Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Stays Projects

Stays!

Currently I am sewing 4 pairs of Revolutionary War era stays using the J.P. Ryan Stays Pattern. I will make a stays pattern similar to these based on an original from the Colonial Williamsburg collection to use when I reproduce stays to sell. These four pairs of stays have been cut out and ready to sew for some time, so I decided to finally finish them.

Pink Silk Stays Interior

These have been Boned with Half Oval Reed. I still need to sew Eyelets, Apply the Ivory Linen Lining, and Bind the Edges. I think I'll use the same Pink Silk for the binding.


Making stays is much easier than it looks. Sewing the channels is simple once you figure out how wide they need to be. Adding the Reed boning is time consuming but not difficult.



Green Silk Damask Stays

These are for my mother to wear under her silk J.P. Ryan Pet en lair.


Blue Cotton Stays

These are for my mother to wear when she does Open Hearth Cooking.


Green Linen Stays

This fabric was from the Silly Sisters Stays Kit, which I would highly recommend. The Linen fabrics were top quality and for a beginner it's an excellent place to start. The Half Oval Reed was included in the kit. Metal boning needed to be purchased separately from Farthingales.

What Color should I bind these Green Linen Stays in?



These stays were boned with Half Oval Reed. This was my first time using reed in stays and so far I have been very satisfied with the results. It was easy to slip in the channels and trim. On a past pair of Stays I used Plastic Cable Ties and plan to use them again for the Green Silk Damask stays. It seemed that the Reed was far less expensive than the Cable Ties and I remember having more difficulty getting the Cable Ties into the channels. I used two Cable Ties per channel. I was happy with the results, but as the Reed seems less expensive and easier to handle I will likely use that in the future.
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8 comments:

  1. I would use a goldenrod yellow for the green stays, it would make a pretty contrast.

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  2. Ooohh! Good idea! That would look pretty. I'm also considering Burgundy and Blue but still need to research binding colors a little more. :)

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  3. Bravo Lindsey! These stays are lovely! I especially like the pink silk pair - they look like something out of Marie Antoinette :) I can't wait to make a pair of more 'upper class' stays!

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  4. Your pink stays are fabulous! It's so fun to have beautiful undergarments.

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  5. wow! these are awesome, lindsey!! i almost want to get involved in 18th century living history now! lol. and i'm just starting to get into 1840s stuff. yeesh. i just have too many interests. ;)

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  6. I have making an 1840s dress on my list of things to do, but I doubt it will happen anytime soon as I have no event to wear it to. ;)

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  7. Very nice! I love JP Ryan. I haven't made their stays yet, though. Please post the final pictures when your done :-)

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  8. Thanks, Lauren! I'll definitely post pictures when they're finished. I just need to add the lining and binding at this point! Fortunately, I have an event that I need them for in July, so that will ensure that they don't get added to the half finished projects pile. ;)

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