Sew Expensive... A McCall 1987 hat pattern and what makes a buyer tick!

Many of you might come to expect by now that vintage hat patterns are worth a pretty penny. We've watched Millinery for Every Woman and McCall 1974 sell for quite a bit in past editions of Sew Expensive. We know that sometimes the artwork and sometimes the short window that the design was in style can increase a pattern's value.
And today's pattern is no exception to the rule. The artwork is beautiful, the pattern is flattering, and the hat in question was only in style for a short while in the early 1930's.

A few nights ago, I watched the lovely McCall 1987 sell for a predictable, and yet still shocking $223.37.

We've often discussed why patterns sell for more, but why hat patterns, specifically?

In general, accessory patterns don't survive as often as dress patterns. Maybe it's the small pieces, maybe fewer were originally printed, maybe both. But the fact remains that if you find one of these, it might be the only one you find in 20 or 30 years! Version B in this pattern is an especially rare design to see a pattern for. I know it's not in style right now, but don't you just want to wear that hat?

Not too long ago, our last Sew Expensive post got a very exciting comment left on it. A lady named Jan most graciously took the time to comment on the post to explain why she was willing to pay so much for (and she did in fact win!) this, and other patterns. Jan was sweet enough to allow me to share with you her comments, and so I present to you, my dear readers, the mind set behind some of our most Sew Expensive patterns!
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Pictorial Review 9072 sold at auction or just over $200.

 Jan:
"I had the winning bid on this pattern, and just snagged it by a few dollars margin, and although I really wanted it (see below), assumed it would go for more than my max.

I am also guilty of paying a huge sum for a 30s Vogue Couturier on Feb 24, 2014, for which I paid $643.33:

The original Ebay auction for Vogue 120.

Pattern Envy

I regularly troll ebay for great patterns and recently I found a doozy.

Hollywood 1667 may be the most ideal apron pattern I have ever seen. But of course, I was outbid.
But can you guess how much this darling pattern sold for? Can you?

OUCH!
So of course I can make a pattern for this, it's very simple... if only I didn't have 8 PROJECTS GOING ALL AT ONCE. I think I need to finish a few things first.

But on the note of lovely vintage patterns selling for quite a bit, I was bidding (what I considered to be) quite high on this lovely hat pattern a couple of days ago and lost it too.

Have you ever seen a more stunning cloche?

Can you guess what this perfection sold for?

A Couple of New Patterns by Mrs. Depew Vintage

Want to know what I've been working on when I haven't been sewing? I have been trying to develop a couple of new pdf patterns that are more cold weather appropriate.
I have a particular love for the 1920's, the hat styles, and the cloche in particular.

With this in mind, and cold ears every time I step outside, I put together this cloche pattern pdf (actually from a late 1940's/ early 1950's pattern throwback).

I love the idea of sewing it from warm, soft wool in two tones. It can be made in soft velvet, felt, or brocade for colder weather, or light cotton or silk for warmer weather. All you need is your fabric, interfacing, grosgrain ribbon for the band, and some buttons; super easy!

And of course, I would make matching gloves to go with it, preferable trimmed with fur. Which is what I did for my second PDF this month.

This glove pattern pfd can be made either long or short, depending on the sleeve length of your favorite outfit or coat, in several sizes. The gloves can be made using fabric scraps, they take very little fabric to make.

What is your favorite warm weather accessory?

(Also, if you haven't already, check out the giveaway I have going on to win a $20 gift certificate. Last chance to enter is this coming Sunday )

A Pattern and a Giveaway!

So I know that pictures of my sewing projects have been few and far between in the last few months of blogging. Some of that is due to a months' vacation back in the US, and some is due to trying to figure out my new camera, and the rest of the blame goes to the fact that I've been too busy working on pattern pdf's to get pictures taken, or anything sewn, for that matter.

I just finished turning another of my vintage patterns into a pdf for download in my shop and I'm excited, cause it's a hat and purse! Gotta love accessories, right? This one came from a great 1940's catalog and it's just gorgeous!

It gives tips for coordinating different fabrics to make matching hats and bags, as well as how to embellish with bows, feathers, etc to make several different versions of the same hat.

Which leads me to the giveaway part. Would you like to win a copy of this pattern? Yeeeeeeeeees? Good. All you have to do is...
1. Become a follower if you're not already. You can leave a comment telling me that you follow and it will count as an entry.
2. If you like A Few Threads Loose on Facebook you get another entry.
It's that easy.  I'll pick a winner by random number generator and announce the winner on Monday the 18th. Good luck!

The Flight Cap

Recently I was lucky enough to add a really great World War II-era flight cap sewing pattern to my collection. I had so much fun sewing it up for myself that I decided to turn it into a PDF and offer it in my pattern shop.

I got such great feedback from everyone who has bought the Beach Bra Pattern that I thought, why not a hat, too?

I love the great advertising pictures of G.I.s endorsing products during the war. The debonaire way that their flight caps are always cocked to the side makes me think of the jaunty, "we can win this" attitude that we used to have as a nation.

 I didn't have any 'olive drab' colored fabric in my stash so I went instead with a thick, black cotton and a yard of vintage gray double-fold bias tape.

The hat was a breeze. It came together perfectly within an hour, and had really great finishing instructions for the seams.

First, you sew the 5/8" seam. Then you seam another 1/4" from the original seam on the allowance, and then trim, and finish off the raw edge with an overcasting stitch. (You may need a special foot for your machine to do that).

This made the inside look super professional and removed any need for lining.

I think I'm pretty happy with the final product. Next, I think I'll be printing this out again at about 60% to make a fascinator sized version.

Wherein I make a hat.

I made this little pillbox hat shortly before leaving for vacation and had no time for posting.

I used the following video tutorial sponsored by the lovely folks at Threadbanger. If you have a bit of felt or thick cotton flannel laying about and want a fun, charming 1 hour project, this is for you!