The 1940s Shamrock Dress

It's been a while since I posted something here on my blog. My family life kept me busy, and then the pandemic swept all over the world, things happened that we never ever would have imagined. Still, we have our own small lives, our troubles, our joys. I made some stuff, but I lost a bit my sewing motivation and was glad to discover knitting again. Health issues made me gain some weight, however I'm convinced I will get back to normal, just as life as such.

To say I was a bit late with my sewing for my son's First Communion would be a huge understatement. I was hoping too long the event would be postponed due to the pandemic. Then, as usual, I had to hurry. A lot. Two weeks for two outfits was a bit tight... Especially when you have two kids and a challenging teenage dog! Picking a project for myself usually is not a problem. Tons of patterns, tons of fabrics. But as my daughter is a little miss now, she needed something nice to wear too. But as she is not a small girl anymore and not yet a proper miss, it's not easy to find the right thing. Luckily she is growing a lot, also character-wise. (She's half a head shorter than me, and she's 12.) 

So this time no pink, no dress. Instead she was very excited when I showed  her the 1930s Wearing History Beach Pajama pattern - a pattern I adore myself as well! She picked a viscose (rayon) javanaise, and then it was a rather short knock-off. I have done a lot of shirring on baby and toddler clothing, no issue there, I only had to down-size the pattern. She also loves the Gertie wrap tops I made in various versions from Butterick 6285 for myself, and this too was a quick job after the down-grading was done. I usually don't double the top, but make it from a single layer only, which makes it less bulky for the summery versions and saves a considerable amount of fabric. Even though the both patterns represent two different eras, I think they make a lovely combination for a young girl not (yet) into vintage properly, but certainly outside the average frame. And I had one very happy girl. 

Having a soft spot for all things Irish (my son's name is Irish), I have been looking a long time for a lovely clover or  shamrock themed fabric that is not too childish. Shortly after Christmas until St Patrick's Day in March you find a lot of rather cheap, colourful or clumsy shamrock prints, but I wanted something more decent and "grown-up". A couple of weeks ago I found an online seller in my country I had not heard of before. Browsing through their site I came a cross this extraordinary viscose fabric with a clover print, Swiss made, and significantly reduced. It was just meant to be! (So far to my decision to reduce my stash.) I originally bought it with another project in mind, but when I had to chose the material for my dress, my husband suggested this would be perfect.

First I thought I would make the 1942 two-piece dress from Eva Dress Patterns, originally Du Barry 5510. But I know all too well that I probably would never wear the skirt separately with a different top, so I rather spontaneously turned the wrap blouse into the bodice of a wrap dress, combining it with the skirt part of Simplicity 1710 from 1946. I have gained a lot of weight during the last couple of months, due to the pandemic and the hormones, and wrap dresses are so forgiving and comfortable. No matter what size or shape you are! I always wanted to make this pattern, but I don't like bust darts that start at the waist line. I also took the fluttery sleeves from the Simplicity dress and changed the gathered skirt inset into a pleated one to match thew pleats on the shoulders. I will probably have to add a pressure stud on the skirt, as I almost had a Marilyn moment. In front of the church certainly not funny.

The fabric, as any other viscose javanaise or challis, was very challenging, certainly not for beginners, a nightmare to cut and sew, but is a dream to wear. And to my utter surprise, it doesn't wrinkle half as much as all my other viscose or rayon fabrics do! Yay to a domestic product in an outstanding quality at an unbeatable price! It has the soft and almost peachy touch of certain silks and a wonderful drape. Sadly the weather wasn't improving as I had hoped - this is probably the coldest April I can remember. Obviously I needed something to cover my bare arms. I looked at many of my patterns, and this Du Barry 5908 from 1944 was the most simple 40s jacket I could find. (Size 12 only - anybody else hates upgrading vintage patterns?) I wished I had a green fabric at hand, but the only matching material was a beige and rather bland noil silk* I had bought about 20 years ago in a fabric shop in Zurich that has closed down long ago. I think it was a colour I love back then. And I realised once again how much of a fabric hoarder I am. 

This unlined little number came together easily, but I should have shortened it by about one inch to end just at the waist line. Maybe later. The entire project had a lot of hand stitching (and some night-sifts) involved, all the hems on both garments are done manually. Luckily my husband was very helpful, and he knows now very well how to handle our laundry-machine. Instead of wrapping bands I added presser studs to the bodice, and I made a belt with a perfectly matching vintage bakelite belt buckle. The buckle was still on its original card, and it matches the focal bead on the bakelite necklace I was wearing, even though the other beads look bit darker. I'm happy I made some shoulder pads for the dress. I have rather square shoulders, and most garments fit quite nicely without them, but the the pads just add that tiny bit for a better fit.

The mid-century shamrock brooch is probably a bit too much, but I so wanted to wear it on that special day, honouring my son on this occasion. 

* Silk noil (sometimes also called bourette silk) is a fabric made from scraps and short threads left from the silk cocoon that are too short and uneven to be used on finer silk fabric. As it contains still a certain amount of the cocoon glue, it has sometimes a specific smell to it that doesn't wash out easily. Due to it's anti-inflammatory properties it was used for diapers and nursing pads for a long time only, considered to be too "crude" for the garment industry. It has a feel like cotton or linen, with a slightly nubby texture, but is extremely lovely to wear. Often it is mistakenly called "wild silk". A couple of years ago, it became available also in western countries, even though in India sarges have been made from this material for ages.

Beach Pajamas pattern: Wearing History

Fabric: Viscose javanaise from Buttinette

Wrap Top pattern: Butterick B 6285 by Gertie

Fabric: Viscose knit

Shamrock Dress pattern: Eva Dress 1942 Two Piece Dress (wrap blouse), Simplicity 1710, © 1946 (skirt, sleeves)

Dress fabric: Viscose fabric from Stoffwald

Jacket pattern: Du Barry 5908 © 1944

Jacket fabric: Silk noil from my stash, about 20 years old...

Bakelite belt buckle: Etsy

Bakelite necklace: Facebook

Shamrock Brooch: Facebook

Frida's Garden - My Birthday Skirt

It is quite normal for me that I get behind my schedule and planned things remain UFOs for quite some time. And sometimes I am so surprised to finish projects in time, that I forget to blog about them, even though I announced them boastfully.

And today - tadaaa - voilà, my finished "Happy Belated Birthday To Myself" skirt. It's basically so belated, that it was finished one month after my birthday - 3 years ago. Frida Kahlo, the Mexican painter and her artwork, are pictured in this fabric. She lived from 1907 to 1954, and her birthday was, what a coincidence, on July 6th - exactly the day when my skirt was finished and worn for the first time out. But as tomorrow is my birthday, this is, once again, a birthday skirt.

For once I didn't want to make a simple pleated skirt, even though it would have been suitable for a folk art inspired fabric. But I didn't want a too bulk skirt, and then I found this pattern in my stash and thought it would look nice. It's a 1949 Simplicity pattern, 3033, it was still in fabric folds (exciting!) and it was quite easy to realise.

On my husband's advice I skipped the pockets. Today I wouldn't ask him, but back then I was still unsure weather it's yes or no to big pockets. Somehow I miss them, as I find myself all too often fiddling with the side seams in search of - obviously non-existing - pockets. Only trouble was - the construction of the waistband respectively the front pleats was somehow wrong. It was not possible at all to make it as described in the instruction sheet. I was wondering if I was too stupid to understand, if my English was not as good as I thought, if I just had misinterpreted something, but then I just realised that there certainly ARE patterns with errors or badly drawed, mismatching pieces. In the end, I just moved the front pleat folds and it worked.

There is also the pattern for the blouse included. I think the version with the huge collar would look nice made from a lightweight, white cotton fabric to be paired with the skirt.

I really love to wear this skirt, the colours are fantastic and great to add various solid tops. On these pictures I'm wearing a self made knit top. The pics are taken by my daughter.

Skirt pattern: Simplicity 3033 from 1949

Skirt fabric: Frida's Garden by Alexander Henry

Peasant top: self drafted, made from a cotton-spandex knit

Shoes: Moheda Toffeln from Sweden

Earrings: Splendette

Midsummer Holiday Wrap Dress

Summer is still in full swing here, and we suffered even more since my last post from the heatwave that seems to never end. Water is scarce now and there's danger of forest fires. We fortunately could spend our holiday in the mountains. We visited a friend of ours who is native from the Southeastern part of Switzerland, a small town named Poschiavo in the Italian speaking part of the Grisons (who is also a Swiss-German and Rhaeto-Romance speaking canton). We stayed in a small cabin in the mountains which is only used for the summer months. In winter, those houses are not accessible anymore due to snow. Also in summer, the road is not to everyones taste (and ability). They're single-lane, only partially paved, and the natives drive like maniacs (and so does my husband). There are a lot of hairpin turns, and on one side there's a steep slope, on the other rough rocks protruding into the road. This is nothing at all for the faint-hearted, or for people with weak nerves and fear of heights.

Der Sommer ist noch in vollem Gange hier, und wir leiden noch immer unter der nicht enden wollenden Hitze und der langanhaltenden Trockenheit, die vielerorts, selbst bei uns, zu Wasserknappheit und Waldbrandgefahr geführt hat. Wir sind soeben zurück aus den Ferien in den Bergen. Wir haben einen Freund im südöstlichsten Teil der Schweiz besucht, in der Nähe von Poschiavo, im italienischsprachigen Teil von Graubünden (einem Kanton wo man allerdings auch noch Schweizerdeutsch und vor allem Räto-Romanisch spricht). Wir wohnten in einer Hütte in den Bergen, die nur im Sommer benutzt wird. Im Winter sind diese Häuser wegen des Schnees unerreichbar. Auch in den Sommermonaten sind diese Strassen gewiss nicht nach jedermanns Geschmack (und Fahrkunst). Einspurig, oft nicht mal asphaltiert, und die Einheimischen fahren wie die Wilden (wie mein Göttergatte auch). Zahllose Haarnadelkurven, auf der einen Seite steil abfallende Hänge, auf der andern in die Strasse hineinragende Felsen. Das ist nichts für Zaghafte und Leute mit schwachen Nerven oder Höhenangst.

That's a nicer part of the road.

Traditionally, in late spring the farmers moved with their households and their livestock to those cabins to spend the warm summer months up there. Temperatures are much lower than down in the valley, the cattle could feed on the mountain meadows and produced more milk, people produced cheese for the winter months.

Traditionellerweise zogen die Bauern im späten Frühling mit ihren Haushalt und dem Vieh zu diesen Hütten, auf die Alp, um dort die Sommermonate zu verbringen. Die Temperaturen sind viel tiefer als unten im Tal, das Vieh konnte auf den Bergweiden grasen und produzierte mehr Milch, aus der Käse für den Winter gemacht wurde.

Our friend's cabin was a newer one that was built about 50 years ago for holiday only, but the concept was the same: temperatures in the valley can easily reach 30° Celsius and more, but in the mountains it's a kindly climate. There's not much convenience, solar electricity and cold water only, no fridge (more to that later), and for the shower we needed to heat the water with a stove. No TV. However, life is much slower up there. So you too slow down, and it's good to go back to a very simple life. You realise that food prepared with a wood-fired cooker is much tastier. Or is it the clean air up there?

"Unser" Häuschen war neuer und eigentlich für Ferien gebaut worden, doch das Konzept war das gleiche: die Temperaturen erreichen im Tal nicht selten 30° C und mehr, doch dort oben ist es angenehm. Es gibt nicht viel Komfort, nur Solarstrom und kaltes Wasser, kein Kühlschrank (dazu mehr später), und für die warme Dusche musste man zuerst mit Feuer den Boiler erhitzen. Kein Fernseher. Das Leben dort oben ist viel langsamer, ruhiger, und es tut gut mal ganz einfach zu leben. Man merkt sehr bald, dass Essen vom feuerbetriebenen Herd besser schmeckt. Oder liegt es bloss an der klaren Bergluft?

Lago Bianco on the Bernina Pass

We spent some wonderful days, the kids enjoyed it as much as we did. We sat outside in the cool evening air, reading until there was too little light, then we played games (in company of a good Gin and Tonic). As we had no fridge, we had no ice, but we stored the bottles in a well that was fed by fresh mountain water, so it was very cool. And it was so silent. No traffic noise, no planes (I'm living near Zurich airport...), only the rushing river down in the valley and the sound of the wind in the nearby wood.

Wir verbrachten wunderbare Tage, die Kinder genossen es ebenso wie wir. Abends sassen wir lesend draussen bis das Licht zu schlecht zum Lesen wurde, danach spielten wir mit unsern Freunden "Eile mit Weile" mit einem guten Gin Tonic. Wir hatten zwar keinen Kühlschrank für das Eis, aber die Flaschen lagerten wir im Brunnen vor dem Haus, der von kalten Bergwasser gespeist wird. Wir genossen die Stille. Kein Verkehrslärm, keine Flugzeuge (ich wohne in der Nähe des Flughafens...), nur das Rauschen des Flusses im Tal unten oder des Windes im nahegelegenen Wald.

Late afternoon sun

But what do you wear? Well, life is simple there, so you don't take your best dresses with you. I brought two skirts with me and some tops, chambray trousers I made especially for this trip (but I didn't wear them). Shortly before midsummer I made a dress, but never finished it because it was too hot and I was bored when I realised I had to undo part of the bodice for some minor adjustments. So I made an effort and finally finished it to take it with me.

Doch was trägt man so in den Bergen? Nun, einfach muss es sein, so nimmt man am besten nicht die besten Kleider mit. Röcke und Oberteile sind prima, ich hatte auch noch ein paar Chambray-Hosen genäht die ich dann doch nicht trug. Kurz vor Mittsommer hatte ich ein Kleid gemacht, das aber nicht ganz fertig geworden war, weil es zu heiss war und ich verärgert darüber war, dass ich das Oberteil für ein paar Anpassungen nochmals hätte auftrennen müssen. So machte ich es noch fertig und packte es ebenfalls ein.

I was very inspired by this pattern,  Simplicity 2158, too. It's a housedress, but who says I cannot wear a dress like that outside the house? (In my previous post I showed you a skirt I made after the same pattern.) I had a terrific true vintage 1940s seersucker fabric in my stash. Quite narrow, as usual, but very long. I was not sure if the fabric would be a good choice for the pattern, and it actually turned out to be not the best. The pattern requires gathers on the wrap front, and gathered seersucker looks bulky and not figure-friendly. So I made darts.
I didn't add any bias trimming along the edges, as the dress would really have looked like an apron....

My pattern was for a size 12 and maybe I enlarged to a bit too much, so there might be a bit too much fabric around the armholes and the bust, but as it is a summer dress, it offers much comfort like that and it was very easy to wear, even when we travelled back. Seersucker is a great fabric for garments you put in your suitcase, as they don't wrinkle easily.

Ich war sehr inspiriert von diesem Schnitt, Simplicity 2158. Eigentlich ist es ein Hauskleid, doch wer sagt denn, dass ich es nicht auch ausserhalb des Hauses tragen kann? (In meinem vorherigen Beitrag habe ih Euch einen Rock gezeigt, den ich nach eben diesem Schnitt gemacht hatte.) Ich hatte ausserdem diesen tollen Seersucker aus den 1940ern, wie immer etwas schmal, dafür in ausreichender Länge. Ich war nicht sicher ob der Stoff eine gute Wahl für den Schnitt sein würde, und tatsächlich war es nicht die beste. Der Schnitt verlangt Raffungen im vorderen gewickelten Rockteil, doch geraffter Seersucker sieht unförmig aus und nicht besonders figurfreundlich. So machte ich kurzerhand Abnäher draus.
Auf eine Einfassung aus Schrägband habe ich verzichtet, das Kleid hätte zu sehr wie eine Schürze ausgesehen.

Mein Schnitt kam in Grösse 12, und vermutlich habe ich ihn etwas zu sehr vergrössert, so dass die Oberweite ein klein wenig zu "blusig" ausfällt, was aber bei einem sommerlichen Kleid nicht weiter tragisch ist. Das Kleid ist sehr bequem, auch zum Reisen. Seersucker ist ausserdem praktisch für Kleidungsstücke, die in den Koffer gepackt werden, da er nicht stark knittert.
Wie alle Wickelkleider ist es bequem zu tragen und praktischerweise in der Weite etwas variabel (gut wenn man in den Ferien etwas zunimmt...) 

This is my "Midsummer Dress", as it actually was made at that time of year, and as the colors ar pretty much the same as the colourful Scandinavian houses I had seen on a travel I made many years ago.

On some pictures I'm standing in front of a "grotto". These are very old buildings made from stone. The thick walls keep milk and cheese cool - and that's how they are still used. Sorry for the bad quality of some pictures, they were token with my husband's phone...

Warning: wrap dresses are NOT recommended for swinging...

One of our wonderful native friends, expert in local cuisine. She prepared mostly all our food.

Ich nenne diese Kleid mein Mittsommer-Kleid, da es eigentlich um die Zeit entstanden ist, und weil mich die Farben ganz stark an die bunt gestrichenen Holzhäuser in Skandinavien erinnert, wie ich sie in jüngeren Jahren auf einer Reise gesehen hatte. 

Auf einigen Bildern stehe ich vor einem "crot", wie das im Dialekt heisst, auf Italienisch "Grotto". Es handelt sich dabei um sehr alte Kühlgebäude aus meterdicken Trockensteinmauern. Darin bewahrte man in den Sommermonaten Milch und Käse auf, und noch heute werden sie für die Lagerung von Lebensmitteln benutzt. Die Photos sind teilweise sehr schlecht, da sie mit dem Handy meines Mannes gemacht wurden...


This project counts as 3rd contribution to my Vintage Pattern Pledge, using a pattern and a fabric from my stash.

Pattern: Simplicity 2158, 1940s, bought from Etsy
Fabric: Vintage printed seersucker fabric, from my stash (bought on Etsy)
Ear studs: Vintage style carved roses from Charcoal Design on Etsy
Brooch: Vintage sweetheart pin, embellished with a red faceted Czech glass heart by me
Shoes: Remix

It's Summer!

The past two weeks we had incredibly high temperatures in Switzerland. I don't remember such  heatwave. It's not only hot, it's also humid. It was usually around 35° C or 95° F. And mind you, people normally have no air condition in their homes, as it is that hot by way of exception. At least we can't complain about bad weather and a rainy summer so far.

Die vergangenen zwei Wochen hatten enorm hohe Temperaturen in der Schweiz. Ich erinnere mich nicht an eine solche Hitzewelle. Es war fats immer um die 35° C, und normalerweise haben wir keine Klimaanlagen in Wohnhäusern. Zu allem Übel war es ja auch schwül. Naja, es soll sich niemand über einen miserablen Sommer beklagen...

Yes, it's summer indeed - silly me, as usual... :-)

But what do you wear? Summer is about bright colours, flowers and fruits, lightweight cotton fabrics. Scouring my wardrobe for something to wear, I suddenly remembered a fabric I once bought - 15 years ago. I originally had planned to make a tablecloth, and I also had a coordinate fabric to make placemats. I found the fabric. As - you are right - I never made that tablecloth nor the matching placemats. Sometimes it's good to be a fabric hoarder.

Doch was anziehen? Der Sommer verlangt geradezu nach fröhlichen Farben, Blumen und Früchten, leichten Baumwollstoffen. Beim Durchkämmen meines Schrankes fiel mir plötzlich ein Stoff ein, den ich vor gut 15 Jahren al gekauft hatte, um Tischwäsche zu nähen. Ich fand den Stoff. Denn - richtig - ich hatte es nie geschafft, die Tischdecke und die passenden Sets dazu zu nähen. Manchmal ist es aber doch gut, Stoffhorterin zu sein.

The material is not at all what you expect from a tablecloth, not quite medium weight cotton, densely woven, printed with sky blue stripes, apricots and cherries.

Das Material ist zwar nicht so wirklich was man von Tischwäsche erwartet, eher leicht, dafür dicht gewoben, bedruckt mit himmelblauen Streifen, Aprikosen und Kirschen.

I already used this pattern - Simplicity 2158 - for a dress (not quite finished yet) and a wrap skirt (will blog about it later). I love the rather plain back skirt that has the 40s A-line, but the gathered front that adds some width. As I wanted to have a skirt with  button placket, and as I didn't have quite enough material (remember? it was intended to make placements, not a skirt...), I altered the pattern. As I don't like gathers on skirts too much, I made some small pleats.

Als Schnitt nahm ich Simplicity 2158 aus den 40ern, den ich bereits schon für ein (noch nicht ganz fertiges) Kleid und einen Wickelrock verwendet habe, über den ich später noch berichten werde. Ich mag den eher schlichten, a-förmigen Rückenteil des Rockes und die gefältelte Vorderseite, die mehr Weite verschafft. Zudem wollte ich eine Knopfleiste. Weil ich ohnehin nicht genug Stoff hatte (Ihr erinnert Euch, Tischsets, kein Rock...), musste ich den Schnitt erheblich ändern. Zudem mag ich Falten lieber als Einkräuselungen.

I had to patch the material for the button placket and the waist band - there was not enough material. But you really have to look extremely hard to see the seams where the pieces meet. It was a rather quick project and I'm more or less pleased with it. It's a really breezy skirt.

Für die Knopfleiste und den Bund musste ich den Stoff zusammensetzen. Doch man muss echt gut schauen, um das zu sehen. Alles in allem ein eher unspektakuläres und schnelles Projekt, das mich ordentlich zufriedenstellt. Ein schön luftiger Rock, genau was ich wollte.

In the end I chose blue buttons, as I had these rather big vintage beauties in my stash. I'm totally in love with them!

Nach einigen Überlegungen entschied ich mich für diese eher grossen Vintage-Knöpfe in Himmelblau aus meinem Fundus. Ich bin total verliebt in sie, sie passen farblich perfekt!

It was a hot day again today. Not quite as hot as the first half of the week, but still... But it was slightly windy, so the heat was bearable. However, my hair looks fuzzy because of the wind, and the skirt is full of creases (I was sitting in the car for half an hour...) so don't look too closely.

Heute war es wieder sehr heiss, zum Glück aber wehte immer ein wenig ein lauer Wind... Das machte die Hitze erträglicher, doch dafür war mein Haar wieder total wirr und fusselig. Der Rock hätte auch noch gebügelt werden sollen, aber ich war noch einkaufen und sass eine halbe Stunde im Auto...

Somehow the skirt makes me feel like cooking jams. Apricots or cherries?

Irgendwie macht der Rock Lust auf Marmelade-Kochen. Aprikose oder Kirsche?

This project counts as 2nd contribution to my Vintage Pattern Pledge, using a pattern and a fabric from my stash.



Pattern: Simplicity 2158
Fabric: "Modern" Spanish cotton print from around the year 2000 from my stash
Buttons: Vintage from the 1940s (Etsy)
Peasant short: selfmade, last year
Shoes: Swedish clogs, Moheda Toffeln Topsy red
Plumeria hair accessories: Ebay
Plumeria ear clips: from a Spanish artist

Share In Style "Flowers" - Faux Flower Border Print (Swiss National Day Dress)

When I read that one of the upcoming editions of #bloggersharingstyle would be about flowers, I was most happy to join. One of the best themes! I love flowers, flower fabrics, flower jewelry - what else could you expect from a sewer that grows more than 100 different roses in her garden?

Als ich das Motto für das kommende "Share In Style" vernahm, war ich überglücklich. Blumen - das beste Thema! Ich liebe Blumen in jeder Form. Was sonst ist bei jemandem zu erwarten, wo über 100 verschiedene Rosen im Garten wachsen?

It's a fact that vintage fabrics in sufficient length are difficult to find in my country, and if you find them, some are in a poor condition or very expensive, or both, and you just get a sad rag for lots of money. Ever harder to come by are border print fabrics, of all fabrics that are most amazing to create lovely full vintage style skirts!

Vintage Stoffe sind schwierig zu finden. Viele sind in armseliger Verfassung, oder sehr teuer, oder  gleich beides, so dass man oft teure Lumpen kauft. Noch seltener zu finden sind Stoffe mit Bordüren-Drucken, die für Vintage-Mode und besonders schöne Sommer-Röcke hervorragend geeignet wären.

Recently I came across this lovely modern border print by Timeless Treasures featuring several borders of lovely red geraniums.

Dann stiess ich auf diesen schönen modernen Stoff…

Why not creating  my own border fabric? The colour range of the geranium print would make it easy. A solid black fabric to complete the "faux border" look should not be too difficult to find. 

If the mountain won't come to the prophet, the prophet must go to the mountain.

Weshalb nicht meinen eigenen Bordüren-Stoff kreieren? Mit einem schwarzen Uni-Stoff als Ergänzung?

Wenn der Berg nicht zum Propheten kommt….

So I cut two borders - the print is lengthwise, along the selvage - and stitched them to the solid black fabric. Black, however, is not always black. I mean it IS black, but in a different "nuance", as we say. So the two blacks were different, and I wanted to add some red piping between the two fabrics.

Ich schnitt zwei Bordüren-Streifen und plante, sie an schwarzen Stoff zu nähen. Aber Schwarz ist nicht immer Schwarz. Rotes Paspel-Band sollte Abhilfe schaffen!

.

However, I had to remove the cord from the piping - it made the skirt so stiff that it would have looked rather like an oversized teapot cozier than a skirt. Nonetheless, it looks nice like that as well. And it still makes the skirt a little bit fuller, even without petticoat!

Letztlich musste ich die Kordel des Paspelndes entfernen (was blieb war das "Schrägband") - es hätte den Rock unheimlich steif werden lassen und ich hätte darin wie ein überdimensionaler Teekannen-Wärmer ausgeschaut. Der Rock wirkt auch so noch relativ "voll", selbst ohne Petticoat.

I had ordered 1.5 yards, so the skirt is almost 3 yards wide in circumference. For the start I didn't want to use a particular skirt pattern. A pleated skirt is a pleated skirt. Just maths. And some sewing. But I was lucky: in my pattern collection there was a vintage pattern (Simplicity 1700 from 1956) for a pleated skirt that had, when upgraded to my size, exactly the same circumference as my skirt, therefore I knew more or less how deep the pleats should be. So less maths. Happy face.

Zuerst wollte ich aus den fast 3 Yards Rockumfang ohne Muster einen Faltenrock machen. Ist ja nicht so ein Ding. Dazu muss man nur rechnen können (was auf mich nicht wirklich zutrifft…). Und nähen. Doch dann fand ich dieses Muster, das meinen Massen insofern entsprach, dass ich nichts mehr rechnen musste, ausser ein paar Anpassungen, da mein Rock statt der einzelnen rückwärtigen Mittelnaht zwei Seitennähte hat. Aber immerhin ersparte ich mir etwas Rechnerei...

The only problem was that my skirt had two side seams, not a single back seam, so I had to re-arrange the pleats. They are pleated in two different "directions", so they meet in the middle back and front.

And I used a green zipper! I didn't have a black one, and I kind of loved the idea of having this secret colourful detail that is there, even though it's not visible and hidden in the pleats…

Mein Reissverschluss ist grün - das sieht natürlich wegen der Falten niemand, macht mir aber trotzdem Freude, so als "kleines spezielles Detail"...

I had still two borders left to make a matching top - making it a dress. I used this pattern here from one of my vintage sewing magazines from 1953:

Ich hatte noch zwei Bordüren-Streifen übrig, um ein passendes Top draus zu machen, und versuchte mich an einem Schnitt aus einem Modemagazin von 1953:

I chose the one with the square neckline, but made it without collar and added a  lining along the neck and front.

The magazine is missing its cover, but there are tons of the most amazing patterns in it!

Without collar it looks a dirndl style top. The red piping is definitely nice, but was a nightmare to sew. The overlapping fronts are closed with buttons. Vintage glass buttons! I was so happy I could use some of my treasures for this project. However, they are not my first choice, and when I was searching for my vintage red button earrings for the pictures, I found some more vintage black buttons that would have been a better choice. Maybe I will change them later. (Reminds me that buttons should not be stored with jewelry…)

Ohne Kargen sieht es ein wenig aus wie ein Dirndl-Oberteil. Das rote Paspelnd sieht zwar hübsch aus, war aber ein Alptraum zum Verarbeiten. Die überlappenden Vorderteile werden mit Knöpfen verschlossen. Mit Glas-Knöpfen aus den 1940ern! Ich war total happy, dass ich die aus meinem Fundus verabreden konnte, auch wenn sie von der Musterung her nicht so meine erste Wahl waren. Jedenfalls fand ich noch mehr, die gepasst hätten, als ich später meinen roten Ohrschmuck für die Fotoaufnahmen suchte. Vielleicht werde ich das später noch ändern. (Und ich muss mich unbedingt daran erinnern, dass ich Knöpfe definitiv NICHT mit meinem Vintage-Schmuck aufbewahren sollte….)

If you have a close look, you will probably notice that the fabric pattern of the front wrap  meets exactly with the pattern of the other front part. This was sheer coincidence, but I'm extremely proud of it.

And, oh, I made a matching red belt with a red vintage belt buckle! 

Das Muster der überlappenden Vorderteile ergänzt sich nahezu perfekt. Purer Zufall. Trotzdem bin ich stolz auf den Effekt. Auch ein blindes Huhn legt mal ein Ei. Oder so…

Und ein passender Gürtel dazu - selbst genäht mit einer Schliesse aus den 40ern oder 50ern!

My dress was ready to wear on August 1st - Swiss National Day!

Und das Kleid wurde genau zu unserm Nationalfeiertag fertig, dem 1. August!

Many people in Switzerland grow geraniums on their window benches and balconies in summer. Often smiled at and being mocked as "square" and typical for a rural and small-burgeois lifestyle, it is, at least for me, a must-have each summer. They bloom constantly and don't mind being without water for some days (perfect for me). 

In meinem Land haben viele Leute im Sommer Geranien vor den Fenstern oder auf Balkonen. Oft werden diese Blumen als etwas kleinkariert und spiessig angesehen, ich aber muss sie jeden Sommer um unser Haus herum haben. Sie blühen unermüdlich und nehmen es einem nicht übel, wenn sie mal ein paar Tage kein Wasser haben (wie praktisch für mich). 

I have a lovely red hat from the 1950s that is perfect for this outfit. The veil is still intact! And - best of all things - it is covered with lots of delicate silk flowers… Flowers on my dress, flowers on my hat…

Der hübsche Hut aus den 50ern passt prima zu meinem Kleid. Der Schleier ist noch vollständig intakt! Er ist besetzt mit ganz vielen zarten Seidenblumen… Ganz wie mein Kleid, blumenübersät.

I had also planned and cut a lovely vintage style purse from the rest of the border print fabric, but then the weather forecast changed quite drastically, so we had to take the pictures a day earlier than expected and the purse was not finished.

Eigentlich hatte ich noch eine passende Handtasche aus dem Geranien-Stoff in Arbeit, aber dann änderte sich das Wetter schnell und wir mussten unsern Foto-Termin rasch vorverlegen, so dass die Tasche unvollendet blieb (kommt später noch).

Skirt: me-made after Simplicity 1700
Top: me-made, pattern from a 1953 German sewing magazine
Fabric: Timeless Treasures, bought on Etsy
Belt: me-made with a vintage buckle (bought on Etsy)
Buttons: vintage, bought on Etsy
Earrings: vintage, bought on Etsy
Shoes: plateau sling-backs, bought about 8 years ago, but they are still in great shape and great to wear
Hat: vintage silky flower and veil hat from the 1950's, bought on Ebay
Sunglasses: vintage repro, no idea where from…

In case you didn't notice, I'm an avid Etsy-an. :-)