I worked a little on the Venetian last night, getting started with the toileing of the bodice. I was hoping it would be an easy process to get a good fit, since I'm using the effigy stays as my starting point but of course not.
I was having a hard time concentrating and caring last night so I gave up on the project pretty quickly. Today however is a new day and I've found that I've woken up with a new resolve to make it work this am...
Fitting is hard, especially without help :/ Good luck!
I think it's important to enjoy the process as much as possible, not just the final product :) Not to imply you work slowly, rather you seem to have a good balance and deal with headaches, same as me.
I'm super excited that you've decided to do this project, I've been following it on your website! I've been reworking my own Pink Venetian (which I made in 2007, even though I didn't make it to CC) so you're not the only one starting late :D