Strapless bras don’t count anymore, as they don’t work so much after the age of 30. Well what would a lady of the time wear with her fancy dress? A corset,of course! But before I jump all in with both feet, I needed to warm up the sewing machine with a simple shift to wear under the corset. This will keep the lining of the corset clean, and cut down on the chafing.
I used one of the patterns that I picked up on mega-sale at Joann Fabrics for the shift. As usual, I fell between sizes and cut out the larger size. And as usual it was way too big for me. Better too big than too small, though! Luckily this little under dress has very simple construction, so I just shimmed up a couple of the side seams, then put some cute pleats on the neckline in both the front and the back. I won’t be able to get away with this kind of fix for the real dress, though, so I see an entire bolt of muslin in my future.
Wow! This is quite an undertaking. I can’t wait to see the finished dress!