Pattern giveaway!

Giveaway on my blog to win some patterns for your stash! Easy to enter... caption this pattern cover:



Giveaway open to all!

Big pocketed skirt giveaway!

Come on over to the blog for a great skirt pattern with H-U-G-E pockets that I'm giving away!

Holy Stash-tastic Patterns, Batman!

Recently, I acquired that cute little kids dress form and the lady who sold it to me mentioned she had about 10,000 patterns and was having a garage sale... Did I mention she's been sewing for over 50 years? Cue dramatic music...


I went through most likely 10,000 patterns and I wish I was exaggerating when I give that number because it was hard going (cigarette smoke clung to everything) but it was worth it to get the following 15 patterns for a mere $30US. Yes, yes it was. So here they are in all their glory:

Vintage Batman costume FTW!

New uniform jumpers and skirts for the girls, wheee!

Could this get any better? I totally ♥ the lingerie pattern. I am in serious need of a slip or two and buying them is a total PITA.

Vintage Pattern, Modern Look

I just recently made a dress for myself using a redrafted 1940s pattern. (Some of the original pieces were missing, and the skirt was made fuller.) I made it in blue leopard print for a funky modern look.

For more head to my blog! http://emmadestruction.blogspot.com

1956 pattern giveaway!

Check it out: I've got a 1956 shirtdress pattern from Simplicity that I'm giving away on my blog!

Stop on by and get into the fun by answering the question: What is your favorite vintage clothing era?

Pattern giveaway

Since everyone has been so nice, please visit my blog for a pattern giveaway!

All you have to do to enter is answer the question: What is the first thing you remember sewing by machine?

More Vintage Pattern Stashing & Destashing: 1940s edition!

My recently acquired crayon-colored assortment of 40s pattern gorgeousness

Stashing:

OK, I think I have a problem. Perhaps stemming from a frustrating deficit of actual sewing progress lately? (I do have my machine working again, though and hope to have several new finished objects by this weekend!).

But when I spied the above lot of eight early 1940s DuBarry patterns on eBay, I couldn't resist putting in an eensy little bid, even though they will all require grading up a size or two. And to my surprise, I "won." (If you can really call adding to my over-squeezed pattern drawer "winning").

Really, could YOU say no to a princess-seamed button-backed peplum two-piece dress like DuBarry 5505?

Note how the lines of the bodice seams continue in the gored skirt. And I love the gathering coming from the yoked neckline (though I'd probably make it a very narrow band--it's too high for me as is). Yellow isn't my color, but I love the red.

And how about DuBarry 5525? Isn't it wonderful how the sweetheart neckline is mirrored in the hip yoke?

On the more nursing-friendly front, there's DuBarry 5613--it's technically a "beach/brunch coat", but it looks like a wrap dress to me:

And button fronts provide far better access than button backs:

Is it just me, or are these 1940s DuBarry illustrations particularly lovely? I'm just crazy about the style and styling of these envelopes... well, aside from the fact that they exclusively feature tall skinny white ladies--but that's a blog post for another time.

So yes, I am a bad, bad girl.

Destashing:

HOWEVER! As promised in my previous pattern stashing/destashing post, I have made excellent progress towards destashing any and all patterns that I am 75% certain I will never sew, either for style or size reasons. No matter HOW enticing their seductive little illustrations!

The first step was donating a box of 24 patterns to Pattern Rescue (which I discovered via Color Kitten). They were mostly 70s and 80s patterns that while fun, would be too much trouble to sell, but I tried to put in a few nicer ones as well.

These are patterns I will be getting rid of.

Simplicity 2876. It's a glamourous 1949 V-Neck gown... but despite my grading ambitions, there is no way I'm doing the work to get a 30" bust pattern over my 41" bust -- that would involve going up three sizes to my 36" high bust, and THEN doing a major FBA.

Simplicity 2309. Lovely 1948 pleated bias-cut skirt with side pockets. But even before my waist vanished under my uterus, it was nowhere near 26 inches.

Mail Order 1447. This 1960s shirtwaist was featured in my "A Life in (Mail-Order) Patterns" post--the tabs and pockets are SO cute, and it's in a 35-inch bust... but it's a half-size, I have MANY other shirtwaist patterns, and I'm a relatively tall girl.

Style 2876, 1970. This was HARD--it's a 38-inch bust and I LOVE the seaming (and these hairstyles--almost a Princess Leia look, no?)... on someone else. Repeated dressing-room experimentation in vintage stores has proven that these clean-lined high-necked mod dresses just Do Not Work on my curvy figure.

Photographing the envelopes is quick... but assessing the condition, determining whether all pieces are present and cut/uncut, setting a fair price, writing descriptions and adding tags? Not so quick. Now I know why so many vintage patterns seem to be so pricy! That's real work!

But I figure if I can list them all now, it'll be relatively quick to ship them if they sell while I'm on maternity leave. And any extra cash will certainly come in handy for laundry money to wash all those cloth diapers...

(Crossposted to my blog!)

Vintage pattern finds and a giveaway

Hi All,

I'd just like to share some great patterns I managed to dig up from the local Salvos store not too long ago - aren't they gorgeous?


I picked girl patterns due to having 2 nieces and no nephews to sew for - so I can't wait to get started. I'm hoping all the pieces are intact but either way they were a bargain - all for less than the cost of a normal modern pattern!

Speaking of which, I am hosting a giveaway on my blog for a pattern for children's clothing - all are welcome so please feel free to enter :)

Simplicity 8126 - The Hopscotch Skirt

Simplicity 8126

From the moment I saw Simplicity 8126 over at Out of the Ashes I was excited. More so than for any lovely poofy 50's silhouetted gown. Probably because I could see myself actually wearing this skirt, that it could fit into my life easily. I also like how young and "flirty" it looked. For some reason it really makes me think of hopscotch, bike riding or some other outside activity I did as a kid.

As a long-time crafter I'm also a big fan of functional pockets in clothes and I could see the denim version of the skirt as a great work-outfit for crafting. So that's why a denim version was the first one I made.

I found a great Lycra-infused denim at Jo-Anns on sale. I followed the instruction to the T except for the pockets. Using the pattern's layout, the pockets ended up being too effected by the stretch in the denim and stretched out of shape. Eventually I'll cut another set out and put them on the skirt.



I love this skirt, I love how it doesn't even look like a typical wrap skirt. The center pleat fools you into thinking it's a regular skirt while the gathered back almost completely camouflages the wrap portion. (Especially if this was made in a floral pattern) And, about the "wrap factor?" Very good! There is basically a double layer of skirt there in the back so there is no lack of coverage. Also in a fabric with heft like this denim the lower layer sort of serves as a petticoat. I think this skirt would be quite fetching in a silk shantung or taffeta. Affordable yet lovely skirts for bridesmaids, perhaps?

The only (small) problems I had was with the pattern itself. The pattern is just four pieces and the two main portions of the skirt are fashioned so that their seam is visible through the center pleat. I'm not a fan of that but yes, it's a small quibble.

I hope to make quite a few of these. I already have a gorgeous purple linen ready for making another one of these, so I think I will change the pattern accordingly. This was an easy sew, the only time-consuming detail was the hand sewing of the hem.

1972 McCall's 3193 Tunic/Dress

Hi,

I'm starting to see a trend with my vintage selections. I'm guessing that the 70s is my decade. I certainly would not have guessed that.

I used this pattern:


As you can see from the photo of the envelope above, the pattern was well loved, and for a good reason.
I made the tunic.
It is quite simple to sew, and I made a few modifications like leaving out the zipper (since it's a knit fabric) and leaving out the slit as well. So this made the top even easier. Actually, because I'm short, the tunic turned out better as a dress. I have a detailed review here, if you are interested.
Here's the finished result:


Regards,
Su
vivelyonline

70s Top - Feminine and Frilly

Hello,

I've finally manage to sew something that I can post on Sew Retro. It is a playful top using this McCall's 4028 pattern from the 70s.

I like that the top turned out to look contemporary, even though it is from over 30 years ago. Anyway, I do like how this top turned out, and I hope you do too!

Su
vivelyonline

Intro and Hello from New Zealand

My name is Norma, from Auckland, New Zealand. I post as 'Norma in NZ'

I'm a busy mother of 3 great children and I've always had an interest in sewing retro & vintage womenswear, childrens clothes, toys and doll clothing. I've been following this blog for about a month and thought it would be great to take part.

I found a great pattern that would be perfect for both my almost 2 year old as well as a vintage Patti Playpal doll. It should make up really well.



I'll post a photo when I'm finished. Great to meet you all!

My First Post

Hey everyone! I'm delighted to join you all. My everyday blog is Where in the World Am I?. I'm currently embarking on a new wardrobe. I've been working from home for the last few years and this summer I start an office job. And that office job is in East Africa! Quite a change of pace. And a terrific excuse for new clothes!

Last night I cut out Butterick 3357 (recently purchased from Lanetz Living). I love the pockets! I don't actually use them on skirts but I like them as a graphic element.

I Can't Decide

For my ASG Red Dress/Garment sewing challenge that is due in October of 2008, I can't decide which pattern to use.
So I am asking for some input. It has to be Red, I'm not totally sure if it's to be all red, or if I can incorporate another color. I was thinking of pattern #7676 or #7242. I was wanting to make it for the summer and then present it in the Fall at our October meeting.

One made me think of the other...

Wonderful Emilio Pucci pattern available at Lanetz Living for $100.



This skirt, available at Anthropologie for $128.

Can you recommend them?

Has anyone here ordered vintage patterns from Out of the Ashes Collectibles before?
What did you think?

They seem to have an incredible selection with a lot of stuff I haven't seen anywhere else.
Believe me, I have looked. Thanks.

Intro and McCalls 6908

Hi Everyone! It's my first post here so I thought I'd share my favorite vintage pattern. I inherited a lot of patterns from my grandma. Unfortunately she was a lot smaller than me but they still provide great inspiration.
I'm really fascinated by the sleeves on this one. You can see in the diagram below that the sleeve is a sort of set-in/raglan hybrid. The date on the pattern is 1963. It's so chic. I just love it.

Another introduction

I've been watching this blog for quite a while now. Such wonderful projects! Seems like a burst of activity recently too.

I have a nearly one year old daughter so my sewing opportunities are rare and wonderful these days. I guess that means that more than ever I should make rare and wonderful things?! Anyway I've been collecting some old patterns, and snatching time to sew every now and again, plus I started a blog of my own, so I decided it was time to join you all.

I actually accepted my invite to the group nearly a week ago but I got sidetracked by knitting, and my husband giving me a new computer as an early birthday present (transferring files and the weekend kept me away from the computer and now I'm so behind!).

Clearly I may not post here all that regularly. So until next time, here are some things I've already made as a start.

These are pinafores that sew up really quickly -- one pattern piece and some binding and ties. I'm planning to try making a reversible one next -- no binding and two garments in one!

This is from one of several patterns I got from momspatterns. It's Simplicity 4018.

The pinafore is pictured on the two children at bottom right.

I'm also working on the dress in views one and two at the top of the pattern. It was supposed to be my daughter's Easter dress but I didn't have time to finish and now I just want to finish it before she's too big to fit into it! Perhaps for her birthday? I'll post a picture when it's done.

My Mother's Stash!

My mother's downsizing from a 3000+ s.f. home to a townhouse, and in her efforts to downsize she's getting rid of lots and lots of stuff. Quite fortunately, I am the lucky recipient. She shares a love of vintage patterns and crafts with me and had amassed quite a beautiful collection of vintage craft magazines, books and sewing patterns over the years through swaps, garage sales and other avenues.

She visited our family this weekend and brought with her four Rubber-maid tubs of craft materials including yarn, fabric and patterns. There must be close to 70 or 80 patterns ranging in date from the late thirties to the early nineties. I've picked three for Sew Retro but posted more on my blog here.


Isn't this one lovely? I love its softness and its ultra-feminine style. It looks too complicated for me to sew, and I'm not certain I'd wear something quite this feminine though I really do love that aspect of the dress.


I love this dress and it very well may be my favorite wearable option of the bunch. I love the neckline, the full skirt, the pockets and the pert sleeves. It's just so pretty and simple at the same time.


I might give this jumper a whirl, though it would definitely require resizing. I like its simple clean lines and its cute side buttons. I could imagine myself wearing it to the office, and then meeting my family for a concert and picnic in the park.

Vintage knitter and sewer from Sweden

Hello everyone! I just joined Sew Retro and I must say I'm happy to have found you guys! Reading this blog is a great source of inspiration. I've always loved fashion from all eras and have started a collection of vintage sewing and knitting patterns, mainly from the 40's and 50's because that's what's mostly available here in Sweden. I haven't attempted buying anything from e-bay yet, but considering what's available there, I probably will in the future. I'm mostly interested in fashion and patterns from the 30's, 50's and early 60's but I try to collect anything from the 20s to 60s.

So far I have a couple of knitting works in progress based on vintage patterns and I'm just in the process of making my first dress from an actual vintage pattern. I have sewn a dress from a Vintage Vogue pattern before, but I don't have any photos of it, I'll make sure to take some and then I'll show it to you.

Here's a photo of the pattern I'm working with right now, it's the one on the right with short sleeves.


I like the pattern very much, and I will probably us it more times, I'd like to make the sleeveless version, too, eventually. The sizing is a bit strange, it's based on a persons height instead of circumference measurements! I ended up making the largest one, but I still had to add about two inches around the hips. Apart from that, it seems to fit perfectly and I'm very excited about finishing it so I'll have a new stylish dress to wear this upcoming summer.

/Katarina
Stockholm, Sweden

Oh, and here's a link to my blog: Knitting with Katarina