Costume Committee

SO YOU WANT TO DRESS IN PERIOD CLOTHING

(My story of how I started my passion for dressing in Period Clothing and Competition.)

By: Sharleen Leigh West Costume Chair N-SSA Costume Competition

Hi! everyone, I am Sharleen Leigh West, and I am the N-SSA Costume Chair, I have been the Chair of this Committee for numerous years. The costume competition has been a source of love and sometimes trying at times for me. It is hard to generate a passion in others for this N-SSA competition. The main reason is that the interest in home sewing had dropped before the Covid era of our time. For some people during the time of Covid they found themselves wanting to learn a new skill to fill the lack of time that was previously used to go to the gym or other public group setting that they had previously enjoyed, but was abruptly ended due to Covid. To fulfill that time some learned to cook, bake, garden, knit or crochet and some learned to sew. So if you learned any of the last three skills that were mentioned. Then I have a new hobby for you. PERIOD COSTUMING.

Now, the new competitor has it easier than I ever had in the sewing of period clothing. You have a wide variety of patterns that can be purchased which are period correct and some have the proper techniques in construction of the garments in the instructions. I only wish I had in my experience of making and wearing mid Victorian attire. On with my story of getting into the hobby of N-SSA Costume Competition. It all happened 55 years ago, when I was a mere 6 years old. My grandfather Lenford Eastep was a member with the N-SSA almost at its conception of the organization. A short time later my dad, James’s “Micky” West joined. My Grandfather was on the land acquisition committee to scout and find a national range. When they came across the present-day property, the committee was deciding on a name for the property. Well, my grandfather was an avid whistler and at one meeting when the committee was deciding on a name for the fort. He was whistling the song “Shenandoah”. He was asked the tune he whistled, he said the tune was “Shenandoah”, it was decided that was the perfect name for our property, “Fort Shenandoah”. My Grandfather had a shop on Sutler’s Row and sold guns, and gun parts, at one time he sold covered hoops for ladies to use under their hoop skirts, (as he called them), he also sold black powder orders there. He and Elmer Venoski started Back Creek Black Powder Co. My Grandfather already had his FFL license and was selling black powder, here at home under the name of Poquoson Gun Shop. He also sold powder to Colonial Williamsburg and the National Park Service around our area, also to the general public. When I was a teenager, I remember sitting in the shop on Sutler’s Row with one of my girlfriends for fun, and to sell the black powder for him. He would pay us $20.00 each to do so. Of course, he would embarrass us by trying to enlist young gentlemen for a date to the Saturday night dance. Which was so, embarrassing, at that time being a teenager and all. I wouldn’t give those memories away for a million dollars. Now, how I started in costuming, I was about 10 years old, and I asked my mom and grandmother to make me a dress to wear at Winchester. I remember it so well. It was a Simplicity pattern. Which by the way is still available today? It is the one where there are four different styles of dresses on the front cover depicting a colonial, frontier, civil war and a sacque gown. The fabric was cotton calico, yellow background and darker gold yellow undertones. It buttoned up the back with wooden buttons and had polyester lace at the neckline and on the cuffs of long sleeves and a matching sash tied in a bow in the back. Mom bought me a bridal covered hoop to wear under the dress. I thought I was so pretty in that dress. I signed up that fall National and was given a numbers paddle to carry to participate in the Saturday afternoon competition. Then the competition was judged by three chosen bystanders, all the children walked around in a circle and was judged. Sadly, I didn’t win that day, but I had fun anyway. I want you to know, I wore that dress at every national event on the Saturday and Sunday until I couldn’t get it buttoned up in the back and it was almost up to my knees in length. At that time my grandfather and dad belonged to the Old Dominion Dragoons. There was a lady by the name of Barbara Whitlow, she participated in the dress competition where she made her and her daughter’s dresses. I would wait until they came out of their camper all dressed to go to the competition on Sunday morning. I thought about how beautiful they looked and that someday, somehow, I wanted to do that too. Mind you, I was only 11-12 years old at the time. As time went on, I married, and he joined the team. I finally decided It was time to take the plunge and try my hand at making a dress for me to wear and if it turned out, I’ll enter in the dress competition. I wanted a ball gown. So, I had no idea as to how to go about making one since there

weren’t patterns for the period to purchase. I started attending all the dress competition meetings held at the caretaker’s front porch. I learned a lot. I couldn’t find patterns to purchase and had not sewn anything since high school home economics class. This was going to be a real challenge. So, I was so up for this, I wasn’t going to let not having a preprinted pattern with instruction to use going to deter me in making a first attempt in period dress. I shopped over at sutler’s row and found a copy of the book “Civil War Clothing “book #1, it was paperback and had a yellow cover. Within its cover was a diagram of ball gown pieces all drawn all over each other. I then had to figure out how to take this diagram at the size of a half of an 8 by 11 piece of paper to fit me. So, I went to the fabric store and bought a flip out cardboard cutting board that was gridded in one inch squared blocks and drew on the cutting board each piece of the ball gown bodice on it. Then traced the board with tissue paper to make the pattern to pin to the fabric to cut it out. I then followed the instructions, (if you should call them instructions) listed in the book to complete the dress. I remember it. oh! So well, the ball gown was made of white cotton fabric, which was all that I could afford at the time. I bought rolls of store made white crochet lace and burgundy satin ribbon, along with polyester burgundy satin to make fabric roses and dark green satin to make leaves. This is what I accented the skirt and the bodice with. It buttoned up the back with sewing machine-made buttonholes and glass buttons. Under the gown I wore a strapless longline bra, I had no idea how to make a corset, a pair of drawers which went almost to my ankles, black cotton stockings and black flat slip-on shoes, also a covered bridal hoop and an over petticoat. I wore my hair in finger curls, and I decorated a plastic hair comb with burgundy fabric roses and green leaves. I thought I looked pretty good on that Sunday Morning. I then nervously entered the competition ring in Memorial Park, to face the dreaded judges. As I approached the judging area, I cannot remember ever being so nervous in my life. When the judging began, they asked me questions and I answered the best that I could, nervously squeaked out the answers. Whew!! Glad that was over, I didn’t place that day, but I was approached by two of the ladies who competed that day and two of the judges, they graciously offered their expertise in costuming and gave me their contact information and at that time I got bit by the costuming bug. Since then, I shoot muskets, cannons and mortars when needed for the team. I have held numerous jobs on the Committee and now hold the position as chair. Now, I look upon the way I began costuming, how I bettered my education on period dress. How I struggle in that first dress. I learned so much more with all that the Costume Committee has done in lectures on competition day and the hands-on Sewing Circle, which is held on Friday of the Nationals at 11:00 am to 2-3 pm depending on the item being taught. Where can you go and enjoy a wonderful, relaxing afternoon in the company of welleducated ladies and men in the art of period historic living, the construction of clothing, and to be able to leave in your hand a completed or almost completed and with the knowledge to finish an item to wear free of cost to you. This is your chance to fulfill your dream of wearing your dream period clothing. So come on by the Sewing Circle and the Costume

Committee’s Costume Armoire in Sutler’s Row and

GET BIT BY THE COSTUME BUG!!!!!!