I decided to experiment with the partlet from Margo Anderson's pattern 001 The Elizabethan Lady's Undergarments. Honestly, I'm a bit confused about partlets. The first time I came across the term was in this pattern book a few years ago - the name of the collection is "undergarments" and she discusses how the garment is secured not only by ties, but how it is held in place by the bodice and other layers. However, while attending an SCA event I saw someone wearing their partlet as an outer layer. I asked this person about her partlet, and she said that it was always an exterior garment. Then I started noticing these usually black or white exterior partlets in paintings - especially in the Flemish ones. So apparently this garment can be an interior or an exterior layer depending on the specific time and place. Interesting. And here I thought that it was an extremely modern trend to have bra straps showing, or wear a tutu style skirt as a top layer. When, where, and for whom a partlet is an interior garment versus an exterior garment is an interesting question for another post. For now, here is one constructed to the specifications of the Margo Anderson pattern.
I decided to hand-sew this piece for several reasons varying from wouldn't it be cool if I made a historical ensemble that was entirely hand-sewn to I can hear my audiobook better when my sewing machine isn't on to an act of mindfulness in this period of plague-induced stress. I'm glad I did so; it was a good challenge for me. No, my stitches aren't perfectly spaced, but they get the job done. I'm also a little more aware of what kinds of seams need back stitching. I also learned just how difficult it can be to remove hand back stitching. I had to pull fewer stitches than I probably would have if I'd used my sewing machine, and it left me more confident in my hand-sewing abilities. The gathering was so much easier than a machine-baste and pull technique that I might consider incorporating more hand-stitching into other projects, especially ones with gathering. I also know myself and know that I would have been stitching and picking those little gores on the neck corners if I'd tried to do them on the machine.
Hand-stitching also made me think about seam allowances in a new way. I'm used to working with commercial patterns with a 5/8" allowance included in the pattern, and then keeping the edge of the fabric on the 5/8" marker on the machine as I'm sewing. This way I had to trace my sewing lines inside of the allowance so that I knew where to stitch. I predict that with time I could learn to sew at the 5/8" or 1/2" line, but it would take me a while to get there. Also, I better understand how people can trace patterns with no seam allowance, and then cut about the right distance from the edge. If your lines are drawn onto the fabric, then it doesn't really matter how even your seam allowances are as long as you stitch along the lines that you drew. Also, you probably get pretty comfortable eye-balling that seam allowance.
It was a truly interesting experiment for me. I kind of want to keep going with the hand-sewn projects from this pattern (I already made the bumroll from this pattern by hand), but I don't know if I'm up for attempting one of the larger projects like the chemise/smock yet. It's a lot easier to talking myself into hand-stitching smaller projects.
Onto the project itself. I substituted cotton for linen because that's what my budget allowed. It was left over from either my underdress (shown in the photos below) or a poet shirt. Either way it's an off-white 100% cotton. The neck ties are made from the same fabric as the partlet. The waist/bust ties are made from some yarn that I had lying around. It's 100% polyester, as is the thread that I used to stitch the garment. In time I may find something better to use for those ties, but for now it's purple yarn.
I like that the partlet can be worn in four different ways: open or closed at the top or bottom. I think that the two half-open options are the most dramatic, but the fully closed version is a bit dull by comparison.
I was surprised that the neck ruffle was hemmed, I would have thought it easier to just fold it in half before gathering and tuck both ends into the collar seam. I wonder if there is historical precedent for doing it that way; I guess that it saves a little bit of fabric. More research for the next post ;)
The fit is...complicated. The neck collar piece definitely needs to be longer - it doesn't even close on the smallest setting of my mannequin. The length is awkward because I expected it to go fully to the bottom of the bust, but it's a bit shorter than that. Again, I'm not sure if that's intentional or not, so more research for the next time I look into this. Also, I'm glad that I started with this piece, because it allows me to predict fitting issues in other parts of this pattern that I might want to be aware of if I move forward with sewing my way through all of it.
Finally, it doesn't really show in these pictures, but there are tiny little gores where the neck meets the shoulder. They were a pain to stitch into the garment, and as with the last time I added gores to a flat piece of fabric I couldn't help but think how much easier it would be if there were only a seam along the point of the gore insertion. I wonder if I can support any evidence to support that claim. I think it would be a good bit easier to sew, and you could piece it together more easily.
Pictures of the partlet in all 4 positions as well as the back.
Historical Sew Monthly
Item: Elizabethan Partlet
Challenge: No Buy - I pulled the material, pattern, and notions from my stash
Material: 1 yard of cotton
Pattern: Margo Anderson 001 The Elizabethan Lady's Undergarments
Year: 1500s, England
Notions: Thread, yarn
How historically accurate is it? I'm going to rate this one fairly high, probably in the 80-95% range. The pattern is well-researched, and I followed the directions as precisely as I could. I substituted cotton for linen for the sake of my budget, and the notions that I had on hand happened to be synthetic, but that's also budget. This is about as close as I can get to HA.
Hours to Complete: About 9.5 hours
First worn: TBD?
Total cost: $0 Stash. Probably <$5 if I'd had to purchase the materials