Verity Vintage Studio

1940s Pinstriped Summer Suit

This project has been a long, long time in the making. I got this fabric ages ago, quickly paired it with this pattern, and then it sat in my drawer for years before I finally made it real this summer.

 

I'm glad I did. While the shirting was very lightweight and would probably have been more suitable for a dress with gathers or ruffles, by flatlining the jacket I made it behave very well. 

 

I just love the pleats in the front - so flattering! It was not difficult to make, either. My biggest challenge was sizing it up from a size 12 pattern. 

 

I actually went overboard, adding too much fabric, so had to do double darts in the back instead of single ones to use up the extra fabric. But I like how the double darts look, so that worked out in the end.

 

I used a metal zipper to close the skirt, and put white buttons on the jacket. Very simple but sweet, and versatile too since I can mix and match with other pieces in my wardrobe.

 

The cherry red and white pinstripe is so fine that at a distance it almost looks pink! But it really is a nice bright red.

Actually, I have no idea how much of this fabric I originally bought, but after cutting out this outfit I still easily have enough for another dress. Might have to go for something more frilly next time since the fabric is so light.

 

It would go with a lot of different colors for shoes and accessories. Here I paired it with a simple brown 1940s hat and my Peggy spectators, for more of a summer suit, church or town look.

 

However, I can also dress it down to more of a 2 piece dress style just by switching out the hat for a hair tie, adding a colorful vintage button bracelet from Timeless Trinkets, and wearing more casual shoes.

 

These are reproduction beauties from Miss L Fire that I found on eBay last year for a very nice price. I love how they look, but wasn't sure how much I'd wear them or how comfortable they would be. Now that summer has arrived, I'm finding more and more things to pair them with so I'm glad I bought them!

 

The detail is beautiful - love the embroidery and how very accurate they look (with a few minor quibbles). They would suit 1930s outfits as well.

 

I like how easy this is to wear - just put it on and go, with no fussing over a belt, collar, or any other details. I would definitely make this pattern again! Ideally, however, it would be nice to find a copy in a larger size so I don't have to size it up so much.

 

And it's been on my sewing queue so long, I can hardly believe I finally have it in my closet instead of in my fabric drawer!

 

After the first wearing I have a few things I need to tweak, like adding a snap at the bottom of the jacket to keep the yoke together and move the buttons over a bit, but I am very happy with the outfit overall. I especially appreciate how accurate it looks. I love when there is a happy combination of pattern, fabric, and fit, so I can feel like I've just stepped out of the era!

My 1940s Novelty Umbrella Dress

I wrote a little while ago about how tickled I was to see a picture of a vintage dress and realize that JoAnn carried a reproduction of the fabric.

The vintage dress which got me excited.

 

It was a lot more per yard than I could normally afford, but thanks to a 60% off coupon and some birthday money from my sweet husband, I was able to get 3 yards of it for a dress. It was so pretty in person!

The cheery red, blue, and green of the print I like even better than the pastel version of the vintage dress. It's a very happy fabric, and is interesting without being strange like some vintage novelty prints. Also, I love vintage umbrellas so it was a perfect match for me!

My fabric, cut out and ready to sew.

 

So with the fabric scored and on my shelf, I had to decide what to do with it. First a simple pattern, so the print would shine.

 

Inspired by the vintage dress, I went with a blue contrast for the collar and pockets - decorative pockets mostly since they won't hold very much!

 

The French blue contrast fabric was actually leftovers from a shower curtain I got at a thrift store and cut down to make napkins for my bridal table almost 2 years ago. Nothing like repurposing! :-)

 

I was very pleased with the fabric while making and wearing the dress. I usually purchase their Keepsake Calico line, which is more affordable, and that has worked well for some styles of dresses in the past (see my post on cottons for more details) - but this one, a Premium Cotton piece, is dense, smooth, and definitely feels like higher quality.

 

I did have some struggles at a few points with this project. This was my first attempt at a collar constructed like this one, and it was only half successful. Half because one side came out beautifully, and the other one definitely did not. But a brooch on the shoulder can cover up a multitude of flaws! :-)

 

My second issue was totally my own fault. I was in a hurry, trying to quickly set the 2nd sleeve before calling it a day. And I caught the sleeve in the serger, which sliced a nice hole into it before I realized what was happening. Thankfully I had just enough fabric left to cut out one more sleeve, but I was not happy with myself. It was a good illustration of something my mother would tell me when I was little - "The hurrier you go, the behinder you get!" 

 

The next snag I ran into was trying to choose buttons. I didn't have any blue ones the right shade, and wanted to go with something more interesting than white, so finally settled on red after digging and re-digging through my stash. I brought in the other dress colors with thread when I sewed the buttons on, and decided after some debate that I like the finished effect.

 

I paired it with my black and white Peggy pumps, and could not decide what color of hat to wear since there were so many colors already, so went with paper daisies in my hair instead.

 

And of course I had to use one of my vintage umbrellas as a photo prop! (Funny that we got a cloudy day to take these pictures - it actually looks like I need an umbrella!) 

 

This one has some fade marks on the fold, but it is just the right shade of blue to coordinate with the dress. The pagoda shape and little ruffles are so adorable. I have a matching green one that is in better shape which I used on my 1950s formal gown photos, but this is the first outing for the blue version.

I love the 2 tone handle!

 

Overall, I am very pleased with the dress. It is comfortable and cute. If I would do it over again, I'd fix the collar issue and tweak the fit a little (I know, I know...I should have done a mock-up first...), but I still like it a lot and enjoy wearing it. Only I had 2 lines of April Showers going through my head the ENTIRE day.

And though it's raining, have no regrets;

It isn't raining rain, you know, it's raining vi-o-lets...

 

After seeing some of the very strange and odd novelty prints that were popular in the 1940s, this one seems pretty tame. But it's unusual for me, so I still call it a novelty dress. Perfect for summertime picnics.

 

And hey, if it rains I certainly have enough umbrellas to go around! :-) 

 

Makeover - 1950s Polka Dot Outfit

One of my earlier sewing projects was a full-skirted 1950s sundress. While it had the usual issues of my early makes - bad fit and poor structure - I still love the fabric and the dress was kind of cute even with the flaws. But I couldn't nurse in it, and because of its issues, it wasn't worth saving until I could wear it again, so the answer was obviously a remake into something I can actually wear now!

 

Thanks to the more-than-circle skirt, I had plenty of fabric to work with. I used half of the skirt, plus a small piece cut off the other half, to make my new skirt, which has a back zipper and a narrow front gore. The sash I cut down for the waistband. It's still plenty wide,  though it's only slightly more than half the width it was before. Goes to show you how wide a circle skirt really is!

 

For the other part of the outfit, I chose an early 1960s blouse pattern, and managed to squeeze all the major pieces onto the remaining piece of my circle skirt. It took some careful planning, but it worked!

 

I have to say, I love the construction method used for the front vents. I'm very likely to make the pattern again, next time with the bow as shown.

 

As it is, the plain neckline is a perfect backdrop for my vintage and handmade lace collars, which rarely get an outing. That's a shame, because they are so pretty, and it's fun to be able to change up the outfit by using different collars for different looks.

 

The buttons are vintage plastic ones from the 1950s I've had for ages, and I had exactly enough. The whole outfit was a major stash buster!

 

These gloves are probably 1930s, but were exactly the right color and a nice spring-like style.

 

And I'm happy to report that my splurge for Rocket Originals sandals were worth it. As I expected, the straps fit my feet better with a little wear, and the sandals are comfortable as well as cute, making it perfect for wearing when I will be on my feet for a while. Also the light cream color goes with almost everything - probably my most worn vintage style shoes this summer so far! (Since they were 1950s sandals reproductions, I had to pair them with this outfit instead of heels this time.)

If I thought I would wear the color, I'd be tempted to get the green version too. If only they were blue...But in the mean time I'm saving up for Royal Vintage's fall line when it's released, and still want a pair of true white wedge sandals as well as heels, so I guess another pair of these are not at the top of my priority list...

 

Of course the benefit of a 2 piece dress is that I can wear the pieces separately as well. The skirt goes with a lot of other blouses and sweaters in my closet, and the blouse looks very nice with gray, green, and other solid color skirts. 

 

It's an eminently more wearable outfit than the earlier dress, and I enjoy seeing it in my closet instead of on the too-large pile of clothes to mend or alter. 

 

It's almost like getting a brand new dress, but with less work than starting from scratch. I would call it a very successful little project sandwiched between the new to-make dresses on my sewing list.

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1930s Inspiration

I was planning to show you my newest makeover this week, but the photo shoot didn't happen, so it will have to wait until next week. Meanwhile, here are some 1930s images that are my most recent favorites. I love to browse them for inspiration either for actual garments, or for how to put together a pleasing outfit, or how to accessorize in a period appropriate manner.

1930s designers always made good use of gingham, and this cute summer outfit is no exception! It's a fairly simple dress on the bias, with the only trim the button band and the ruffled sleeves on the matching loose jacket, and the giant bow (probably removable). I love her hat too!

 

Two piece dresses are so versatile, and this simple one would be perfect to also have a matching skirt and top in the other fabrics for a mix-and-match ensemble. It's simple, but trim and easy to wear, and really sets off her cute hat and shoes.

 

This is not a summer outfit, but I seriously need to copy her neckline embellishment on a project of mine sometime! It looks like a simple band of the skirt fabric stuck through a slot in her collar. Just adorable.

 

Another cool summer dress, doing what big prints do best. Loose fitting blouse and sleeves, simple lines. I like the wide belt and her shady hat.

 

This super simple white outfit has a few big dramatic points - the neckline and cuffs on the jacket. Looks like the jabot might actually be on the dress, but either way it has a lot of style for the simple lines of the overall outfit. Perfect to accessorize with more colorful spectator shoes.

 

And I'll end with this lovely snap of 3 happy looking tourists posing on an overlook somewhere. I love real life images because they show real women, not the perfectly posed and proportioned model with every aspect of skin, hair, and outfit perfection.

This one is cute because it shows 3 different styles of dresses, and some simpler hairstyles that I imagine were quick and practical. These ladies probably made their own dresses or bought them off the rack. My favorite is the plaid with the asymmetrical closure, but I also like the ruffled trim on the center one, and the adorable bias cap sleeves on the striped dress. They look like comfortable outfits for hiking and sightseeing, and the ladies (sisters, friends?) look happy to be wherever they are. Definitely makes me think of summer vacations!