Winter Vintage Pattern

 It has been a long time since I have delved into my vintage pattern collection and I fancied a winter dress, something cosy, that I could wear to work. I have never made this pattern before but it looked perfect. When I say this, it looked perfect this time last year when I actually cut it out however, I never got around to sewing it up and then Spring arrived!

It is such a treat to have a dress all cut out in a bag with the zip, thread and darts already marked. I took about an hour and a half to sew up. The fabric is a thick ponte roma jersey from Abakhan and cost me £14 for a two metre piece. I knew I would be using it to make a retro winter dress so the pattern seemed ideal. Navy and green are my favourite colours.

Sewing with Ponte Roma is a great way to get started with sewing jersey because you can cut it with pinking shears and it does not fray. Also, there is a little stretch for fitting but nothing that causes problems under the sewing machine. The dress has a zip and raglan sleeves which means it is not a swinging sack. There is also further shaping with a combination of waist and bust darts. I moved the bust darts up a fraction.

Worn with navy tights and my green clogs I am the epitome of the phrase 'blue and green should never be seen...' but I love it.

Beano thought it was a good combo too!

 

It is indeed the dress I imagined in my head when I bought the fabric and it will be a winter keeper for a good few years to come. I wore it to work on Friday and it was super comfortable.

Thanks for dropping by. Jo xxxx

Impromptu Sewing

I have made an impromptu evening dress. We attended a ball for a reunion of staff, pupils and friends of a school where I worked for ten years as a Primary teacher. The primary school has been an educational establishment since 1618 so they are celebrating 400 years!  

 I knew what dress I wanted, this 1969 vintage pattern, but not what fabric to make it from. I didn't want to buy any so I made a pile then made some decisions. I had silk dupion in a midnight blue and jade green as well as a curtain in mock dupion with embroidered daisies and some purple satin. All worthy contenders but in terms of yardage I was short every time. 

I plumped for the two pieces of silk dupion because I knew they were the same fabric and would behave themselves and with each other. Andy said, "Where have you had that material from?" "Well..." I replied, "It is a long story. The blue is left over from a cocktail dress I made in 1998 for a Young Farmers club fashion competition." He replied, "Do you mean to say that I have moved that piece of fabric to three different houses?" "yes," I said with grin. The green was in a donated bag someone gave me (sorry, can't remember who?)

It is a simple pattern but it deserved a bit of detail. 

The shape is plain. When I tried on the empire line top part it felt like it was going to ride up over my bust with some exuberant dancing so I made it longer. I added a little empire line belt with a diamante buckle button for some bling detail, I don't actually do bling but again it was in my button jar and needed a home. The piping was a fun way to make it look like it was supposed to need two different coloured fabrics. It is lined too which makes it feel super smooth to wear.

I used an invisible zip I already had, but lets face it is not that invisible. I did not have enough time to go and buy a darker one - I kept moving on the dance floor and wore my little jacket for reception drinks. I have had these shoes for years and they make an appearance for nights out.

Ta dah! A summer evening dress. I must confess the reason this dress was made is a vain one. I was going to wear my strapless wedding dress but my builders tan is just too darn prominent; thank goodness this did the job in the time.

A Photofest in my current favourite part of our garden follows:

I did not want to put any fabric back in the cupboard so I made a clutch which turned out to look more like a sponge bag but again, it did the job. I have enjoyed working with fusible fleece of late.

The evening was wonderful. Happy memories. I went to this school as an infant and worked there as an adult. I spotted myself on a photo from 1978 and sat by the headteacher from that time. He remembered me!

Thanks for dropping by. I love it when you call in. Jo xxxx

Vintage summer dress

My vintage sewing has slowed down a little. I have made a lot of my vintage pattern collection into wearable garments except for this one which I picked up before Christmas for 50p in an antique shop.

I bought the fabric back in February, a choice all of my own: not sponsored or thifted or given. Just me choosing and buying some fabric that I really liked.

The pattern is Butterick 4265. No date but you would have to take a punt at the late 1960's

It was so easy to make from two simple pattern pieces and some facings. It was already cut in my cupboard therefore the actual sewing and fitting time was only about an hour and twenty minutes.

I wore it on Bank Holiday Monday in the tropical heat we have experienced today on a walk around Hodnet Hall Gardens.

This is my second summer dress make for this year, the other is the Kalle Shirt dress. One of my summer dresses from last year is too small so two in and one out.

What did you do in the lovely sunshine this weekend?

Errata: I just remembered I made a spotty one too. Whoops! Three in one out, doesn't sound quite so puritanical. 

Vintage Pledge Lined Jacket

My final big challenge of the year ready for my final day of work yesterday. After the success of my vintage coat last year I wanted to immerse myself in another challenging sewing project. This year I wanted to make a jacket and pledged my wish on the 2017 Vintage pledge. This project has been on the go since the end of September. I bought this pattern in a charity shop and fell in love with the collar. It is from 1969. 

The fabric is a light wool suiting which is lined in cream paisley jacquard lining from Minerva. The cutting out was easy because there was not any pattern matching to contend with. 

The button loops were supposed to be bias binding rouleau loops but I saw this natty idea embedded in the Tilly and the Buttons tutorial. No words just look and the pictures and it tells the whole story.

 

Brilliant eh? As an aside to how easy it is to sew on hair bands and then cut them off, it is great when wearing the jacket because there is some ease across the bust; great for driving. This style front has a Beatles-Sergeant-Pepper-album-cover look about it. I find it hard to believe that a 50 year old pattern can still have such appeal today.

I took 1.5cm out of the body length on the shorten line to help it sit right on my hips but other than that it is sewn as instructed. It has spent many an hour on my mannequin Clara, waiting for the lining to be made - five weeks in fact.

  

I eventually finished it and wore it to work at the education centre where I work on my last day. This fabric would make any (lined) smart skirt or jacket. It wasn't hard to make, I just read each instruction and followed it through to the next one. Essentially, I did as I was told.

Make no mistake this jacket is olive green. I have a skirt cut out to make it a full suit which I will sew up soon. 

Thanks Minerva. This is a beautiful understated winter fabric.

This make also fulfills my personal Vintage Pledge this year to make a lined jacket from a Vintage pattern...just in time.

Thanks for looking

Jo xx

Vintage Pledge 2017

Hello All! I  sincerely hope you are all safe and well wherever you are in the world. I have some projects to catch up with you because I had a little flurry before we went away to France on holiday last week. This is my second vintage pattern make of the year, slow for me I know, but I am fine for clothes at the moment. This top happened by happy accident.

Amy from Love Made my Home sent me some craft stash in a recent clear out and this happy-go-lucky gingham was in the bag. There was a small piece but I knew I could squeeze out one of my favourite vintage pattern makes - Simplicity 7642, View 2.

When I say squeeze, read a bit short hence the cotton lace trim which I had in my stash from a bric-a-brac market purchase a while back. This gave me a comfortable length. 

It was a lightweight cotton so for the first time I made a fully lined version which hangs really well,it is so smooth on the inside and neat around the neckline and armholes. It washes really well too. It has the look of a french cafe tablecloth but it works for me. I made the denim skirt with pockets too because that is the kind of skirt that pays you back in spades whether you are on holiday or at home.

I have some corking stuff to show you. Chat soon.

Clothkits 1979

I hope this post brings happy memories for some people, I know it will for one of my good friends. Two years ago I bought this vintage clothkit kit from ebay for £2.12. It caught my eye because my mum made me one of these dolls in 1979, I was born in 1973.I planned to make this one for one of my girls but then didn't get around to it. Now that big Sis is nine and shows promise on the sewing machine I thought she might like to make it for herself.

She loved it. First she took great joy in counting how many clothes she could make for the doll from this one piece of material that we worked out was 38 years old! She was fascinated with all the little details.

22nd January

She made the handbag first and then started on the doll. It has taken many months but she has persevered. She stuffed the arms and legs firmly with a chopstick.

26th January

28th January

Machine sewing around the arms and legs was easy for her as well as sewing around the head but even I grappled with trying to keep the stuffing in the body as I attached the legs.

5th February - The dress PART 1

I liked that she anticipated each item of clothing with relish. It has been a collection which she has looked forward to completing. A rare thing these days when children can binge on anything from films, to book box sets to cheap toys. It made me feel quite old fashioned and wholesome to have given her this experience - 'character building' I would call it.

12th Feb - The dress PART 2

I listened to a debate on the radio about how mixed race and ethnic minority families were still finding it hard to get dolls with different coloured skins and hair texture alongside main stream choices in shops rather than making a specialised search online. This radio feature reminded me of my little purchase I had tucked away in my craft stash. It seems astounding to me that this is still a difficult purchase for families in the UK in 2017.

16th March Dungarees
She made the dungarees but the blouse was a fiddle too far. Even I found it hard to manage such small seam allowances under the machine. 

24th April 2017 Blouse and Shorts
She took the doll and the dress (those were the ones she made fully) along with a stick puppet and her crochet teddy to get her Toymaker Brownie badge. She made a little poster of some of these photos with captions about how she made the items. How about that? 

All I have left now are the original instructions and packing invoice with the last piece of fabric from the sheet. I think I will make her a scrapbook page about her experience for her album.

PS. We had to make one tiny modification. It really bothered Big sis that she did not have a nose so I had to draw one on with fabric pen. It was nerve racking I can tell you. Can you imagine if she had made all of that over four months for me to ruin it with a wonky nose!

Any happy childhood memories stirred? 
Did someone ever make you something special?
 Jo xxxx