[ 40s swimsuit pattern and a swatch of the fabric. ]
I decided to document this sewing project a little more thoroughly than most recent ones. Partly because I love writing a good ol’ dress diary, and also because I think it might benefit other who are interested in sewing a 40s style swimsuit as well as myself (from the standpoint of feedback and ideas). This is also a project that isn’t a slapdash sort; in order to get a piece that I really would wear, I need to make sure I take my time to do “boring” things like muslins and checking the fitting (instead of *ahem* just winging it!). So be warned–this could get dry and a bit geeky, but I hope fellow seamstresses (and seamsters!) will enjoy!
[ swimsuit inspiration! Martha Vickers (left) and a young Marilyn Monroe (right). ]
The pattern is a mid 40s Simplicity two piece; I found it on Ebay by a pure stroke of luck–it was in the midst of a lot of otherwise mid 60s patterns! What drew me to it was the design of the bra top and my curiosity as to how the home seamstress would have been directed to construct a swimsuit in the 40s. There are few fabric specifications on the envelope, save facing the bra and trunks with jersey fabric. After some research on my own, I decided to go with a woven material for the outer shell of the suit, underline the bra and add bra cups to it for some extra support and shaping, and adjust the style of the trunks a bit. The fabric I chose is a blue, red and white cotton sateen with a blue jersey for the facing.
My initial muslin of the swimsuit (I did have to grade the pattern down, but it was basically the design as-is) was mixed. The bra top fit pretty much spot-on, but the trunks had some fitting issues. They were a smidge tight over the hips and bagged oddly at the crotch (not untypical of pants patterns from this era) and the hemline was not flattering at all on my chunky legs. Rather than sit there and muddle through fitting, I remembered I had a shorts pattern I drafted last spring that was almost exactly like the swimsuit trunks, just longer. So I whipped that out, made a few changes, and made a muslin. An easy fix–and potential frustration averted!
[ trunks with faux wrap version 1.0. ]
At this point I also decided to experiment a bit with doing some draping/faux wrap at the front of the trunks. This is a design feature I had seen on many images of 1940s swimsuits, and although I was a bit skeptical as to how it’d look on me, I wanted to give it a try. I made up one muslin (the one pictured in this post), but wasn’t happy with how it looked, so I went back to the drawing board (er… cutting mat in my case!) and made a wrap that was shaped similarly to the wrap front skirt in the pattern. I also adjusted the front leg opening on the shorts to angle upwards a bit more, under the wrap (as the inspiration photos show). That’s as far as I’ve gotten this week–I still need to stitch up the newly adjusted muslin to double check things and make a final decision on the wrap! Hopefully, I’ll squeeze in some time this weekend…
Have a lovely Friday, friends!
July 30, 2010 ·
28 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings,sewing
· tags: 2010 sewing, sewing
Gee, I haven’t done one of these posts in awhile, have I? If you follow my Tumblr blog, you may have noted that I’ve been posting quite a few pictures of Myrna Loy lately, which means I’m probably on a Thin Man kick too! Sailor Husband and I watched The Thin Man (the best of the bunch, imho) last Friday evening, and I remembered just how glamorous all of Myrna Loy’s costumes for the film were. In fact, this was one of the movies that got me started with tracking down vintage patterns with an eye to sew with them. It’s fun to watch the movie again and remember just how taken I was with the designs and possibilities of recreating vintage styles! I’ve pulled some of my favorite of Myrna Loy’s outfits, along with a few comments for this post–I hope you’ll enjoy! (All images can be clicked and enlarged!)
Myrna’s high, theatrical collar on her coat (and equally dramatic fur cuffs) was popular in the 30s, though usually not quite to this extreme I love her little hat! The 1930s, in my opinion, was really the height of interesting millinery.
My favorite gown in the entire film! I have always called this the “Candy Cane” dress; the swirling layers of bias cut stripes and ruffles are amazing. Take a close look at the cascading ruffles; the under layer’s stripes are going in the opposite direction, creating a subtle checked look Note the slightly empire waistline too.
So maybe this is my favorite piece in the film instead! I love the extremely dramatic and luxurious 30s take on a highly fantasized Medieval silhouette. Can you imagine lounging around in such glamor?
This is such an adorable, fun lounging ensemble. Pants for informal settings like in the home or at a resort were gaining popularity in the 30s as an option for women. These are obviously quite fantastic and Hollywood’s take on the look!
Mad for plaid! Don’t you just love how matchy Myrna’s outfit is? It’s a less severe option to the head-to-toe suit look, while still being trim.
A lovely, filmy lounging/lingerie ensemble. The robe has similar construction to a kimono; the sleeves are set in straight along the side seams.
Another favorite! Who doesn’t love how playful her outfit is here? The 30s really had a knack for creating a bit of whimsy in fashion, and Myrna’s outfit is a wink to that with the exaggerated elements like the ruffled jabot and cuffs. This is also another pants lounging outfit.
The 1930s specialized in evening gowns that looked like they were poured onto the wearer, thanks to the cling of bias and the amazing fabrics available to designers. This satin-finish dress always reminds me of an oil slick–albeit, a very glamorous one!
This is Myrna’s most restrained and what I would consider “normal” (not overly fantasized, as was the custom of most Hollywood designer’s at the time). It’s a cute plaid (again!) pajama and robe set; I love the little blouse because it looks like it could almost be worn as daywear!
Myrna’s wardrobe for this film was designed by the prolific Dolly Tree, who I was interested to find out also handled the costumes for several of my other favorite films like Wife vs. Secretary, Libeled Lady and After the Thin Man. Do you have a favorite designer from the Golden Age of Hollywood? I would have to say, mine is hands down Gilbert Adrian, if nothing else but for the witty costumes in The Women and The Philadelphia Story!
July 27, 2010 ·
24 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings,vintage inspiration
· tags: 1930s, film fashion, vintage inspiration
[ can't go wrong with polka dots--and I love the flower embellishments on the patch pockets. ]
Juniors styles were still a relatively new concept in the 1940s. The term “juniors” referencing a particular fashion size range and style offerings at a specific age-group, started showing up in the 1930s. Though the juniors market wouldn’t fully realize until the 50s (and continue gaining strength), manufacturers and retailers latched onto this demographic very quickly in the 40s as the buying power of American youth was realized. If you want to see some 40s juniors fashions in motion, be sure to check out films like “Since You Went Away” and “The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer”. (I’m sure there are many other films I’m forgetting–if you have suggestions, please feel free to comment!)
The 40s junior styles are some of my favorites–I love the pretty-girlish silhouettes and details; they have a more romantic flair to them, which appeals to me. In many ways they were just slightly different variations of what was available in the misses size range, but I find they tended to be a bit more lighthearted! I hope you’ll enjoy these scans from the 1944 Sears catalog–and the two pages of floral “adornments” that I threw in too!
[ pretty, summery dresses in checked gingham. ]
{ click here to continue reading this post }
July 26, 2010 ·
17 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings,vintage inspiration,vintage monday
· tags: 1940s, vintage inspiration
[ please click for the sources of these lovely images! ]
Hello, everyone! How has your weekend been? We swapped our outdoor plans for stayin’ cool in the air conditioning, as it got brutally hot yesterday (and I just don’t do well in the heat all day!). Instead I have been spending my weekend in some creative pursuits–namely taking apart a straw hat to salvage the straw braid. Remember my resolution for 2010 to learn hat making? I’m finally starting to get into gear with that, and am slowly acquiring all the tools necessary for making myself a little straw hat (I’m coveting one of those small, early 40s “tilt” hats!). Hopefully more about this in the coming weeks–I want to document the process thoroughly. But for now, I’ve still got my nose buried in books (namely From the Neck Up by Denise Dreher and several of the millinery books available online here) and going through all my inspiration images to decide on the style!
July 25, 2010 ·
6 lovely thoughts
posted in casey's musings,links
· tags: links, weekly inspiration
