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Me Made May 2016; Now That It’s Over. . .

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me made may roundup the artyologist

So, the month of May is over and with that comes the end of the Me Made May challenge! It was a neat experience participating in this online event for the first time, and it was fun to see how many people were taking part over on Instagram. (The majority of the photos are gathered under #mmmay16, if you want to go and see)

Now that the month is over (and I am a week late in writing this) (and really where did May go so fast!!??) it is time to think about what I learned from the challenge. I wrote about my reason for joining in in this post here, and over at Zoe’s blog you can read about the whole thing. The main idea is to evaluate your wardrobe, and show the garments you’ve made a bit of love and appreciation. My challenge to wear each of my homemade garments was a good challenge for me, because I have some homemade garments I literally never reach for, so it was good to wear them and evaluate, “Why don’t I wear this? Why is this not the first thing I reach for when getting dressed?”. Here are my thoughts, and lessons learned, as well as what I need to focus on now in my sewing projects. . .

me made may roundup 2 the artyologist

  • I grabbed a dress first almost every day. For me, dresses are my go to: they are so easy. I don’t have to worry about coordinating my separates, or the fact that my blouse is coming untucked, or try too hard to get an ensemble that looks “put together”. I just throw on a dress, grab some shoes, maybe a hat and a purse and I’m done! I wore my handmade dresses, such as the seersucker dress, and black rayon dirndl dress, over and over throughout the month (I just didn’t take a picture each time haha!) So, I definitely need to add more dresses into the list of projects. And as far as what kind: full skirted dresses are my first love!
  • I work from home, so I don’t get dressed to the nines each morning, with fancy dresses, petticoats, hats, gloves, and high heels. When I am at my desk, comfort is key. BUT, I still want to look classy and put together! I found that my pleated skirts are two of the other garments I reached for over and over again. I often paired them with a solid t-shirt, or peasant blouse. Are t-shirts vintage? Nope, not really, but on a casual stay-at-home day, or a really hot day where I think I might just melt into a puddle, t-shirts are great. If I pair them with a vintage style skirt though, rather than jeans for example, I still get the “look”, but I stay comfortable. Those two skirts I made were sooooo easy to make. I really need to whip up a couple more.
  • I have a wardrobe that is full of patterns. I love patterns, but unfortunately, most of the patterns are different florals that don’t coordinate with each other. I need to focus on bringing some more solids into my wardrobe, so the patterns can shine and not compete with each other. On that note, the two hats I made, only coordinate with a select few garments I have in my closet. So, either I need to focus on making hats that will go well with lots of my garments, or make more garments that will coordinate with my hats. I hate it when you don’t have a hat that “goes” with an outfit, and yet you know that the outfit would look so much better if it did have a coordinating hat!

me made may roundup 3 the artyologist

And lastly, what did I not reach for?

  • Like I said, fancy party dresses are not something I wear on a consistent basis. (Maybe I just need to go to more parties. . . .) I definitely wear them on occasion, and I do like to dress up a bit fancier for church, but even then, I would be more likely to wear a rayon or brushed cotton, than a taffeta or silk. I never once wore my beautiful floral “garden party” dress during the month of May, but I do have an event coming up in June that I am planning on wearing it to. I still definitely want to keep these few fancier options in my closet, for those few times a year when I need a cocktail dress, however, perhaps my sewing hours would be better suited to sewing some more “everyday” garments, before I start focusing on the fancy dresses.
  • I never once reached for my pants. I only wore them on the last day, so that I could say that I had done it! 😉 I just find dresses and skirts so much more comfortable. (which is funny considering that most people consider pants to be more comfortable. . . ) Obviously I need pants for occasions like: digging up the garden, walking through tall grass and weeds where you don’t want your legs to get all scratched up to shreds, or going tobogganing (for example), but for daily use, I just don’t wear them. However, when I did wear them, I liked them well enough, so maybe I just need to take note to remember to wear them more often. I recently purchased Wearing History’s Smooth Sailing Trousers, as I have heard good things about that pattern, so perhaps I should sew those up sooner rather than later.

Overall it was great to participate in the challenge, and I certainly did pay more attention to what I have, what I wore, and what I should make to fill in those “holes”, so I would consider the challenge a success! Have you ever taken part in the Me Made May challenge? Or have you ever stopped to do a thorough evaluation of your wardrobe?

me made may roundup 4 the artyologist

Portraiture and Me Made May 2016

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the artyologist self portrait with straw hat

You know when you have a bunch of photos to post and you don’t really have anything to say about them? Yep, that would be the case with these.

I was trying to take a picture of what I wore, earlier this week, because I am taking part in Me Made May this year, and then I just decided, why not do a self portrait photo shoot? I used to take self portraits when I lived on my own, but now my sister usually takes outfit photos for me, since we live together. She wasn’t around so I decided to play around with the self portrait style again. That’s why these images have a bit more serious of a style- usually when she is taking photos the majority of the photos end up being outtakes where I am either laughing or making funny faces. Usually making funny faces 😉

the artyologist image of tulips and portrait for me made may

But anyways, yes I am participating in Me Made May, which I was going to blog about on here, and 7 days into the month I still haven’t done so! Oops: time flies by! I, of course, decided to join at the last moment- literally on the 1st of the month when I saw a bunch of people posting photos of their outfits on the morning of 🙂 The idea behind Me Made May is to wear the clothes you have made yourself. I never participated before because I just don’t have enough homemade items to last an entire month (without recycling outfits I mean, which would be super boring for a documented challenge) But I still wanted to participate, so I came up with a twist on the challenge. I do have a fair share of garments, and odds and ends like purses and hats that I have made for myself, yet never seem to reach for on a daily basis. So, my challenge is to wear EACH of my homemade garments and accessories at least once this month. (While I will actually wear some of them many times, I won’t bore you with taking pictures of them over and over!) This challenge of course excludes seasonally inappropriate garments as well. (Unless it snows this month- not unheard of- although I sincerely hope not!) I’ll be posting my pictures, when I take them, on instagram, and I’ll probably do a round up here as well.

the artyologist image of tulips

Anyways, if you want to find out about Me Made May 2016 you can just click on that little button on the side that says “#MMM16I’m taking part”, (go figure!) and it will take you to the page of the lady who is hosting it.

the artyologist self portrait for me made may

And, well there you go. I said I didn’t have anything to say, and here I have managed to ramble on for a few paragraphs 🙂

the artyologist self portrait

the artyologist image of tulips

Oh and aren’t these tulips sweet? My lovely sister got them for me as a wonderful Spring surprise!

Sewing Tools and Techniques That I Use All the Time

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vintage kenmore sewing machine sitting on a green cutting mat in front of a wallpapered background

I have started sewing again… regularly that is. For the past year our sewing situation has been a bit chaotic, so I haven’t really sat down at the machine to sew very much. However, we are now turning a spare room into a sewing and studio space- the sewing desk is on side of the room, and my art and work desks are on the other. The storage solutions are not finished yet, but the room is at a place where I can actually sit down and pull out a project, work on it and leave it there (without having to pack everything up, like when I was sewing in the living room or at the dining room table). Yes, of course, you can sew without a sewing room, but I enjoy it a lot more when there is a dedicated area for the creative mess. I will share a “studio tour” when it’s done, but in the meantime, while we’re on the topic of sewing, I realized that I have been sewing for over 20 years! I am definitely of the belief that sewing is a life skill; even if you don’t take it up as a hobby, it’s a great tool to have in your arsenal. As much as I have learned about sewing over the years there always seems to be more to learn and perfect… I guess it really is true that the more you learn, the less you know!

But today, here are some of my favourite sewing tools and techniques that I use all the time. These are the tips and tricks I have learned over the years: whether you’re new to sewing or not, maybe you’ll learn something new too!

bamboo corner turner for sewing

Bamboo Point Turner

I honestly don’t know how I could live without one of these point turners. When I lived far away from my family years ago (and thus no longer had access to my mom’s sewing supplies!) I didn’t have one of these corner turners and I found it so difficult to get nice points on things. A chopstick just doesn’t work as well as this little smoothing tool does.

crayola markers and tailor's chalk

Tools for Marking Fabric & Patterns

I have tried many different methods of marking fabric and patterns: graphite pencils, fabric markers, felt markers and more. Here are the ones I use the most often:

  • Tailor’s Chalk: Both the good and bad thing about chalk is that it rubs off- so I use this for lines that I will be stitching right away and don’t want to stay on the fabric permanently. I have chalk in yellow, blue and red for different colours of fabric. You do have to press slightly hard, so it works best for stiffer fabric in my opinion.
  • Transfer Paper: My mom has a huge bundle of vintage transfer paper like this (I forgot to take a picture) and I use a wheel tool to mark lines from patterns onto the fabric- such as darts or measurement circles. I also use them to trace patterns and then true up my lines after with a different pencil.
  • Crayola Pencil Crayons: I discovered that Crayola Twistable pencil crayons work really well for marking patterns. They are soft enough that you don’t have to press hard and wrinkle your pattern, but the markings stay put. Also, unlike pencils or felt markers, they don’t bleed or get graphite dust everywhere. I’ve also used them to mark fabric (you can also slightly erase the markings with a regular white eraser) but I wouldn’t use them anywhere you don’t want a permanent mark showing.

giant roll of kraft paper

Paper for Pattern Making

Speaking of pattern making, I like to use Kraft Paper rather than tissue paper. I like that it has a little bit more durability than tissue pattern paper, for the patterns I am using all the time, but it’s not too stiff and so it flexes a bit with the fabric.

kraft paper pattern cut out

The patterns last well, it’s easy to write on, and because it’s on a roll, you don’t have to piece sheets together for long pattern pieces.

magnetic pin cushion

Magnetic Pin Cushion

This is one of the best sewing tools my mom ever bought and that I stole from her. (It’s actually a shared space, so I didn’t really steal it) It seems kind of silly to use a magnetic pin cushion instead of the dish the pins came in, or a regular stuffed cushion…but it really does make pinning so much easier. It’s quicker to grab a pin because you can’t spill the container, and if one does drop it just snaps back on the magnet. Also, if you have a pile of pins you didn’t put back on the magnet, (or if you drop some on the floor!) you can just hover the magnet and they all leap back on like magic! If I was starting out now, I don’t think I’d go for the plastic one (which has a compartment on the bottom we never use) but would rather get a magnetic parts tray from a hardware/automotive shop, or would take a pretty vintage saucer or coaster and put my own magnet on the bottom.

glass headed and safety pins

Pins

Not all pins are created equal. I have tried plastic head pins, quilting pins, tiny metal headed pins…but I prefer the round glass head pins the most. The white pins above are glass head, and the yellow ones are plastic. Unless I need a slightly stronger pin, in which case I will go for the yellow ones, I tend to use the glass head ones. I like them because you can pin things in place and then gently press over them with your iron (gently so as not to scratch your iron), which you can’t do with plastic pins. Well, you can, but then you end up with a mangled and melted pin head (not that I’ve ever done that…)

As for safety pins, I am new to this sewing tool. Of course I’ve always had safety pins around, but I’ve never used them for sewing, because I thought they were mainly for quilting. However, I recently discovered that if you’re doing any sewing that you want to transport without pins falling out, then safety pins are a much better choice than standard straight pins. This works great for hand sewing too, since I usually like to do large amounts of hand sewing, such as hems, in a comfortable spot rather than at the sewing desk.

twin sewing machine needle

Twin Needle

I am new to using a twin needle, but this is one of the neatest little sewing inventions. You can use a twin needle on your standard sewing machine, running two top threads and one bobbin thread, resulting in two lovely, evenly spaced rows of stitching. For anywhere you want to topstitch details and especially if you are sewing knits, then a twin needle is definitely a good thing to use. I’ve only used it a few times, but every time I have I have been super impressed with how well those neat, little rows turn out!

ladder stitch hand sewing

Ladder Stitch

This is my absolute favourite hand sewing technique, which I learned only a few years ago, but use constantly. I think it’s easier to learn how to do this simple stitch from a video, rather than a picture, so here’s a little tutorial I found on Youtube. I love this stitch because it’s nearly invisible and works so much better than a slipstitch for certain applications. I use this stitch to close up pillows, or to finish off the edges of a waistband. Sometimes trying to sew a small little seam with the machine is harder than just hand stitching it, and this technique works so well for a lot of those finishing touches.

wall picture frame thread organizer

Thread Organizer

Perhaps I should have saved this tip for the future sewing room tour, but thread organization is such a huge part of sewing; if you can’t easily find your materials, then your whole project is going to take longer and be much more frustrating. After years of struggling with spools of thread in boxes and drawers, I made this wall organizer out of a picture frame, a piece of plywood for the backing and a piece of fabric. I took 3″ nails and spray painted them white (so they’d look nicer). Then I cut the piece of plywood to fit inside the frame, covered it with fabric (because it was splintery) and glued it in place. I then marked out a grid and hammered the nails into the wood at an angle. The only thing I’d change is that I should have given some more space between each nail, because the thicker spools are hard to place as they bump into each other. However, despite that, this works so well for organizing all the thread and making it easy to grab the correct colour at a glance!

ribbon wound onto cards and placed into a drawer

Ribbon Spools

Another organization technique that I recently implemented, which really frees up space and makes things easier to find, is winding the majority of my ribbon and lace onto cards. I used to leave them all on the cardboard spools they come on, which took up a huge amount of drawer space. Also, for ribbon bought by the yard, I used to just wind them in a loop like a yarn skien, but they would inevitably end up in a tangled mess. Now, after wrapping them onto cards, I can see at a glance how much I have of each, and can unwind as much as I need. And as a bonus, the cards take up about 1/2 of the space the spools did, freeing up a huge area in my drawers and baskets.

fabric scraps or cabbage saved in baskets and bags

Sewing Cabbage or Carbage

Simultaneously one of the downfalls and benefits of sewing is all of the scrap fabric you will end up with. (Or “cabbage” or “carbage” as it’s called.) What to do with all of these scraps? I like to sort them into different sections and purposes. I keep a basket on the top of my desk, and I place all scraps into this basket as I work on a project. Then as I have time later, I go through the basket and sort into these categories, for different purposes.

  • Large scraps of 1/2 metre or more that I could potentially make another project out of, I fold up and place back on the shelf.
  • Medium scraps of less than 1/2 a metre, that could be used as a facing, lining, patch for mending, or to make a small project like a pouch, I save in a large basket.
  • Small cotton scraps of 3″ – 6″ that are large enough to be quilting squares, I save in a drawstring bag. I’ve been saving some of these pieces for years, and was finally able to use some of them in this purse.
  • Tiny scraps of less than 3″, or small pieces of synthetic fabric that I wouldn’t use for a quilt, are cut up into tiny 1″ pieces and saved for stuffing. You can make floor cushions, dog beds, historical costuming hip/bum pads etc. with these tiny pieces. Of course, I don’t always need all of these scraps, so they do sometimes end up in the trash, unfortunately.

Well, there are my favourite sewing tools and techniques; at least all of the ones I can remember right now!

Do you sew? What techniques and tools do you use most often? Do you have any tips and tricks to add to this list?

Finding and Styling Thrifted Home Decor

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thrifted home decor items on a table: a teacup, pitcher, picture frames and vintage books

I was recently inspired by one of my favourite bloggers, Sarah from She Holds Dearly, to do my own version of her series “Styling Thrifted Finds”. Almost all of my decor is thrifted or secondhand, and it would actually be easier to find the pieces that were purchased new so this is just my “recent” thrifted home decor; otherwise I would have to post a picture of my entire bedroom!

I love thrift shopping, and we have an excellent thrift store in town. It’s housed in the ground floor of an old building from 1912, and is a rabbit warren of rooms full of treasures waiting to be unearthed. It always requires a lot of digging past junk to find those treasures, but the prices are so good that it’s worth it. And because it’s a charity shop, I am always more willing to buy than I am at a for-profit shop. (And to donate my old items to as well!)

a gold enameled vintage oval mirror

First up, here are some items that made their way into my recent gallery wall. I found this vintage gold mirror from that thrift store in town. It was originally priced at $25, which I thought was a bit steep for that shop, and when I brought it up to the till, the lady who organizes the shop knocked $5 off (without me saying anything), because she thought it was a bit steep too! It pays to have a good relationship with your local thrift shops.  There is some of the gold enamel worn off on the bottom edge, but it just adds to the patina. The oval shape of the mirror fit perfectly over top of my bookshelf, and it lines up perfectly with my dresser mirror opposite, so I can use it to see how the back of my hair looks.

three vintage frames leaning against the wall

Thrift stores are also excellent places to find picture frames. The wooden frame with the oval opening cost $0.50, and even though it doesn’t have glass, it was still a bargain. If I want glass for it someday, I could always buy another frame for the same price and steal the glass and it would still only cost $1.00. The oval opening in the frame was perfect for this antique styled photo of my friend and I. (Ps. the black frame with the fashion illustration, below, was originally white, but I painted it with black chalk paint and waxed it and it looks so much better. I also painted the mat with acrylic paint. If you find frames that are the perfect size, but not the colour you’re looking for, you can always transform them with a little bit of paint!)

vintage wooden oval frame; styling thrifted home decor in my gallery wall

Both the wooden frame and the large gold one were frames that I saw at two different second hand shops, decided to not buy, and then wished that I had. Amazingly when I returned to the shops weeks later, the frames were still there, so I brought them home, of course.

vintage gold frame with view from the elbe landscape painting

I wasn’t in love with the watercolour that was originally in the large gold frame (for $8.00 by the way), so I removed it and decided to print some new artwork. I found a couple high resolution downloads of vintage artwork online and got them printed as poster prints. Because they are in the public domain, they are free to use and some can actually be downloaded directly from museum collections. I also printed an artwork for this black frame, below, at the same time. The two pieces I chose are this gorgeous black botanical “Still Life with Roses” by Elias van den Broeck”, and for the gold frame, this landscape which is titled “View from the Elbe” by Johan Christian Clausen Dahl. If you are looking for a different landscape, there are some other really lovely ones available here. (I love the one of the cottage with the chickens in front, but it was the wrong aspect ratio for my frame).

dutch floral still life with roses

I found the vintage brass frame with the convex glass on Poshmark (that’s a dangerous place to browse) and I have put a Victorian calendar page in it for now, but if I ever find a Victorian portrait, I will replace it.

tiny hanging picture frames

I also picked up these little brass frames to add to my gallery wall. I put pictures of my mom and both grandmas in them, and they fit in perfectly.

stack of vintage books

Moving on to finds of a different sort, vintage books are always a great thing to look for. The bottom one, Mary Queen of Scots, was from a thrift shop for $1.00 and the top three were from a library sale; all three for just $1.50.  The library books had dust jackets- always make sure to look behind the dust jackets of vintage books to see if they are clothbound. The top one, unfortunately, had glue residue from the ancient library tape which had ruined the colour and finish of the spine, so I painted it over with gold paint. It originally had gold lettering, similar to the bottom book, so it was too bad that the spine wasn’t in good condition, but for $0.50, I don’t mind. I have gathered all of my vintage books onto the bookshelf in my bedroom, for now.

styling vintage books on a bookshelf

Vintage books also make a nice backdrop for other decor. In the past I have used my vintage books to create vignettes on my IKEA bookshelf. They can also be used as risers to give height to seasonal decor, and large ones can be used as a sort of tray to ground other items when placed on a table. And, of course, you can read them too!

silver spoons before and after polishing

Another thing to keep you eye out for at the thrift stores is silverware. It is getting harder to find, but I do still come across it sometimes. These pieces looked so terrible and tarnished they were mixed into the bin of loose stainless steel cutlery, and were only $0.25 each. After a polishing, they are ready to add to my mismatched silverware set! To polish silverware easily (I wouldn’t use this for anything too precious, since I’ve heard it can blur delicate detail work) this is the method I use.

Line a heat proof container, or your sink, with tin foil. Place silver on top of the foil, leaving space between the pieces. Sprinkle 2 tbsp. of salt and 2 tbsp. of baking soda over top. Boil a kettle full of water (mine is 1.7 L). Pour the boiling water over top of the silver until they are submerged and watch the tarnish magically disappear! Let soak for up to 2 minutes, remove and rinse the pieces and then buff dry with a soft cloth to remove any remaining colour. It works amazingly well!

brass pillar stand

Another find was this brass stand. It is approximately 6″ across and 3″ tall. I think it may have originally been for a pillar candle? Or perhaps it originally had a glass cloche?

plant on top of the brass stand

The top was very scratched, but it makes a perfect plant stand. It gives the purple shamrock at the back of the buffet just enough height from the plants in the front.

vintage transferware pieces

And the last thrifted finds for today are these two transferware pieces- one featuring a scene of an English estate and the other of an 18th century man riding a horse. The teacup didn’t have a saucer, but that was fine because I had another plan for it. Likewise, I didn’t know what I was going to use the little cream pitcher for, but I quickly had an idea. I think the teacup was $4 and the pitcher was $2, from two different shops.

transferware pieces in a drawer and on top of the dresser

I store all of my makeup and toiletry supplies in baskets and castoff teacups. They work perfectly to hold my brushes and lipsticks and makeup wipes, and look so much prettier than usual organizing bins. I added this teacup in with a few others I have in my makeup drawer.

And for the pitcher, I put a bit of stuffing and a piece of black felt inside to create a cushion to hold my hat pins. I wear these pins on my berets, and it’s nice having them easy to access on my dresser as I get ready.  

That’s how I have styled my recent thrifted home decor. I’m always on the lookout for unique home decor pieces, though I leave more pieces behind than I buy these days. I’m trying to be more of a minimalist…but that doesn’t always work out.

What sorts of things do you keep your eye out for at the thrift shops? What is your best thrifted find ever? Do you have any good charity shops where you live?

The Costumes of Jane Eyre (2011): Film Fashion Inspiration

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jane eyre wearing a hooded cloak

I am back today with a Part Two in this series of my favourite film fashion inspiration: this time with the costumes of Jane Eyre (2011)! You can find Part One about Miss Potter, here.

One of my favourite books of all time is Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte. I first read it in Grade Nine, for a book study, and fell in love with the heroine of the book’s title, Jane Eyre. Jane Eyre was published in 1847, although the time period in which the story itself takes place is a bit unclear. Most film adaptations place the story either in the same decade the book was published, the 1840’s, or slightly farther back in the 1830’s. The only film version of Jane Eyre that I have watched is the 2011 one directed by Cary Fukunaga starring Mia Wasikowska and Michael Fassbender. The costume designer for this film was Michael O’Connor and I absolutely love what he designed for this film: the attention to detail in each character’s wardrobe means you never run out of interesting elements to look at.

The director and costume designer chose to go with an 1840’s time period for this film, because they liked the styles from that decade more than those of the 1830’s, and I am inclined to agree with them. I am not enamoured with the large sleeves and shorter hems of the 30’s, so I’m happy they gave Jane the much more elegant looks of the 40’s.

1833 and 1848 illustrated fashion plates

I am not an authority on early Victorian fashion by any means, but I appreciate the, seemingly, quite historically accurate costumes of this film. Some historical dramas try to modernize the characters’ dress, which can sometimes be jarring, as well as becoming easy to spot as time goes on. (For example, the animated Snow White and Cinderella by Disney are easily recognizable as being from the 1930’s and 1950’s respectively.) In this version of Jane Eyre, they chose to keep the garments and even hairstyles accurate to the time period the story was set in, even if some of those fashions are decidedly unpopular today. Why do historical films always skip the bonnets, right? While most of us won’t be sporting 1840’s dresses for daywear anytime soon, there is still so much inspiration to be found in the costumes of Jane Eyre.

Ps. This interview from Vanity Fair gives a bit more insight into the choices of the director and costume designer.

One key feature of Jane’s wardrobe is her subdued and dark colour palette. She wears several shades of grey, black, brown, deep plum, and dark blue. She also later wears an earthy tan/pink. While these dark colours are specifically used to create a moody feel for the film, I think they also reflect an aspect of Jane’s character: her practicality. Dark colours are a sensible choice for clothing, since they don’t require as much washing or stain removal in the same way light colours do.

Queen Victoria was married in 1840 and was the first to bring popularity to the idea of a white wedding dress: the light colour of the dress made her easier to see, and was a dress fit for royalty (or at least someone who had an army of laundresses at their disposal). While Victoria’s dress caused a stir in the fashion world (that remains to this day), for most people, dark coloured clothes were a much wiser choice. Even today, many work clothes and outerwear are made of darker coloured cloth. While grey and black might not be good colours for everyone, I still take inspiration from Jane’s costumes in choosing more practicable colours for items of clothing that aren’t easily laundered. For example, instead of choosing a cream coloured dry-clean-only, wool winter coat, perhaps navy would be a smarter choice.

jane eyre wearing the same dress 3 times

I also appreciate that Jane has a sort of “capsule” wardrobe; which is really what a standard wardrobe for any time period, before the modern era of fast fashion, would have been. She is consistently seen repeating the same small selection of dresses throughout the film. One nice thing about wearing dresses, is that they are such a quick and easy outfit. You don’t have to worry about finding a matching blouse or skirt, because a dress is a one step outfit, all ready to go!

Another very clever idea from the past that Jane utilizes in her outfits, is wearing separate collars and cuffs. Having one dress, but several separate collar and cuff sets to pair with that dress results in many different looks. While it might not be a dramatic change, it still adds variety to your wardrobe. Accessories really are the best tools for stretching your “capsule” wardrobe. And, on the topic of laundry again, cuffs and collars tend to get dirty before the rest of the garment, so this makes them easy to clean. Also, if the cuffs wear out, it’s easy to make new ones without having to make an entirely new dress!

Jane’s costumes are all very pared back versions of the 1840’s fashions. When you compare her black evening dress to Blanche Ingram’s, you can see how subdued Jane’s dress is. While her dresses are not as frilly and fancy as the wealthy women’s dresses, her clothing choices are still far from boring and there are so many subtle details in her clothes.

jane eyres plaid grey dresses

For example, the patterns in Jane’s dresses are classic prints such as plaids and dots which have been pieced to form interesting designs. In her plaid gowns, the diagonal piecing on the bodice is gorgeous. There are also lots of visually interesting bows, ruched sections and elegant V shaped bodices. There’s so much inspiration for future sewing projects!

I personally prefer Jane’s understated elegance over the frilly fashions of the early Victorian period. My favourite styles from the past are ones that are more classic than trendy- which it is still true for my wardrobe today.

jane eyre wearing a lace bonnet

I also like how Jane’s character and style stays consistent throughout. Even when she buys new dresses and bonnets and spends more on her clothing, she doesn’t slavishly follow the trends. Her more expensive clothing doesn’t clash with what we know of Jane from before.

jane eyre 1840's style wedding dress and bonnet

Her wedding dress is a good look at the consistency of her style. Despite Rochester’s wish to lavish her with jewels and rich fabrics, this dress is still rather restrained compared to wedding dresses of the time. Queen Victoria’s aforementioned wedding dress is much more opulent than Jane’s, and we can’t imagine Jane feeling comfortable in something like that. Even this wedding dress is a little too fine for Jane’s taste.

jane eyre light grey plaid dress

Throughout the film, Jane remains true to her personal style, and wears garments that are flattering to her particular body type and style, which is a great reminder for us all to choose to wear what we like and what we look good in, despite what the trends may be at the time.

Another iconic element of Jane’s look is her signature hairstyle. I’m not a big fan of hairstyles from the 1840’s: they were really into the centre part (which is apparently coming back in?).

While lots of upper class women wore their hair in ringlets (see Blanche Ingram again), Jane wears hers in an easier to keep style- a low bun with loops over her ears. She wears variations on this look- sometimes more elaborate like for her wedding, and sometimes simpler, like when she is living in the cottage. I like that Jane has a signature look, and one that she can easily maintain and execute herself. This is a lesson that I have learned over time: find a hairstyle that works for you! This is why I usually wear my hair in a chin length bob with bangs- it just works for me. I don’t have to fight with it, or set it every night (only to find that the curls fall out by midday) etc. While it’s sometimes fun to change it up, find your signature hairstyle and run with it!

jane eyre wearing a hooded cloak

One final element of Jane’s wardrobe that I absolutely love are her capes and shawls. While capes have been mostly replaced by coats nowadays, there is just something so elegant and dramatic about a cape, isn’t there? (Especially if it has a hood!) They are perfect to wear over dresses if you have a full skirt and your coat isn’t wide enough to accommodate it. Oh, and they are cosy too. A shawl is also the perfect thing to wear on a chilly day (even indoors); they are easy to put on and take off as needed, and are nicer to wear than trying to bundle up on the sofa in a blanket!

jane eyre wearing different shawls

Well, this isn’t an exhaustive list of all of the costumes of Jane Eyre, but these are some of my favourites from this film. Have you seen this version or Jane Eyre and what did you think of it? What parts of her wardrobe do you like? And which version of Jane Eyre is your favourite?

jane eyre wearing her evening dress

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