The Midnight Chemise a la Reine - Done!

Well that was quick. This gown definitely holds the title of quickest full dress project I've ever completed. And I'm *so glad* I undertook it!

To recap, the gown is one huge rectangle of cotton voile, 165" long and 60" wide, gathered around the waist with one channel, and along the neckline edges. It's tacked to a cotton muslin underbodice at the back, shoulders, and under the arms. Here's Fresh Frippery's diagram again:

Click through for Fresh Frippery's post on how to make this Chemise a la Reine

I used a two-piece shaped sleeve pattern from my wedding gown, but with so little fabric left, I set the two pieces back-to-back at the upper arm. This is like the usual three-quarter length 18th century sleeve pattern, but extended to the wrist.

Shaped sleeve pattern - placing a two-piece sleeve pattern back-to-back

The last little bit was the collar. I'm glad I decided to add it, even though it was the most time consuming part of the project. I went bin-diving for some extra voile, and thank goodness I'm a packrat, because I found just enough to eek out the collar. It's a strip about 100" long and 5" wide, hemmed by hand on the outside edge, then whip-gathered to the neck edge of the gown. To get it to lay right, I spritzed it with water, a good trick for taming the drape of these fluffy cotton gowns.

The ruffled collar on the Chemise a la Reine - optional, but I feel it gives it a finished look. Plus it covers a lot of my sins!

Finally, the accessories. I liked the black sash quite a lot, so plan to pair it with the black bow corsage, black "Dunmore" shoes, and a black silk bonnet.

Most importantly, it fits! It's adjustable, too! Good thing, because one of the gowns I planned to take wouldn't close for love nor money, so if I hadn't made this chemise, I'd be one gown short for the trip! Now I will stay cool and comfortable in the steam of Virginia.

I leave for Williamsburg in the morning, and will be sure to take pictures of this gown in action and share them with you when I return. :-)