Tip top sewing : Vintage Sewing Blog

Traditional tailoring is something I wanted to try last year. It’s a completely new world of sewing, which is full of hand stitching and other couture techniques. On top of that, it’s one of those areas where RTW prices are too high to be mentioned in magazines, which was an extra motivation behind my project.

Sewing outwear is considered to be a serious task that's only available to advanced seamstresses. In reality, all you need to consider is that it's a very time-consuming process that brings a brilliant result!

I’m not a big fan of layering, which makes my winter style quite simple - extremely warm coat and regular clothes underneath. I can wear an occasional cardigan, but it’s not very common. But some days it can be too cold to wear thin poplins or suitings. That’s when a proper thick wool dress is exactly what I need.

I was very excited to come across Simplicity 1590 pattern. It’s a vintage 40s reproduction, it has a collar and collarless options, peplum, waist ties, short sleeves… What else to ask for? 

I’m a big fan of Butterick vintage reproduction patterns and B5209 was always on my wish list. I was avoiding it for quite a while because I really wanted to use it for something halter, weightless and made of silk. The idea of having something similar to the iconic MM’s dress from the “Seven Years Itch” was so tempting, it wasn’t allowing me to check this pattern twice and discover the second version of this design. Gathered bust, capped sleeves, full skirt….Sounds like the perfect ingredients for a nice cotton dress!

Just like sewing wovens, sewing knits can be a smooth experience or a complete disaster. In contrast to working with stable fabrics, with jersey it’s much easier to achieve a good fit thanks to forgiving qualities that it provides. Most of the problems can occur during the sewing process itself and that’s why Wendy Ward’s new book is a must-read for anyone who wants to sew stretchy garments.