Regency: Teal Cotton Open Robe

After working my butt off on SCA projects since Thanksgiving, I needed a creative palate-cleanser project - and I was itching to do something new with Regency stuff (besides the apron, that was actually a functional thing I needed).  So my first “real” project of 2024 is this teal open robe, along with a new shawl and some new jewelry to go  with it: 

I had this teal cotton in my stash for years, and I'd originally intended to do a Really Awesome Regency Dress with it (like this one), but after chipping little bits off of it here and there over the years for small projects, it ended up only 3 yards long - not enough for something big and fancy.  But it was, I realized recently, exactly enough to make a short-sleeved open robe to wear over my white 1800s gown.  

My inspiration for the color palette for this outfit was this painting of Princess Amelia (youngest daughter of King George III and Queen Charlotte) by Sir William Beechey (1797).   While I didn't want to recreate this exact outfit, I did want to do something with the same color scheme, with which I am in LOVE - the teal dress with the delicate little silver/white designs, the rust/burnt orange shawl and gold sash and armband. She also wears long strands of clear (I'm assuming rock crystal) beads - which you don't see in Regency art very often - and which sort of pick up on the look of the little silver/white dots on her dress. 

The teal dress in the inspiration picture has some sort of white/silver design on it - it’s probably sprigged - and I’m not sure what the design is actually supposed to be. Stars, dots, probably little flowers? I decorated my fabric with little trios of silver dots, which is a design I’ve used before for Medieval stuff; I really like the look of it, it’s delicate and subtle. I chalked out grid lines on the fabric every 6” and then dotted the intersections and centers of the grid with a silver paint pen: 

The robe is about half machine sewn and half hand sewn - I did the primary construction of the bodice and bodice lining on the machine; but the lining is inserted and the skirt attached by hand, and all the hemming and edging is down by hand as well. 

There's a wee bit of a train on the back, too, for the lovely drape it gives when one walks or the wind blows.  

ACCESSORIES

SHAWL

I made the shawl for this dress out of an old SCA costume. The fabric is a soft, lightweight silk twill, in a deep russet color. The SCA costume was a 12th century *cyclas*, which was just made of two rectangles and some triangular gores, so I removed the gores and the neckline and joined the two rectangles together (flat felled seam + rolled hem edge) to make this shawl. 

SASH

The sash in the inspiration painting looks to me like a dark dusty gold, possibly with some kind of print or embroidery on it, but I suppose it could be brown? Mine is a length of gold poly satin, purchased from Etsy as a “bridal sash” and tied around the waistline of the robe. The color is way too light - I wanted a darker gold, almost bronze - but it’ll do for now. I think eventually I’ll get some nice silk and make a new sash for this outfit. 

JEWELRY

I LOVE the rock crystal bead jewelry in the inspiration painting so much! I haven’t seen clear crystal jewelry much in Regency paintings - usually you see pearls or coral, or colored gemstones with fancier outfits.  My beads are glass (for budget reasons), 14mm round, and strung in two 16” strands. Yes, the bead strands should be waaaay longer than they are in order to look more like the inspiration pic, but I used what I had.  

*

Yay! This was a quick, simple project, and a much-needed break from SCA stuff for a minute.  It's easy to wear, and versatile. 

And I have no idea what's next!  I have LOTS of ideas for new Regency costumes, new Viking stuff and weaving projects, and even a dip into Victorian for the first time (maybe), but where to start?  I think I need a break…I’m also refinishing an old wooden table right now, but I’ll be back soon.