Let's talk about bustles

I know I'm getting a late start on this, but the month isn't over yet, right?

The first challenge in the Historical Sew Monthly is foundations, which leaves the door open to all sorts of possibilities! I really want to work on the mid to late Victorian era this year and build up my wardrobe for these era's. I've started with the foundations for the Wishing Dress, which I'm making historically accurate for the early to mid 1870's.

There were several types of bustles used to get the desired shape during the 1870's and 80's. There were cage bustles, bustle pads, lobster tail bustles, elliptical crinoline bustles, and bustle petticoats. And each of these had several variations in the way they were made.

From left to right, bustle pad, cage bustle, lobster bustle, elliptical bustle.

I've actually found in several of my mockups that having a simple bustle pad has been helpful to give me an idea of what I need to do for the finished garment. So for the first Sew Monthly challenge I've decided I want to make a nice bustle pad.

I've chosen this for my first project mainly because I recently got a new job which will be taking up my afternoons. It will be a quick and simple project, but still a good project.

Here's a few examples of bustle pads for inspiration.

Let's Talk About Wigs | The Phantom Costumer

So I totally forgot to post my new video here on Friday. Oops! Well, here it is! This video is just a short one about different types of wigs. I hope it's helpful for anyone who doesn't know the difference.

Anyhoo, I also changed my YouTube name to The Phantom Costumer. My sister suggested it and I couldn't refuse. I'm still trying to decide if I should change the name of my blog to match, but I really like Adventures in Costuming. Any thoughts?

Costume Love {1885 Winter Evening Dress}

A long time ago I created a blog series which I only ended posting the one time. Well, I'm finally writing the second post in that series. This is going to be something that I just do whenever and won't be on any sort of a schedule.

Now on to the dress! I adore everything about this 1885 evening dress! Everything about it looks perfect for a winter dinner, from the colors to the fur. The dress is made from silk and feathers, it's style is typical to the mid 1880's with it's small bustle and long bodice.

What do you think of this gorgeous Victorian dress?

So I made a vlog

I went ahead and made my first costume vlog! I've never done anything like this before, so I know I have a lot to learn about making videos and filming them too. But I'm so excited to be starting this!

You'll notice that I've named my new youtube channel for this the same as this blog. That's because it's supposed to be an extension of this blog (if that makes sense). I hope to make video's regularly, but since I've never done anything like this before I have no idea what will actually happen. Please check it out, thumb it up, and subscribe!

Also, I will be posting the new videos here as I make them.

A Couple of Updates {Plus a Question for Y'all!}

Ah, where to begin. Okay, so I got a job and started on the 2nd which is great because it means I'll be making more money and will have a bigger costuming budget. The not as great part is that I work between 12 and 4, 4 days a week which takes away some of my time that I would spend on costumes.

So my costuming progress may be a little slower. Although this week I have gotten a bit done on my Christine wig! Which brings me to my next 'update'.

I took a break from working on this because I ripped out 7 wefts and replaced them with the new long wefts only to realize I stitched them in too tight making it so the wig didn't fit my head properly. So I had to rip out all 7 of the wefts and stitch them back in again.

But I got it done and that's the important part, right? I also found it's much easier to do your wefting with your wig on a wig head. Before I just held it in my hands and hair was getting all tangled and in the way. It's much easier to do it on a wig head.

The wig I got was curly and the new wefts are super straight, so when it's down it looks ridiculous! I braided it before putting it on to get a look at the length, and this is what it looks like. Sorry for the poor quality, it was dark and I didn't want to wait 'till the next day to get a picture.

The braid is almost a yard long!

I'm doing some curling tests with some left over wefts to find the best method for curling this thing, I tried putting it in foam curlers and then using the hairdryer to get it warm. But it didn't really work. So now I'm trying it with boiling water.

I also want to find out how long the curls will last. I've heard that synthetic hair will hold curls for a long time, which would be really nice! So once I find the method I like I'll be testing that.

Okay, the last thing is actually a question for all of my followers. I've been thinking for a long time about starting a costume vlog. I haven't come across anything like that before and think it would be kind of cool.

I've never done a vlog before and have thought about doing it but I don't think I would have enough to put in for my everyday life. But I would have a lot more content if it were a costume vlog because it's something I'm really passionate about.

So what do all of you think? Should I give it a go?