Panniers Complete

I need to name these panniers – they have the destructive force of a full-blown hurricane!

I faked the angled bones with extra-long zip ties, and will probably need to switch them out with stronger boning when I get my hands on some, and there still is not boning in the very bottom casing, but for all intents and purposes, they’re done!

I also tried on my pair of bodies – they’re a bit snug, but if push comes to shove, will work. This is probably the most dangerous costuming-related picture I’ve ever taken. The only mirror big enough to show the (mostly) full width of the panniers was in my bathroom, and the side of the tub is quite high – I was quite the sight trying to scramble to the top of the tub and crouch just enough to be able to take the picture! I still need to mess around with the gathers – I thought everything was all perfect; but then I see in this picture that the line is certainly not smooth. Grrrr.

Things don’t look that different from the last picture I took, but I assure you, I’ve done a lot today. I finished the waist attachments, added all the internal infrastructure, and re-did the angled boning.

I’m not 100% that I like the change, but I was having difficulty getting things to lie correctly, so I took a proverbial page out of the “Truly Victorian” bustle construction book, and moved the bones to the inside, catching the boning in small loops, rather than fed through an entire casing. This makes the bones easier to remove, and also seems to be holding up the corners of the panniers better.

I may end up re-doing the waist – I’m not terribly happy with the way it’s puckering at the hip, but I think it matters what it looks like underneath a skirt rather than what it looks like all on it’s own.

This whole experience has certainly underscored my distinct dislike of making underpinnings. (Even though I know how very important they are!) I’m just not as comfortable with the process, I suppose!

I’ve taken a shortcut or two in the process of constructing these panniers – I’ve used zip ties for the shorter, angled bones; and I’ve used masking tape instead of real boning tips. I have some on order, and will hopefully remember to switch out the ugly masking tape for real tips. (Even though I’ve never had trouble with the masking-tape shortcut…it makes me nervous since I’ve not done a whole lot of costuming that has involved reinforced and hooped underthings.)

And for other-Noelle: I’ve used my dad’s old wire cutters for years now – on everything from hoop boning/wire, zip ties, and corset boning. So, no, you don’t need ‘special’ boning cutters, but I bet it can’t hurt to have them on hand.