Stays are fundamental if you want to achieve the correct shape for a 18th-century gown. So, that was the first thing I made, along with a chemise.

I found a pattern on La Couturière Parisienne that I enlarged. I decided on front-lacing so I would be able to lace it myself. I used sturdy green linen, with an extra layer of cotton between. I hand sewed the channels with light blue linen thread and bond the edges with tape in the same blue colour. I laced it with a blue ribbon. It looked very nice. Until I wore it.

It was a catastrofe. First, I did not make a mock-up to see if it fitted properly. It did not. After only a short time I got a terrible ache were my lowest ribs are, even if I had not laced it very hard. Second, I used Rigilene for boning, a bad, bad, mistake. Do not do that. The boning was way too weak to support my front, giving it the wrong silouette and inadequate "fluffing" of the bosom. I made a makeshift stomacher, which helped up the siloutte, but the stays were much too uncomfortable to wear for more than a short time.

Luckily, a friend, who has a similar body-shape, let me try on her stays, and they fitted very well, so I borrowed the pattern to make a new pair of stays. This pattern is from Norah Waugh´s Corsets and Crinolines, and is both front- and backlaced, with an additional stomacher. As I was afraid of doing the same mistake twice, I made it up in cotton twill and did not bother with finishing it of properly, just zig-zagging the edges. I also sewed on pre-made fitting strips with lacing holes instead of making a proper lacing. I have wore it on several occasions and found it very comfortable, with the exception that it is a little too long in the sides, cirka two centimetres. Easy to change. I now plan to make them fit to be seen as well as worn.

The chemise was made of thin cotton and is not a success either. The decolletage is far to round, and it doesn´t look good at all. I have just purchased some nice cotton batiste and will try again.

I thought it would be difficult to make pocket-hoops, but it was dead easy. I used a pattern at La Couturière Parisienne. For economic reasons I had to use fabric I already had, so my hoops are in black cotton twill. Not beautiful, but functional. I used iron bands that had been used for book-crates, as stiffening. I wrapped them up in duct-tape and so far they seem to work well enough. And pocket-hoops are excellent to stuff things in, just remember to stuff equal weight in each hoop.