Lurking newcomer actually has some input on this one :-) Having made about
50 - literally - of these placket-front Germans, maybe I can share some
insight.
The bodice is indeed attached to the skirt, and the cartridge pleats of the
skirt are set horizontally to the bottom of the bodice or a waistband.
There's no evidence I have seen yet for bum rolls in Germany in the early
16th century, but this method is documented in Blanche Payne on a military
base, as well as seen on existing garments in Uppsala cathedral. (I think
it's also referenced in Waffen-und Kostumkunde, but I can't remember which
article and volume at the moment.) The opening is on the front side, at the
side of the stomacher (see below).
There's some debate about whether the bodice laces over a chemise with a
placket at the top, or whether the it laces over a whole frontspiece. The
existence of contemporary laced-front gowns in France, England and other
parts of Germany that have full stomachers suggests that a stomacher is
probably correct. Correct or not, it is certainly the one I have had the
most luck with. The lacing is done either with lacing strips attached to the
inside of the bodice, or small, metal rings attached at the edge.
Not corseted. I have tried these gowns with corsets, and the silhouette is
all wrong. I use boning in a fan-shaped pattern on the stomacher, which has
worked well. (Corded support or a corded corset would probably look even
better, but I haven't tried that yet.) And I don;t believe the chemise is
attached at all.
As to straps across the back, I haven't seen a reason to do them, and I've
managed some pretty low-backed styles. The trick is to get the edge of the
shoulder piece to sit right in the av joint (that little hollow you can feel
on shoulder), and then the shoulders stay put.
Hope that's helpful.
-Wendy Greenhut-Bliss (Mistress Etaine du Pommier)
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