This project is a copy of the spencer sketched on page 108 of Costume in Detail by Nancy Bradfield.
Deciphering the Sketch
Probably the most complicated part of the project was before I even touched anything sewing wise. I spent a lot of time looking at Bradfield’s sketches, trying to work out exactly how this garment was constructed. I love this garment so much, and wanted to make something as close to the original as was practically possible.I had such a clear picture of this garment in my head, from the sketches and the fabric which I already had stashed that I messed around in photoshop to create mock-ups of the finished product.
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The main features I was concerned to replicate:
- Pleated tail at the back of the bodice.
- No lining, resulting in myriad odd Regency finishings. The whole garments is hemmed around the bottom edges and some seams are finished off with binding. Sketches don’t cover the sleeve seams, but I assume they are bound with bias binding.
- Tape ties – one attached at the centre back of the bodice, designed to be tied at the front, and one starting at the side seams, passed through the front hems and again tied at the CF.
- Narrow belt (1.25 inches) from centre front to back seams. Closure is absent from sketches, as it was missing from the garment. Bradfield writes that it was probably buckled at the centre front. Perhaps it can be closed with hooks and eyes.
- Front is open from neck to bottom edge, closed only with the belt fastening and the ties from back and sides.
- Decorative…erm…badge things covering the belt and back seams where the tail joins. These are made up of…well, I’ve no real idea what, but I’ve got to try to replicate them. There is a square of some sort of lattice pattern mounted on some sort of arrangement of threads or cords. Attached to this there are two small thread covered tassels. V cute.
The real sticking point was how the tail was attached. From the sketches, it looks like the central portion of the tail is cut in one section with the bodice back. There is one seam in the pleats of the tail, joining the side of the tail to the centre. Inside, at the bottom of the bodice there is a facing strip of cloth, indicating a seam between the tail and the back. Eventually I decided to cut the tail centre with the bodice back, but the sides as separate pieces and join them to the tail and side back pieces of the bodice.
Drafting the Pattern
I started with the drop front bodice pattern and worked from there, using a combination of the measurements from Bradfield’s sketches and my own measurements. Overall I was able to stick to her measurements fairly faithfully. The back of the bodice measures were 10.5(w)x10(h) to Bradfield’s 9.5x9.5. The tail is 3 inches long.
The bodice of the Spencer was the easiest part to draft. Initially I drafted the central piece of the tail together with the back of the bodice, but later on during construction had to change this detail. The sleeves were a deeply experimental process, and as such might be somewhat technically incorrect, but, hey, they work. The sleeves have three one inch deep pleats and one tiny tuck in the curve of the arm hole. The collar measurements from the book allowed me to draft a collar very easily.
Materials (or the Joy of Not Paying For Fabric!)
The main fabric for this was a dusky pink velveteen. This, like the rose-print fabric was donated by my mother. It was originally used to make a cape I wore as flower girl at my uncle’s wedding when I was 7 or 8. The only other fabric used was a tiny cotton print of pink tulips on a cream background. Again, this was just a small scrap I had stashed away that was left over from something else.
Fitting the muslin for the spencer, here with one sleeve and half a tail.
Construction (or Crazy Regency Closures)
I have made a decision that the real trick to making something feel authentically Regency is to make sure to include a number of odd and decidedly bizarre closures. If buttons seem logical, use a drawstring! So, in keeping with this philosophy, I have included the drawstrings in casings in the front of the jacket. I think it will also need hooks and eyes down the front edge, to function as optional closures.
During construction I realized that the velvet was going to be way too thick (despite being very thin) to do all the French seams I had planned. Quick change of plan – I used a cute cotton print to make bias binding to bind over the seams. Very easy and also very cute when completed. The sleeve seams will be finished in the same way. I also decided that it would be better to make an inch deep facing to go around the bottom edge, rather than fold the velvet, especially as it had to be used as a casing on the front pieces.
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Inside seams and tail.
The only other large adjustment during construction was that I decided that the seams in the tail really weren’t going to work, no way, no how. So, I bit the bullet and constructed the tail as a separate strip with rounded tapering ends, lined it fully in the cotton print, finished the edge of the bodice with the facing and whip-stitched the two together. It seems to have worked quite well because it gives the tail a little bit of oomph to kick the tail out.
Trimmings
How to do this?
The Finished Project
Although it's not quite finished, it's nearly, nearly there, so I thought I'd post a few pics.
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