I attended the Marin Symphony’s Mahler program this
Tuesday. Guess what that means . . . time
to play dress up!
After a couple of
hours attempting to finish Vogue 1136 Monday evening, I took a deep breath
and realized that I have a closet full of clothes that are suitable for an
evening at the symphony. Not to mention,
I enjoy the sewing process, and rushing through something when it is not absolutely necessary is just silly! Instead of
doing a shoddy job, I put the pins and fabric away and looked in the
closet.
This suit is one of the first vintage reproductions I ever
attempted, and certainly the first structured suit I ever sewed. The fabric is from the upholstery section at
JoAnn Fabrics and is therefore quite stiff and heavy. There are a few fitting issues. The bound buttonholes are a bit embarrassing. And I probably should have padded out or used
an interfacing with more body for the jacket hips – I may not have used any
interfacing at all – bad, bad seamstress.
I did manage to match stripes at the shoulders, though.
I actually love this suit because it is a clear
representation of how far my sewing has come in six years. (I know that I finished the suit in 2005
because I am a complete dork and keep a diary of pattern numbers, start and
finish dates, along with swatches and notations of any alterations made for all
the sewing and knitting I do.)
At work, someone told me that I remind him of a film noir
character! Rita Hayworth, Barbara Stanwick,
and Lana Turner, oh my! I will
definitely take that as a compliment. It
is so much better than the response I got from my boss, D: “what are you
wearing?” After ten years, he certainly
knows what to expect with regards to my wardrobe, so I have to assume he is doing it
just to irritate me.
And yes, the Symphony was fantastic!
Suit: Made by me,
Vintage Vogue 2339, Original 1948 Design.
Fishnets: Simply Vera by Vera Wang for Kohls.
Hat: Made by me.
Shoes: Via Spiga “Unit”
in Black Suede.
Necklace: Made by me.
Ring: My grandfather’s
high school ring.
Earrings: Gift.
I couldn't agree more. A sewing project rushed is one not enjoyed. Not to mention you regret taking shortcuts to get it in under the time limit! This skirt suit is divine, but I think that's also due to the fact that you cut such a lovely figure. Are you a fan of vintage shaping/undergarments as well? I'm very impressed by the straightness of the line from your side up to the sleeve/body seam line - perfectly tailored. Gorgeous!
ReplyDeleteoh, i'm definitely with you on slowing down & enjoying the sewing process. when i start to get irritated/frustrated, i start making mistakes (usually the kind that involve sewing a sleeve on inside-out or ripping a patch of fabric with an angry seam ripper D:), so i just put everything away & re-approach with a fresh mind the next day.
ReplyDeleteanyway, your sewing diary doesn't sound dorky at all - i do something similar, except my writing ends up on the actual pattern. well, not the vintage ones - i'm not that crass :P
Ce tailleur est vraiment superbe.
ReplyDeleteJ'aime tout particulièrement la coupe très structurée de la veste et le tissu choisi.
Un grand bravo !
LeBoisDuChat
What a gorgeous suit! I love the raspberry colour, the style, the fit. You look smashing in it. Great job.
ReplyDeleteThis is lovely! Again, I love your version much more than the pattern illustration. Beautifully done.
ReplyDelete@Melanie Melanie – I am a big fan of vintage-styled undergarments – they make all the difference!
ReplyDeleteI have a couple of long-line bras that I like to wear under my vintage garments. My only problem is that they have plastic boning, and they have a tendency to take strange shapes throughout the day.
After using spiral steel boning with my Ceil Chapman gown and realizing how much more comfortable it is, I am on the lookout for vintage underwear patterns. One of these days I will get around to making my own corset/long-ling bra, or at least find a decent reproduction made of quality materials!
@lladybird lladybird – That is it exactly! I hate making silly mistakes because I am in a rush. It is amazing how many problems get solved by a good night’s sleep. I do have a stubborn streak, so I can get bogged down with things and don’t want to walk away, but it is always good to step back before a pair of scissors cut into the wrong piece of fabric.
ReplyDeleteAnd I am glad to hear I am not the only one who keeps copious pattern notes!
@Laura Mae
ReplyDeleteI look forward to seeing a blog post about making your own then - this really interests me too!
Hi Laura Mae! Your suit is gorgeous . You are so talented! I am starting a sewing linky party today called Sew & Tell Saturday at my website and I am hoping to get some vintage sewists aboard to post their projects because there are so few venues to show off vintage creations. I hope you can come over and post a link to your blog today! Thanks so much!
ReplyDeleteJustine @ Sew Country Chick