In this interview we explore the work of Lynn McMasters who is a historic milliner who has been making patterns for hats since 2000. Lynn has over 65 patterns and many “how-to” posts on her website - www.OutOfaPortrait.com . In the US and Europe you can find her patterns at several other websites and from in-person resellers that sell historical patterns and supplies. Her other passions besides hats are fans, purses and feathers.
Read moreMaking an 18th Century Bergere and Cap
It’s always exciting to get to the stage in the costume making where I get to make a coordinating hat. And this project was no exception. I decided on a Bergere, which is French for Shepherdess, because, well, Bo Peep! I jest. But really, I do love the whole 18th century shepherdess look. I really chose this style because it was very popular in the 18th Century and it is very pretty as well as easy to wear. The style is also the base hat for two hats in the American Duchess guide to 18th Century Dressmaking which is where I got my inspiration for my 18th Century Italian Gown.
Read moreCreating a Mini (Early) 1930's Capsule Wardrobe - Part 1
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.
Read moreSewing a 1940's Ensemble from head to toe - Brown & Yellow, who would have known?
Well, here we are in week six of our Shelter in Pace assignment. I’ve been very busy over the last few weeks, even though my teaching business has been minimized dramatically and I’ve taken on a whole new way of working. In the midst of this corona-crisis, my way of staying sane, is to sew. It’s really amazing how just focusing on a project, lifts my mood and makes me feel better.
Read moreSewing a Regency Gown and Bonnet
I hope this blog post entertains you and helps you think of pretty, if not somewhat silly things. We all need a little bit more of that right now.
My last post was about constructing a Poke Bonnet for a Regency Costume I had purchased. This is the sister post to that one, as the dress and bonnet, pictured here, were made so that my mother could have a costume for the Sanditon Screening at the Castro Theater.
Read moreMaking a Regency Poke Bonnet
In December I found out about a KQED movie premier of the BBC production of Sanditon, the previously unfinished book by Jane Austen. The event was posted on the Greater Bay Area Costumer’s Guild Facebook Discussion group and when I heard about it, I was thrilled. This meant I could wear the gorgeous Rust colored and pink trimmed dress that I bought from Jean Martin at the GBACG Bazaar. Apparently, this dress was used on the set of a BBC production at one point and even has a BBC label inside. I had finished mending it and adjusting the fit in November and needed the right occasion to wear it. The movie premier at the Castro Theater in San Francisco was the perfect venue to do just that. And as it turns out, a good portion of the movie has the characters walking outside, which is appropriate as this dress is a more of a walking dress. So I would fit right in.
Read moreCreating an 1830's Bonnet - Hat making is hard (but fun)- Who knew?
With my 1830’s gown complete, it was time to move on to the Bonnet. Well, that’s not entirely true. I started work on the bonnet while I was still working on the dress. A bonnet promised to be such a fun project I couldn’t wait to get started.
Read morePolka Dots Reimagined - My finished 1920's Polka Dot Sweater & Black Cloche Hat
I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to write this post! This project has been lingering for a while now. It wasn’t a particularly difficult project, but for some reason (probably all the little balls of yarn getting twisted up) I haven’t been as committed to getting it finished.
I was recently asked to be a judge for the vintage fashion contest, at the Alameda Vintage Fashion Faire this last weekend and I needed something to wear. Nothing like an event to get one motivated. With a week and a half to finish, I made it happen.
Read moreSewing a Miss Fisher Style Jacket with Vintage Chinese Silk
Today’s post is about a 1920’s Short Car Coat I finished just last week. The fabric for the jacket/coat has been in my stash for the last several years. I was planning on making it to go with the blouse and skirt I’m wearing in the photos, for Miss Fisher Con, which was almost 1 year ago (already?). It didn’t quite happen in the time I originally planned to make it, but an occasion came up and It seemed like a faster make than finishing a sweater, so off I went.
Read moreSewing a 1930's Blouse, Hat & Skirt
It’s been busy over here at The Sewing Room and finishing this ensemble took some time. I think the blouse was one of my longest running projects in quite sometime. Partially, because of other projects that got in the way and also because I did a LOT of hand finishing.
Read moreSewing a 1930's Fall Ensemble - Silk Blouse & Wool Trousers
It’s Fall here (finally) in Northern California and the trees are starting to turn. And by Fall I mean it’s gotten hot in the days (upper 70’s F) and cools off at night. Not quite jacket weather, in the daylight, but it feels good to dip into the fall colors.
Read moreCreating a Miss Fisher style hat by Upcycling a Vintage 1970's hat
This was a fun and quick upcycle to create a 1920's style cloche like the ones that Miss Fisher wears in the series, Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries. While not totally period correct, the style similar to some of the hats Phryne wears on the show, designed by Australian Milliner, Mandy Murphy.
Read moreSide Tracked from my Sewing Goals - 1930's Green & Peach Ensemble
Have you ever come across the perfect fabric that goes with another fabric you've been waiting to do something with? Well, this darling plaid came into my life and I just had a to make a new outfit around it. It's a synthetic Charmeuse, which is not a regular go-to for me. I much prefer silk. However, when I saw this plaid which was printed on the diagonal, it really screamed 1930's blouse, right at me! AND it matched perfectly with a beautiful green wool that's been waiting to be made into something for quite some time.
This outfit doesn't exactly fit into my "Miss Fisher Wardrobe" goals, but it does kind of echo some of silhouettes of the (Miss Fisher) era worn between 1928 - 1932, and definitely covers the "Colorful" way she dresses on a regular basis. The emerald green of the wool is one of my favorite colors and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to make this skirt, for which I had a pattern waiting in the wings. I've used this pattern twice before, once recently using a wool tweed and made slightly shorter. You can see the post for that skirt by clicking here.
Having more fabric than I needed for the skirt, my mind wandered into the world of accessories. I've been wanting to try out a couple different patterns - one for a 1930's hat and one for a clutch from a book that I had on my shelf. I found a small piece of velvet in a coordinating color (to the green) that I was able to use for both the hat and the clutch to give them each a little depth and contrast. The top piece of the hat, which makes the point is actually a circle that is gathered in 3 spots fitting into the circle of the next piece. The hat is comprised of 4 hat pieces (3 for the top and one for the side) and a hat band that finishes off the bottom edge. The pattern did not call for lining, but I added some because it gives some structure to the finished piece. I really like the very 1930's, whimsical nature of this silly little almost "beret".
For the clutch, I had originally planned to add a trim between the velvet and the wool, but got so excited to finish the bag, that I forgot. In the end, It's fine without the trim. I added a stone and filigree broach to give it some pizazz.
The Blouse was made from a Simplicity re-issue of a 1930's dress pattern, and shortened to blouse length at the hip. I used the version with a v-neck & 3/4 length puff (at the cuff) sleeves, that seemed to suit the fabric being used. It is a raglan sleeve made from what appears to be a kimono style shape, with a dart at the shoulder. If I do use this pattern again, I will re-shape the raglan armholes and side seams so it fits a bit better under the arm and around the bust. It does not hang perfectly in this area, which is my only disappointment with the whole project in general. No reason to complain overall.
Also, I added a little tab at the front neck so that I could loop a bow through it or hang a flower from it which is a very '30's detail. In the photo above you can see the flower I made by creating a long double sided triangle and gathering the bottom straight edge. Rolling the gathered edge and sewing it at the bottom, creates the rose-like shape. The fabric color pattern, serendipitously, arranged a black point at the center of the flower. The flower was finished off with a tab of it's own that snaps in place around the tab on the dress.
Here is the lineup of all the patterns used along with my accessories:
- Blouse - Simplicity 8247 reissue of a 1930's Dress
- Skirt - Vintage Pattern Lending Library - 1936 Ladies Skirt - #T1047 - re-sized to fit my body measurements
- Hat - Vintage Pattern Lending Library - 1930s Ladies Hat, Scarf & Gloves - #H2851
- Clutch - Making Vintage Accessories: 25 Original Sewing Projects Inspired by the 1920s-60s by Emma Brennan
- Shoes - Decobelles and Angels Shoes from Argentina - Style Leah
- Necklace - Hotcakes Design
- Scarf & Pin - both vintage and gifts from either a friend or my mom
- Belt - 1 1/2" wide vintage grosgrain ribbon and vintage green celluloid belt buckle. Buckle bought from VictorianButtons on Etsy
- Earrings - Feathered Outlaw Alameda
Until Next Time, Happy Sewing!
Jennifer
Miss Fisher Wardrobe: Antique Faire HATS to UPCYCLE & Trim
Last Saturday, I had planned a field trip to SF for some super vintage trim and ribbon shopping. As it turned out, time was short for everyone, and none of us could make it in the end. The silver lining turned out to be a trip to the Alameda Antique Faire on Sunday. Our main shopping stop on the field trip was to visit the showroom of Jennifer Osner who is a collector and dealer of antique textiles and ribbons. Guess what? She had a booth at the Antique Faire. This was so fantastic, because I REALLY wanted to knuckle down on my hats for the 2018 Miss Fisher Convention.
Read moreThe Making of a Hat - How I achieved my 1920's Miss Fisher Look
Having acquired all the materials - wool hat (a la Old Navy), millinery wire, ribbon aplenty and a beautiful feather rose, I was ready to make my hat for the Girl's Inc. Hat's off to Women Who Dare event. Yay! I love decorating hats and making them very special.....
Read moreThe Beginning of a Hat - a Visit to Lacis
Chuleenan Svetvilas in front of Lacis in Berkeley
After I interviewed Sewing Blogger and Hat Enthusiast, Chuleenan Svetvilas, I asked her if she would meet me at Lacis to help with some of my millinery choices. We met inside (where I as already busy picking out boning for my foundation garment) and then did the tour of the Millinery section.
Read moreHat's Off to Sewing Blogger Chuleenan Svetvilas of Csews.com
Chuleenan Svetvilas - photo by Portraits to the People
One of my Goals in my Vision for 2017 is making a Roaring 20's hat to wear to the "Hat's off" event which benefits Girl's Inc. With this in mind, I set out to talk to an expert, and the first person I thought of was the organizer of the Bay Area Sewist meet-up Group that I attend. In addition to facilitating our meet-up group she also runs the blog CSews and is a guest blogger for Britex Fabrics. She always wears such fabulous hats and I know that she makes some of them. Below is our conversation. I hope you find it as gripping as I did!
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