Leonard Autie, Hairdresser to Marie Antoinette
Wherein I cross-dress to portray part of Marie-Antoinette’s court as we frolic at the Petit Trianon…,
Tag Archives: 18th-c pale blue suit
Preview…
I’ll wire the hat to the wig and then c’est fini. The event is tomorrow!
Oh yeah, I’m going there
I think instead of covering shoes for Leonard (because the buckles arrived while we were gone), I’m going to make a tiny tricorn to perch atop his wig. Should take about the same amount of time and most of the same materials (all of which are in The Stash). Inspired by my decision to use
Button button, who’s got the button?
Back to work — but not in the office. I luckily have today off as part of the July 4th holiday! So I’m sewing (tho’ it’s pretty dang hot, even in our insulated bungalow). All 30+ buttons that I covered on the drive up to Oregon are now attached to Leonard’s coat. Still have to
And we’re on our way
Leonard’s coat has sleeves and cuffs. Button shapes are all cut so I can cover the forms on the drive to Oregon. Will sew them to the coat and pants when I get back. Only other thing left to do is hem the coat’s skirts, which are wildly uneven and a small part of me
Finished pants, most of coat
Leonard’s pants are done, or as done as they’re going to get for now. I plan to make the buttons in the car ride to Oregon, so I’ll sew them on last minute. Also, I may just safety pin the fly closed bec. it’s weird. Kinda needs smaller buttons to lay flat and I don’t
What’s left?
Because I’m feeling a little daunted by how much I have to do for Leonard, especially since I’m going to West-An Tir War and I won’t have the 4th of July weekend to sew, let’s make a to-do list! Pants: –Hand-sew waistband facing/lining. –Make buttonholes. –Make eyelets for back lacing. –Hand-sew leg linings down. –Make
Leonard wig, mark 2 (fini)
Perfect is the enemy of done … this is definitely not perfect, but I’m calling it done… And I mostly finished the waistcoat today too. Need to sew on the buttons, that’s all. Tried to take photos, but lighting in the sewing room is weird, and pix kept coming out crappy due to the crossweave
Leonard wig, mark 1 (yuck)
First take on my Leonard wig, and I’m not sure. Ok, it’s super-messy, that’s a problem. But that’s not my real problem with it. I think the shape is too girly. It’s been sitting on a head clamped to my cutting table for a few days, and every time I look at it, I think
Time for wig inspirations
Before I embark on styling Leonard’s wig, I want to collect and look at some historical images of wigs worn by Macaroni or fop men in the 18th century (a topic near & dear to my heart)…
Biting the bullet, buying stuff
I think I’m just gonna buy a shirt, because, bleh, who wants to make a frickin’ shirt? Not me, that’s who. I like this one on Etsy, and inquired if she could add sleeve ruffles and deliver by July 1. Considering this neck stock too, but waffling because, well, it costs as much as the
Waistcoat done!
After spending most of the weekend in Napa, I finished embroidering the other half of Leonard’s waistcoat. Whew, managed to mirror it pretty well! Have to assemble it all now and add some finishing embroidery touches. Now he just needs, oh, a coat, breeches, a shirt, shoes, a wig … y’know, little things! Managed to
Tool swap & an embroidered waistcoat
On Saturday, I swapped Mom’s embroidery machine for my wig-wefting jig from Williamsburg. It’s a win-win, well, for me, because late last night she emailed me saying she’s already woven 9″ of hair! I kinda think that’s as much of the human hair as they gave us in the class. Meanwhile, I embroidered one side
Buy Shoes for Leonard?
I think I may have a use for those Georgiana shoes after all … Maybe *those* could be my Leonard shoes! Dye them purple and wear with big rhinestone buckles. Sure, they’re fabric, which is not really common for men, but they’re not as totally girlie as the Fugawee Marthas (& I just couldn’t get
Shoes for Leonard?
All this talk online of the American Duchess shoes got me thinking — I should just get some Fugawees for Leonard! Because he deserves it 😉 Ok, well, I want it, and leather shoes are more correct than silk for a man, even a super-fop like Leonard (though according to his autobiography, he was *quite*