This website is a FANTASTIC resource for historical sewing: http://www.personal.utulsa.edu/~marc-carlson/cloth/bockhome.html The basis for the dress I'm sharing today is the "Nockert Type 1" garment under his "Kyrtles/Cotes/Tunics/Gowns" section. The most famous of which may be the Bocksten Man Tunic. But wait! Is it a man's garment? It's one for everybody! I make mine to be ankle or instep-length, and rather closely fitted (with no shaping, it's magic!). But you can make it shorter and looser fitting based on your own comfort, or for a man.
So let's get started. This pattern is going to yield a rather fitted ladies' dress. I'll include a couple tips on making it looser, or for a man. This is what a finished dress can look like. (Please note, this is not me trying to recreate any particular period--this is me throwing a dress on in the front yard to take some example photos.)
A = Upper bust measurement divided by 2
B = Shoulder to instep (or however long you want your tunic/dress)
C = Shoulder to wrist (or however long you want your sleeves)
D = Flexed bicep plus about 1"
E = (Optional) Shoulder to the fullest part of your arm/just above your elbow
F = (Optional) Remainder of your arm/sleeve length
G = Circumference of your hand at the widest point, usually across your knuckles
H = Natural waist (thinnest part of your waist) to instep (or desired length)
I = This dimension can vary a lot. It should be at least 10-12". For the green dress above, it was about 30". For a nicely full lady's dress, I usually shoot for 20-24".
Notes about dimensions:
* The measurement for A depends on your bust being larger than your waist. If your waist is larger, use that divided by 2 instead. If you want the dress a little looser, use your full bust measurement, rather than your upper bust measurement. If you want it VERY loose, add 2-4" on top of your full bust measurement. This will most likely make the shoulders a little bunchy, be warned.
* Add seam allowance to all dimensions
*Add hem allowance to the length of your sleeve, and the overall length of the garment
* The gussets (the little square pieces that go at the armpit) should be about 5-6" if you're making the dress fitted. This gives you the extra room required if you're using your upper bust measurement for A. If you're using your full bust measurement for A, you can use more like a 4" gusset.
*Vanity note: I gained about 20 lbs between sewing that green dress and those pictures. So it's a bit tighter than it started out life as. If I made one with my new measurements, I would add about 2" to my A measurement. It's always a good idea to make a test garment out of inexpensive fabric to see how it looks on. That way you know if you want to make any tweaks to any of the measurements.
Notes about Construction:
(I'm going to post a follow up soon that has a bit of a sew-along for one of these, but until then, here are some basic instructions.)
* Cut two of the large rectangular panels. That's what I refer to as "body panels". Don't cut the slits in until you're ready to insert the triangular godets.
* Cut two sleeves.
* Cut two gussets.
* The triangular pieces that set into the skirt are called "godets" (sometimes referred to as "gores"). I usually piece two of these, and cut two whole. You want four total. Front, back, and each side. The little diagram I included is a very fabric-conservative method of cutting. You don't have to do that, it's just a suggestion.
* The godets are drawn (rather unhelpfully, sorry) as true triangles. That's how I cut them out. I make them approximately 2" longer than they really need to be. You actually want to cut the very tip off so that you have a very tall trapezoid with a very tiny top edge. That top edge should be equal to approximately twice your seam allowance. Add hem allowance, but also seam allowance, for the top insertion point.
*Also on cutting the godets: it's a really good idea to round the edges of them. If you cut them the way I suggest, the sides of the triangles will be longer than they should be. You want those sides to be the same length as the dimension "H". Marking that point on either side can help you cut the bottom edge in a gentle arc. It should look like a slice of pie. Like this.
* Inserting the godets in the front and back, in slits, is mildly tricky, but not too hard. I'll definitely cover it in the sew-along when I post it. But as an alternative, you can also cut your body panels in two pieces (add seam allowance) and have a front and back seam. I find it easier to set godets into seams than into slits. But really, try doing it! It's not that hard, I promise!
* If you want to decorate (embroider, stamp, etc.) your garment, I suggest stamping after you cut the pieces out, before sewing them together. For the most part, I recommend embroidering before you cut the pieces out at all. Trace the cutting lines on with chalk or washable marker, and then use chalk to mark your seam allowance line, so you know where the edges of your embroidery should be.
Construction Steps:
Step 1: Cut your neckline out of your body panels.
Step 2: Sew your shoulder seams.
Step 3: Somewhat optional, but this is a really good time to go ahead and finish your shoulder seams, if you're going to, and finish your neckline. You can do this later if you want, but now while it's flat is really nice.
Step 4: Fold your sleeve in half lengthwise. Match the center point of the shoulder side to the shoulder seam of your body panels. Stitch the two together. Repeat on the other side.
Step 5: Attach one edge of a gusset to the one side of the sleeve, where it meets the body panel. You want to notch the gusset at the corner so that it snugs into the body panel. (The notches equal my seam allowance.)
Step 6: Stitch the adjacent edge to the body panel. Repeat Steps 5 and 6 on the other side.
Step 7: Now fold the garment in half, wrong side out, along the shoulder seams. It should be quasi-recognizable as clothing now. Insert the other two edges of the gusset. I like to start with the sleeve again, and then finish with the body panel.
Step 8: Sew the rest of your sleeve seam.
Step 9: (This is predicated on your side godets being in two pieces, if they're a solid piece, this will be a little different for you.) Stitch the bias edge of your godet to the edge of your body panel.
* Quick note: "straight grain" means in line with or perpendicular to the
weave of the fabric. "Bias" means on an angle to the weave of the fabric.
When you cut the triangles in two pieces, the line where they'll join to each
other is on the straight grain, and the angled line where they join to the body
is on the bias. *
Step 10: Repeat the half godet insertion at all body panel edges. So the sides of your dress are still completely open. Sew your side seam. I like to do this in two parts, first joining the godets together, and then sewing the little remainder in the side. I sew them separately so that I can more easily flat fell the seams later. If you're not doing that, go ahead and sew it all in one go.
Step 11: You're almost done! You can try the dress on at this point! It may still be a bit tight at the hips if you're like me and have big hips. That's okay! The front and back godets give you more room. Cut a slit in the very center of your front panel. It should be the length of your finished godet (it should be shorter than the actual piece you're inserting, remember that seam allowance?).
* Additional note: these don't have to be at the same height as the side godets,
but they can be. This is personal preference. If you have a bit of a tummy,
you may want them to be a little higher. You may alternately want them slightly
lower. This is one reason why making a test garment is a good idea. *
Insert the godets into the slit. There are some really fantastic Youtube videos on how to do this, and I'll cover it in photos in the future. I find it helpful to stitch the very top in by hand, even if I'm machine sewing the dress.
Step 12: Hem the sleeves and bottom edge. Finish the neck if you didn't before.
Step 13: Optional: Finish the seams, if you haven't as you went! But otherwise, you're done! Congratulations!
There will absolutely, definitely be a followup post to this one with a photo sew-along as I put one of these together. Please note: I flat fell all my seams, after I put the garment together completely. So my sewing is modified a bit to make that easier to do. But hey! Flat felling all the seams makes them stronger, and so that they won't fray in the wash! It's a really good idea. If you don't flat fell, you should still finish your seams in some fashion, so they don't fray. There are other methods of hand finishing. Alternately, you can serge the pieces before sewing them together. If you don't have a serger, you can also use a wide zig-zag stitch over the raw edge. It works just as well as a serged edge, though it doesn't look quite as nice.
Finally, would you like to make this for a man? It looks good on them, too!
Use their chest measurement for A, and add 4-6" of ease (extra room so that they can have the looser fit they usually want). Make it the length they're happy with. You can use 4-5" gussets, depending on how much ease you add. The less ease, the larger the gusset you want. The more ease, the smaller the gusset can be.
On average, the overall bottom width for a shorter tunic doesn't need to be the same as for a longer one, so you can make dimension I smaller. 6-8" isn't unreasonably small for a knee length tunic.
You can also omit the front and back godets, as long as the side godets are wide enough to allow movement (10-12" ought to do). If you omit the front and back godets, you can still put slits in the front and back, just hem them and leave them slits! Alternately, you can put front and back godets and leave side slits! Or no slits. The choices are pretty open! Experiment! Look at period artwork to find examples of slits in different locations. You can also get an idea of how wide a hem was in period by looking at examples in artwork. Some periods were more fabric conservative than others.
You can really have a lot of fun with this pattern, and you can style it in a bunch of different ways. I use it to do 10th century, 13th, and 14th! It's all about the neckline, sleeve width, length, and accessories. Have fun with it!
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