All posts filed under: Textiles & Costume

Bestways Initial Transfers: Early 1920s children’s clothes

For the final installment of my Bestways Initial Transfer Book (except for the ads, which are pretty fabulous!), here is the cutest section: the children’s clothes. They may be children’s garments, but I would happily wear most of this stuff! Like both those jackets. (aren’t the pocket button details divine?) Oooh…the short coat is grass green! Yum! Note the mentions of the very fashionable cut-on ‘Magyar’ sleeves, and the contrasting sleeves set into ‘ordinary armholes’. The next page features a few more teens in covetable clothes, and some proper children in sports bloomers and an extremely scant gymnastics pinafore frock. This is ‘an exceedingly smart walking dress in wool marocain’. Cunning belt detail, and great hat and parasol!: And here are the funny sports clothes. Looking at these, I can’t help thinking how modern society would consider initials and names for children ill-advised for safety reasons. Last of all, a little girl with a teddy (with its own monogram) and a lovely blouse. Oh, I do like 1920s blouses! If you enjoyed …

HSF/M ’15: Challenge #2: Blue

Published by The Dreamstress

The theme for the Historical Sew Monthly 2015 Challenge #2 is Blue: make something in any shade of blue. I knew it would be a popular colour challenge choice because blue is simply the most popular colour: it’s more peoples favourite colour than any other. Historically, it’s also been one of the most desirable colours in many historical periods and cultures, because the dyes used to achieve it were comparatively expensive and finicky, and the harder something is to achieved, the more expensive it is, and the more people want it. In addition to being an expensive dye, blue acquired even more cachet in Europe in the Middle Ages when it became the colour associated with the robes of the Virgin Mary in devotional art. Mary was painted in blue robes partly because blue was the colour of the heavens, but mostly because the most expensive paint available was ultramarine blue. Mary was deemed worthy of only this rarest hue, this colour ‘from beyond the seas’, so was depicted in blue robes, often highlighted with …

A fairytale 1970s frock

Published by The Dreamstress

For the most part, I make my own clothes. For the most part, I don’t wear original vintage clothes. For the most part, I don’t like synthetic fibres. And for the most part, I’m not particularly interested in post 1960s fashions. But, most of all, I’m a creature of contradictions and am not adverse to breaking all my rules. Meet my original vintage, very 1970s, totally synthetic, covered it enormous orange flowers, and yet somehow still gorgeous and me and wonderful to wear, ‘Fairytale’ dress: Isn’t it fabulous? Can’t you just imagine a 1970’s fairytale book featuring Rapunzel wearing this exact frock? Possibly a feminist re-write of fairytales where Rapunzel rescues herself. (Hands up: Who else’s favourite children’s book was The Paper Bag Princess?) I found the dress at an op-shop for $6, and though all my normal impulses said “Are you crazy?” I had to buy it. And it’s fantastic! It’s the very best expression of ’70s fashion: incredibly flattering, incredibly comfortable, and made from some incredibly variety of dead dino that feels …