Another 1830s Bonnet OR the Texas Blue Bonnet

Not that I needed a second bonnet for an era I have yet to dress out in.

Texas' state flower, the bluebonnet, has petals that remarkably resemble the style of 1820s and 1830s bonnets (perhaps why they were called bluebonnets by the new Anglo settlers who came in the 20s?).  This resemblance was not lost on me and the irony of having a blue bonnet styled after the bluebonnet flower was too good to pass up!

By stickywikit - Flickr.  Accessed by way of Wikipedia.

Obviously, I would need blue silk, some white, a hint of black, and perhaps a touch of light green to make my blue bonnet look like a bluebonnet.

1830s bonnets can be quite fun and larger than life.  Fashion plates especially.  I took several in mind while trimming my bonnet.

As we were still on lockdown, getting silk to my door in a timely fashion was not likely.  Therefore, I dyed a bit of white silk taffeta a light blue.  I had meant for it to turn out darker (last time I used the same dye, it turned out royal blue) but in an effort to not make it quite so royal blue, I used a little less dye.  Well, apparently it was too small of an amount because I got a (beautiful) light blue color.  Afraid to mess with it any further (I've never had much success with over dyeing my poor dye jobs), I left it as is.

I used a modified version of Lynn McMasters' 1830s romantic bonnet as I did with the last 1830s bonnet.  I don't find the pattern particularly historical in view B-D, but A is decent enough with a few shape changes. I threw out the instructions-I generally have no use for instructions to begin with and the paragraphs I skimmed through did not seem to jive with originals I have studied.

While the silk was dying, I cut out the buckram for the bonnet and stitched it together.  Then of course, the bonnet had to be wired and at last covered.  I used a bit of leftover white silk taffeta for the facing and a bit of tarletan (I was out of organdy) for the facing inside the crown.  After binding the edges (something apparently done quite frequently in 1830s bonnets after looking at several originals and something I hadn't done with my 1840s-1860s bonnets), it was time to add the curtain and the trim.

I used some black and white checked ribbon from Timely Tresses for ties and bows and also some rather large ostrich feathers for floof.  For the green, I think my next Timely Tresses order shall contain a bit of spring green silk ribbon for a new bonnet cap.  This bonnet may very well get its own cap!  For now, I think a green silk gauze bonnet veil will do!

This week's video is me trimming the bonnet and talking about Sarah Ann Groce Wharton, my future 1830s persona.

Enjoy!