Sewing A Themed Wardrobe: Fairy Tale Part 1

Hi Everyone! I'm excited to introduce an exciting new topic, Sewing A Themed Wardrobe: Fairy Tale! Over the course of this four-part series, you'll be invited to travel back in time to revisit some of the earliest versions of the classic tale, Cinderella. With an emphasis of the Tudor style fashion, Shari Fuller has brought us a mix of historical fashion and Fairy Tale theming, resulting in a fascinating look at dressmaking! 

This course will be broken apart into four installments. 

• Part 1- The fashion history and the preparation of the kirtle with pinking or hand embroidery
• Part 2 Cartridge Pleats on the three different dresses
• Part 3 Sleeves - plus new pattern "Once Upon a Time" and the third Pixie Pack Kit!
• Part 4 Embellishments 

We're also excited to announce a few coordinating kits to recreate these stunning gowns along with Shari as she demonstrates many different embellishment techniques! There are two kits available now, and a third in the works! These kits are available in a limited quantity so we've made them available exclusively to SWC members (for now). You can find them in the Pixie Cuts Section: Hampton Court Ball Gown and Happily Ever After Gown

 

You can see a video of the two kits in the SWC Facebook group too!

Are you excited to see what's in store? Let's jump right in and get started with Part 1! Shari is our instructor for this series. I invite you to grab a cup of coffee, sit back and join her as she takes you into her sewing room and teaches these techniques!

 

 

Sewing A Themed Wardrobe, Part 1: The History and Pinking Technique

Once upon a time a magical story of a tender hearted forelorn young girl began to be told. In ancient Egypt, the young girl, whose name was Rhodopis, was abducted by pirates from Greece and sold as a slave in Egypt where she was cruelly mistreated by the other servants. In ancient China, she was called Yeh Xian and was terribly mistreated by her step-mother and step-sisters. In the most familiar version of this story, her name is Cinderella.

Today, we know of more than 340 versions of Cinderella that have been told for generations around the world. In each of these stories, our ragged little heroine is given a magical gift of a beautiful dress or a special pair of shoes that helps the charming prince to find her so that they can live happily ever after. No matter how it is told, it is always a beautiful story of redemption that has become one of the most beloved of all fairy tales.

While researching this topic, I was reminded of a movie I had watched on a Saturday afternoon matinee in the 1970s. I was probably 9 years old and the only thing I could remember was the beautiful gowns coming from three magical nuts. Thanks to the internet, I was able to find that old movie as well as the story that it originated from, an old Czechoslavakian version of Cinderella called “The Three Sisters”.

In this version, her name is Anuska and she is poorly treated by her step-mother and two step-sisters. She is given three magical hazelnuts that each contain a beautiful gown that help her catch the eye of her charming prince.

For this series, our story is to be set in the Renaissance period and I will be recreating historical versions of each of the three dresses as they are described.

 

 A bit of Fashion History from the Renaissance/Tudor time period...

• At this time in history, there was a large variety of beautiful fabrics available in a broad spectrum of colors, although the colors were limited to natural hues that ranged from delicate pastels to rich jewel tones.
• Most fabrics were made from wool, linen, cotton, or silk that were woven into a variety of plain weaves, satins, or velvets.
• There were no printed fabrics for apparel, that technology didn't exist at the time.
• Any patterns that you see on Renaissance era clothing were either woven into the fabric or applied by hand using a variety of embellishing techniques such as embroidery, pinking, or embossing.
• Fabrics with woven patterns such as brocades and damasks were very expensive so applied embellishments were often used by those with more time on their hands than money.

 

The Three Dresses

For Anuska's gowns, I am going to use a combination of cotton sateens. quilting cottons, and minky. Cotton sateens give the impression of silk, but are much less expensive and easier to work with. Cotton quilting fabrics come in a variety of prints that mimic embroidered designs of the time and minky is a wonderful substitute for furs for this smaller scale.

There are three gowns in this story, one rose pink, one sky blue, and one pearly white. They are described as very beautiful, so I will be trying my hand at a few hand applied embellishments to give my fabric a richer more elegant look.

• Dress One: I will be using my Hampton Court Gown pattern for the rose pink dress and to help dress it up a bit, I'm going to embellish the front of the kirtle skirting with a technique called pinking. This is best done before constructing the garment. For this combination, I've used the kirtle from the Happily Ever After Gown pattern underneath the Hampton Court Gown. 

Pinking is simply a matter of cutting a series of holes in the fabric to create a decorative pattern. It reminds me a bit of how we distress jeans today. It is interesting that this type of fabric embellishment became so popular at a time where fabric was so expensive and so much care was taken to preserve fabric in other applications.

Watch the video to see the full process for pinking the kirtle.

 

Now let's look at another option, hand embroidery!

• Dress Two: For the pearly white gown in our story I will be using the Happily Ever After gown pattern and since it is described with gold trim, I thought it would be nice add some gold embroidery to the front of the kirtle skirting.

The project was seeming a little overwhelming until Cinnamon came up with a great idea! We found a monochromatic fabric that had a Renaissance type design printed on it. All I needed to do was trace my pattern piece on a piece of the fabric and start filling in the pattern on the fabric using some basic embroidery stitches, much like we did with the whitework embroidery in our Regency Era series.

Special Note: The metallic gold floss is a bit trickier to use than regular cotton floss because they have a rougher texture and tend to tangle easily. A few things to keep when working with metallic type floss are

• Looser weave fabrics are less prone to friction
• Larger embroidery needles help the floss draw through the fabric more easily.
• Use shorter lengths of floss, no longer than 18”, to reduce wear and tear and tangling. 
• Make one stitch at a time 
• Also, because of the smaller scale of this project, I only used two strands of embroidery floss

You can follow this same method using other print fabrics as well to give them a more period authentic look. Simply outline or fill in select portions of the design to give the impression of an embroidered fabric without having to embroider the whole piece.

 

Once you have finished with your pinking or embroidery, cut out your kirtle pattern pieces and sew it together following the pattern instructions up to the point of attaching the skirting to the body. This is also a good time to think about what fabrics and trims you would like to use for the rest of the gown. In our next tutorial, I am going to show you how to attach the skirting using cartridge pleats! See you then!

 

But first a treat... This is a re-telling of a classic Cinderella story, written by Shari's son - enjoy!

Three Wishes for Popelka

by Edward Fuller

There once was a wealthy widower in a faraway town who lost his wife in childbirth to their daughter, and only child, Popelka. After some years of mourning, his friends comforted him and convinced him to take a new wife—another widow, with two, older girls of her own—so that his daughter could still have a mother. When he met this woman, he saw that she was beautiful, and that she seemed kind and gracious. Besides this, it was comforting to have a woman in his life again after being lonely for these years. So, he married her, and arranged for her family to move into his home. However, not long after the ceremony, he became very sick, and nothing could be done to save him. When he knew it was his time, he called his daughter to his bed. “My sweet Popelka,” he said, as he held her little hands, “I’m going away to be with your mother, but now you have a new mother and sisters. Be good, and remember that the Lord will always take good care of you. And I promise to always look down on you from heaven.”

In time, it became clear this new mother was not inwardly kind nor gracious. While she spoiled her own daughters with presents and affection, she treated Popelka cruelly and forced her to work her fingers to the bone with all the work around the house. From morning ‘till night, she drew the water, made the fires, cooked, and cleaned. Besides this, her sisters were awful. When they weren’t teasing Popelka for being covered with dirt and grime from her work or strewing peas and lentils in the ashes for her to pick up and sort, they wasted away their days dressing up in front of the mirror and bickering with one another. This went on for years, and the only solace Popelka found was in her daily rides on her father’s horse when she would enjoy the fresh air in the woods and visit her parents’ grave to pray and remember her father’s promise.

One day, Popelka decided to go hunting in the woods during her daily ride and took her father’s bow. On her way home, she saw a fancy horse standing in the middle of the road and his owner lying in the ditch with his crossbow aimed at a fox. She decided to play a trick on the young man, and when she came close, she yelled “Hey!” and startled him so he missed his shot. When he turned around to see who had made the noise, Popelka saw that he was handsome and blushed remembering that she was still looked like a mess from her work. When the man asked why she scared him, she replied “You shouldn’t kill what you aren’t going to eat.” Then she gave him one of the pheasants that she shot during her ride to make up for it. He thanked her and was astonished to see that she managed to land an arrow directly through its eye. Just then, two friends of the young man appeared on horseback appeared from the trees behind them. Popelka went on her way as they met, and the young man and his friends marveled at her sharp eye. The man turned to catch a glimpse as she disappeared behind the trees wondering who this she might have been.

The next day, Popelka and her family went to church. She always dreaded attending because she had nothing decent to wear while her stepmother and stepsisters always looked their best. And while they received compliments from their neighbors, Popelka was invisible. When they entered the church, they heard the special news that the royal family was in town by surprise and would be attending service. Once everyone sat in silence, the doors opened and down the aisle walked the king and the queen with their guards along with the prince. And when Popelka saw the prince, she gasped because she recognized him as the young man she met at the road. After the service, the congregation was asked to stay seated for a word from the King. He stood announced that they would be hosting a festival for three days in the middle of the town. All the young women of the land were invited to attend, and the prince was to choose one of them as his bride. Immediately, the crowd erupted and everyone whispered to one another in excitement. Popelka hid as the royal family proceeded back down the aisle, and she ran home before the prince could see her outside of the church.

The next morning, Popelka’s stepmother called her daughters and asked what they needed for the festival, determined to make one of them princess. The first asked for golden fabric and the second wanted fancy ribbons and pearls. She then sent an old servant to pick up these things from town. Now, this servant was loyal to Popelka’s father and cared deeply for the girl. So, before he left, he went to her and asked what she desired. The mother told Popelka that she could not spare to get her anything, and knowing that he would be punished for disobedience, Popelka asked the faithful servant only to bring her whatever might hit his hat on the road.

On his journey home, the prince and his friends spotted the old servant on the road and decided to play a trick on him when they saw he was falling asleep on the reigns. Out of sight, the prince drew his crossbow on a bird’s nest over the path. And as the man passed under the branches, the he let the bolt loose and dropped the nest onto his head knocking off is hat. The servant jumped awake and looked around to figure out what had happened as the prince and his friends scurried away laughing. The man threw the broken nest into the woods and as he bent down to pick up his hat, he saw a little brown twig with three hazelnuts stuck to it. He chuckled as he remembered Popelka’s wish, then plucked them and dropped them into his pocket.

When he returned, the stepsisters dug through the gifts and Popelka helped him with his hat and coat. As she hung his coat, the old servant took the three nuts out of his pocket and put them in her hand with a smile. When she saw what he found, Popelka laughed and gave him a kiss on the cheek as she hid them in her shirt. As she did this, her stepmother stormed over grumbling, “What has the old fool brought you? Didn’t I say I couldn’t spare to get you anything?” She held out her hand and commanded her to hand them over. And when the woman saw they were only hazelnuts, she laughed and dropped them back into her hand. She then leaned into her ear and whispered, “A fitting gift for someone as wild and undeserving as you.” That evening after Popelka finished her chores, she rode out to her parents’ grave to pray, as usual. But this time, she asked, “Please Lord, I’ve never asked for much, but I ask for this: Let me see this festival. Let me enjoy the dancing, the lights, and the music. I want to feel that happiness, just like the other girls, even if it’s just for one night.”

The next morning, Popelka did her chores and her family prepared for the first day of the festival. As she emptied the ash from the stove, her mother walked into the room. Popelka stood and said, “Mother, I would love to go to the festival with you as a family. I have finished my chores, and I found a dress that my mother left me that fits perfectly.” With a smug grin, the woman picked up a jar of dried lentils and peas then poured them onto the floor and said, “If you can sort out the lentils from the peas before we leave, you may come with us.” Immediately, the girl went to work, but it was taking her too long. Suddenly, a dove flew into the window, followed by another, and another, until she lost count. Popelka wondered if they were servants sent by God and asked, “Please, sweet things, help me sort out these seeds so I can go to the festival.” And to her joy, the birds flew down and got to work pecking apart the lentils from the beans. Before long, they were sorted into two neat piles, and the birds flew away.

As Popelka scooped them into separate jars, her mother walked into the room and saw that she had completed her task. When she asked again if she could go, the woman told her to bring her what she would wear. So, she left the room and when she returned with the dress, she saw that her sisters were also there. Her mother took the dress and inspected its pearl-colored fabric and bits of golden lace. She then passed it to her oldest daughter and asked, “What do you think of this dress, child?” She held it up to the light and said, “It’s ugly! If Popelka came with us wearing this, she’d shame us.” And with a smirk, she took the collar in her hands and tore it. Popelka stood in shock as tears swelled in her eyes. Then the other sister came to her and tore the front of her shirt so that the hazelnuts fell onto the floor. Her stepmother and stepsisters laughed as she bent down to pick them back up and then left for the festival without her.

With the hazelnuts in her hand and tears streaming down her cheeks, she ran to her room and sat on her bed. As she sat and cried, she looked to the window and saw one of the doves perched in her windowsill, and she was reminded of her father’s promise. Popelka wiped away her tears, then tightly, she closed her eyes and made a wish. At that moment, she heard a crack, and when she opened, she saw one of the hazelnuts had split, and coming out of the crack, she saw a piece of fabric. Curious, she pulled the shell apart, and took from it a rose-colored dress trimmed with silver, a silver girdle, a white veil, a pearl diadem, and white and silver shoes. She marveled, for it was the most beautiful dress she had ever seen. And when she looked back to the window, the dove was gone. Quickly, so she wouldn’t miss the festival, she washed the dirt from her face, put on the dress, and hid her mother’s dress along with the other hazelnuts in the chest next to her bed. After making sure everything was in order, she ran out the door to the stable and rode the horse into town.

Popelka was careful when she approached and left the horse at a tree outside the town where it would not be seen. She then put the veil over her face made her way to the festival. Through the veil, she watched every head turn towards her and stare in amazement. As they made way for her to join the other girls, they asked one another who this lovely young lady was, but nobody knew because they could not see her face. Not even her own mother or sisters recognized her as she walked by. When he saw her, the king's son came to meet her, and took her by the hand to dance. He enjoyed their time so much that he spent every moment with her and none of the other girls. At the end of the day, the prince asked her name. But when Popelka saw her family in the corner of her eye, she managed to slip away from the prince. And she fled out of the festival to her horse, then rode all the way home and hid the dress in her chest. When her family returned, the girls complained about the lovely girl at the festival that stole all the prince's attention.

The next day, Popelka’s sisters wore even more extravagant clothing to impress the prince. When they left for the festival, she went to her room and retrieved another hazelnut from the chest to make her second wish. Sure enough, the nut popped open and another piece of fabric stuck through the crack. After opening the shell, she took from it a sky-blue dress covered with pearls and diamonds, a diamond coronet, a white veil, and white shoes. It was even more extraordinary than the last. Popelka then washed her face, put on the dress, and ran out the door to the stable for her horse. Just like before, she kept the horse hidden outside the town, then covered her face with the veil so she would not be recognized. And when she found her place among the other women, they could not keep their eyes off her wonderful clothes. Again, the prince approached her and they danced the whole day. But at the end, Popelka still managed to slip away and ride home before the prince could catch her and find where she lived. She hid the sky-blue dress in the chest with the other, and when her family came home, they complained again about that lovely girl and how the prince never even looked their direction.

On the final day of the festival, Popelka’s stepsisters scoured their wardrobe to find their very best in a final attempt to be seen by the prince, doing their very best to imitate the clothes worn by that mysterious young maiden. And when they left for the festival, Popelka went to her room and retrieved the last hazelnut to make her final wish. But upon opening the chest, she saw that her mother’s dress was gone. Curious, she made her wish, the nut popped open, and when she pulled the shell apart, she took from it her mother’s pearl-colored dress, repaired with the finest thread and embroidered with the most impressive gold. There was also a veil with golden borders, a ruby diadem, and shoes embroidered with gold to go with it. Truly, this was the most wonderful dress of all. Popelka washed her face, put on the dress, and ran for the stable.

When she came to the festival, everyone gasped and admired the beauty of this mysterious girl and wondered if she might be a princess from some distant land. When the prince came to her, he did not let go of her hand, and he refused to dance with anyone else. And whenever another man asked for her, he answered, “She is my partner,” and turned them away. At the end of the night, when Popelka wanted to go home, the prince wanted to follow her, but she moved so quickly that she managed to slip away for a third time. But as she came to the end of the street, she found a mound of branches in her way. The prince had come up with a plan with his friends to block the street when the beautiful girl came to prevent her from escaping. But, this obstacle was not impossible for Popelka, and she jumped over the pile and sprinted to her horse. The prince followed her over the branches and caught a glimpse of her as she rode away. Disappointed that the plan did not work, he kicked the pile, but then noticed something stuck under a branch. When he picked it up, he saw that it was one of her golden shoes.

The next morning, when he was meant to pick a bride from the festival, the prince told his father that we would only marry the one whose foot would fit the golden shoe. The prince went with his friends and guards to every house calling each young woman to come and try on the shoe, but none could fit into it because it was so small and slender. As they searched, a beggar sitting under a tree on the outskirts of the town called out to the prince as he passed by and said, “I know where the girl is.” The prince stopped and replied, “Please, I must find her. Tell me where she is and I will reward you.” The beggar pointed down the north road and said, “I saw her ride that way. And the horse she was on belongs to the house on top of the hill. I’ve seen it come down this road many times before while I’ve been here under this tree.” And so, the prince went, and when Popelka’s stepmother saw the prince coming down the road, she quickly hid the girl in her room and locked the door so she would not be seen.

When she and all the servants of the house came out to meet the prince and invite him inside, he said, “I am looking for the young woman who lost this golden shoe. I’ve promised to marry her and make her the princess of the land.” The mother became excited and said that the girl he was looking for her was waiting upstairs, and quickly, she brought her oldest daughter to meet him. But the prince said, “First, to make sure she is the right one, I must see her try on the shoe.” Reluctantly, the daughter pulled out a stool to sit and the prince took the shoe out for her. But when she tried it on, she couldn’t manage to make it fit because it was far too small. Angrily, the woman pulled her oldest daughter away and said, “Forgive me, my prince. The real girl was shy and did not want to come down. But I will convince her.” Quickly, she scurried back upstairs and brought out her other daughter to try the shoe. But she had the same problem as her sister, and no matter how hard she pushed, she could not make the shoe fit.

As the woman scolded her crying daughters, the prince asked if there were any other young women in the house. She lied and said that these were the only daughters she had. The prince was disappointed and thought there must have been a mistake. But just as he turned to leave, the faithful, old servant who was there watching with the other servants stopped him and said, “My prince, please wait! What she said isn’t true. Popelka, her stepdaughter and youngest girl is still in the house locked in her room.” The prince asked the woman if this was true, and she confessed and explained to the prince that she was merely a simple girl who was nothing more than a house servant. The prince was upset that this woman had lied to him and demanded her to unlock the poor girl from her room and bring her out. But the mother refused and said, “Oh no! She is filthy, and I can’t have her be seen—she would shame my family.” But the prince ordered her to let her come, or she would be fetched. And so, with no other choice, the woman went begrudgingly with the faithful servant and let Popelka free.

First, she washed her face and her hands so they were clean, then she went into the room and curtseyed to the prince. Immediately, he saw that she was beautiful and recognized her as the girl he met on the road just days before. When she sat down on the stool, he wished that this was the girl he danced with and the bride he promised to take. Popelka then put out her foot, and to his joy, the prince slipped the golden shoe on with ease and it fit perfectly. When she stood up, the prince looked her in the eyes, and he knew that this was the beautiful maiden that had danced with him, and he cried, “This is my bride!” He took her by the hands and asked if she would come with him, and when she turned and saw the faithful, old servant smiling, and the faces of her stepmother and stepsisters pale with anger, she looked back to the prince and nodded with excitement. Then the prince took her outside and put her before him on his horse, and they rode away from the house all the way back to the royal castle where they were soon wed. And together, they lived happily ever after.

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