Beware the…Brocade
Photo by Justin Jajalla Photography (2021)
East Jersey Old Town Village
At some point last year, during the Great Rewatch my husband and I did in the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, I decided I wanted to make Elizabeth Swann’s costume from Pirates of the Caribbean. This is one of the few movies I have ever seen multiple times in theaters and holds a special place in my heart. Plus, I was just getting into the exploration of 18th century historical costuming and wanted to try something a bit grander than the standard petticoat and caraco. However, I was a bit intimidated by traditional patterns for staples of the period, like the Robe à l'Anglaise, Robe à la Française, and Robe à la Polonaise (are you sensing a…pattern? It’s okay, you can dock 10 points for that terrible joke). There are plenty of wonderful resources for helping new sewists through these very patterns (American Duchess is one such resource), but I just wasn’t ready!
However, I loved the rich brocades and dreamy lace accents of Elizabeth’s Swann’s wardrobe, and the “cabin fever” of early pandemic times was real, so I found an easy costume pattern online and set to work. (There’s a McCall’s or Simplicity pattern for any movie or TV show, I would bet you anything.) After finding some delicious gold brocade and soft lace, I went for it. The final gown is not considered traditional in that it has a modern zipper installed in the back, but it’s a fair replica of other “robe” styles of the period (if you’re aiming wide). For my photo shoot, I paired it with a straw hat trimmed with silk ribbon (both from Burnley & Trowbridge) and a lace fan. And, of course, my pirate medallion.
However, the final result is what I would consider to be a failure. I don’t mean it doesn’t look good (which, granted, is one of the stated functions of a costume), but I mean a failure in the overall execution of the pattern and construction. I attribute this to one reason and one reason only. Before I began this costume, I had never worked with brocade. After this gown, I doubt I ever will again, unless for a very good reason!
Brocade sheds. It frays. It disintegrates before your very eyes. Any cosplayer (I discovered later, on frantic internet message boards) knows this. I did not! The brocade for both the robe and the underskirt was impossible to work with. Long golden threads littered my sewing room and clung to me like tendrils. The fibers clogged my machine. And the fraying did not abate, despite using pinking shears, and even after I sewed the pieces together. The fabric continued to fray through the seams, mandating that I sew them back up like I would a rip. If you look closely, you can see this patch job on the lines of the back of the gown.
Photo by Justin Jajalla Photography (2021)
“But it’s not that bad!” you might say. Oh, but it is. Though the costume looks intact, the fraying inside has weakened to such an extent that I don’t think this one would stand up to another wear. I’m proud of myself for finishing such an elaborate project, but sometimes you just have to take the L, and that’s okay. A learning experience!
Photo by Justin Jajalla Photography (2021)
Additionally, I chose this project as more of a technical challenge, rather than a passion project. Elizabeth Swann is not a character I’m particularly passionate about portraying. Though Pirates is a fun movie, it glosses over the historical and social context of the location and time. As the governor’s daughter in a place like Port Royal, Jamaica, a woman like Elizabeth certainly enjoyed all the upper class comforts afforded by the abhorrent practice of enslavement. Her father would have overseen the active colonization of the Jamaican people in this period. This is where many more experienced costumers have much to say on the lines between costuming, re-enacting, and historical interpreting, and what a costumer’s responsibility is in presenting the historical context. As I mentioned in my previous post, I am quite new to historical costuming and am still educating myself on how best to showcase my work. If this topic interests you, consider exploring the work of the following costumers, historians, cosplayers, and interpreters: Cheyney McKnight of Not Your Momma’s History; Dr. Christine Na-Eun Millar, also known as Sewstine; and AJ Wu of Confused Kitty Sewing. Those are just three of a vast community of people striving to make historical costuming accurate, inclusive, and fun!
So, while it was fun to swashbuckle and swish in my fancy dress for one afternoon of photos, I am happy to set this one aside in the cedar trunk from now on. (Just kidding, I have all of my costumes and sewing supplies crammed into one tiny closet. But, a sewist can dream!)
