Empire/Regency Dress

for a reenactment event which took place last weekend i decided to sew a regency dress. i bought the pattern on nehelenia and it's based on a dress worn by louise of prussia. 

the dress is made from white cotton which has a tiny woven polka dot pattern. it is almost entirely hand-sewn with flat felled seams. the pattern is fairly easy and the fit is very good. 

in order to get the appropriate fit i had to wear matching underthings. 

so i sewed some short stays (which are more comfortable than one would think) - the push-up effect is impressive. the stays are made from two layers of coutil.

the grommets are hand-stitched. i used the nehelenia pattern for them as well. 

underneath i wore a hand-sewn chemise made from a very thin, white muslin. 

the pattern is from sense and sensibility patterns and very easy. it has a drawstring finish on the neckline which makes it easily adjustable. i decided to omit the sleeves as i didn't want too much fabric bulking up in the dress.  

i added a petticoat made from white linen (pattern found here). the front closes with hook and eye. 

altogether i'm very happy with my dress although it would probably be sewn more neatly had i had more time (i finished it at 2am on the day of the event).