Every once in a while I accumulate a little pile of interesting tidbits that aren’t big enough for a post apiece, but that I really want to share with you.
First off, the latest issue of Glory Days, the New Zealand vintage magazine, is out. The theme is ‘Victorian Christmas’ so there are all sort of fun goodies, from instructions on how to make Christmas Crackers, to an article on one of the few New Zealand living history museums.
In addition to my feature on corset history (page 64) I was interviewed about my collection for the Other People’s Wardrobes (page 59) feature, though ‘Wardrobe’ is bit of a mis-nomer in my case, as I don’t wear most of my collection!
Here is one of the images I took for the corset article:
Be sure to like Glory Days on Facebook to get notifications of new issues and other fun stuff!
Moving on to the next bit, remember the charming vintage sun-frocks I made for S back in July? She sent me photos of the dresses on and I’ve just been so busy I haven’t shown you yet, which is rather remiss of me as she’s adorable in them!
Seeing frocks on bodies is so different to seeing them on mannequins, isn’t it? That’s part of why reproducing historic dresses is so important to me: it really shows you what history looked like in it’s own time, and how those frocks affected how you lived and moved.
That also reminds me that I should review the patterns on the pattern review site…
And finally, for a little visual pogey bait, here are some of the bits and bobs that I picked up at op-shops on a recent road trip:
A rainbow of vintage threads:
And a selection of vintage patterns – some of which may end up in the giveaway I’ve been planning for ages:
Not this one though. This one I want to make up exactly as it is shown, in yellow and grey plaid, with a grey coat with a yellow lining. And then in the green floral!:
And zips to put in the frocks I’ll be making. And bias binding, because you can never have too much bias binding:
And more threads, and un-dye, just in case I ever need it again:
And gorgeous bits of vintage lace and trim for embellishing frocks and trimming undergarments:
And proper braces! (or suspenders – depending on which vocabulary set you are using). It’s so hard to find real button-on braces, and I found THREE all in one op-shop. Mr D had better watch out!
And finally, books, books, and more books:
Because after all that sewing, I’m going to need a little mental break!
I can totally see Daniil rockin’ those suspenders, too…
Excellent finds! And if you do a giveaway I’ll totally put it in my WinWinWinters newsletter. You can ask Hilaire to put it in the Free’n’Cheap list as well for maximum Wellington oomph. 😉
Hehe. Yep! I should let Daniil know he can raid my vintage menswear for swing dancing events!
What a wonderful haul! I particularly like that pattern for the dress and coat. That kind of ensemble is rare now – so lovely to have the summer coat to go with the dress.
I love the idea, but my wardrobe is a little dubious! You’d need so many frocks and coats! 😉 Still, I intend to make at least one full set!
That butterick pattern is so cute!
Isn’t it sweet? I’m going through my stash trying to find the right fabric for it right now!
That green and floral and yellow and grey is a fabulous color combination that I will have to look out for myself…
And books are always good. (Um. I hope my overloaded bookshelves agree…) Those are some intriguing books, and I’m sure they’ll make for excellent after-sew reading. (After-sew, like after-shave? The balm you put on…? I should stop there.)
S looks wonderful in those dresses!
Tee-Hee. After-sew! I really like the yellow and grey – it’s been ‘trendy’ in the last few years, but everything old is new again!
My bookshelves are overloaded too. I just cant resist all the beautiful editions of old classics and random forgotten froth that I find at op-shops. At least I can say that every book I own gets used and read regularly!
And thank you! I love sewing for S – she’s got such style.
Hmm, maybe I should try out an op-shop at some point; only ever been into one to do a drop off; never a browse.
I pop into them all the time to browse the fabric and notions – I’ve found some lovely pieces of fabric, and lots of thread and bias binding and other things. This was a particularly fruitful trip though!
OMGOMGOMGOMGOMG Its What Katy Did at School!! One of my al time favorite books! <3 <3 I *might* have just fantasized about breaking in and stealing that book. *maybe*
Hehe! If I find another lovely old version of it (they do seem to turn up quite frequently in NZ op-shops) I will let you know! The Katy series isn’t my favourite (the ‘saintly invalid bravely bearing her pain with a smile’ trope gets on my nerves – because when you are in horrible pain the last thing you need is the world expecting you to be a perfect example every day) but I love old books and collecting all the classic 19th and 20th century children’s literature.