And now on to more ponderings, but of the usual garb-ish kind...(It's almost the next day!)

So I am thinking thoughts for teh "Red Velvet Italian -O- Doom". I'm trying to reign in thoughts to one thing at a time, so what I'm pondering at the moment is the camacia --


Here is the neckline. I am so dissapointed that we can't see the shoulders. I'm going to rely somewhat on another portrait of similar style, painted within 2 years of my inspiration portrait....


This gown neckline is positioned much lower than my inspiration portrait. I think it has a lot to do with the title; "The Seduction". She almost seems a bit en deshabille with the waist more wrinkly and puckered than one would expect, so I am going to assume that under normal circumstances, her neckline would be a bit higher. Maybe. Or at least that's what I'm telling myself.

Here are some initial questions on the camacia ..... what is your opinion? (I have come to the realization that not everyone sees in portraits what I *think* I see!)

-It looks like both camacias have a 2-3" 'solid' border around the neckline
Are these bands gathered and smocked, or is the body of the camacia pleated into a a solid 'neckband?
-It looks like both camacias have what seems to be a slit in the band
Does this slit stop at the band, or continue into the camacia body?
-It looks like the neckline of the on both of the camacias is rounded, and the neckline of the gown is square
Am I smoking something, or do you see it too?



-On my inspiration portrait, I'm having a hard time parsing out the button construction. On one hand, it looks like a plain round button (or pearl?) tied together with a thick-ish rope/ribbon/strip of cloth. (That's the bubbly part around the round center) On the other hand, it looks kind of like a floret-type button, with the ties running behind the 'flower' part of the button ensemble.
What do you see? One of the above? Something totally different?
Ok, on to the camacia cuffs and sleeves (The secondary portrait is of no help here--


I think I've pretty much nailed down the following: (Feel free to disagree and share!)

-There are thin-ish gold lines of embroidery running vertically up the length of the sleeve
-The sleeves are very full, and the fabric very fine
-There is gold embroidery around the cuffs of the sleeves
-The cuffs are tightly packed and smocked with gold thread
-There is a small ruffle edge hanging out the outside edge of the smocking

-The biggest question I have with the sleeves are the fastenings:
Is the fastening two gold buttons, tied together with black cord that has a gold aiglet, or is the dark parts shadows from inside the sleeve, and the gold is a button through a loop?

I have some more other different ideas for the gown sleeves and construction, but that will have to wait!