Lingerie in Profile: A Beautiful Lace Bra

Today my lovely readers I would like to show you a wonderful piece of vintage lingerie from my personal collection. This 1930's lace bra has so many beautiful little details that I just had to share it with you.

This bra has many hand made details but has a size 34 label so it was most likely made for resale at a very nice shop. The straps, rosette and binding are all silk ribbon, and the lace is incredibly soft.

Notice the lovely tricolor petals on the silk rosette and these little center pleats to give fullness to the bust... a lovely but futile attempt with a bra that reveals nearly everything.

One cup has a silk flower applique... something that looks a bit like a signature to me. At first I thought it was to mend a tear in the lace, but underneath the lace is flawless. Also, looking at the label, I don't know that this bra has ever been worn or laundered before.

Strap tails finished on the outside of the bra as an ornamental detail... the first I have ever seen.

Whoever made this bra, they, like me, just couldn't quite seem to get their closure to match up perfectly either ( A miscalculation I make time and time again).

 Sigh, oh for the old days. As lovely as this bra is, and it's in my very tiny size, I'm terrified to wear it and risk harming it.

To recreate this bra myself I think I think I would use DuBarry 2587B. This pattern is beautiful and I'm tempted to make a reproduction of it.

How about you? Do you have any vintage lingerie that's just too pretty to wear?

Bathing Beauties, and the winner is...

I have the internet working! We've been moving into our new house and they just connected the darn thing. But enough of my drama, you want to know who the winner is, don't you?

The winner as chosen by the random number generator is commenter #11,  is Holly!

Congratulations Holly and thanks for sharing what makes a swimsuit perfect for you!

"what i look for when i'm buying a bathing suit is basically the suit i had between the ages of 13 and 15. it was perfect. it was kind of 1940-50ish (i thought.) two-piece, white and navy blue polka dots and stripes. the bottoms were belly button high and included loose shorts that gave the impression of being a skirt without the fuss of floating up in the water. the top was a halter and gathered in the middle. i wish i could remember the brand because i would HUNT IT DOWN. i think i got it at dillards. i should figure out how to make that suit."

 
 I think we can all relate to having had that ONE swimsuit that made you look and feel amazing, and wishing you could go back in time and buy 5 of them at once. So Holly, you can email me at afewthreadsloose@gmail.com and I will send you your pattern!

For those of you who still want the pattern, it's a mere $5 in my etsy shop.

On another happy note, I'm decorating the new house like a mad woman, trailing fabric swatches around the house and giving my sewing machine quite the workout. We have wonderful new black leather couches and I'm getting ready to sew some pillows to make the room POP. My fabric is silk dupioni in iridescent jewel colors. I'm going to alternate between these two colors:

What do you think? 
There will be a twist, of course... here's a hint: 

This is my practice run in micro-suede. I see a lot of applique in my future.