1920s Gown ala Downton Abbey Style

It's been a very, very long time since I've had any time to catch up with you!  I hope you have been well. I've been terribly preoccupied with a day job which no longer fit my needs, so I'm back with you, able to blog once more!  I'm very excited about the project that I am working on for a dear friend.

It's number 5941 from the Vintage Pattern Lending Library, a 1920's evening gown.  These patterns are tricky.  As stated in the materials enclosed in the pattern envelope, "the original instructions consist of two diagrams and eight lines of simple instruction".  Sewists contemporary to the era of the pattern would have needed little instruction for constructing and finishing this gown.  Included in the envelope is a tutorial for a muslin, but there are no instructions for a finished gown, so a lot is left to me.

I cut the pattern from the muslin material (a flat King sheet I got for a couple of dollars - great source of fabric for muslins when purchased cheaply at yard sales or flea markets) last week, and began construction yesterday.  This will not be a wearable muslin (alas) as I'll be using the deconstructed pieces as the final pattern - this one's for fitting only.  It's also helpful for identifying all the raw edges that will need some sort of finish. Here's what I've got so far!

The actual fabric I'll be using is gorgeous, with a lot more fluidity and drape than the sheet.  It's some lovely Sari silk, which I'll show you in the next post on this dress.

I also realized that I have not shown you my new sewing room!  For Yule this year, my husband had a room in the basement finished for me for sewing.  Here are two little peeks at a couple of the furnishings.  The first is a cabinet we found in the basement of the home when we moved in.  All cleaned up, it makes a great bookcase for many of my sewing and craft books.

Then, for pattern storage, we picked up this antique catalog from TOPS in Hudson Falls (my favorite second hand store, where estate finds are mixed in with new furniture - here's an earlier post about this wonderful business!).  I'll show you more, when the room is cleaned up a bit and more presentable!

I'm looking forward to sharing more on this gown project, the sewing room, and many other projects in the pipeline!  Thanks for stopping by!

Adorna's Patterns-Part I

I've been spending a lot of time with Adorna and her patterns over the past few days... as I mentioned, I'm using My Memories Suite™ scrapbooking software to organize and catalog them.  While Adorna (and her mother) seem to have had a serious penchant for shirtdresses, I am so excited and inspired by the collection. I'm trying to decide which to make first, though I've barely made a dent in the cataloging!

Here's a serious contender that I think would make a nice holiday party dress, made up in a nice satin, with a nice jacket or wrap.  It's a mailorder pattern from The News, dated late fifties by the metered postage.  I'm learning so much about dating these patterns by their postage markings even when there is no date on the postmark!  If you're interested in learning more about this, please visit here!

Here's another one I just love! I can see it made up in a lightweight wool. As we head into fall and winter, it looks warm and practical as well as stylish! It's a Marian Martin mailorder pattern from about the early fifties.

Another leading contender is the jacket from this pattern (though I like the dress as well). Again, heading into fall, all I can think about is warm and cozy! This is a forties pattern from the Hollywood Pattern line.

Which one do you like best?  Any suggestions on which one I should make first?  Ooh, and don't forget to enter my giveaway to win a free My Memories software suite, valued at $39.95.

Scrapbooking Software Giveaway!

If you're like me, you are interested in multiple other crafts besides sewing… but, if you're like me, sewing is your first love.  Recently, because of my wedding, I've been doing a lot of photo journaling and scrapbooking.  This used to mean getting out the glue, scissors and boxes of paper bits to incorporate into your design. It also used to mean spending tons of money on papers, embellishments, photo prints and albums. Not anymore! With today's digital scrapbooking options, you can have all of the fun with none of the mess, and very little expense.

But what does this have to do with sewing, you might ask.  Well, sewing is never far from my mind. Remember all those cool vintage patterns I got at the estate sale? I need a means of cataloging them so that I can minimize handling them unless I'm tracing them for use.  So, I used My Memories Suite™ to create scrapbook pages which I can use to organize and catalog my patterns.  When shopping, I can bring a printed page with me, rather than trying to jot notes in my unreadable chickenscratch, or bring the actual pattern envelope and risk damage to already fragile goods.

Best of all, this was so easy! I just scanned the pattern envelopes (something I'm still in the process of doing) and used the scans as pictures in my design. I added places to make notes. One about the pattern itself, and one to notes dates I made up the pattern, what fabric I used and the results.  I added some sewing clipart from my collection, and voila! I'm really excited about this because it helps me stay organized on several fronts.

This isn't the only application of digital scrapbooking software for the sewing room, I'm sure… I have another few project ideas up my sleeve! And, I'd like to share the software with you.  I'm giving away one free copy of the software right here.  Simply go to the My Memories site and look over all the scrapbooking kits. Come back here and leave me a comment, letting me know your favorite kit. I will select a winner at random on September 25th!  Good luck!

 

Also, how do you organize and track your patterns?  Especially the delicate ones? I'm always open to suggestions!