Regency Dress

Earlier this month I attended a Jane Austen-themed Regency Ball. I did not have time to make a new dress, so I decided to retrim an old one. (I have not been posting or sewing much the last few weeks due to a series of eye appointments. It’s not easy to type or sew when your eyes are constantly dilated!)

This is what the dress looked like before.

It had a wine-colored sash and little ribbon bows along the hem. I wore it to a picnic, but decided I needed to dress it up for an evening party. I didn’t want to buy any new materials, so I used some black velvet fabric, velvet ribbon and cream-colored lace from my sewing stash. 

The hem was just flat lace with the black velvet ribbon woven through the holes. For the neckline I pleated the lace and held it in place with the ribbon. Here’s a shot of it on my work table.

And the top on my mannequin.

I accented the black velvet around the waist with a vintage black and gold cameo I found at the Alameda Antiques Fair.

I wore the dress with a green and black shawl that a friend of mine brought me from England, and a vintage opal and onyx cameo from my mother.