I recently discovered the word “paraphernalia” has an old, legal meaning, separate from how we normally use it. Back in the day when dowries were part of a marriage contract, a woman’s paraphernalia were the things she brought to the union which were not part of the dowry. In other words, her husband had no rights to them. They were hers to do with as she pleased, and often included fancy sewing implements.
In Lydia’s case, she comes to this blog already owning several pieces of clothing. She earned them (and more cigarettes than I can count) by modeling for my pattern auctions. They’re hers to do with as she pleases, and she wanted to share some photos of herself wearing them, because as a professional model she understands the value of being at the top of the page.
Her wardrobe began with this dinner dress. There are some things I would do differently but overall, I’m pleased with my first attempt at bias draping.
New underthings came next. She needed a selection that would be historically appropriate for all the years between 1911 and 1920. After vast amounts of research on Edwardian underwear, we came up with the following:
An evening dress with more complicated bias draping came next:
Finally, after two evening gowns, I was able to convince Lydia that even a model like herself must have things to wear during the day. And so we made her a lawn afternoon dress:
