Customer Reviews

Patterns of Fashion 1: Englishwomen's Dresses & Their Construction C. 1660-1860

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The late Janet Arnold can certainly be called the mother of historical accuracy in costume research. Her meticulous sketches of extant garments, coupled with her carefully drawn graphed patterns, make her books indispensible both for students of historical costumes and for those who wish to reproduce them. Each drawing includes a brief description of the garment, including which materials were used and any types of embellishment. I found it very easy to scale up the patterns I wanted to use with one-inch pattern graphing paper (available through most fabric outlets). This particular volume in the _Patterns of Fashion_ series includes my favorite era -- the English Regency. The patterns provided include long gowns, a crossover bodice shortgown (a version of which was made for Kate Winslet in "Sense and Sensibility"), a riding habit and a 1790s pelisse (overdress). This book is worth every penny and will become a dog-eared favorite on your costuming shelf!

This book goes into details that others leave out. What type of lining was used, how the embrodery was done, drawings of the hooks and eyes used to hold some garmets closed. Where many books on historical dress will tell you a garmet was laced closed up the back Janet Arnold will expand and tell you that the holes were reinforced with metal rings sewn on with thread and what color and type of thread. In addition, the clothing of the men of the time is not just given a passing nod, but every bit as important. Her attention to detail extends to giving the information on where she obtained her information, allowing yet more research to be done on your own. Not for anyone new to sewing but a must for the person who wants to understand the details of historical garmet construction.

All three of Janet Arnold's books are a really good resource for people who want to make a period gown/outfit from the late 1500s through the 1940s! The person should, however, have a fairly decent knowledge of how to put these garments together an how to resize the patterns to scale and for the person wearing them. These all include a description of the original garment, but all of the patterns could be used to create something original. If you sew a lot of costumes, or are researching to make your own, this is a great book!

At 1 square to the inch, these grid patterns make up to size almost efforlessly. I would do patterns for 30 minute intervals and would have completed a whole dress pattern within three days, including seam allowance. It is important to add up to 1" seam allowances, and cut out a muslin to fit before attempting it in the fashion fabric. This book is absolutely priceless, and for the amount of gorgeous patterns you recieve, is worth every pretty penny. I reccomend at least an intermediate sewer and a knowledge of pattern construction and patternmaking if attempting these patterns since the directions are a bit hazy and you have to do some creative problem solving to get the patterns to go together the way illustrated. I wish she had published more!

I was a bit disappointed in this book. Especially as compared with the book that precedes this one in time period. The Elizabethan period book has all sorts of YUMMY details (photographs) of actual garments. Those details more accurately illustrate how a technique was carried out, and should look when finished. This book has exactly TWO photos! And both are of finished modern replicas. ALL the illustrations are line drawings. Exceptionally done line drawing. Very well executed. But nothing holds a candle to a photograph.
The greatest covered fashion period in this book, is about 1750-1800. It is nearly bereft of 17th century examples. And there is only a handful of Victorian era (1830s-1860) examples. That was refreshing, as there are enough other books that cover Victorian decades.
All that being said, it is still a VERY INFORMATIVE and well illustrated book. You could certainly learn a lot about construction techniques and cut.

-- Metric conversion chart included.
-- List of source references
-- instructions on altering a modern dress form to work for period
-- Pattern layouts are not modern with PRECISE measurements. They are
period layouts that assume knowledge of drafting and fitting

Although Janet Arnold is best known as a costumer, she is also a laudable historian and scholar. This book, and its companion volumes, are chock full of primary source information on historic garments and their construction.

The primary feature of Ms. Arnold's books are of course the scaled patterns. By scrupulously copying actual period garments, she has created a faultless roadmap for anyone who wishes to reproduce historic garments and be assured of their authenticity (at least when it comes to the pattern shape). In addition, her notes on the original construction and provenance of the dresses, though sometimes frustratingly brief, offer important insight into the garments.

While most buy Ms. Arnold's book for the patterns, costume historians especially will be interested in the introductory chapters. Here they will find excerpts reproduced from a wide variety of extremely rare period books and manuals of dressmaking. Many of these sources are virtually unavailable elsewhere. Illustrations and pattern samples (not graded) are also reproduced from the same period sources.

The patterns are arranged chronologically, offering one dress every decade or so, depending upon the speed at which fashion was changing during a particular period. The only drawback to this work is that Ms. Arnold, for obvious practical reasons, includes only a single style to represent each time. Therefore, while this is certainly an invaluable work, it should be a jumping off point for further research into the range of styles and decoration that were available during whatever time you are recreating.

To Ms. Arnold's credit, she refrains from editorializing or generalizing historic styles, etc. etc. Instead, her work attains the highest level of scholarship by impartially presenting primary source material in a variety of forms and allowing the reader to set the level of authenticity. Whether you are a hobbyist recreator, a professional costumer, or an academic, this book is a wonderful resource and will surely be treasured for generations to come.

I was very excited to receive my copy of Patterns of Fashion, Vol I by Janet Arnold. As a Revolutionary War reenactor, my interest in 18th Century clothing is continually deepened by more and more detailed research, and this book is a treasure trove of information. The specific details, such as a discussion of how saque-back gown sleeves were set into the body of a gown, are invaluable insights into garment construction, and equally invaluable how-to aids. Although the book covers a wider range of period garments than just 18th Century clothing, it seems to concentrate on the 18th Century,(at least, that's my perception!) and it's easy to use the book in order to put the Revolutionary War period into perspective in the timeline of fashion. The addition of useful tools such as the metric conversion chart are bonuses.

Even if each garment were not charted on a grid, making it possible to draft a pattern, just the discussion of the details of each garment would make the book a must for every seamstress' or shelf. If you can only afford a few books on historic clothing, this one is a must.

Janet Arnold is the preemminent clothing historian of our day. As with all of her books she has provided a concise reference to the garments of the period in question, listing the fabrics, colors and cuts that are appropriate for the given garments. Also typical of Arnold books is the scale patterns for the given garments in the back of each text, so, with an understanding of pattern drafting one can easily reproduce the garments from the book as well as size the garment for a particular wearer. As with many of Ms. Arnold books she draws examples from extant examples taken from trunks and in some cases the casket. Another exceptional book by Janet Arnold for the clothing historian or the obsessive compulsive costumer.

It was with great reverance that I approached my first look at the Patterns of Fashoion. I have heard so many great things that I was almost afraid I would be disappointed. Not so, this book has exceeded my wildest expectations. I own at least a score of books on Tudor/Elizabethan clothing or general costuming and can resolutely say that there is no equal to this book when it comes to detailed exactly how a garment was constructed. Each piece of extant clothing is given multiple pictures and the most detailed descriptions of any book I've seen. While this is not a guide that may interest the average costumer ...if you're serious about period costuming this is your resource.

Great Resource only better is "Queen Elizabeths Wardrobe"
for hundreds of dollars