August 20th, 2010
[ covering the buckram crown with braid. ]
I took a bit of a break over last weekend from stitching the braid to the buckram form. Between stitching tiring to my hands and constantly pricking my fingers on pins, my hands were sore and needed a rest! But I was back at it Tuesday evening (it’s great for keeping my hands busy while spending time with Sailor Husband watching Sherlock Holmes mysteries). I finished the covering of the upper and lower brim pieces, and only needed to tackle the crown. I decided to stitch the braid from the sideband up to the tip (top of the crown), rather than from the tip down. Mostly because I was having a hard time getting things centered just right as I started the coil and spiraling around towards the sideband.
[ the finished brim pieces. ]
While I was working on the crown, I also took the opportunity to adhere the upper and lower brim pieces together. The reason I had two brim pieces is so that the underside is also covered in the braid, rather than lined with fabric. If I had been working with a stiffer straw, I could have probably forgone the buckram foundation; but the softness of the paper braid required the buckram, which needed to be covered up! I used my trusty art-school supply, rubber cement, for gluing the sections together. I applied the rubber cement to the backside of each piece, let it get tacky, carefully glued them together, and the pieces are presently weighted underneath a stack of heavy books for 24 hours to dry flat. (I’m chafing at the bit to see what it’ll look like once it’s dry! Oh! How I am so bad at being patient… lol.)
[ for the super-geeky: the backside of the buckram brims prior to gluing. ]
I’m still working on the crown–it’s been a bit slow-going this week. But things are starting to shape up and I’m excited! I still need to find a source for the ribbon for the ties and possibly edging the brim (my sketch is included in this collage if you’d like to take a look again!). I want a really wide (3″ or so) ribbon for the tie, but I haven’t found anything that I like–I really don’t want to go with a synthetic since it tends to be so stiff! So I think that is one of my missions this weekend–source some suitable ribbon and finish the crown. Hopefully I’ll have a finished hat soon!!!
post link 
email me del.icio.us stumbleupon
Posted to: hatmaking. | 11 lovely thoughts
August 19th, 2010
[ 1942 full or 3/4 coat + 1930s Hollywood movie star suit ]
If you sew (or just appreciate) vintage patterns, you know you can never have too many sources to keep an eye out for that next great find. She’ll Make You Flip!, my newest sponsor, has an impressive selection of truly gorgeous vintage patterns for the seamstress or collector! Deb, the “curator” and owner of the shop told me that she’s “an accountant by day, and vintage fashion lover by night whose passion for vintage patterns can no longer be contained. The styles and the artwork of times past are so lovely and should not be hidden in the attic, so the mission at hand is to bring these previously-owned treasures back into the marketplace, where other sewists, artists and collectors can enjoy them.”
[ 1940s dress with draped hip, 1950s apron with transfers + 1960s sheath with detachable tunic ]
Deb stocks a wide variety of patterns from the 1920s forward, and also has a special shop section for Vogue patterns. So no matter what your favorite era, there is probably something for you! She is also very careful to account for the pattern pieces included and describe the pattern’s condition–something that I know I appreciate when purchasing an older, previously used pattern. She has graciously extended a lovely offer for you all! From now until September 30, 2010 take 15% off your purchase from the shop when you type “Casey” into the note section during checkout. So what are you waiting for? Be sure to go check out She’ll Make You Flip!
post link email me del.icio.us stumbleupon
Posted to: sponsor. | 4 lovely thoughts
August 18th, 2010
[ end-of-summer dress swap! ]
- vintage plaid dress: on loan from Quincy
- belt: made by me
- shoes: vintage 60s Town & Country, thrifted
- straw tote: Target
- parasol: Epcot
- earrings: mini Eiffel tower (!) earrings: teen store @ mall
- sunglasses: Urban Outfitters
So here is the little bit of excitement I hinted at! Last month my friend and fellow blogger Quincy contacted me with a fantastic proposal she had cooked up: a dress swap! I had never done one, so I jumped at the chance! We agreed to loan each other a dress from our closet and have fun shaking up our sleepy summer wardrobes (is it just me or do you get bored with the same old things by the end of a season?) and have some fun styling the pieces. Ironically without consulting each other much prior to sending the dresses, we ended up swapping garments that were from about the same era. Obviously, we had a bit of a telepathic dress connection going. lol.
[ outside a pizza parlor. oh! how I adore pizza! too bad it wasn't open... ]
[ catching a bit of shade. ]
The dress she chose is a beautiful plaid piece–since she knows my love of plaids! I’m utterly in love with the colors (and am currently searching high and low for a plaid in a similar color way–I must make a similar dress!), the neckline shape (one of those late 50s styles that I never was sure about, but quite like how it looks now that I’ve worn it), and the trio of rhinestone buttons on the front. When I first pulled the dress out of the package, the blues and greens reminded me of shoes I already had in my closet–and to my delight went perfectly with the early 60s vintage floral pumps I had thrifted years ago (and wore to my wedding nearly two years ago!). Hooray for happy coincidences! Sailor Husband and I trekked to one of the older neighborhoods in the city this past weekend to get some good snapshots of the dress against a backdrop that wasn’t the same ol’ park bench and grassy area that I usually use for my outfit photos. (Also to check out a farmer’s market, hence the large straw tote!)
[ detail shots. ]
She also sweetly sent me a couple other goodies including the beautiful straw clutch in yesterday’s post (on loan!), a costume drama on dvd (I love watching long historic dramas!) and a book full of pictures of Claudette Colbert. This was definitely a ton of fun, and I’m so glad we did it. Thank you so much Quincy for loaning me this lovely dress–I have had so much fun wearing it!!!
[ loads more pictures here! ]
P.S. Thank you all so much for your comments about my circle skirt yesterday! I’m going to look into see if the copyright has expired on the booklet before I publish scans of the instructions. If it has, then expect something soon!
post link email me del.icio.us stumbleupon
Posted to: outfits. | 46 lovely thoughts
August 17th, 2010
[ my Monday, post-housecleaning outfit! ]
Sunday morning I woke up and decided I had to sew a circle skirt. It’d been on my to-sew list for some time, as one of those easy but fun little projects to do. I have several needlecraft booklets from the 50s that have instructions on how to make circle skirts, so all I had to do was pick one and some fabric, and get to it! I think circle skirts are probably one of the easiest styles one can make–besides perhaps the basic gathered skirt. It took me no time at all to whip this up (which is exactly what I was looking for in a spur-of-the-moment weekend project!), until I decided that I wanted to hand hem the entire thing. Bad idea–that took forever! lol.
[ added a couple useful pockets. ]
The fabric I used is a lovely denim-weight cotton print I picked up at Ikea last year (yes, it’s a home decor fabric. No, I don’t mind using home fabrics in apparel applications as long as the weight is appropriate!). I had originally bought it to make a pencil skirt with, but it works a lot better with this style. I also added two patch pockets (because what skirt is really useful without them?!), trimmed with some mini bobble-trim that I had in my stash. I really adore this trim; I had originally bought it to use on a blouse, which I think I may still use the last bit for! The only problem with the final skirt is that I need a petticoat with a bit more body! I got rid of my fullest net petticoat before I moved down here, and layering two of my less-than-full ones underneath just isn’t cutting it. lol.
[ booklet and pretty straw clutch I'm borrowing! ]
I think perhaps this project helped break me out of my sewing funk that I’ve been in. It’s really frustrating to have projects piling up, the siren call of sewing for an upcoming season, and not feel like sewing. As much as I wanted to sew, I think I mentally needed a break from it! Now I just need to get myself in gear and finish up that swimsuit!
[ definitely need a fuller petticoat! ]
Oh, and see that gorgeous little straw envelope clutch in the photos? It’s not actually mine, but something I’ve been loaned to use for a bit! I’m utterly in love with it right now and am stalking Ebay and Etsy for a suitable version to acquire for my own closet. But, that’s part of an exciting little project that a fellow blogger and I have been doing, which I’ll post about tomorrow!!!
Hope you’re having a lovely Tuesday!
post link email me del.icio.us stumbleupon
Posted to: outfits, sewing, vintage sewing. | 35 lovely thoughts
August 16th, 2010
We’re taking a bit of a break this week from the Sears catalog scans. I’ve been in the mood for autumn the past few days, so I pulled out one of the fall edition magazines from my collection and scanned a handful of things that are making me just even more anxious for cooler weather! lol. Between my sudden predilection this summer for knitting sweaters and scheming over what I want to sew and thrift for the fall, I can’t help but be a teeny bit discontent that there isn’t any end of summer in the immediate future. Oh well–maybe this will spur me to get out of my sewing funk and start working on some new things for my fall wardrobe–for when it is cool! Enjoy these scans from 1945!
I love these easy seperates that are still so classic today! I’m kicking myself for getting rid of a pleated plaid skirt I had… teaches me not to go wild with closet purges!
The fantastic Betty Hutton (wearing a suit designed by Edith Head)! (I love listening to her sing; I think this has to be my favorite of her songs… it always cracks me up!) I really love seeing the colors of the suit–the bright chartreuse suiting is quite fun!
>> continue reading fall inspiration from 1945
post link email me del.icio.us stumbleupon
Posted to: 1940s, vintage inspiration. | 14 lovely thoughts
