It all started last fall when a student asked me if I was interested in 40 boxes of donated fabric. It may sound like heaven but, think about all the space that takes up. What am I going on about? It was heaven. I sorted through everything, prepared it for sale (I love finding homes for unused fabric) and then picked a few things just for myself. Inside this treasure trove was a collection of lovely coordinating silks, wools and rayons that had just the 1930’s look, I’m gaga for.

The first piece I made, used a gorgeous matte rayon in lavender with matching silk charmeuse accents at the neck and sleeve. The dress has a cowl neck, loose fitting silhouette, three quarter length sleeves with tie cuff details and an inserted flounce in the skirt. Both the cuff and inserted flounce have a pointed seam. There is also a belt, which was a significant style change from the 1920’s. I paired the dress with a brimmed straw hat and crocheted cream purse.

This is a sneak peak of part 2 in this capsule wardrobe. This gorgeous peach and lavender polk dot silk was also in the box along with the lavender rayon. I thought it was polyester at first sight, but then did a burn test and it’s definitely silk, which was a happy surprise. I paired this dress with a tilt hat, trimmed appropriately and a blush colored purse which was made during our Vintage sewing retreat. More on this ensemble later.

All of the accessories are interchangeable, which is thrilling. There are a few more pieces of fabric which coordinate with both of these - a gorgeous wool that would make a terrific cape and skirt as well as remnant pieces of the rayon and silk that could easily be turned into separates. We’ll see how that goes in the future. I also have a Regency era project that may take some of the wool and silks……

I sewed the dress using this pattern from Lady Marlow. It came in my size so there was no need for adjustments, that I can remember. I sewed this up back in February so I’m having a little memory loss on how it came together entirely.

I made a little video about how to sew pointy seams. This was also back when I could get a manicure. Ha Ha!

After seeing myself in a photograph I realized that the dress could use a little tailoring. Darts were added to the back and you can see how I did it in the video above.

It took a little digging to find all the photos for the making of this hat. I started this hat in 2018, apparently. This is how it came together:

• A friend gave me this hat that had belonged to here daughter.

• I removed the inside band which was just hand stitched in place.

• The hat was dampened and placed on a hat block to increase the depth of the crown.

• The crown was pinned in place and the hat was dried to keep the shape.

• I trimmed the shape of the brim to a 1920’s style.

• It was then thrown into a box because I had other things to work on

Fast forward two years:

• I took a lovely trip to Lacis and bought petersham and millinery wire for the brim and crown.

• After stitching millinery wire to the outside brim, the edge was covered with petersham and hand stitched in place on both sides.

• A hat band made from petersham was pinned and stitched in place by handon the inside crown.

Then:

• Pretty ribbon was criss crossed and pinned in place to create a pretty ribbon pattern along the crown of the hat.

• Said ribbon was hand stitched in place at intersections.

• A pink silk ribbon was placed around the crown and gathered at each section of purple ribbon.

Here you can see a bit more close up on the hat. It really came together quite well and I LOVE it!. I have this box with wayward hat and millinery supplies hanging out in the back room of my shop. It DOES pay off to keep this around and add to it now and then.

Here are the details of the lavender ensemble (another post will follow on the polka dot dress and velvet clutch):

• Dress Pattern - Vintage sewing pattern reproduction 1930s 30s dress sewing pattern afternoon tea dress - Lady Marlow Patterns on Etsy

• Original Hat - Gift

• Millinery Supplies & Cold Rayon Slip- Lacis

• Shoes - Trieste - Remix Vintage Shoes

• Stockings & Girdle - What Katie Did

• Purse - Vintage purchased at a yard sale in front of my mom’s house

There is a lot of HAND SEWING that goes into my work. If you are interested in learning more hand sewing techniques, we have an online hand sewing class coming up on Wednesday September 30th at 6pm PST. You can find out more about it by clicking here.

Until Next Time - Happy Sewing!

xo

Jennifer