Menswear and Dandys: 19th century Tailored Suits as Inspiration

Tailored menswear from the 19th and early 20th centuries, is back in the public eye. The current dandy inspired revival may have developed in response to the Steam Punk trend and a few recent feature films that were costumed in 1800's silhouettes. It appears that traditional men's tailoring and accessories are having the biggest interest since the dandies of the 1960's.

One contribution this season is the exhibition at Rhode Island School of Design: "Artist/Rebel/Dandy: Men of Fashion" on view now through Sunday, August 18, 2013. The grandfather of contemporary men's tailoring, Beau Brummell (1778–1840), is a key figure in this trend. When I think of Brummell's style, I am reminded of another important exhibition "Fashioning Fashion: European Dress in Detail, 1700 - 1915" presented at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in the spring of 2009.

The photos posted here are of men's tailoring dating from this era, taken by me at the LACMA exhibit. The exhibition's selection was inspiring and it details what men wore then, and how those items were worn. This was an opportunity to study both the full silhouette and the closer view. Of equal importance are the accessories: hat, shirt, neck wear, shoes, stocking, gloves and cane. I have labeled each type of jacket so that the subtle differences in cut are made more obvious.

If you haven't seen the film "Beau Brummell: This Charming Man", you will want to watch the dressing scenes and see his layered wardrobe. This film gives us an inside view into how the excessively ornate apparel style of European gentlemen was changed forever to the more subtle dark tailored wools in the English tradition by Beau Brummell.

Rosie the Riveter: Vintage Inspiration

I love the 1940's working girl styles that are being revived: bib-front overalls, side button wide leg pants, little shirts with button fronts, and head scarves. These WWII style coveralls are a cute way to look casual and vintage.

It could be the success of "Land Girls", the BBC series that has been such fun to watch that started the trend. Or maybe it's just the overall popularity of the 1930's and 40's that has opened up a new fashion look.

A few bloggers have been instrumental in showing us how these women dressed. "Unsung Sewing Patterns" has a great feature on women's work wear. This blog is full of inspiring work clothes and other styles from the past, not just fashion trends, so explore it to find more great details in apparel. Another great blog, "The Vintage Traveler" has regular features on workwear and sporting apparel. This article on overalls has great images and information on how women have worn denim and sportswear in the past.

If all of this has gotten you wanting to try a sewing up your own denim overalls, you might want to start with this new vintage inspired sewing pattern over at Eva Dress Patterns. It's got alot of cute details like side buttons and a full bodice upper body (not a bib front).

There are some great photos from the WWII era from the Library of Congress showing women working in the aircraft factories. These show us clearly how these women coped with dressing for the job. One well known image shows a worker in yellow coveralls with button sides at work. It's an inspiring photo on many levels. A quick bit of research will also bring up the one-piece coveralls worn by women. The Library of Congress set of photos has images of these as well.

If you are a difficult fit and want to sew your own overalls, try starting with a pants pattern that has a natural waistline, then adding either a bib front or full-body bodice to the pant waistband. In researching old photos, it is easy to notice that the crotch seems deeper or lower than how we wear pants today. This type of fit allows for more movement and reach. A tighter pant can be restrictive when attached to a bodice.

Here are a few easy to find sewing patterns that can be 'hacked' into this WWII overall look. I found pants with a true waist and princess bodices that could make up the bodice. You will have to add the side button (or zip), pockets and shoulder straps. I would suggest making up the entire pant with waistband first, then sewing the completed bodice to that waistband after a fitting, that way it can be adjusted to be the most comfortable to wear.

Bodice (from dress patterns): Simplicity 8864, Kwik Sew 3783, and McCall's 6646

Pants/Trousers (with true waistband): Vogue, 2532 view C, Kwik Sew 3363


The image here is an Etsy 'treasury' that I composed from Etsy items. If you like any, just click on the image and it will take you to that listing (have fun)

Shopping for Fabric in Paris

Shopping ‘Fabric Alley’ in Paris

Paris may be the city of fashion, so where is the best place to find fabric? One neighborhood is crammed with fabric shops of all kinds and sizes, and that is the ‘Fabric Alley’ which lies at the foot of the Sacre Coeur.

Where: north of Boulevard de Rochechouart at the base of the hill up to Sacre Coeur.
How to Get There: From the Barbes Rochechouart Metro station (#4, magenta), walk across street to the “Tati” store, and start up the street to the left. At the second street, Clignancourt, turn right. The very next left, Rue de Livingstone, is "Fabric Alley" (this should be immediately apparent). The same street is also a main walk towards the bottom of the Sacre Coeur hill. This district is a great follow-up to a Saturday morning visit up to the flea market at Clingnancourt. Just hope on the metro heading back south and exit at the Barbes Rochechouart station.

Rather than list names of shops and addresses for you to check out, I think that it is more fun to explore this little district without trying to seek out a specific business. Each shop has it’s own merchandise selection, although you will find some repeats in stock selection. Some larger stores have several floors with differing textiles on each.

On any Saturday this area is busy with shoppers and tourists heading for the church on the hill. Most shops have tables of discounted fabrics out on the sidewalk, with better fabric inside. I also include here a few shots of store hours as posted on the windows.

If you are traveling with others, let them go on up to the Sacre Coeur. As you can see here, it's right there above the shops. They can enjoy the view while you take your time plundering the shops below. That way you will feel less guilty about making someone wait around on the curb for you while you spend too much time shopping inside.

Border Patterns: Fabric Designs with Style

Border patterns have been popular on skirts and dresses over the past decades. Using border prints is an easy-to-sew, quick way to add visual interest to a simple dress design. With careful planning, a basic dress design can become interesting and unique. This can be done by choosing a border design, then considering the placement of the fabric pattern on the dress.

The blue floral on white fabric in this sketch was cut with both the skirt hemline and upper bodice shoulders placed along the selvage edge. Placing a dense border at the hem and shoulder creates the 'ombre' effect where the pattern is deeper at the top and bottom of the dress, while the middle area is open and less dense in pattern or color.

To create this effect, look for a skirt pattern that is cut straight, like a very wide 'tube' that is then gathered or pleated. Don't attempt an "A" line or flared skirt since the straight hem edge will be difficult to work with.

The two dresses here show how great a simple bodice can become when the border pattern is placed running down the center front line. This is especially successful with embroidered yardage such as eyelet on linen and cottons, but printed border prints are nice on the bodice too.

Sewing patterns for most retro style 1950's through 1970's dresses with fitted bodices will work well using the center front border technique. Although these two tops have a center front closure (with cute covered buttons), it is possible to have the border design 'meet' down a front seam line instead.

From the late 60's or early 70's, this tomato red shirt dress is a great example of how a simple border pattern can create an interesting look. The border is repeated on the collar and cuffs to balance out the design. Below are several examples from the 70's of border patterns used on both long and knee length dresses. All of the fabrics below are jersey knits, available today through vintage sellers.

Now when you look at vintage or modern fabrics, be sure to look for border designs, they have so much to offer!

Mother-Daughter: Dressing Alike in the 50's

Mothers and daughters dressing alike? During the 1950s and 1960s, matching outfits were almost a national style. Sometimes these matching sets were purchased, but more often they were home sewn.

At a time when mothers at home could sew their own fashions, it was very common to see tiny versions worn by their daughters. The same goes for fathers and sons, but in a lesser way. For them, matching sport shirts crafted by mom were worn.

When looking for vintage, it's very rare today to find a matching set from this era for a child and their parent. What we are left with are family photos and advertisements, capturing the charm of dressing alike. This nautical themed set is from an advertisement for "Everglaze" fabric. The dresses shown are by "Yolanda" in Springmaid cottons.

Where to Find Fabric in London: Shopping for the best deals in town

Shopping for fabric in London can be a fun adventure. I like to buy fabric where I find the best selection and prices. This usually means that I need to look outside of the center of town, and wander around other neighborhoods where there are some great surprises to be found.

My first stop? Goldhawk Road. If you're like me, seeking an offbeat location and love fabric shopping, you’ll find the textile shops in Shephard’s Bush Market and along Goldhawk Road fun to go through. Although there are few large scale ‘main’ shops on Goldhawk Road, all of the shops seem to have unique merchandise and personalities. Top on the selection are costume fabrics: satins, tulle, sequins and all the rest. Clearly, today’s London crafter is sewing up party costumes by the dozens.

There are still many shops that do carry interesting fashion fabrics. I found a wide variety of textiles for both retro and current fashion trends. In one shop I even saw some passable copies of Liberty prints on good cottons. This district reminds me of the fabric stores in L.A.'s garment district, but on a very small scale, so keep an open mind and enjoy the hunt.



Once I have shopped Goldhawk, I like to take a long walk up the Shephard’s Bush open air market. There are vendors with trims, beads, buttons along with colorful saris and other random fabrics and sewing supplies. Some of the trims here are so unique that I've never seen anything like them before.

The other stalls on this 'road' offer imported merchandise for the recent middle eastern population.  It's wonderful to smell and see their exotic food stalls too. When I walk north through the market from Goldhawk Road, there is the Shepherd's Bush Market metro station at the other end.  Then it's time to hop on a train, to be on my way loaded with trims and other goodies.

To get there: Goldhawk Road and Shepherd's Bush Market stations
take the Hammersmith and City line (pink) to stations.
Exit: at Goldhawk the shops are on the right (east side) of this line.
at Shepherd's Bush the stalls run along the east side of the metro line.

Shephard's Bush Flea Market
Hours: Mon to Wed, Fri & Sat 9.30am-5pm; Thu 9.30am-1.30pm

It's difficult not to be enchanted by the fabrics at Liberty of London, but the steep prices may mean that you can't buy as much of the gorgeous fabric as you would like to. If that is the case, I found the selection at Shaukat and Company to be amazing. In fact, it was overwhelming to look at. While they don't offer a heavy discount, it is less expensive than shopping at Liberty. Shaukat is an easy walk from the Gloucester Road metro station through a sweet neighborhood. Shaukat offers pre-cut lengths and on the bolt yardage for the most selection. Their website gives a good idea of their selection and prices.

Shaukat and Company: http://www.shaukat.co.uk/
170-172 Old Brompton Road London SW5 0BA
Telephone: 0207 373 6927 / 373 8956
Facsimile: 0207 373 5516
Email: info@shaukat.co.uk

To get there: Gloucester Road station
take the Picadilly line (navy), Circle line (orange), or District line (green)
Exit: walk south to Old Brompton Road, turn right and walk to the shop.

I hope you have a fun time shopping for fabric in London--Let me know if you have other shops to add to this list!

50s Dress Fabrics: Embroidered Borders @ Prints

Sewing vintage or retro dress styles requires a great fabric to compliment the silhouette. I was lucky enough to find a collection of embroidered designer dress fabric from the 1950's in silk and cotton recently. This type of fabric is perfect for skirts with fullness and shape, such as the ones in these new Butterick patterns.

Embroidered fabric is also a wonderful texture to add to any dress design. When they have borders, try using this fabric alone in the skirt and pair it with a sold colored bodice. All-over patterns work well sewn up in the entire dress. If you are going to try making a 50s retro style dress, take a look at these vintage fabrics.



This gingham check border embroidery shows how border designs are also perfect for strapless bustiers and other horizontal necklines. This is a cute cotton fabric with white embroidery, it's so 50's!



It's always nice to find light weight prints from this era when you want to sew a fuller skirt or summer dress. The gorgeous large scale butterfly pattern here would be perfect in a wide or gathered skirt where the design could be seen. It is a cotton crepe that has a matte finish and a very light quality.

Find these fabrics now at Pintuck Sew, or click on the description below:

Yellow sheer cotton voile with white embroidered leafy border

Brown silk organza sheer with white all-over daisy design

Yellow cotton gingham with white embroidered daisy border

Purple sheer cotton voile with white embroidered leafy border

Blue butterfly all-over print on cotton georgette

New Retro Dress Patterns from Butterick: 5920 & 5930

Have you seen the latest retro dress patterns from Butterick?  I especially love Butterick 5920 and 5930 for sewing vintage fashion styles .   These two dresses have great details and nice vintage silhouettes. What is even more fun? The model for pattern #5930 is a real girl with curves, so we get a chance to see what it will look like on many of us out here who sew for ourselves.

When it comes to making alterations, I think that either bodice will modify easily without distorting the style.  Model #5920 is a very simple design with few pattern pieces.  The bodice is darted to fit, without sleeves or other details that might add more difficult details to the sewing process.  The skirt is 'A' line with a smooth back and gathers only in the front.  This is an easy skirt to modify into full gathers or other shapes.  This fitted bodice can be made to fit tight or loose, depending on your style.  I also think it would be adorable in a summer cotton such as gingham, cut short and sweet.

The princess seamlines in the bodice of #5930 will help to create a great fit, regardless of the body type.  The gored skirt has fullness in the hem without the bulk of gathers at the waistline and hips, so it should be a very flattering design to wear.

If you have an event this summer, these patterns could be what you are looking for!

Get to Know your Serger Machine

If you are learning to use a serger or overlock machine, you may be a bit overwhelmed.  Looking for help?
Try Serger Basics.  It's easy to read, concise and full of good tips on how to use this type of machine.

This pdf file is also great for the experienced serger user.  It has clear diagrams for trouble shooting tension adjustment so your stitches come out even.  For the novice, there is a clear drawing of the average serger (shown above) with each part clearly labeled.  If you use a serger, or plan to, I suggest that you print this pdf article, so you have something to refer to as you get started, or come across little questions when you sew.

This pdf article is part of a wide range of sewing instructions and tips by the University of Kentucky.  It's really an entire sewing textbook available at no cost online.

Serger Basics, Level I:  UK Cooperative Extension Service: University of Kentucky, College of Agriculture, written by Marjorie M. Baker, Extension Associate for Clothing and Textiles.  A full list of articles is available online.