Vintage Playsuit Sew Along - Pattern Inspration from my Collection

As I pointed out in my last post about my first attempts to get some ideas about the planned VPSA, it will take some time to prepare this project, as it consists of several garments that should not only suit my measurements and meet my needs, but should also make a matching set in the end.

So I had a look at my collection of patterns. I have this one-piece playsuit or swimsuit, but the longer I'm thinking about it, the more I'm convinced that a two-piece suit would be better for me.

This pattern, Advance 6742 (circa 1954) makes a gorgeous set, however, the bloomers will definitely not come into consideration. The top is fantastic, summery, but still decent enough to be wearable in town or for lunch. I think I would make the front buttons as a fake closure and insert a zipper, as button closures on fitted garments tend to look always a little bit, well, not fitted...

Also the skirt in its shorter version is fine, however, I would prefer a buttoned skirt for the longer version, or a wrap skirt.

This Butterick 6535 would be a nice pattern for the pants, they come along in two lengths. The bustier as an addition to a top that shows less skin... I could wear it on the beach. (If we manage to go to a holiday to Italy, for example...) If I have time and enough material (which is still not chosen), I will definitely make this cute bustier, would look certainly great on the beach.

This gorgeous Simplicity 3160 from 1950 offers another pattern for short pants and a full long skirt. Also the sleeveless blouse would be an option... Both patterns are size 14, so I would have to upsize them anyway for the pants.

I think I bought this 1950s Simplicity 1125 mainly because of the skirt and the top - not even realising that it's actually a playsuit set. It was also rather cheap, and looking at the prices asked for playsuit patterns - an excellent buy! I still think the top is great, as well as the wonderful wrap skirt, but also the pants would be worth thinking about. (Ah, yes, and again upsizing is necessary...)

The view 2 top of this pattern (it's a Simplicity 3891 from the 1950s) would look great, depending from the material I will use, and it's also simple to make!

This 1957 Simplicity 2072 dress pattern is not a typical playsuit set, but I will have to check the pants. And of course, a bolero would be a nice option!

Late 1950s Simplicity 3427 has a nice pattern for short pants and a lovely top. I certainly would not make the coat, but I love the striped and plain fabric combination!

I guess I have enough patterns to make short pants. And some nice options for halter tops and blouses. (I have not checked my separate blouse patterns so far...)

Anyway, I will certainly have to decide weather I would like to make a full skirt or a wide and long wrap skirt, so the playsuit set would look definitely more 50s. Or if I should, for a more 1940s style, make this wrapped front skirt from my 1944 Hollywood 1356 pattern with cascade at the left side front and the tied belt that looks very much like a sarong skirt. Just chose the right fabric, such as a tiki or Hawaiian fabric. More questions...

Here are two more options for wide skirts. View 2 from Advance 6327 would be great for a very summery look, choosing two contrasting colours...

Then I remembered my vintage sewing magazines from the very early 1950s. And I had a slight idea that there could be a playsuit pattern as well. But there's not only one, but several of them and so many ideas!

The top left design is fabulous! I love the skirt, the slightly longer pants, the blouse... Would definitely call for one of my tropical fabrics or something with a large floral print, combined with summery solid colours. Could be accomplished by the striped bustier and short pants on the right.

Dealing with the multiple pattern sheet is not such an issue - that's how I made my very first clothes back in the late 1980s when I was a teenage girl, so I guess I can handle it still.

There's plenty of inspiration from my own patterns. I must admit, I was a little bit tempted to have a quick look around Etsy or so, just in case there was THE pattern I was looking for. But then, as my collection has been growing over the past few years and still does, I think I will limit myself to what I already have. I'm pretty sure it will take a long time to chose all the patterns for my playsuit set even that way.

Vintage Playsuit Sew Along - Styles

1954 playsuit

I was very excited when I read that Stephanie Lynn from the Girl with the Star-Spangled Heart was planning a sew along for a vintage play suit. For such a long time I wanted to sew a playsuit for me, but never had time or the right "occasion". I was afraid to participate, as last time I wanted to be part of a sew along, I broke my toe, so I really didn't have any chance to make my planned dress. And it's still unfinished, sadly...

This time will be hopefully different. I have some time to chose the patterns and materials, and I hope that I will also have time enough to tidy up my studio a little bit before starting this project, as it currently looks a little bit - uhm, well, messy untidy.

I will not write about the playsuit as a typical garment of the 1930s until the 1960s. Sewing vintage, everyone runs in a playsuit pattern sooner or later. I have some in my collection as well, not many, as most of them are incredibly expensive. Most of the patterns available consist of a one- or two-piece suit, the latter could be with a short skirt or short pants, and usually the outfit could be completed by a blouse, a bolero, or a jacket, and a loner and wider skirt. Of course the length and fullness of the skirt changed a lot in the course of the decades, as did the rest of this iconic garment. On the other hand, there were always many different styles of fashion at the same time. Obviously, it will be very difficult to make a choice. In the end, I guess, I will build my own playsuit set from different patterns, according to my liking.

So I will have to plan carefully, what type of playsuit I would like to sew. Should I make a one-piece short suit or some short pants with a halter top? Both will certainly be accomplished by a matching skirt, but I guess the latter version would offer more possibilities. With the short pants, I could wear a halter top, a bustier, a blouse. Made from the same material or a matching contrasting fabric.

Let's start with the "under garment". A two-piece playsuit would be best, but should I make shorts or a short skirt? Well, not THAT short, I don't want to expose my legs too much. And then, my belly should be covered, after all, I'm a mother of two, and I would like to keep some decency.

Love MM's pants...

...but definitely too short for me!

Different styles of tops

A detail I love here about this pattern is the buttoned bolero and the wrapped band of the long skirt.

The pattern on the left has a gorgeous halter top, and I was happy to see that longer pants like these "pedal pushers" were an option for playsuit sets as well.

A knotted blouse or an asymmetrical halter top? A skirt with darts, pleats or a gathered one? How full? It will certainly be a buttoned skirt, as for me, the sense of a skirt to wear over the playsuit as such is to change your "sporty beach outfit" in a decent day dress, so there's no way to display a bare leg.

There are countless possibilities...! I will certainly have a close look at my pattern collection to get some more ideas.

Almost a Vintage Scottish Pipers Skirt

When I say "almost", it's just because this skirt isn't really vintage. Well, but it IS, somehow. The fabric is a true vintage fabric from the 1950s. I spotted it when I was browsing Etsy for vintage border fabrics. Most of them were unaffordable for my small budget. Or they were too short to make a decent full skirt. First I was thinking about flowers, something not too bright, and certainly not on a white background. (I always feel fat when I wear white...)

But then I was hit by this beauty, it was really love at first sight. You may wonder, but Scotland is my favourite country. It' not just my preferred travel destination, it's a deep love I feel for this particular place on earth for it's history and culture and it's inhabitants. I used to travel there several times when I was much younger and always felt like coming home. If I had not married my husband, I probably would have left Switzerland to live there. Breed sheep. Grow turnips. Knit sweaters. Make whisky. Something like that.

Anyway, I have a good live here, I have a lovely husband and two marvelous kids. (I guess I mentioned it before.) But sometimes I'm a little bit homesick. And then I need something to comfort myself. Instead of drinking myself with a good bottle of single malt (believe me, I have a few!), I buy items that are Scottish. So I had to have that fabric. It was certainly a little bit more expensive than what I planned to spend on a border print, but then, it was just gorgeous. A truly Scottish-themed border print, vintage, unique! And despite the ecru background - well, at least there's some green and black on it, two of my favourite colours... The seller was delighted to hear I was going to make a full skirt. I think, it would have been a pity to cut this beauty.

When it arrived I was amazed how crisp it was. I would say it is a kind of pipeline, as the crispness remained after washing. It has some small greyish spots that didn't wash out, but I think this is part of this skirt's history, and it vanishes mostly in the fullness of the skirt.
The pipers and drummers are just fantastic! Have you ever seen a band of pipers and drummer perform? Of course they are in full gear. (I guess at this point I should admit that I think men in kilts are very attractive.) There are sketches of monuments etc., tiny drums and bagpipes, coaches, pedestrians with umbrellas (come-on, the weather is NOT that bad in Scotland...). The selvedges are done so well I was thinking about leaving them unhemmed to keep as much of the dotted border as possible. But then, after asking an expert, I decided to take it up one inch. The skirt would fall nicer than without hem.


I was uncertain about the pattern for this skirt. I didn't want just an average gathered or pleated skirt. And I knew I would make a black waistband, as I didn't want to waist some of the border print fabric to make the band of the same material, keeping as many of "my pipers" and making the skirt as full as possible!

Finally I found this pattern I had bought on Etsy for only a few dollars as the instructions were missing. It's a Butterick 7617 in size 12 from 1956. The same year as my wedding gown!

The skirt is made of a very long part that has several darts along the waist. The spaces between the darts are gathered. I made pleats instead, except for the front part so the belly would look a little bit flatter.

I took the lower part of the bodice pattern to create a pointed waistband.

I'm not sure if it would have turned out better by gathering the fabric, maybe I will undo the waistband and try it out, but I needed something to wear last tuesday for an event so I definitely HAD to finish the skirt.

That's how the print joins in the back middle seam. One drummer has 3 arms and is also a piper. How weird is that? But at least I didn't have to cut away the poor guy. :-)

I decided to sew in the zipper only in the skirt, not the waistband, and to close the band with some buttons. Mainly because a white zipper would be too visible in the black waistband, and buttons could be moved, just in case I lost or added some weight. Of course I had some black vintage buttons.

True vintage buttons. I bought them on Etsy.

After all I'm quite happy with the skirt. It's certainly a unique piece, and it's absolutely me.

Vintage and Scottish. My son was fascinated by the pipers and drummers. While the skirt was still put on my dummy (her name is Kunigunde), he was walking around and around pointing at each of the kilted men. Priceless!

Sorry about the blurry pictures. We have currently such a bad weather here in Switzerland... I will post very soon some better shots of me wearing the skirts with a petticoat. Promised!

The Nursery Wrap Dress - Reloaded

As I honestly dislike Mother's Day (despite being now mother of the two most wonderful kids), my husband and me began a new tradition some years ago to avoid later that the kids buy silly gifts when they're older. So each Saturday before Mother's Day, we go to a plant nursery or a special gardeners' event, depending on the weather and the things we intend to buy. And we get us something lovely for our garden, a rose, special tomato seedlings or other vegetable rarities and seeds, or, as this year, a dwarf apple tree and a crabapple. (We ended up with 3 more roses and a new clematis as well...) I think by doing this, we all benefit of this special day, there's something for us all to see, and we spend usually a great time with our little family.

Exactly 3 years ago I made a wrap dress after a probably later 1950s pattern. With its kimono sleeves and worn without a petticoat it looks surpsingly like late 1940s. Unfortunately, I'm not sure which pattern it was. My pattern collection then was only very small, but my daughter, who was 2 years old then, destroyed some of the tissue paper pieces and I put them aside to fix it, but somehow I mislaid the pattern and  - well, it must be somewhere in my tiny and terribly crammed studio.

Anyway, I wore the dress only once, as I was unsure about the accessories to wear with it. I didn't have suitable shoes then, and I felt this was not the right way to wear this garment. Even though I was not yet into vintage sewing so much as today, I had chosen a reproduction fabric of a print from the 30s or 40s, from a shop that unfortunately has closed down in the meantime. It's a medium-weight black cotton, maybe slightly heavier than average medium weight fabrics, but still a nice quality.  It has almost filigree white flowers and butterflies on it, just perfect for a gardener like me.

The occasion I wore it to was for a trip we made to a rose breeder's nursery called "Landhaus Ettenbühl" (or here), just across the border in Southern Germany. If you happen to live somewhere in my area, it's worth visiting especially in early June, as they have a huge park full of roses and other plants, and a lovely restaurant. It must have been around my birthday, as it's the time of year when roses bloom for the first time and abundantly. I remember it was a splendid day, we had our little daughter with us, and it got very warm. A black dress probably wasn't the best choice, but cotton is always much more comfortable than many other materials. I was very proud of my home-sewn dress, and my beautiful daughter looked lovely in her sweet white dress, so we got some compliments from mostly elderly people.

Well, I guess I looked very silly somehow...

This year it was a little bit different! After losing some of my extra-weight I had put on with each pregnancy, I was finally able to wear the dress again. I styled my hair properly, which is always the most difficult part when I prepare for going out. (I have terribly fizzy curls.) I had authentic 40s celluloid jewelry that looks like carved bone. A pair of gorgeous and very comfortable wooden clogs. A 40s purse with a wonderful "carved" plastic handle. I really enjoyed the dress and felt entirely "vintage styled". (Many people, mostly of my age and younger, stared at me - I realised again that Switzerland is not the best place for vintage lovers.) The weather was fantastic, it was a lovely sunny day, and my husband took some pictures of me and the kids.

This is me (obviously) with my lovely kids

I'm not used to be photographed and I usually don't like it, so please do not mind my silly face. Unfortunately we forgot the close-ups, as our daughter fell and hurt. She cried for about half an hour, and our son cried with her (he's very empathic), so we could be hard all over the nursery...

Dress pattern: most likely late 1950s wrap dress
Fabric: printed reproduction cotton fabric from the USA
Shoes: Swedish wooden clogs "Ally" in black by Moheda Toffeln, the best ever! They ship worldwide. 
Purse: vintage 1940s corde crochet purse with carved plastic frame
Clamper: vintage 1940s faux carved bone celluloid from Ebay
Earrings: vintage 1940s faux carved bone celluloid from Etsy
Watch: vintage 1940s watch from Ebay
Glasses: H&M (men's department)
And in case you would like to know: Lipstick is "Russian Red" by Mac, my favourite ever...
Location: Garten-Center Meier 

From Switzerland's Countryside to.... the Kentucky Derby!

Picture: Karen Morris Millinery

As some of you may know, I have a weak spot for many things, and one of this spots is all about hats! In my shop on Etsy I have some high quality millinery materials available, mostly raffia braids that are produced in a manufactory nearby to where I'm living.

Straw hats used to be part of the traditional costumes that were worn by many people in the 19th century. There were different types, depending from the region, the social status of a person (and how rich they were, of course), the occupation, and if it was a holiday or just a working day... As a historian (yes, that's me, no joke) I can assure you that in those time by the type of costume a person was wearing you could tell pretty everything about her or his status.

A girl from the Wehntal, my "valley," in her costume with a typical straw hat with dried and artificial flowers, and the clothes were mainly made of linen and wool, or later cotton.

Another girl's costume from here, but for higher holidays (it was called "Sonntags-Tracht", which means "sunday's costume", and it was usually made of finer and more expensive fabrics such as silk for the apron and the black bonnet).

Switzerland was an agricultural country, it is still in some small parts, but straw was an affordable material and perfect for hats. Later, straw was replaced by raffia, which had different qualities and became very common for sunhats in the mid-century.

In some regions of my country there was a proper "hat industry" that produced the typical hats for a certain region. But as the rural occupation vanished, so did the costumes. And the hat makers.

My maternal grandmother and my mom as a child still wore costumes for special occasions, as they lived in the Bernese Oberland, a region that is still very rural and traditional.

To please my international reader's appetite for Swiss clichés: Sunday's costume, Canton Bern. The costume for adults was the same. The jewelry on the female's corset was made of filigree silver flowers. There were materials like velvet and silk, and the bonnet was made of velvet and horsehair lace.

But my paternal grandmother wouldn't even have thought about it, as she thought herself to be a modern (as modern as one could be back in the 40s and 50s) woman with "no dirts on her hands". And as fashion changed, and as traditions and farming vanished, hat makers and the whole millinery industry vanished as well. There are only a few manufacturers left, and even if there are still people wearing costumes and the appropriate hats, it's a very small percentage.

Sunday costume from the Canton Aargau, with a typical straw hat.

Women's costume from the Wehntal, Zurich, my region. It looks pretty much the same as a dirndl, a fitted bodice, a fuller skirt, an apron.

Hats were also worn this way. This is a beautiful example for a very thin straw trim used on this traditional accessory.

And in the nearby Black Forest (Germany), straw hats are bases for the amazing red pompons for this still very common costume.

But there is this manufactory left, and they produce the most beautiful materials, crinol (horsehair) and braided raffia and straw in amazing colours. I was very happy I found them, and as I planned to make some hats for my vintage outfits, I ordered some of those wonderful braids. However, I never came around to realise those plans, and so I put the braids in my shop. Especially, as I had to order the whole skein. What else can you do with so much yardage of raffia braid if you only need a 4 or 5 yards?

A nice customer who was attending a millinery course ordered some of the braids and made her first attempts with this wonderful material.

But the most amazing thing happened when a talented hat artist from the USA bought pretty much of my raffia braids. I asked her if she could show me one of the finished pieces once she used the braids, but I was not too hopeful, as I know too well how easily one can forget to get back to the seller. (Argh, I promised so many vintage fabric sellers to show them the pictures of my finished dresses...) I was hoping to get a link to her homepage, but the lady - Karen Morris - was so nice and wrote me such a kind message, including the pictures of her hat creation with "my" raffia braid.

Picture: Karen Morris Millinery

Picture: Karen Morris Millinery

The hat was a custom order for a lady who needed a hat for the Kentucky derby, and I feel very excited about the idea that something that came from my place will be at that special event. I grew up near the racecourse, and as a child I used to climb over the fences to see the horses. I hope the customer will feel as gorgeous as the hat looks like, it's an amazing piece of millinery art. I am happy I could contribute a tiny part to it. And I LOVE the red and pink combination!

Here are the links to Karen's Facebook page. I used her pictures with her friendly permission, thanks.

Pattern and Fabric Acquisitions

In Switzerland, spring has arrived with huge steps. Usually, we can expect our first roses to bloom at the end of May, but when I check the plants in our garden, I think we will have roses already in April. Nonetheless, my appetite for sewing is not very much "spring-like"... Even though I have lost 9 kilos (each child gave me some extra-pounds I never got rid of...), I still am rather undecided if I should wear bright colours or not.

However, when it comes to buying fabric for vintage sewing projects, we can't be too picky. I have unfortunately not such lucky hand for exceptional finds like Beccie from Sew Retro Rose (check out her blog, she IS talented and inspiring!), but I was very happy I found this lovely vintage fabric on ebay some days ago. (For once an extremely helpful seller that showed the fabric draped on a model, so you could see not only the dimensions of the print, but also how a finishes garment could look like. I wish all sellers would be so thoughtful.)

When it arrived last Saturday, I was positively surprised. I have been disappointed before when I bought vintage fabrics, but this one is really amazing. It's a rayon fabric from the 1940s in a silvery grey, imitating the structure of shantung silk.

It's rather wide for a vintage fabric, measuring 41 inches, and I have 3.5 yards of it. This would enable me to make a late 1940s dress with a fuller skirt, so this pattern came to my mind. I have a weak spot for asymmetrical dresses, and I think the pattern would pair lovely with the fabric. I love the loosely rendered flowers, the shimmering texture and the discreet grey colour. The fabric has a wonderful drape. I will have to check if it it's suitable for this pattern, but it will be definitely that kind of dress style for this fabric.

And I bought 3 vintage Scottie dog cabochons! I just love Scotties, if I could I probably would have such a dog. Whenever I find vintage jewelry or supplies featuring this cute guy, I can't resist. So I didn't  mind buying the whole lot of them. I will make a brooch for myself and sell the others in my shop. They are in mint condition, just as if they were made yesterday, and probably were produced in occupied Japan. Did I ever mention that I am fascinated by Japanese stuff? I love Kanzashi flowers, Japanese fabrics, gardens, etc. (No, I don't like sushi. I'm not particularly fond of fish, and I don't eat raw meat, so why on earth should I eat raw fish?)

This topic leads me to my next purchase and a possible project.

I bought this wonderful Japanese inspired cotton fabric with a lovely koi carp print, and when I bought it I knew it will be a 1940s dress. And I found a wonderful pattern for it! I'm not yet decided if I should chose the version with short or with long sleeves. But no matter which, I think the koi carps will look great with such a dress!

The only question is: which project should I make first?