Cat Mad Crochet

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes

Today’s sneak peak book is Costume in Detail: 1730-1930 by Nancy Bradfield. I first came across this book when I was scrolling Pinterest. The hand drawn images and notes on construction caught my eye, so I set about finding the book. Happily it was still in print when I ordered it, though that does seem to have changed. 

The author worked from actual garments in private collections, few of which have ever been exhibited, so seeing these garments, even in drawn form, is a treat. The author starts each time period with a little overview and then launches into discussions of the various garments she examined. Throughout her delightful drawings, she includes notes on construction, measurements, and fabrics. There are even shoes and the occasional accessory shown. I do wish there were more accessories because those are my favorites, but I suppose that’s a different book. 

I love this book as a source of shapes to copy in garments. The notes on closures gives me, a non-sewist, good ideas about how to make buttons and other closures work so they don’t look clumsy and ill-placed. It is not a pattern book. It is an idea book with lots of information that will help your projects work better, whether you are looking for inspiration for modern garments or recreating historical costumes. 

Now if someone would just write a comprehensive history of shawls, their styles, their details, their shapes, and their construction, my life would be set.