Who needs a sewing machine? Learn to make your own clothes entirely by hand. Discover the surprisingly easy and elegant lost art of 19th-Century Hand Sewing while making a stylish summer skirt or historically accurate mid-Victorian petticoat. Learn stitches that were invented before sewing machines became widely available in the 1850s, and that haven’t been used since.
Date: Saturday, April 17
Time: 4-6 pm
Location: Old Stone House, Park Slope, Brooklyn
Cost: $25
RSVP (Required): (718)768-3195 or info@theoldstonehouse.org.
Taught by members of the New York Nineteenth Century Society Sewing Circle, this 2-hour class will introduce you to 19th-century hand sewing. Students will be provided with a pattern and detailed, footnoted directions for completing a modern skirt or authentic 19th-century petticoat suitable for reenacting.
$25 per person (includes sewing supplies). Bring your own fabric. Reservations required, call (718)768-3195 or email info@theoldstonehouse.org.
To make a knee-length modern skirt:
Purchase 45″ wide woven cotton in a color or print of your choice
(don’t forget to buy matching thread)
up to 30″ waist, buy 2 yards
above 30″ waist, buy 3 yards
To make an historically accurate petticoat:
Purchase 45″ wide woven white cotton, i.e. shirting or high quality muslin, but NOT craft muslin (we’ll provide white thread)
up to 30″ waist, get 5 yards
above 30″ waist, get 6 yards
IMPORTANT- pre-shrink your fabric by washing it in a washing machine on the same settings you plan to use for cleaning your skirt or petticoat.
A good place to buy fabric in the Garment District:
Mood Fabrics
225 West 37th Street
New York, NY 10018
(212) 730-5003
moodfabrics.com
