Wearing True Vintage: 1940s Embroidered Apron

Christmas preparations are in full swing, and I would like to sew a Christmas dress for me this year, so this is just a very short post about one of my recent Vintage acquisitions I was wearing for the first time last Saturday.

Ich stecke mitten in den Vorbereitungen für Weihnachten etc., und eigentlich möchte ich mir gerne für dieses Jahr noch ein Weihnachtskleid nähen, so wird es diesmal nur ein kurzer Post über eine neue Errungenschaft für meine Vintage-Ausstattung, die ich am Samstag zum ersten Mal getragen hatte.

I bought this wonderful 1940s apron from a Vintage group on FB from the wonderful and lovely Taylor Maid. She is what I would call a treasure hunter. She always has a wide range of all kind of garments and accessories she offers to her fellow vintage loving girls. When I saw the apron for the first time, I immediately fell in love, even though the embroidery had some yellow in it. (I always feel uncomfortable with that colour, no idea why.)

Diese wundervolle Schürze vermutlich aus den 1940ern fand ich in einer Vintage Gruppe auf FB bei der wunderbaren und liebenswerten Taylor Maid. Ich würde sie als Schätzchen-Jägerin bezeichnen, denn sie hat ein tolles Gespür beim Auftreiben von allerlei Kleidungsstücken und Accessoires, die sie teilweise an uns Gleichgesinnte weitergibt. Als ich die Schürze zum ersten Mal sah verliebte ich mich gleich in sie, obwohl die Stickerei ein wenig Gelb drin hat. (Irgendwie bereitet mir diese Farbe Unbehagen, ich kann es auch nicht erklären. Wir haben drum auch nur ganz wenige Rosen in unverfänglich moderaten Gelbtönen unserm Garten.)

Anyway, it took some time to decide weather I wanted to have the apron or not. But it was still in very good condition considering it's age, with only some minor issues. You could say the apron was not worn often.

Wie auch immer, es brauchte ein wenig Zeit, bis ich mich definitiv entschloss, die Schürze zu kaufen, obwohl ich sicher fast 2 Monate immer wieder schaute, ob sie noch da war. Sie ist in sehr guter Verfassung für ihr Alter, mit nur ein paar wenigen kleinen Macken. Und ganz bestimmt ist das Stück kaum getragen worden.

I feel very feminine when I put it on. Most modern aprons are not half as flattering as vintage ones, as these often have darts and are fitted for female shapes.

Man fühlt sich sehr weiblich, wenn man diese Schürze trägt. Moderne Exemplare sind ja eher unvorteilhaft,  während die alten wirklich auf Figur gearbeitet waren. Frau darf sich ja auch beim Kochen attraktiv fühlen.

I love the sweetheart-neckline and the set-in stripes of brown fabric running down the entire apron, they're very figure-friendly. And look at the embroidery! Well, I mean, I could do that actually, but it would take me ages. Even if the apron is not home-made, but a manufactural item, it's far more beautiful than commercial stuff rom today, and the details, material, and work are terrifically beautiful, after so many decades.

Die längs verlaufenden eingesetzten Streifen und den herzförmige Ausschnitt finde ich hinreissend, sie schmeicheln auch optisch der Figur. Und schaut Euch die tolle Stickerei an! Ich meine, ich könnte das auch, aber ich würde eine Ewigkeit dafür brauchen! Auch wenn diese Schürze nicht in Heimarbeit entstanden ist, sondern vermutlich Manufakturware, so ist sie noch immer viel hübscher als heutige Ware ab Stange. Details, Material und Verarbeitung sind auch nach so vielen Jahrzehnten um Welten besser!

I have some vintage apron patterns at home, and I decided to make some more lovely aprons. Especially when you have guests, it's a lovely staple to wear. You don't ruin your outfit and look still lovely!

Ich habe noch ein paar Vintage-Schnitte für Schürzen zu Hause, und ich habe beschlossen mir ein paar zu nähen. Besonders wenn man Gäste hat ist es gut, solche zu haben. Man verdreckt sich nicht die schönen Kleider und sieht dabei erst noch gut aus!

This is pretty much the same pattern as my apron!

Don't look at the bad pictures and my tense expression, we had guests and it was a bit embarrassing to pose for pictures. (Well, it always is, for me.)

Beachtet nicht zu sehr die nicht gerade herausragenden Bilder und mein etwas verkrampftes Gesicht. Wir hatten Gäste, und es war etwas peinlich zu posieren (nun ja, das ist es für mich ja eh meistens…).

Just a side-note: the lasagne was made by my husband and my lovely daughter. It was delicious! I just posed with it and put it in the oven.

Notiz am Rande: Die Lasagne hat mein Mann mit meiner wundervollen Tochter gemacht. Das Essen war köstlich! Ich hab die Lasagne nur in den Ofen geschoben und damit posiert. :-)

Do you wear vintage or vintage style aprons or house dresses too? Don't you think that doing housework is a bit less a struggle when you feel nice and attractive?

Und Ihr, tragt Ihr auch Vintage-Schürzen und Hauskleider? Findet Ihr nicht auch, dass Hausarbeit so ein bisschen weniger ein Kampf ist, wenn man sich hübsch und adrett gekleidet fühlt?

Vintage Slacks

Ignore my silliness. We stayed at some friends' place and had a good time...

As a mother of two little ones, I can't always wear dresses and skirts, and most trousers that are available off-the-rack don't fit me. Or are terrible. Or both. High-waisted pants are mostly available in larger or so-called "short" sizes for elderly, rather short women. And as the waists of trousers got lower and lower during the past years, and I constantly feel cold around my kidneys, I somehow felt I was getting too old for such things. You can guess that buying pants is a nightmare.

I never thought that, after leaving the 1980s fashion nightmares behind me, I would gladly opt for high-waisted trousers again. But… I always liked the wide-legged trousers Marlene Dietrich used to wear. (This reminds me that I should write a post about her.) Of course they would look different on me, as I'm not that slim, but still, it's a style I love and that will always look very neat and decent. Even if I don't do swing dancing or that kind of cool stuff. (I can't dance at all, I'm unfortunately born with two left legs.)

I bought this wonderful pattern from Eva Dress Patterns. It's a reproduction of Simplicity 3322. The patterns costa little bit, but they're worth it, as they offer some very nice and searched-after patterns in excellent quality. Some come along as multiple-size patterns, like this one.

For many of the patterns there are also pictures of finished projects, so it's really helpful to have a closer look at the entire site.

As a non-native English speaker (even though I am used to talk, write and read in English since 20 years), I didn't know what "slacks" are - until I found that pattern.

I was looking for something exactly like this! I am not sure how I would look in an overall, but the trousers are definitely worth giving a try! 

Since years I had a large piece of a inexpensive poly-cotton gabardine in my stash that I bought for about $10 per meter. I think I bought it about 10 years or more ago to make a trench coat. Of course I never made it. The fabric was still there, looking at me reproachfully each time I opened the shelf. It's a nice tan or dark-beige colour, making it perfect for cooler summer days, spring and autumn, as it has a lightly heavier drape.

After our 1.5 hours drive, the trouser look a little bit wrinkled... 

The colour is certainly not my first choice, even though I think it's not bad and can be spiced up with some top or blouse in a lovely colour or pattern, but I would have liked something that looked like denim or at least a blue fabric to be incorporated in my summer (holiday) wardrobe. Blue, especially combined with red and white, always makes me feel like holiday at the sea. But for now this has to do it. I chose some wooden buttons I bought from a warehouse that closed down many years ago, so I guess they are somehow vintage too...

They are super comfy and were easy to sew (haha, no small bust to deal with this time!!!), and I hope they will be a valuable garment. However, as you can see on the last picture, from my hips downward they are far too baggy and I look much bigger than I am (my bottom IS NOT that fat, at least I hope so), soI will try to make my next pair in a smaller size and look how they turn out.

I am wearing the self-designed peasant knit top I posted already here…

And yes, I definitely look very silly on the pictures. I was standing by this column and my lovely husband said, let's take some pics of your trousers for the blog (how well-educated is he?). I was in a very cheerful mood being with friends and relatives - hehe, maybe too cheerful...

But look what I bought and what arrived yesterday - perfect for summer, especially as we had to cancel our summer holidays! Flamingo cocktail sticks! Aren't they great?

Pattern: Eva Dress Pattern, Vintage Slacks

Fabric: cotton poly gabardine

Peasant top: me-made pattern, organic cotton knit in red gingham by Lillestoff

Lipstick: MAC, Russian Red

Earrings: fruit salad, NOS vintage bought on Ebay

Shoes: pink Moheda Toffeln from Sweden

Toy octopus: not ours...

Share In Style "Gold" - Turquoise & Gold Assam Tea Dress

Golden sunshine in the morning - perfect for my dress with golden accents

In my previous post I wrote about the "Share In Style" project I was invited to by dear Rosy. I wanted something Asian or Oriental inspired. The lanterns and flowers on my fabric looked somehow like that, and the name of the fabric (printed on the selvage) said something like "Geisha". In my previous post you can see the golden accents on the fabric much better.

My pattern, Simplicity 4087 from 1952, was till in factory folds that came in a rather large size 20, but I though it would be easier to downgrade it slightly than to enlarge it. (Wrong - I'm not good at adjusting patterns, neither this or the other way.) The oblique wrap front and the collar remind slightly of Asian dresses with frog closures and mandarin collars, but I didn't want the dress to look too much like a Chinese cheongsam. Now it's a rather "Oriental" dress in tea dress length.

I should NOT cut my fabrics in the late evening after a hard work's day... I made a small mistake, but I guess most people will not notice. :-) In the end, I even like it better this way.

I made the facings of bodice and skirt and the side pockets in a contrasting colour, and that the facings would just show a tiny bit. I love this tiny detail.

But I didn't have any matching buttons. I have a lot of buttons, but they had either the wrong colour or the wrong size. I decided not to lose too much time searching around and make some fabric covered buttons instead. You can't go wrong with them. 100% matching. Doing this, I thought I could make a fabric covered belt buckle as well, as I knew I didn't have a matching one. To be honest, I didn't wear belts very often when I was younger, but they are an absolute must when it comes to vintage dresses! And this one is even reversible! While I was looking through my buttons I found a pack of turquoise seam binding from the 1950s - and in the perfect colour.

The shoes are authentic ballerinas (if there is such a thing like "authentic" ballerinas...), made by Porselli in Milan. They also make the ballet shoes for the dancers at the famous La Scala opera house which is right next to their shop. (And they also have tutus for little girls and all that stuff that makes you want to dance...) However, today I wished I had bought a golden pair as well...

I chose a golden tan vintage hat and goldtone vintage earrings made from brass. They also have a small amber rhinestone that looks lovely with the hat and the golden accents on the fabric. In the end I forgot to take my purse with me for the pictures... But I had a lot of golden morning sunshine!

Yes, side seam pockets! I had to overcome my phobia...

Just as a footnote: the flags on the pole are from Switzerland (I'm Swiss) and Italy (my husband is Italian). Mostly it's the Swiss flag only. My husband is insisting on doing that, even though he lives here as a foreigner. The night before, there were two games for the world championship in football (soccer), and both Italy and Switzerland played. (Haha, and both lost...)

I should have "photoshopped" the wrinkles... ;-)

I got my dress finished very late somewhere between Friday and Saturday. Well, it WAS Saturday already, but it was worth working late. I definitely will make and wear more dresses again.

I love the traditional afternoon tea as it's custom in many countries, especially in GB. And I love tea! So, now I'm just waiting for an invitation to an afternoon tea. :-)



And here are the pictures of what the lovely and talented Rosy made for the "Share In Style". Isn't that dress wonderful? Just a golden ray of sunshine on a wonderful sunny day. I love the fabric that has a vintage vibe! She is very photogenic and is blessed with beautiful locations on her Spanish island to take those marvelous pictures. Isn't that gorgeous?

I love the buttons!

Rosy created this lovely collage of both of us in a similar pose with our dresses. Thanks! Of course she does much better, I guess she has far more experience than me - I usually get embarrassed when being photographed, and it will take some time to get used to pose in a decent way without making funny faces.

Pattern: Simplicity 4087 (size 20, adjusted)
Fabric: true vintage cotton print by Avon, "Geisha"
Belt buckle: upcycled vintage fabric covered buckle
Hat: vintage hat bought on Ebay
Earrings: true vintage screw-backs bought on Etsy
Shoes: Porselli, Milan

The dress is worn with a petticoat.

Photography by my husband

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