This will stay

I'm changing my blogging habits but this blog will stay as is. It will return back to mostly edwardian periode but with a swift vivst to earlier or later times once in a while. My main blogg is changing too and I will tell you about it later on.

Perfect under 30's style

Today, we hardly line dresses or skirts at all. I was taught how to do that during the 70's and never stopped. But when I started my travel back in time when it comes to sewing vintage, I discovered that they used underwear instead, slippery slips. Not like the cotton ones they used in to the 1920's.
I searched the net to find a pattern that could pass for one from the 30's. First I found this one:

I had just about enough fabric for that one as you can see (2 yards 59 inch wide). But the 30's was almost all about bias. So this would fall into that era in my opinion. 

So I went for my second option:

I followed Vera's great tip and drew the pattern out in full so I could use just one layer of fabric. By doing this I had just enough fabric for this slip as well... and on the bias. True 30's.

The bias is much nicer to my body shape as well.

Front with blitz...

Side

Side/front

Front without blitz.

The pictures taken with the blitz on, show how shiny the frabric is. I do believe it's a poly satin... and not my biggest favourite. I added a small bow at the front to hide a not very well performed front seam. I might add and top stitch with lace at a later date when I have made up my mind and I have the right lace. I might even make a new slip out of pure silk. 

What you don't see is that I used a round hem.

Finally!

I don't know for how long I've been lokking for fabric like this. it's 100% cotton and in a twill weave. White and blue. 10 yards of it. Is it enough?

Not sure how far apart the stripes are in real life but it looks good in the picture.

I mean.. you see it and you know it, but will the picture in your head match up when you're actually holding the fabric in your hands? 

This is a beatiful and classy suit and it needs a tight fit to look good. I'm really tempted this time.  I can feel the motivation for going back to 1912 comming along.... just have to find a new home first ;)

Dress 4016 questions

Oh.. I'm a slow worker on this one :) Sorry about that.

Here I'm testing out my fabric colour on the drawing that came with the pattern. I think this is going to end well :)

As I was colouring the sketch of the dress I started to wonder about some lines in the drawing.

This is the cuff. Am I seing some piping here?

How about these bias band? Do they have some piping? How am I going to do that? Or am I?

There is no patern piece for the bottom part of the dress and that is fine with me. but what are the lines that I see? You have to keep in mind that there are no instructions to this pattern and no one of the other mmakers of this dress have stumbled upon these quiestions. I haven't seen any :)

Never the less I have printed the pattern, made some alterations (added inches) and am ready to go for it.....

And...ta da... my second try for that 1930's swagger is finished. Looking good, hee ;)

1930's....

After I made this outfit, I wanted to make more....

Found this picture on the net and wanted to make something similar....

I really hate seflies......

Then I need something else.... the pattern for this swagger is a size 12 (too small for me) so I have to adjust quite a lot. I'm also using a different kind of yarn..... well... everything is different from the original..

A good looking Miss Marple... don't you think?

Progress.....

..... but perhaps not what you expected to find :)

The reticule...

Back of the dress.....

Not the usual way to do things if you look at todays reconstructed patterns, but this is a methode used by  the seamestress of the time.....

Now I need the accurate underthings to make a perfect picture :)

Not quite Edwardian

There is a celebration going on all year this year in Norway. It's 200 years since we got our national Constitution. The reason we are celebrating 17th of May each year. 

 So I'm making a full regency outfit......just for the fun of doing so.

This hat is made of a velvet curtain that I bought for 3 US $. I reused some part of the strawhat I used for my Edwardian hat that I remade.

I have to do it right from inside to the outside. These are my short stays.

This is the sheer fabric for my dress.

This is one of the ideas I'm playing with.

I'm having some problems with the collar of my Edwardian brown dress.  Am not pleased with the embroidery and plan to make it over and not quite like what I've seen others do. Stay tuned for that as well :D

Look what I got!

This was in my mail box today. Not a surprise really since I knew I had ordered it.

 A corset kit........ (exciting)

Look at the beautiful wrapping. I like that it is all in a box. Makes it a lot easier to keep on top of everything.

It's the Truly Victorian corset that I'm making this time. I already have two Edwardian ones so.... :) No, I'm not going to abandon my 1912 dresses and suit. They are way to beautiful for me to do that. But I really want a Natural Form outfit from the 1870's as well. They are really beautiful too. Help......I need a larger wardrobe! ;) 

Still here in 1912

It's about time I turn my attention back to these fabulous patterns. This dress E 4016 is next despite everything I might have planned earlier. 

This is the top layer, the collar with embroidery. I discovered that there was no easy overlap between the left and right side of the pattern. So as I marked the fabric I added a few circles to match up the pattern. I added a little to the size this way but I was aware of it as I had enlarged the pattern already. 

I'm using a thin chocolate brown linen and an unbleached muslin for the contrasting fabric and collar. These two are a tiny bit see through, but with all the underwear that was used at the time I see no problem with that. I think this dress is going to look great.........on me if I'm lucky :)

1930's suit again.......

........but this time with a new belt:

I used every piece I had left over from the blouse to make this new belt. This is how it was ment to be in the first place. This belt won't cut me in half and it will give me a more slender silhouette than the first option. Still need to find that buckle and make some wholes ;) Suitable for a Christening or a Christmas party, don't you think?

1930's Ladies two piece dress........

.....is finished.

Lets go back to the beginning.

I had these fabric in my closet for years, and I mean YEARS. At least 8 of them. About 2 yards of each fabric or 1 1/2 metre of each fabric. So when Vintage Pattern Lending Library asked for pattern testers once more, I knew I had to say yes to the challenge.
 

The pattern arrieved :)

I was quite happy to see that I had just enough fabric for the skirt and belt. No room for error here.

The tiny amount at the bottom left corner of the picture, were tossed. Too small for anything and not suitable in a quilt.

Here's the closure closed.........

.....and open. I went for the bigger snaps to make sure they will stay closed or open as I please and not as they please.

The side. It was really easy to make this skirt and I didn't have to make any alterations. Just sew it all together with a smaller seam allowance than the pattern asked for.

Front. English is not my native language and I would guess that this pattern will be bought by others not being native english speaking people. So.. a diagram showing just the front pleats might be a thing to consider.

Anyway, the skirt is finished and it fits me real well :D

And then it's time to make the blouse:

I didn't make any major alterations to the blouse. To make sure it would fir me I added a few inches from a B36 to a B40. In retrospect I wouldn't need to add as much to the arms as I did.

I read and learned a new way of making button wholes.

Maybe not as beautiful as they could have been since it was my first go at this, but I'm pleased after all :) So far so good.

Then there was the necline.I sure needed to read and read the instructions again and again until I got my head around this. A diagram for the neck part alone would have helped me a lot. There's no measurement given for the front neckline either. This might cause a problem with it being too long or too short.

I looked at the diagrams and read the txt over and over agai for the cuffs as well. They do have a pattern piece but no information about any button wholes. So I made mine without wholes and just used snaps with a suitable button on the right side of the cuffs. Works perfectly.

And here's the neckline done and topstitched as well. At this point I haven't hem stitched the lining.

Almost there.

Just about to add the buttons......

Ta da...

I'm really going to use this suit every chance I get. It suits me fine and I love the colours and the shape it gives me.

Bring on the next pattern......