History is riding on my back: not-quite-Me-Made-May blouse & skirt

Thanks for all the nice comments about my last handmade outfit post! ♥

If you haven't noticed, there hasn't been a peep on here about Me Made May. Here's the deal. I've wanted to participate in MMM for the two years and thought finally, I'm ready to do this challenge! But then the bathroom remodel came up, so it seemed a bit silly to dress in me-made clothing in the middle of a construction zone. Plus, we'll be in the UK for the last week of May which was going to make documenting the end of it difficult, anyway. Alas. At least I've been sneaking in some me-made here and there but it's kind of a bummer. I'll just have to to set the bar high for myself next year!

So today you get a sewn outfit post from a little bit ago (before I got new specs, which you haven't seen yet... tease!). It's yet another one based on patterns I've previously sewn. Because I'm trying to close some wardrobe gaps with me-made clothing, turning to patterns I've sewn before with success is an easy and fast way to fill it with staples I know I'll love. But the results still feel very different, so I'm not bored. (And hopefully you aren't, either!)

The skirt is New York Patterns 1730, a bias-cut pattern from the 1940s. Nothing fancy, not even pockets. Just a basic navy twill skirt. Something I really needed as evidenced by the fact that I've already worn in tons since finishing it a couple of weeks ago!

I sewed this pattern first last year, making a green (and equally plain) version. What I didn't remember when I pulled out the pattern is the hack-job I did last year with the pattern pieces. Good grief. I had modified the seam allowance for a lapped zipper (which needs at least a 5/8" seam allowance, not the 1/2" many of my vintage patterns use), but I did something like forget to add 1/8" to one side seam only. I needed to tidy things up, so in the process, I also removed 1" from the waistband for a better fit. And now my re-drafted pieces are just right. Yay for a perfect a-line skirt pattern!

I think I may need to stop sewing this pattern on the bias, though. I don't really think it's adding anything to a non-striped version of this skirt, so I think it would be fine on-grain. Kind of like Colette Ginger which can be cut either way... speaking of, maybe I'll give that pattern a whirl for a change of pace the next time I want an a-line skirt. Anyway, both times I've sewn this on the bias I've has issues with lining up the lapped zipper due to one or another piece stretching (I didn't remember that from last time until later, otherwise I would have tried to stay stitch the side seams). At the point I realized there was going to be a pucker at the top of my zipper, I had already ripped out the side seam once which resulted in distorting the length of one piece slightly, so I was concerned another time would cause more problems than it would fix. So I just left it.

For all of you who said during my jacket project that I'm so meticulous ... not always so, my friends! I'm a perfectionist in some places, but not in others. I'm still going to wear this skirt. A lot. What can I say. I'll probably wear it enough that I'll wear it out and need to sew another one, anyway. (How's that for rationalizing.)

By the way I do still plan on doing a tutorial on my take on a vintage seam binding hem for gored or a-line skirts/dresses (skirts that have fullness at the hem, i.e. not straight skirts). I'm hoping to do that in June. It takes a little time but it's almost fool-proof. I know because prior to using this method I did my hems using a lot of stupid hard ways that were equally time-consuming but not as effective!

The blouse is yet another McCall 4820 from 1942, are you tired of seeing this yet? Sorry! Really, after sewing this up three times, the only thing I have to talk about is the fabric, since I made no changes to this from the last one.

I used vintage cotton yardage I picked up at some point, and I barely had enough to squeeze out the blouse. To see if I could make it fit, I had to lay it out on the basement floor with all pieces doubled where needed—although I'm still in fear that employing this method will someday leave me with two left or two right fronts if I forget and flip over a piece the wrong way. (The stuff of my sewing nightmares. Please tell me you have them too?)

It had a similar texture and weave to feedsack, but it didn't have the telltale holes along the edge where it would have been seamed and was a little softer, so I'm not sure exactly what it was, other than very pretty.

Now here's the truth: it wasn't in 100% perfect condition. There were some manufacturing issues and blips and blobs, and the fabric felt a little worn after pre-washing (although maybe it was just softer).

I had to question myself why I'd sew a blouse with imperfect 50- or 60-year-old fabric. Would I do that with new fabric? No. So why would I do it with vintage fabric?

I'm really not sure I have a clear answer. But it's something I've been thinking about, as I've done this a couple of times now.

Vintage is just so special. Be it clothing, housewares, jewelry, books and accessories, or raw materials like fabric and buttons. I'm not telling you something you don't already know, of course, as many of you have your own love affair with vintage!

Vintage involves so many interesting layers. History, stories, memories, research and sleuthing, to name a few. When it's related to clothing it adds more to the mix. Wonderful shapes and styles, colors, patterns, textures. When it's recreating vintage with my own hands it adds even more layers. Slowing down and appreciating things. Connecting with a community, current and past. Having pride in my skills and joy in creating something with my own hands. Taking something I love (fabric, buttons, notions) and making it into something I love more (better than the sum of its parts).

A love of vintage often necessitates the nurturing and repair of delicate things (and they're only getting more delicate as the years go by). Anyone with more than a handful of vintage clothing or linens in their closet has probably repaired many things in their day, or bought previously-repaired pieces. And we proudly still wear or use those items as long as it's feasible. I guess in my own way, I've extended this to vintage raw materials, too.

So I sewed a blouse with imperfect vintage fabric that I fell in love with. I mean really, isn't that print fabulous? A beautiful bright blue and white floral on the perfect shade of tomato red. To me, it was something special. It was worth turning into something even better. And even with its faults, I decided it was worth it to me to use it as-is, in a garment no less.

What can I say, vintage patterned fabric is one of my favorite things. And it's kind of a magical, authentic combination when it's used to sew up a vintage pattern. I figure I'll try to find and use as much of it as I can while I still can... because that well is going to eventually run dry. Someday textiles that comes out of attics, closets and basements will either no longer be usable... or just plain won't exist any more.

Maybe this all means the blouse isn't perfect. Maybe it won't last as long as the first version sewn with modern fabric. But nothing will last forever, anyway! So I'll give it all the love I can and know that it was better for this wonderful fabric to see the light of day than sit on a shelf.

And when I wear it, I'll know yet another little piece of history is riding on my back. And I'll enjoy it as long as I can. :)

My 40s gray wool skirt & feedsack blouse

As I mentioned in my last post, while I'm in bathroom-land I'm going to catch you up on some of the things I sewed towards the end of winter and beginning of spring! I think after this post I still have three things (with a possible soon fourth) left to show you, one of which may even result in a mini tutorial when I come back up for air in June after our trip.

What can I say, sewing has really become a big deal for me in so many ways, especially this year. And speaking of which, if you haven't already you need to go read Rochelle's beautiful sewing manifesto, especially if you are new to sewing. I just love the online sewing community!

Anyway, today I'm sharing a gray wool skirt and feedsack blouse, both from 1940s patterns I've sewn up before.

(Oh and hello, welcome to my step-grandmother's hutch. Remember how I said my mom and step-dad drove it across country a few weeks ago? You'll be seeing lots more of it, for sure! And yes, I still 'squee' every time I look at it, thankyouverymuch.)

I finished this skirt and blouse back in—my goodness, I think the skirt was completed in January and the blouse in February. I actually wore this outfit (along with my Curlicute cardigan) to the Chicagoland Vintage Clothing, Jewelry and Textile Show at the end of February, so Liz and reader Molly and her friend are the only ones who've seen it!

In fact I actually bought these shoes at that show. Navy blue heels from the 1940s, and pretty comfy. Swoon!

The skirt is a second version of Simplicity 2211 from 1945 (the first was my diamonds skirt), using a nice gray wool, lined with poly lining. I usually don't bother lining skirts as I wear slips, but I'm starting to come around to the idea of doing it here and there. This was the first one I did before moving to the wonderfulness that is rayon bemberg lining. The skirt is a little big, because I sewed it before discovering I was wrong about my waist size (it was just after this and before my pinafore skirt that it dawned on me), but with the belt I can cinch it in slightly.

Due to a boneheaded cutting error, I ended up having to piece together the waistband, with a seam strategically placed at the side seam of the skirt. Due to said same boneheaded error, I also had to do that with the belt. But while a seam in a waistband isn't the end of the world, you really don't want to see that on a belt! So wide belt carriers were my answer to that. (I'd call them belt loops except they aren't very loop-like.)

The seam of the belt is hidden exactly behind the back right tab. Pretty sneaky, huh? Boy was there some math to get that just so.

I think the first time I noticed similar belt carriers outside of Western-wear was about 6 months ago, on a 30s-style skirt from Nabby's Vintage Life. I loved her skirt so much I pinned it for safe keeping. While I was trying to decide if similar belt carriers would look nice on my 40s gored skirt, I encountered this circa 1940 Hollywood pattern online, and that sealed the deal!

{Source: Vintage Patterns Wiki}

I created my own little pattern piece to sew them. I find for fiddly things, pressing is way easier with a cardboard template inside. You can see the difference it makes below!

The top of the tabs are machine-stitched to the waistband, but my mom had a great idea for how to attach the angled part of the tab to the skirt: since I hand pick-stitched the lapped zipper, she suggested I mirror that in the tabs and pick-stitch them, too. I love it!

I couldn't decide on a buckle for the self belt, so I used a blue plastic vintage one and just tacked it down in the back with contrasting thread. That way I can easily remove it and swap it to something different if I'd like down the road! In the meantime, it's a swell match with this blouse.

The blouse is my first button-down made from a vintage feedsack, sewn using McCall 4820 from 1942. Can you believe how vibrant the colors are??

Now seriously, it's been a goal of mine since I started to sew again in 2011 to be able to make myself feedsack blouses, but the yardage is really skimpy on them (we're talking around 37" x 46"). I knew it would be next to impossible unless I had a very slim-fitting pattern. But once I sewed up my inspired-by-Debi blouse with this pattern, I suspected it might be The One. And I was right! You don't know how excited that made me! I have at least three other feedsacks lined up to turn into blouses now. Hallesewinglujah.

To figure out the cutting layout, I had to cut out doubles of all pattern pieces that required two and open up pieces on the fold, just so I could see it all placed out on the fabric together. In the end I can get every piece but an under-collar on one feedsack! So the under-collar is just muslin.

I modified the pattern pieces to have a straight hem instead of the westkit-style hem in the original pattern, but that's it, so this pattern has now moved into tried-and-true territory. You'll soon be seeing a third version recently completed in vintage fabric, and I could easily make a dozen more... and likely will! What can I say, I like winning patterns.

While I never explicitly meant for this blouse to go with the gray skirt, I think they make quite a smart pair!

Along with the vintage feedsack fabric, I used vintage buttons from my stash that just happened to match perfectly.

Overall I'm quite happy with the skirt and the blouse, and have worn both several times in the last couple of months. Both are great everyday pieces for me. I guess a sewist can't ask for more than that!

My birthday wrap dress

Happy Birthday to me! :)

I wanted to finish up a sewing project in time for my birthday today! With my megaproject jacket complete, I was able to resume some regularly scheduled sewing. Which right now is all about filling in my spring and summer wardrobe!

I pulled a pattern out of my stash that I'd been wanting to sew forever. It's a 1962 McCall's pattern for a wrap dress. But some of you who collect vintage clothing may recognize this as basically a Swirl dress.

It's okay if you don't have any idea what a 'Swirl dress' is. I didn't either for a long time! I'd see bloggers referring to Swirl dresses and wondered if it was just a geographic-specific name for a wrap dress. Ha! Instead, Swirl was a brand name that started in the 1940s. By the 50s they were making tons of variations of a wrap house dress. I know that Fleur de Guerre is so well known for loving them that Heyday's wrap dress is named the Fleur after her (and dag nabbit, I can never seem to manage to get my hands on one when my size is in stock!). Original Swirl dresses are collectible and tend to be pretty expensive for a cotton frock.

Sometime in the last year or so I picked up the pattern above in the hopes of making my own Swirl. It's such a perfect pattern to jump off from! I'm envisioning different necklines, different pockets, different skirts, all with the signature overlapping back and tie front. Brilliant. Seriously, I think I've planned about 5 in my head so far (and have bought fabric for 2 of them already). And all slightly different.

But the first one is my birthday dress!

I only made one major change. I don't wear many 60s styles, but the pattern definitely transcends decades (especially when worn without a flip hairdo like the envelope, ha ha). To help it along, I drafted skirt pieces from a 1946 dress pattern in my stash with a gathered (instead of pleated) skirt, a feature in a few of my 40s skirt patterns. Especially worn without a full crinoline, the dress definitely has an earlier look, I think.

When all was said and done, I think the left back piece was about 1/3 wider than the right piece, and 1/3 of the gathers fall to the right of the lap and 2/3 to the left (there was math and little sketches to get me to that point). According to the measured pattern pieces I had to add 1" of ease to the waist of the bodice since a 14 in 1940s McCall patterns has a bigger waist than my 1962 pattern, but it turns out I can cinch this in much tighter anyway (so some of my math was moot).

The fabric is cotton from in my stash, nothing particularly special but I bought it ages ago specifically to test drive this pattern (I knew even when I bought it that once I sewed it, I'd want to again and again). It's supposed to look like a repro of 1930s floursack fabric.

As I can finally see spring around the corner, the tiny floral print feels perfectly in season (even if the temperatures keep dipping back to winter periodically). After my Alma blouse and pink diamonds skirt I kind of swore off sewing with pink, but with this dress under my belt and pink appearing as an accent color in a future version of this dress, maybe I like pink more than I think I do. Hmmm!

It does go quite nicely with my new rose china, don't you think? A week ago my mom and step-dad drove across country to visit. They brought me my step-grandmother's Danish modern hutch and rose china, which you may have seen on Instagram and you'll definitely be hearing more about soon!

I now know why Swirl dresses were/are so popular. So comfy and cute. This would be pretty easy for a beginner sewist, too! There are facings (which are always a pain in the rump if you ask me), but only one buttonhole, with no other closures, and no sleeves to set in. And with the wrap style, it's a forgiving fit.

It closes with a simple vintage button at the back of the neck. On future versions, I'll probably handwork this buttonhole... just because!

The right tie slips through a hole in the left side. I edge stitched it per the pattern, but also reinforced my stitching a couple of times on the seam opening since it'll see a lot of action.

I lined the inside of the pockets with rayon bemberg leftover from my Sew for Victory jacket. In fact, I used the same lining technique I used on the jacket pockets. I just ordered more in fun colors!

The pockets do tend to stick out a bit (more in person than the photos show). I already made them smaller than the pattern, so I may tweak that even more in future versions. Since the only things I tend to put in pockets are my cell phone, a measuring tape or my hands, they don't need to be quite so big. But I do like them as-is, too.

(By the way, I did this photoset without my glasses, obviously. I've been toying with getting contacts again for the first time in years so I wanted to see what I thought but I don't know, I think I like glasses best.)

As I'm finally sewing regularly, I'm starting to think more about the things I do and don't wear in my wardrobe (vintage or handmade). Last summer was so hot that almost anything with a collar was out because the extra fabric on my skin made me crazy. Set-in sleeves weren't high on my list for the same reason. So the slightly scooped neckline and kimono sleeves are a great summer match up! Some kimono sleeves on vintage patterns have turned out too big for my narrow shoulders, but these are just perfect.

Right now it's definitely too cold to wear this outside, but with a cardigan I think it'll do just fine until summer!

I must admit: I'm completely smitten with wrap dresses now! And I think this one makes a perfect birthday present to myelf. Speaking of, this weekend Mel is taking me on a road trip to a state park along the Iowa/Illinois border so we can get some hiking in. A perfect gift if you ask me!

But wait, I have a birthday gift for you. The owners of Popina Swimwear are offering my readers 15% off after the giveaway. Use the coupon code 'tasha' when you check out!

Anyway, I apologize in advance if all you ever see me wear this summer are variations of this dress. What can I say, I'm in love!

Finished: inspired by Debi 1942 McCall blouse

I really owe Debi from My happy sewing place a big thank you for the inspiration for this blouse!

If you follow Debi's blog you'll already know she's embarked on a huge long-term project called the 1940 McCall project where she intends to make all the McCall patterns from 1940. What an exciting commitment! I've been very inspired by her posts about the early stages of the project so far and it led led me to think about my own sewing goals, which I'll talk about in a future post.

When I read about Debi's project, I went through my vintage sewing patterns to see if I had any McCall patterns from 1940 that she was missing that I could send her, but I discovered not only did I have very few McCall patterns period, none were from 1940. The closest I got was a blouse from 1942. I've been meaning to get over some reservations on sewing notched/convertible collar blouses, so inspired by Debi and her commitment to her McCall project, I decided there was no time like the present and this McCall pattern would be the one to try.

The pattern is McCall 4820. I sewed view B without pockets (though the pockets would be a great way to show off a vintage hankie). Isn't the envelope art great?

Now, I don't go in for "wearable muslins" usually. I either make a muslin or I don't. But this fabric begged to be a wearable muslin. I bought it over two years ago when I first toyed with garment sewing. I love novelty prints but no longer loved this one (though I still liked it okay), so I thought that would make it a good candidate to try out a notched collar blouse. It's a lightweight cotton voile from the Anna Maria Horner Little Folks line. As it happened I could not straighten the grain in this fabric to save my life, so I figured if it worked out great, and if it didn't, no big loss.

And more or less, it worked out! There's a few funny bits due to the grain issue, but nothing that makes it unwearable.

I think I conquered my fear of notched collars (with no back facing) with this one. They've been my theoretical nemesis in sewing for a long time, even though it's the style of blouse I wear the most! So that's really kind of plagued me.

I say "theoretical nemesis" as I've only sewn one blouse with a notched collar (two years ago) and it went together okay, but I never felt I full grasped how it's supposed to work, no matter how much I read about them. Which I did. A lot. Including this, this and this, along with several vintage resources. I still think it's hard to get the area where the shoulder line meets the edge of the front facing (and where you turn in the upper collar) to look nice, but now I'm over my worrying about it. Sometimes you just have to do it and get over it.

Question: are you supposed to press a collar open? The underlap side lays flat but the overlap side doesn't want to, and I was trying to decide if I could coax it flat by pressing. This is maybe a side effect of the aforementioned weird grain issue, but I wasn't sure since it's my first collar like this.

Now here's an awesome moment of sewing stupid: I didn't realize until I was taking photos of this blouse that I placed the back piece upside down. I KNOW. That after trying to match up the front pieces, even. If I didn't photograph it, I wonder how long it would have taken me to notice?

Even though I wasn't hugely keen on the westkit-style shaping at the bottom of the blouse (I prefer to tuck in my blouses), I went with it on the first pass at this pattern as I knew it would be easy to change the length and shape of the hem in the future. But trying to get a smooth hem up and around and back down the sides of the blouse was nearly impossible. Fortunately it lays more-or-less flat on my body even though it's a bit wobbly on the hanger.

The body is shaped with two long darts on the front and back and no bust darts. The front darts were new to me as they're cut out! It's kind of annoying to do them, actually, as the dart extends about two inches above the cut, so maneuvering that bit with my serger was kind of a guessing game.

The only thing I changed with the pattern is the sleeve head. The original pattern has a very classic 40s pleated/darted cap, but I've learned over time this style is just too severe for my narrow shoulders, be it fabric or knitted. Instead I went for a slightly puffed sleeve cap that's more flattering on me. Casey did a great post on demystifying sleeve ease if you'd like to learn how I did it. I think in the end this sleeve cap has about 2.5" more ease than the armhole. I might even add another inch in the future for slightly more puff.

When I was picking buttons from my stash I picked these blue-green ones, and thinking back 2+ years I believe I actually bought them to go with this fabric. I guess it was meant to be!

I have to say, it was such a pleasure to sew something that actually fit in the body and the shoulders right off the bat. I am definitely going to be looking for more vintage McCall patterns in my size! I also just discovered I'm a full dress size smaller than I was for years. I have no idea when that changed (I suspect prior to last summer, judging from the fit of things I sewed then) but it explains the feeling I've had for awhile that everything I own or have sewn is slightly too big. Kind of a weird feeling when you own a lot of vintage or one-of-a-kind clothes!

Anyway, here's a rare photo of me without my glasses, as they were glaring from this angle. You can almost tell I have blue eyes.

Other outfit details (that you can see)

catalin or other early plastic earrings: Practice in Time

1940s wool skirt: Retro Kitten Vintage

I'll definitely sew this blouse again. It's been a goal of mine for over a year to have a blouse pattern that I can turn to again and again, and this is it! In fact I've already traced off the pattern pieces and lengthened and straightened out the hem for future versions, and I'll be sewing another soon in vintage fabric. I can see many variations of this to fill lots of gaps in my wardrobe—what would you do to make it special?

Even though I'm still calling it a wearable muslin (hello crappy grain and upside down back), I'll definitely wear this cute lightweight blouse. I don't know why I had such a mental block on notched collar blouses. I think it was really holding back my sewing. No longer. I consider it a big triumph, since it led me to a pattern that I know will become a tried and true one for sure.

Thanks for the inspiration, Debi!