Two weeks ago people from across the Foundation came together for a very special project—creating a custom gown for Jatana Jackson (Mrs. Virginia 2015). Janea and I were really excited about our roles in the process as we took on the challenge of designing and sewing the full gown, hand-quilted petticoat, and the millinery for Jatana. The next two weeks, leading up to Thursday, September 10 were a mad dash of collection visits, sewing, and fittings. And we have a behind-the-scenes look at the process from beginning to end.
The story started at the Mary Dickinson Shop at the end of August when Jatana stopped in to look for a gown she could wear in the state category of the Mrs. America pageant. The costume needed to reflect Virginia’s heritage and when she polled her fans on Facebook, the overwhelming response from them was to represent Colonial Williamsburg. Unfortunately, the dresses in the shop didn’t fit her petite frame and while the shop specializes in customized orders, we decided it only made sense for the Margaret Hunter Shop to step in.
Mistress of the trade of Millinery and Mantua Making, Janea Whitacre, and I decided to hand quilt a silk petticoat because of the lovely volume it provides, but also due to how popular and common they were in Colonial Virginia. The red and white changeable silk matched the printed floral cotton from products perfectly! The printed cotton, named Exotic Flowers, is an exact replica of a piece of fabric in our collection.
Jatana fell in love with the colors and the bold pattern, and we found it to be a dream as well. You can purchase yardage of Exotic Flowers here. The quilted design is just a simple diamond pattern that would have been massed produced and relatively inexpensive to purchase in the 18th century. You all might be surprised to read this, but it turns out that the petticoat was the longest and most labor intensive project we completed for Jatana. It took us almost 100 hours to quilt and sew up the petticoat!
The gown was inspired by an original in our collection. Since the fabric is an exact copy of a textile in our collection (it’s not made up into anything in particular it is just one of the many fabric pieces in our collection), we wanted the design to come from another original. The gown (Accession No. 1991-450) we selected is the one shown above. It has some lovely detailing at the back with delicate inverted back pleats that flow seamlessly into the skirts of the gown. We really liked this small design detail and decided to incorporate it into Jatana’s outfit as well.
But back to the beginning. On September 3, our shop was bustling with people from various departments looped into this project: Social Media, Public Relations, Photo Services, Video Productions, Products, and the Costume Design Center (a true meeting of the minds). Jatana arrived outfitted in the appropriate undergarments for a woman in the 18th century—issued to her by our Costume Design Center, including stays, a shift, stockings, under petticoat, pocket, and shoes.
Speaking of shoes, we are really excited about the shoes Jatana is wearing to the Mrs. America competition as they are a result of collaboration between the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation and American Duchess Shoes. They are called, “Dunmores” and are a wonderful reproduction of 18th-century women’s shoes that will soon be available for purchase in our shops!
Jessica and Rachel from the Making History team were on hand, taking pictures for our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. As I mentioned, there were also representatives from our Products Division, dropping off the gown fabric. The photographers and videographers spent the entire day with us to document the process.
We started cutting out the gown around 10 a.m. that morning, and started sewing the gown, by hand, around 11 a.m.
By 3 p.m., we were able to do a second (and final!) fitting for Jatana where we fit the bodice of the gown, pinned in the sleeves and shoulder straps, and took a note of where the skirts needed to sit at her waist.
After that fitting we were finished with Jatana and did not see her until the final fitting, photo, and video shoot that happened just last week. Janea and I worked steadily to complete the gown, tweaking bits and pieces to make it just right, making up the bows (like the one placed on the front of the dress) and adding the lace ruffles to the cuffs and neckline of the gown.
While the gown was completed quickly and easily (as plain gowns only take us about 10 hours to make), it is all the small bits and pieces that took the extra time and labor. We had our intern, Peryn, working mostly on quilting the petticoat until she had to head off to graduate school, leaving just Janea and I to complete the entire outfit ourselves.
Luckily, Peryn was able to completely quilt the back panel of the petticoat and a good portion of the front panel had been completed as well making the task a little less daunting. All in all we finished the gown the night before the photo shoot, without any surprises thrown our way. For anyone who sews on a regular basis, then you’ll know how grateful we were to not have any “surprises” pop up!
On the morning of the final photoshoot, we arrived to our productions studio at 8 a.m. dressed and ready to help out Jatana. She arrived with her hair and makeup already completed, and that left us simply with the responsibility of dressing and prepping her for her debut. Our shoot location was behind the Governor’s Palace. We think it provided a fairy tale backdrop. Don’t you?
We are so pleased with how the gown turned out, and we think it looks amazing with that crown and sash! It was a whirlwind of a project, but we are so honored to have been a part of it and to help out Jatana in her pursuit of Mrs. America next week in Las Vegas. Everyone here with Colonial Williamsburg wishes her the best of luck. Break a leg, Jatana!
Below are additional pictures from the final photoshoot as well as a video that showcases the project from beginning to end. Feel free to leave your well wishes for Jatana in the comment section below!
What beautiful work you ladies have done in creating this dress. I wish you were my farie godmothers!
Beautifully done!!!! My dream is to be able to make such elegant costumes someday!!
Lovely lady and gown to represent our state! Wishing you lots of luck to win!
Well done, ladies! The gown is beautiful, and she looks lovely in it!
That’s so cool!!!
Good Luck! What a beautiful lady and dress to represent our beautiful state.