Elizabeth Bennet's Wedding Trousseau: Bonnet Compete

She's done!  Laaaaaaaa!!!  I am truly excited about this bonnet!  I was waiting for the perfect piece of lace to the under brim and I found it at the first antique store Mom and I went to yesterday, The Antique World Mall in Boise...faaaaabulous mall!!  I spent a while yesterday/last evening getting it all nicely placed then sewed it down and....FINITO!!!!  So...here she is!

The making of the orange blossom circlet was tricky, as I didn't have a full image of the entire thing.  I had three different views of the bonnet, then imagined what the missing parts would look like.

I love this picture of Lizzy!  She looks so happy and radiant!!

Source: The Garden of Delights Tumblr....incredible images can be found here!

Aaaawe!!!  This makes my heart so happy!!

Source:  Longbourn: Jane Austen Screencaps

I covered a circle of buckram with two layers of mull (flannel) and off white silk.  There is also a smaller one on the inside to nicely cover everything up!

Sigh...I adore waxed orange blossoms...

I love how you can see the pretty lace through the tulle...

I apologize for the non Regency Era correct hair on Emma...I do not have a wig for her from this time period...so please use your imagination!

Fun shot of the underneath/inside of the bonnet....

Beautiful antique net lace...

The Historical Sew Fortnightly

The Challenge:  #7 Tops and Toes

Fabric:  Silk Tulle, antique lace

Pattern:  My own

Year:  1814

Notions:  Millinery wire, antique waxed orange blossoms, antique leaves, thread, florists tape and wire

How Historically Accurate Is It:  I am not 100% sure!  It is patterend after the wedding bonnet Elizabeth Bennet wears in the 1995 edition of Pride and Prejudice.  It is in the shape of bonnets from 1814.  I can't recall at this exact point in time ever seeing an extant wire framed bonnet from the Regency Era.  I will have to do more research.  I did use silk tulle.  As for the waxed orange blossoms, while Queen Victoria made is the fashion to wear orange blossoms on her wedding day, the wearing of orange blossoms had been the fashion long before then, read here: A Wedding Tradition.

Hours To Complete:  Over 20

First Worn:  Not yet...plan on wearing it to Costume Collete

Next up is the wedding dress and coat which will have to be put on hold for a bit...but at least the bonnet is completed!!

Be Blessed my friends!!

g

Elizabeth Bennet's Wedding Trousseau: The Bonnet Step 2

I finally got the nerve up to start covering my Lizzy Bennet bonnet with the fabulous silk tulle.  Can I just say that silk tulle is sooooooo NOT like polyester tulle!  It is sticky...like clingy sticky...which is a really weird sensation to work with!  But, I carried on and bot it covered!

I also worked on the orange blossom circlet that goes around the base of the crown.  Originally, I was going to get some reproduction orange blossoms from Lacis, but remembered I had two small antique orange blossom corsages in my wedding collection.  I took apard and used them to make the circlet.  I also waxed some small antique leaves to add to the mix because I didn't have enough of the orange leaves.  It was rather easy.  I just melted a white candle in a double boiler and dipped them!  I may do some more for a future project!

Tulle sewn down at crown base and pinned and ready to sew at crown tip!  I am loving the airy feel of this fabulous tulle!

Wonderfully sweet waxed orange blossom corsages...

Another view in different lighting....

Disassembled corsages and waxed leaves

Using several screen caps from the movie, I made the circled as close the the original as I could...

I adore waxed orange blossoms!  They are one of my favorite things about Victorian weddings!

I think if I had an orange tree, I would wax orange blossoms all the time!!

Tuesday I finished sewing the tulle onto the frame and made the silk top for the crown on the hat and put on the flower circlet.  I now just need to find some 4" wide lace for the under brim and I will be done with the wedding bonnet!  I cannot wait!

Be Blessed!

g

Elizabeth Bennet's Wedding Trousseau: The Bonnet Step 1

I am currently in a holding pattern concerning Rose DeWitt Bukater boarding suit since I am waiting on more soutache to come...who would have known I needed more than 47 yards of soutache?  So, while I wait, I thought I woud start on Elizabeth Bennet's wedding bonnet.

This year is the 200th anniversary of Pride and Prejudice.  I figured that because I have LOVED Lizzy's wedding outfit ever since I stayed up until 5 in the morning watching the fabulous 1995 movie with one of my best friends, Kay Dyer, this outfit would be the perfect one to make for the anniversary.  Oh, there are so many of her outfits that I adore, but I particulary am in love with this bonnet, so this is the outfit I have decided to make.  Below are some great screen caps from Longbourn: Jane Austen screencaps that show wonderful detail of Lizzy's bonnet.  Louise Macdonald Millinery, the lady who made many of the fabulous bonnets for the show also has two views of the bonnet.  And Podheim blogspot has some awesome pictures of Lizzy's dress and a picture of her bonnet now.  It is very sad that it has yellowed so badly.  But it does show a picture of the crown tip which really helped in knowing how to make the bonnet.

The underbrim of the bonnet has some very lovely lace.

Nice closeup of the brim.  See how the lace is on the under side and not on top!

This image shows how the crown is canted...nice to know!

Yesterday, I finished the wire frame.  Now to add the tulle!

A happiness!  Silk tulle!!

The original bonnet was made of silk tulle.  Looking online, I just about swallowed my tongue when I discovered the cheapest I could was $57.00 a yard?  Holy Monkey....So, I had resigned myself to the fact that my bonnet would be made of regular tulle.  No big deal!  Then in early March when I was in Spokane with my Mom, we discovered a small specialty fabric store.  Low and behold, they had silk tulle...for $22.00 a yard!!  Laaaaaaa!!!  THEN, there was a weird little flaw in along the selvage edge and the lady discounted it for me!!  Huzzah!!  So, I got 2 yards...should have bought the whole bolt, but the antique shopping hadn't begun yet.

I can't wait to get started on covering my bonnet!  I think I have some antique lace that I can use for the underbrim and there is a place that I am thinking about getting reproduced orange blossoms from!  We shall see!!

Be blessed!!

g