Vintage Pattern Collection

Wow - yes I can image a garment a week would be a bit overwhelming - but how wonderful to be so absorbed in your hobby

I love the gamification of choosing which pattern to make next, and these are all so beautiful! the back of that lilac checkerboard dress is stunning!! As is the front actually!

Ooooh!!! These are brilliant!🤩

I've nearly finished the Babette boiler suit, which just needs a front zip. I'm still learning how to insert zips, and actually find it easier to hand sew them neatly than battle with my machine. This make wasn't in my plan for the year, but I had so much material left over from my 40's dress that I couldn't resist knocking something else up. I'd made it before but my first version looks like janitors overalls!

Having once again rolled a dice, fate has decreed I shall make another 1940's dress. Similar in look to my previous dress but different in construction, this one has lapped seams, a technique I only know about through reconstructing an American regency era gown. As this essentially means the seams will be top-stitched I think I'll make the whole dress using my oldest machine. The old girl is by far the most reliable for neatness and straight lines!

So I've made up the toile of my next 40s dress...but I'm not sure what I think of it. I've manged to size it correctly for myself, but there's something about the triangle piece beneath the bust that is jarring. I think my mind automatically expects it to curve in line with the shape of the bust, whereas it's sort of just slapped on the front irregardless of shape. A lot of 40s dresses use this triangle element but I think they are normally smaller and more subtle.

I'm wondering whether to adjust it to suit how I think it should look, or just make it as per the design to keep it authentic..?

I went off plan again and made a 1950s dress (from Butterick, B6889).

I'd made the toile just over a year ago but never bothered to make it properly. As I had plenty of fabric left from the previous dress I thought I'd give it a go.

It's funny, I corrected a couple of mistakes made at the toile stage, but managed to make some new ones too! The hem is badly misaligned, the top stitching is wobbly (I blame my modern machine, I really do), and there's a raw bit of material under the arm hole that I couldn't turn in or disguise. And somehow the colour looks dull compared to the other dress (I use filters on my photos to match what I'm seeing, otherwise this material photographs very red). But never mind, mistakes are lessons, and it's a perfectly wearable garment.

My next on plan dress will be a 1977 maxi dress...