Verity Vintage Studio

A Late '30s Christmas Dress

I've done a lot of sewing from the late '30s this year, so it's not surprising that the pattern I chose for my Christmas dress this year also happened to be from this era. 

 

And it was definitely the most frustrating project I made this year. The rayon crepe from JoAnn I used was super limp and slippery. It made every step triply difficult, from cutting out to finishing. I would work on it for a short time and then have to take a break to save my sanity. There are still a few mistakes visible, and the inside is a mess, but I got to the point when I wasn't going to fool around with it any longer and just called it good enough.

 

Thankfully it presents well, which helps make up for all the frustration!

 

I do love how the yoke turned out. I cut an underlay of cotton and basted the two layers together so they wouldn't slide. Then I played around with decoration ideas. I didn't have a stencil, so the soutache design is freehand and measurements. Many measurements.

 

It isn't perfect, but I do love it. I added freehand embroidery with matching thread to the soutache, and then decided that pearl beads would be a nice final addition. Altogether the hand work added an extra day, but it takes the dress up a notch and I really love how it turned out!

 

The dress originally was supposed to have a scalloped collar, but after struggling with the fabric, I was not going to attempt a scalloped collar with this rayon. Besides, it would distract from the yoke decoration and potentially cover it up. So I omitted the collar.

 

The front opening came down too low, when I tried it on first, so I went on Pinterest to look at vintage dress images to find ideas for how to fill it without looking tacky. I found an image of an extant dress that gave me the idea for this neck filler, and I'm pleased with the result. It looks like it belongs there instead of an afterthought.

 

The sleeves were another alteration since the ones I had cut out were not working right, so I winged it, and gathered up the bottom hem a little bit. A few more pearl beads add the finishing touch. 

 

The lovely holly color and drape of the rayon makes a very nice finished product, but I will never use this fabric again unless I have some fabric stiffener to spray on it first! I want to make another version with a more structured fabric so I can actually enjoy the construction.

 

My hope was to end up with a dress that is not too Christmassy to wear for other occasions. I don't know how well I succeeded (although a green backdrop does make it look even more so!), but I think I can at least wear it for New Year's, Valentine's Day or date nights without looking Christmas-festive like a specifically holiday print would.

 

I didn't have a hat I liked to coordinate, so I used various flower clips and millinery bits to make my own hairpiece.

These pictures were taken quickly between Christmas festivities, so I didn't have time to grab gloves and other accessories, but at least it is documented. :-)

 

This was also the first project I made using my "new" vintage sewing machine! I had to do the buttonholes on my old machine, and it was a bit of a learning curve, but I really love my Rocketeer!

 

I'm glad I pressed through the difficulties and didn't toss this away as a bad job. I might have, except I did the yoke decoration first and after putting in that effort, I didn't want to waste it. And the result is pretty enough that it was worth the labor. 

 

I think it turned out looking fairly period-accurate as well!

1950s Blue Sweater Dress

Very suddenly my autumn leaves were covered with snow and my my first winter sewing project had a background to match!

 

During a thrift store trip a few months ago, I found a 4 yard length of fabric for $3 or $4. I'm not sure what the content is (probably at least mostly polyester), but it was the most beautiful shade of heathered blue - just my color! Plus it was a fine knit weave, yet without stretch. I knew it would make a perfect 1950s winter dress. 

 

I paired it with a pattern I've had for a while, with a full flared skirt and an unusual button closure/embellishment on the bodice. Definitely time to give it an outing.

 

While putting the bodice and collar inset pieces together, it looked for a moment like nothing that could resemble a dress, but I eventually figured it out!

Otherwise it was pretty easy. The knit doesn't press well (the bonus is that it also doesn't wrinkle!), so I topstitched the collar and closure edges to help keep the corners crisp, and it worked. 

 

I was very pleased with the fit once I'd tweaked it a bit.

 

That heather! I love the flecks of purple in it. The rhinestone brooch belonged to my husband's grandmother, and it's one of my favorites.

 

I originally wanted to go with black or silver buttons and buckle, but when I got to making the belt I found I had absolutely no buckles in either color, and the buttons just didn't look right either. I eventually chose the same shade of buttons, and this belt buckle was an exact color match - a recent lucky purchase and the only buckle that possibly would have worked!

I top stitched the belt 4 times evenly across the width to add some sturdiness since I was not going to add interfacing to that thick fabric before turning the belt.

 

I usually go for a contrast in buttons and buckle, but actually like how this turned out with it all one color. Plus doing it this way adds versatility in accessorizing.

 

It's definitely warmer than some of my other dresses, and I love how the knit fabric gives it a unique element among the woven fabric dresses in my closet. It looks very period correct even if it feels too polyester-y. Plus it is very comfortable and non-restricting to wear.

 

The snow on the ground certainly complicates things. Leather soled vintage shoes are slippery and thin! And my yearly challenge begins to find suitable backgrounds during the winter... I need a good indoor or sheltered spot!

 

I've written before that sewing is no longer usually the economical way to clothe oneself, at least for a thrift store shopper - but this dress was an exception. The whole thing, notions and all, cost me around $3.50 or $4.50 at the most. Now that is definitely the budget friendly way to go.

 

And for such a lovely, classic style in such a fabulous jewel tone color, too. I can count this particular project a complete success!

 

Farewell to Autumn - Vintage Brown Jacket

My last autumn themed post for this year features a gorgeous vintage jacket that was recently given to me by a sweet lady who knew I would appreciate some of her mother's clothes and accessories. This is the first of those gifts to make it to the blog.

 

This jacket is so beautiful - simple and classic, yet with a few detail touches that make it special. It's a lovely chocolate brown wool gabardine, smooth and tailored. 

 

Such fun pockets!

 

It is actually the jacket of a skirt suit, but the skirt doesn't fit me, so I am pairing it here with the skirt from my plaid vintage suit which I blogged about last week. The brown plaid lines on the skirt are exactly the same color as the jacket, so while it doesn't match, it coordinates very well and is the right style to pair together.

 

I'm not quite sure of this jacket's era. Judging from the skirt, it is probably 1950s, but taking the jacket alone, it could actually work very well for 1940s or New Look as well.

 

My favorite feature is that it is convertible! Wear it with the collar folded back and it looks like a traditional jacket, but you can also button it the whole way up for an adorable asymmetrical double-breasted jacket style.

 

I love the lines of slanted buttons when it is worn this way!

 

I think this color could be very versatile paired with other colors and patterns of skirts. It will be fun to discover combinations!

 

Here I am using all vintage accessories. I have to give a special shout-out to this fabulous hat, which is not mine. Technically, I saw it first, but my sister snagged it before I did, so I had to borrow it from her for this outfit. :-)

 

Except for my reproduction brooch, which is one of several I recently purchased from VivaLalux, and this sweet leaf and acorn combo makes it one of my favorites!

 

Soon after taking these photos, we got our first snowfall and I started preparing for Christmas, so while the autumn posts have been all too brief, winter is already upon us and so is my winter sewing projects. 

 

Thankfully, classic wool jackets like this can continue to be worn through the winter as well as autumn. And this one is truly a beauty. I'm so happy to give it a good home!

True Vintage: Late 1940s Gingham Suit

There is some snow on the ground right now, my decorations are up, and I'm playing Christmas music as I write this. But I have a few more weeks' worth of fall posts to catch up on before I get to winter projects, so it is still autumn on the blog!

A few weeks ago I wrote about my one and only true vintage suit, a gem among the very few true vintage pieces I own. Well, shortly after penning that post, my vintage suit collection more than tripled! One of the new additions is this lovely rayon suit I snagged during a Thanksgiving sale that a local antique boutique was having. 

 

It was funny...we had only a half hour to skim through the shop and it wasn't nearly enough time. I spotted this suit, quickly tried on the jacket, and saw it would fit me. I wanted to get one nice piece there, so since I didn't find anything else in the brief time I was frantically digging through the racks, I went ahead and purchased this suit without trying it on or looking at it farther.

 

When I got home,  I was pleased to find that the skirt fits me too - a pleasant surprise since a lot of suit skirts are too tight or short for me even if the jacket fits. The jacket was missing one button, but thankfully it also had matching buttons on the pockets, so I was able to use one of them to fill in the gap, and replaced the pocket buttons with coordinating ones from my stash. I think they ended up coordinating quite well!

 

Other than the missing button and one small spot on the lapel, it seems to be in flawless condition.

 

It's a lightweight, unlined, rayon suit - so I believe it's for warm weather wear. Also, the label says it is "sports wear". The fabric drapes beautifully, and the jacket has fabulous large, top stitched pockets, crisp notched collar, triple front darts, and huge shoulder pads.

 

Judging from the length and width of the skirt, I believe it is from the late 1940s - perhaps as late as 1950. I was super pleased with the fit and versatility. That simple brown/tan gingham could coordinate with multiple colors, though here I went with easy and basic, using the same color scheme.

I paired it with all vintage accessories (except for the undershirt), and got out one of my vintage umbrellas for fun since it was a good color scheme for the photo session. Also because they rarely get an outing otherwise - rain is rare in Idaho.

 

I had to try a 1940s model pose...

 

We made sure to get these photos before the first snowfall so it still looks season appropriate! :-)

 

I love the slender, classy silhouette! I wore it to church that weekend, but added sweat guards first since I will have to dry clean this beauty and want to do that as little as possible.

 

I've mentioned before that, unless it is very inexpensive, I don't buy vintage things that I can make. But suits - especially with special features  - I am happy to purchase when I can. This one makes me very happy! And considering that it was such a hurried purchase (not usually recommended!), I consider myself pretty lucky.