Sew French: 6 November 1949

I'm back from vacation with epic jet lag and a head cold, but I've hit the ground running anyways. With my first post back from vacation I'd like to start with a new segment I'll be doing here on A Few Threads Loose called "Sew French".

I have an amazing collection of vintage French sewing magazines and patterns and since I get so much enjoyment from them, I thought I would share bits of pieces of them with you.

Today I would like to share some lovely images and sewing patterns from "Le Petit Echo de la Mode." This edition was printed November 6, 1949.

It has lovely fall fashions and focuses mostly on really beautiful coats (and dresses) like these:

Sewing patterns for all of these fashions were available to order by mail. They are harder to find but I just love French patterns from this era; the styles are so timeless.

My favorite image from this edition is below, showing the latest style of accessories in suede.

Translation: "Suede in your adornment."

And of course, I have for you the two patterns included in the issue which I have given a "digital bath" as I like to call it.

 The first below is "Paniers et Corbeilles" or "Baskets and Trays." The measurements given for these are in centimeters.  If you don't read French and need the instructions, you can use Google Translate to make some sense of it.

This second pattern translates as "The baby area" and includes a "sleeping sack," "bags for hot water bottle and bottle" "a mat" and most interesting of all, a "walking belt" to keep the wee one from wandering too far on your daily promenade. Essentially it's a toddler leash.

Are these as fascinating to you as they are to me? Would you make any of these things? I would love to know! I have so much fun digging these things up.

I hope you have a lovely weekend.
~Anna~

Check Out My New Purse, and a Giveaway!

As most of you know, I'm very fond of my mail call posts and I love to show off the goodies I get in the mail so often. Today I'm particularly excited to show you what I've gotten, because it comes with a GIVEAWAY!
Readers, I would like you to meet my new purse. Purse, meet my readers.

Hi, nice to meet you.

You might remember me gushing over this purse when I was on the quest to add more fur to my life.

 This sweet creation is the pièce de résistance of Sherrill from Vintage4Creations.

Here's what I like about it. The sewing is excellent. I looked over every detail on this little gem when it arrived and have every confidence that this purse is sewn to last a lifetime.

I'm of course thrilled with the fact that it's made from an up-cycled vintage coat and fur, and the button detail delights me to no end.

The best part? Sherrill cleverly included an original pocket from the coat into the side of the purse and it's the perfect size for my iTouch!

Before we get to the giveaway by Vintage4Creations, let's get to know Sherrill.

Longing for more fur in my life

Living in this cold, icy, god-forsaken winter wonderland of a country has led to a bone deep need for warm, comforting, and fluffy accessories. Some of my go-to wardrobe choices include a hand beaded wool scarf, vintage fur detachable collars, fur lined boots, and various mink and ermine neck warmers. l'm sure you can see where this is going.

With this season in fashion adding fur touches nearly everywhere, it has become glaringly obvious that I need to add a fur purse to my arsenal of accessories.
I had a brief debate with myself over sewing or buying one but it all boiled down to the fact that I have enough sewing projects on my plate as it is.

So I set out on the hunt and I thought that I would share some of my favorites with you.
I was really in love with this mink bag but let's face it, a military wife just can't go and spend $349 on a purse.

So I started looking at vintage and my options got a bit less expensive...until they got more expensive when I stumbled across Hopcotch  Couture and their AMAZING upcycled purses:

Hopscotch Couture