Verity Vintage Studio

1940s Brown & Blue Set

I'm still catching up with getting my 2023 sewing photographed. I had a burst of sewing in late November and December, which I'm still working through - so here is one of my outfits originally intended for autumn, which turned out so pretty!

 

I had gotten 2 yards in each color of this cute Lori Holt print from her fall 2023 line called Home Town, and knew I wanted to make something color-block with it. The question is should be be a skirt and blouse set, or a dress incorporating both colors? I ended up doing the 2 piece idea because I could use a brown skirt.

 

I used a sweet vintage mail order pattern that I got recently from Midvale Cottage, for a 1940s 2 piece outfit. I really liked the belt element, since I fluctuate sizes so much that it's nice to have a way to adjust the waist, and I'd been wanting to make something with it - this is the perfect pairing!

 

The skirt is quite a basic 1940s A line skirt and went together super fast. The blouse is also easy, but has a few cute details in the form of the tie belt inserted, and the little ruffle addition. 

 

I chose to use the brown for the ruffle to make it more of a coordinating set, and cut it narrower than the pattern called for. I wasn't sure about the idea initially, but I ended up liking it! I also opted to add ruffle on the sleeve, and do topstitching in brown thread (perhaps less a design choice than a convenience since then I didn't have to change thread. :-) 

 

I'm sure it will get a lot of wear once the weather turns warmer! I often gravitate towards 1930s and 1950s sewing, but there is just something so satisfying about the simple, trim styles of WWII.

 

I paired it with my often-worn favorite 1940s vintage brown heels and hat. The gloves and bow pin are also most likely from the same decade.

 

I think the buttons likely date later, but they were the perfect matching shade of brown.

 

I'd like to try making this again, maybe in a floral, without the ruffle - just to see how different it can look. Meanwhile I'm enjoying having this mix-and-match outfit in my closet!

Strawberry Time: 1940s Novelty Apron in Poppie Cotton's Promise Me Fabric

It may not be strawberry season at the moment, but it's always strawberry FABRIC season! 

 

Today's my day on the Poppie Cotton Promise Me blog tour, and I picked just my favorite print to showcase with a fun 1940s novelty apron. 

 

I think I got this pattern along with several others in a lot, and I thought the "deck of cards" shapes were super fun, especially the diamond one, so that's what I chose to pair with this  pretty fabric. That heart one is on my list to make at some point too.

 

The pattern calls for ribbon to edge the diamond and do the neck tie, but I chose to make my own out of a coordinating pink print. 

 

The ruffle took up quite a bit of fabric, but still overall it was an economical design, and quick to make. 

 

I like how the ribbon finishes the edge, decorates, and also looks like it runs up around the neck. In reality the neck piece and bow is a separate piece.

 

It was funny - when I was cutting it out I didn't notice that it was a one-way print until I was already part way through sewing it - but luckily I had accidentally gotten all the pieces oriented right side up anyway! Whew.

 

Isn't it a perfect match to my vintage strawberry canisters??

 

It's a fun, simple design for an apron, and I will enjoy wearing it as I cook! It's hard to go wrong with pink and strawberries. :-)

 

 

1940s Novelty Bow Cocktail Dress

I'm finally catching up and documenting the last of my holiday sewing! We had a Christmas party to go to in December, so clearly I needed to make a new cocktail dress, and the repro fabric I had recently purchased during the big Telalinda sale was perfect.

 

I mashed up 3 different patterns to make this. Bodice and sleeves from one, skirt from another, and the peplum from a third. Thankfully it was still fairly straightforward and simple, since the bold fabric does all the work. 

 

In fact, even a big detail like a 2 layer peplum gets lost in the print in these photos, though it is more noticeable in real life. 

 

I think this is the only project I made this year that wasn't using quilting cotton. I was very pleased with the quality of this rayon. It drapes nicely but isn't so slippery that it was too difficult to sew, and definitely feels good quality instead of the flimsy stuff a lot of modern rayon can be. It compares well to vintage rayon, which is nice since it's a vintage reproduction print. 

 

This is not my normal color scheme, but I thought it would be fun to make something different. And the print really is perfect for a semi-formal 1940s dress like this. 

Also how cute is this giant 1940s corde bag with a lucite zipper pull??

 

I had to grab photos before we left for the party when the light was already fading, so grainy is the best we get this time. :-)

 

I have more Telalinda fabric on my shelves. It's funny that this was the first print I've actually sewn with even though it's not my favorite out of what I have. But this gives me more confidence to work with my favorites!

So while it's not specifically Christmassy, it works very well for a pre-Christmas or a New Year's party, and it's nice to have a semi-formal dress that fits me in my current size and is nursing friendly.

1940s Christmas Aprons

When I was doing my Christmas baking this year, I realized I have ZERO Christmas aprons, and something had to be done about that! Some time ago I saw an Instagram friend wearing an adorable apron. I asked her what pattern it was, and tracked down my own copy. I quickly paired it with some of my Christmas fabrics and stitched up a couple during Advent.

 

I made one for me and one as a gift for a friend. My version used a few of the adorable novelty prints from the Pixie Noel 2 fabric line.

 

I ended up doing the construction how it made the most sense to me, instead of following the instructions - partly because I wanted the seams serged instead of unfinished, and all those little pointy seams made that quite interesting! 

 

In the end, I added the little pink bows to cover the points - and it actually ended up being a super cute trim, so that worked out! Sometimes plan B turns out better than plan A.

 

For this version I cut out the waistband as it was in the pattern, but it's SO wide that especially for my short torso, never stays in place. 

 

For the next version, I took a big pinch out of the waistband pattern piece and like it much better, so when I make this pattern again I will make it this way.

 

I made this one a bit scrappier, choosing 5 different prints from my leftover Poppie Cotton Oh What Fun fabric for the 5 points. Next time I will make another one with the color placement like the models in the pattern photo, but I do like how the waistband color radiates down into the points when doing it this way.

 

I have another Christmas apron idea that didn't get done this year, but at least I had fun making a gift and also now have one Christmas apron in my own apron basket for next Advent!

 

 

Girl's 1930s Blue Christmas Dress

We had sickness in the house right before Christmas, but I still managed (by cutting some corners) to squeeze in making a quick Christmas dress for my oldest daughter. 

 

I used two lovely prints from the Pixie Noel 2 line by the fabulous designer Tasha Noel. My daughter is always a pocket lover, and her eyes shone when she saw these "candy cane pockets!"

 

The 1930s pattern I used is a size too big for her, but since I didn't make it until the very end of Christmas I wanted to be sure it would fit her next year. 

 

The waist is intended to be loose and fit with a tie belt. One of the corners I cut was to use a ribbon instead of making a belt.

 

I didn't like the look of inserting a zipper at the neck, so I went with making tiny buttonholes and lacing it up instead. I like how it looks with the cute red and white twine yarn - and I've seen this closure used in extant dresses so I know it's accurate for the 1930s. The down side is that it's harder to get over the head: note to self - if lacing, make the opening longer!

Rather than doing a contrast collar I opted to make some binding to edge it. 

 

I love this fabric - it's subtly Christmassy without being so Christmas-specific that she can't wear it for the rest of the winter. She was very pleased with it even if it is a bit big for her!