What do do with your skirt when when you're not as thin as you used to be and other clothing thoughts

Seventeen years ago, in 1997, a large portion of my dad's side of the family joined up with the Mormon Pioneer Sesquicentennial Trek in Wyoming near Independence Rock for a day.  As that was more of a reenactment trek we had certain clothing requirements we had to meet.  I picked out some (semi-appropriate) fabric at Mormon Handicraft downtown Salt Lake and my mom made me a dress from an appropriate pattern. Being a fashionable* 21 year old, I sure didn't want to wear a dress, so my mom didn't sew my bodice to my skirt, but left the two pieces separate so I could leave the bodice untucked (boy, that sure is a mid-century faux pas). Although not period correct, that dress has gone on trek a few times with various people; it's a good trek dress, as trek usually isn't all that historically accurate.  As I didn't have time to make me a second dress (because I've told myself the next dress I make has to be drafted over a corset and if I don't have time to make a dress, I surely don't have time to make a corset first), I figured I'd just use my old dress.

Although I had hopes of losing a few pounds before trek, my post-baby waist will just never be the same as my pre-baby waist. I'd already moved the buttons for my first year of volunteering at This Is the Place, but even that was a little tight, so I found some purple-ish fabric and made a wedge to widen the waistline.  I took the skirt up to my mom to show her and she said, "I think I still have the fabric left over from that dress!"  The good news was that my insert with the matching fabric wouldn't show so much; the bad news was that now I had to make another insert. At least it was faster the second time.

I even put a pocket in it.

You can hardly tell!

Just a comment now on trek fashion. After I thought I was being so cool modifying a period pattern to fit modern styles 17 years ago, I realized how dumb that was once I got on trek where I was able to see really authentically clothed people.  They just looked SO GOOD, and I wished I would have done better with my clothes.

I've become a fan of hats, especially as I've gotten more wrinkly over the years. Very, very few girls on trek would wear their hats and bonnets and I just wanted to say (and did say), "Wear your hat!!" but they still wouldn't. What's up with that!?

We were told to bring a couple pairs of bloomers (drawers) for trek, but I'd heard they can cause chafing if not sewn right. I did bring my drawers, but I also made a petticoat to wear under my skirt in case I found I liked that better. I ended up wearing the petticoat on bus days (I can't go without a slip under my dress!) but the drawers on the main hiking days. When I wore them together for a time, they stuck together, which wasn't very good. The drawers were very helpful when you'd have to sit on the ground and let the nurses tape up your blisters. I did not experience any chafing from my drawers, but they were hotter than the petticoat.


*I don't know if it's ever appropriate to call ME fashionable, but at least I thought I was trying.