Adding Cut-Work to your Next Lingerie Project

Recently I was the happy recipient of a handful of lingerie patterns from the 1970's - 1980's. I was so delighted to find that folded up inside one of the slip patterns were a couple of pages from a magazine, I'm guessing late 70's or early 80's, and the bit featured was how to add cut-work to a slip. And it included a pattern!
I have no information on which magazine these were from, but the motif/ pattern given is meant to be resized much larger - but I think it would look amazing in just the size it is, for a more delicate look.

So without further ado, here is this great cut-work tutorial and pattern!

And here are a few slip patterns you might try adding it to! The pattern called for in the original tutorial is Kwik Sew 941, and there are plenty of affordable copies online.

It's ok as far as lingerie patterns go but my copy of this article was actually found tucked inside Sew Lovely S701... and though I didn't see it executed, I like where the idea was going...

The following pattern, available here, would also look amazing with bits and pieces of this motif scattered about the skirt or hem.

Or the motif sized down a bit would look endlessly sexy on the bust of this slip pattern, available here.

How about you? Have you ever used cut-work in any of your sewing?

In other news - I have just discovered an ant crawling along the edge of my desk here and now I must re-home him. Here's a tip: Don't eat Reese's peanut butter cups in your office.

Sew Expensive... Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing.

Hello lovely readers. For the last few days I have been watching an Ebay auction, waiting with bated breath (what does that even mean?!) to see how much this lovely little gem would sell for. Last night, a first edition, 1952 copy of Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing sold for an amazing $153.50. And it didn't even come with the original dust jacket (a huge contributing factor to the value of a rare book)!

Naturally this delighted me. Not only is this a sensational sum for a sewing book, I was smugly reveling in the fact that I was lucky enough to pick up the exact same book last year in an antique shop for a whopping $7.50. I may have even done a very undignified little dance, spilling my coffee this morning when I saw the ended auction. I may have even terrified the cat and confused my husband by whooping loudly, seemingly for no reason.

And let me tell you, this book is worth every penny ($7.50 or $150, you want a copy). It is by far one of my favorite sewing books.

Many of you familiar with the sewing blogosphere know this book well from reading Gertie's New Blog for Better Sewing. It was this book that inspired Gretchen to start what I consider to to be the most well-written, and most popular sewing blog on the internet today.
If you aren't familiar with her story, it's a wonderful tale that makes you want to just curl up on the floor and hug your sewing machine.

For those of you who don't have hundreds of dollars just laying around to buy books with, keep your eyes open at thrift shops and antique stores. Sometimes a copy will briefly show up for $20- $30 on etsy or ABEBooks. So far though, there isn't a copy selling for less than $199 on the internet. The most expensive copy online right now? It's $248 on Etsy.
Good luck with the hunt, ladies.

Sew Expensive... McCall 852 1940's Hat Pattern

Hello lovely readers. I am currently sitting at my desk, surrounded by a carefully constructed box fort as big, burly Polish men pack our things up for our move from Norway to California. (If you're wondering, why Polish men, many Polish people choose to immigrate to Norway because there's so much work to be had.)

We're currently in one of those lulls where no one needs my help, and since I'm mostly useless today with a bad head cold (ah, the timing of it all)... I thought I would take a moment to share with you this great pattern in another installment of Sew Expensive!

This beautiful original McCall 852 hat pattern recently sold for an amazing $71.87 on Ebay. While this is  quite a bit of money for a pattern, it's actually pretty reasonable for a 1940's hat pattern. The shape of the hat is rather hard to find, as many hat patterns from this era are much less flattering, or much more basic.

To see the most I have ever seen a vintage hat pattern sell for (it's jaw-dropping, I assure you!), check out this Sew Expensive post.

On another note, if you haven't already, be sure to enter the pattern giveaway being sponsored by Ohhh Lulu!

Well, I'm off to pack some more!

XOXO

Anna

Sew Expensive...McCall... something-or-other.

Boy it has been too long since my last blog post! I'm sorry about that. I've been swamped with preparations for our move from Norway to California (it never seems to end), work, and keeping the house perfectly spotless for the realtor to show off.

But today I have a few minutes so I thought I'd treat myself to a Sew Expensive post.
Today's pattern is McCall... it's a mystery!

This lovely beauty sold last month on Ebay but for the life of me, I couldn't find its pattern number in the photos. But that doesn't stop if from being utterly delicious.

This anonymous beauty sold for an amazing $180.49!
(Update! We now know it is McCall 3894.  --Thanks, Ginny!)

Believe it or not, in the realm of beautiful vintage couture patterns, that's actually reasonable. I've seen patterns like this go for up to $300.
This one is by designer James Galanos. His name might not ring out like Givenchy or Dior, but the man has style (he even dressed American First Lady Nancy Reagan) and is now an amazing 88 years old (well done, sir!)

James Galanos, image courtesy of http://www.onestyleatatime.com

Galanos contributed a few different designs to pattern companies like McCall and Vogue over the years but another one that stands out in my mind is McCall 4046.

McCall's 4046 - Image courtesy of Sandritocat Vintage Patterns

Just lovely, isn't it? Though where I would wear it if I made one, Santa only knows.
I don't know that I could justify almost $200 for a dress pattern that I have nowhere to wear, but I think I could manage for a neglige pattern that I could make and wear every day. I have the great privilege of working from home now, so I have retired my lovely office apparel and spend my money instead on things like silk pajamas that I can wear all day in my studio. It makes for a very luxurious work day, let me tell you!

Not to mention, you all know that I would plunk down the entirety of my pattern savings to get my hands on another Simplicity S-Series pattern.

Oh, and in other news, the movers come to pack up our things in a few days, including my pattern collection and all things Mrs. Depew Vintage related, so until then, you can use coupon code PACKITUP for $5 off of a $20 or more purchase at my Etsy shop.

But back again to the topic of pattern savings, do you have one? Or do you have a sewing budget? I have a small amount squirreled away for patterns at all times so that when that rare pattern I've been after for years comes up for air, lack of funds doesn't get in my way.

Oh, and also, now that I'm easily distracted and am thinking about squirrels, here's one to brighten your day.

xoxo

Anna

Fashion Service Magazine: a few pages from 1930

Hello lovely readers. Today I am sorting through my huge (HUGE!) collection of Fashion Service magazines from the 1920's through 1930's and I found a few pages I thought that you might like to see.

These images come from the July, 1930 issue of Fashion Service Magazine.

These hats just make me tingle all over. Wouldn't it be amazing if we could bring these back in style again?

Don't those pajamas just make you long for the weekend and some sunshine to lounge in?

Usually if the magazine didn't include a diagram and instructions for making the featured designs, they recommended which pattern models (McCall's, Pictorial, etc.) one could buy to sew the desired look.
This issue, however, was advertising patterns produced by the Woman's Institute, for example, the beautiful model below (bottom right), #6D-7, could be made by ordering "W. Institute 2594" for 15 cents.

Reading about the patterns advertised surprised me because I've never seen a pattern directly released by the Woman's Institute before, and my Google and Pattern Wiki searches didn't show any either.
Have you ever seen one?

Lingerie Competition, and the winners are...!

My dear readers, thanks so much to those of you who participated, commented and voted in the Pin-Up Lingerie Competition! I loved reading your votes and seeing your support for your fellow needle wielders!
Reading the comments and counting the votes showed that we all have our various preferences in lingerie fabrics, colors, and moods but of course, there must be winners and there were some very clear front-runners in this competition.

To those of you who participated, your hard work and contributions have really inspired me. You all sewed such beautiful pieces and I know I speak for both Sarah and myself when I say, thank you for putting your creations out there! I know it's not easy!

To recap, here is what our lucky winners will be receiving:

Pin-Up Bra Corselet Winner - $40 Gift Certificate from Mrs. Depew Vintage

Pin-Up Corset /Garter Belt Winner - $40 Gift Certificate from Mrs. Depew Vintage

Betty High Waist Panties Winner -  $25 Gift Certificate from Ohhh Lulu Lingerie and Apparel 

 

Here are our winners!

Congratulations to TroubleandStrumpet! Your combination of a floral print and lace was absolutely lovely!

 

Congratulations to Charmel! Using black lace and a contrast-bowed belt was brilliant. You go, girl!

 

 

And last, but definitely not least, Panties!

It takes some major guts to post pictures of your underwear online, even if you aren't wearing them, so to everyone who entered panties in the competition, we salute you!

Congratulations to our winner, Farmhouse Garde! Great idea trying a hipster version!

 

Sarah and I will contact you ladies via Craftsy to give you your prizes! I would also love to take this opportunity to thank Sarah of Ohhh Lulu for helping me sponsor the giveaway. To those of you who haven't treated yourself to her amazing hand-made lingerie yet, you're really missing something special!

And also, to everyone who entered, you did a great job and I hope that you have enjoyed sewing your lingerie as much as I have.

xoxo

Anna

Lingerie Sew-Along: Starting the Slip, Cutting, and Contour Darts Part 12

 It's here! The final leg of the Lingerie Sew-Along is upon us and once again, I'm so sorry it took so long for me to make this part happen. Within a couple of days of getting back from the U.S. my camera went missing and my brilliant husband just now found it. We couldn't have a Sew-along without a camera so here we go!

I've been working all weekend to get this baby mostly put together and I've really been enjoying it. It's a nice and straight forward pattern and it feels SO good to get behind my machine again.

Printing: Make sure your printer is set to scale to 100% when you print!
Remember that the original vintage pattern didn't include a seam allowance so you need to make sure you add this before cutting out your pattern pieces.

Let's start with cutting out our pattern pieces, shall we? I chose to make the long version of the Pauline Slip/ Camisole. To make the camisole instead, just cut the pattern short at the lines indicated before laying it out on your fabric. The rest is the same.
Below are my slip pieces laid out on 2 yards of some great navy charmeuse I found at a thrift shop in Nebraska this summer for $1.

Fabric Requirements:
36 inch fabric:
Slip 2 1/8 yds.
Camisole 1 3/8 yds.

Cut out the following:
Slip front, 1 on fold
Slip back, 1 on fold
Bodice, 2 of shell, 2 of facing or same fabric.

Slip pieces laid out, both on the FOLD.

I chose to make the bust pieces in a contrasting white; I'm using a vintage silk handkerchief for fabric. I fell in love long ago with a 1940's vintage slip in blue and white and made the mistake of waiting to buy it. I missed out so this will be my copy.

Once you have your pieces cut out your next task is to mark, pin and sew the darts in your slip back piece. We'll start with the back darts because they are the trickiest. These are known as contour darts and are designed to fit the fullest part of the back and hip nicely.

First mark the darts well; how you do this is up to you but for a contour dart, I recommend a chalk line as it's so much easier to match up the lines.

Spring Cleaning and a Coupon Code

I own too many patterns. I'm an addict. At least that's what my husband will tell me with an indulgent smile on his face. I just can't stop buying them. Maybe I am an addict... oh well. I recently bought a ton of new patterns and to make room in my stash I'm re-opening my old etsy shop to clear out the old to make room for the also old, but new to me.
I spent a ton of time in photoshop putting together the perfect banner graphics and I think the shop came out rather pretty!

So aside from a few really rare patterns that I'll always want in my collection, you'll probably be able to see the patterns for things I've made and blogged about for sale.

Happy Feet

 Happy New Year everyone! I thought that I would kick off the new year by showing you my first sewing project since I broke my arm. The other day, I decided to try putting my hair in a ponytail (something that I have been unable to do without help since I broke my arm) and I succeeded! So I thought,  if I can twist a ponytail in my hair,  I might have enough finger dexterity to attempt sewing something.
So I started with a simple project; one that has only taken me a couple of hours to complete previously.  The Mary Jane pattern from Ithinksew.com.

Ithinksew's version.

And though it took me nearly 6 hours this time instead of just a couple(Damn you, broken arm, you suck), the end results were perfect.

  World, meet the cutest slippers EVER!

 These sweet little babies are lined with Minky. The outer fabric is what is left from my old plaid robe dress project and the lining is some insanely thick fleece insulation that someone at a fabric store back in the states suggested I use to line potholders.  The Minky itself is rather warm and thick but to be sure that these were ridiculously warm slippers, the eighth of an inch thick insulation seemed like a logical addition.  Plus it made them super cushy on the bottom.

 This was my first time sewing with Minky and the fabric.com blog offered several helpful tips on dealing with this particularly unique fabric:

• "When cutting minky, be prepared for a cloud of fuzz!  Try cutting pieces with a rotary cutter then taking them outside to shake them off, putting them in the dryer on the air dry cycle (NO heat), or keep a vacuum handy to cut back on some of the mess."
• "DO NOT iron minky directly.  Instead, place minky face down on a towel and press gently on low heat or steam it.  Ironing and high heat will ruin the nap and any embossing in the fabric."
• "Don’t forget to clean your machine’s throat plate, feed dogs and bobbin case often.  All that fuzz can get messy and clog the works."

You can get several more useful fabric tips at fabric.com blog.

  Despite my broken arm, I will be doing sewing projects again but they will be fewer and farther between as I find I need to take breaks every hour or so to let my angry broken bone rest.
 If you are interested in this pattern or any others from Ithinksew, they are having a Christmas sale right now and this is a good time to snag the pattern you've been waiting for.

Next?

I ordered more fabric. I know, I know, I was so proud of myself for not adding to my stash for so long and using only what I have (and I have a lot) but hear me out. Everything I have is either so nice that I'm afraid to use it, like four yards of raspberry silk charmeuse, or just one yard of something-or-other {blah} that I can only make little projects from.
So I bought a bunch of rayon satin (never worked with it before but it was on sale) in this lovely rose color:

I'll be making my recently arrived Advance 8229 out of this, and some lovely lace that my lovely mother is being kind enough to send me.

Jackpot!

The mail came yesterday and even though I'm working a ton and have almost no time to sew until the weekend, I'm excited! Take a look at my score:

You know you've somehow become too busy when you find yourself trying to chose between blogging and showering because you don't have the time to do both. Well, I just had to get up earlier to fit both in.
Who needs sleep anyways? That's why there's coffee. You can sleep when you're dead.
Here are my favorites.

Butterick 5978 from 1921