Yes, yes … I know.It’s Spring already, and we’re just updating a list of projects for 2024 and beyond.
We are now doing “slow fashion.” What does that mean to you? It means vintage knitting and crocheting, with possibly some hand-sewing thrown in for good measure, too.
We have been enamored by antique and vintage knitting and crochet projects for years and returned to making them in late 2023. Thus, we will be making what we’re calling “Through the Decades” fashion collections. For example, this means that not only will you have the opportunity to purchase a 1940s sweater or sweater set, but you will also be able to purchase a coordinating skirt or slacks to go with them. Assorted projects are planned for the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, 1950s and 1970s.
And while on the subject of knitting, my fellow Whovians, we currently have two different versions of the infamous fourth Doctor’s scarf — one season 12 “hero” scarf and one ridiculously long season 18 scarf — on needles. Both scarves are as close to canon as one can possibly get without needing an actual TARDIS to color-match the yarns. Serious inquiries may reach out to us for further details.
Onto the hand-sewing department: we are still sorting this out, but we’re considering making such lovelies items as 18th-century goodies such as fichus, caps, petticoats, pockets, and a complete “set of muslins.”
This is my brief tale of two crocheted 19th-century purses, or what they would have called “reticules.” These little purses were called reticules because they were so ridiculously small and could barely hold anything. Considering that back in the days when these were made, a lady did not have so much to carry with her when she left the house; they didn’t need to be that big. She only needed a purse large enough to hold a few coins and maybe a front door key.
My inspiration came from today’s video upload by Just Vintage Crochet. [They uploaded the video on 11/29/2023; I’m a little behind.} Corinna’s channel is one of my guilty pleasures, YouTube viewing, and, quite frankly, the driving force for my refocus of my historical costuming and getting back into vintage knitting and crochet. I lost most of my sewing mojo after Costume College in 2022 and found it difficult to drag myself into the”Ministry of Sewing and Time Travel” because the gentle whirl of the sewing machine motors was not especially migraine-friendly… but I digress.
Not that long ago, as part of my refocusing efforts [and a little pro-active “Swedish Death Cleaning” on my part; no, not dying, just trying to get ahead of the curve as I’m in my sixties], as vintage knits need natural fibers to get the correct feel and drape, I gifted Just Vintage Crochet with a substantial portion of my man-made fiber yarns. As she said in her video, it was an unsolicited gift to her as a thank-you for the inspiration to get back into my own vintage knitting. As anyone who sews, knits, crochets, quilts, or makes historical costumes, one’s stash can be immense. I sent two shipments of yarn to Corinna, and the last one rated a mention on her “happy mail” video title. I also promised not to send her anything until after the first of the year with the last set of boxes. Again, I digress.
Now, back to the video titled “The Actual First Crochet Pattern |⏳ 185 Years Old | Just Vintage Crochet.” Seriously, how could I ignore something touted as the first crochet pattern? I watched the video and decided it was simple enough for me to see if it was something I could quickly whip up and do a little research into this as well. So, I started with the blog that provided the video’s information and patterns. The website is Little World of Whimsy, and her specialty is amigurumi. She wrote a post about “The Real History of Crochet,” where she breaks down the history of the origins of crocheting. It’s a brief and well-written read. She provides links to the original instruction books and screen captures of the two oldest patterns. [I downloaded both sets of the instructions.] There are no examples of the finished bags on the Little World of Whimsy’s post. That’s where Just Vintage Crochet comes in, as they made the purses for their videos.
As I watched the video on the first purse, as is the case of most knitting patterns of the Victorian era, the instructions can be more than occasionally vague to the modern crafter, as there is a lot of assumed knowledge having been passed down from mother to daughter. This was one of my biggest complaints about researching source material for the 1960s yarn craft lecture that I gave at Costume College several years back; the other was the context within the section of the “receipts,” or to use our modern terminology, patterns.
The first purse comes from an 1837 book titled The Ladies’ Knitting and Netting Book: Second Series by Miss Watts, page 51. The specific set of instructions is in French, which Little World translated into English. I tried double-checking the translation using Google Translate; it was close enough. As an added bonus, a modern version was included on Little World’s website. I watched with interest as the tiny purse was fashioned according to the translated instructions, and while it ended up being useable by Victorian standards for a little bag to hang from one’s wrist at a ball, like a Tussey-mussy. However, there appear to be some instructions missing, like how many rows the finished bag should be tall or how to finish off the top opening. Knowing the history between France and England, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if the French creator had purposefully left out instructions.
I must confess that this purse had me a bit perplexed, and thus, the historical costumer in me had to dig through the sourcebook for this pattern to give it some context. The first clue to what type of purse this should be is what the pattern calls it. It is called a “Long purse of open work of single tambour,” or as it is more commonly known as a “Miser’s Purse,” and it has been around since the Georgian era and used up to the turn of the 20th century. The best way to describe a Miser’s Purse to the modern audience is that it is a long skinny tube that is closed at both ends, with an opening in the center and two metal rings that act as closures. Based upon the other patterns in the book, I propose that after one has created a piece that is roughly 5-7 inches wide, you would fold it in half and slip stitch each side up 2-1/2 inches from each end towards the center, and then cinch up the ends to close them.
This concludes my introduction to my “brief” tale of two purses. My deep dive into these bags will include some speculations on my part about what they should look like, and the finished final products, which will be for sale in my shop, will follow before month’s end.
Thanks for reading. Now go support Just Vintage Crochet on YouTube and subscribe to her channel.
It seems that Hollywood has now completely run out of fresh ideas and is, has, or is planning to reboot anything popular in the past, and thus, I have decided to take some inspiration from the folks “down below” and do a 1970s reboot of my own.
So what does this mean in the Foxes’ Costuming universe? I plan on pulling some of my favorite patterns from my archives and remaking these vintage gems using modern fabrics that my meager allowance could not afford and then applying my current sewing skills and techniques that my 12- and 15-year-old self did not have.
We will also explore the beginnings of my Capsule Wardrobe obsession that started with Seventeen magazine’s August 1978 “Back to School” issue.
This will be a slow process (as there will be knitting and possibly crocheting involved), and I’m toying with the idea of making videos along with the blog posts, but that is yet to be seen as I’m really quite camera-shy.
PS: These finished items will ultimately be available for purchase and will be Missy sizes 12-14, as those are what sizes the patterns are.
Sometime back, I had the notion of making myself a “one-hour” dress for a tea, which I nerve ended up attending for reasons I will never discuss, but I still made the dress with the crazy notion that I’d wear it to Costume College. But then everything got put on hold due to “the virus,” and the dress has sat in my closet for a year and a half, and I never answered the question as to if it was genuinely possible to make the “One-Hour” dress in an hour.
I believe that it may be possible given idea circumstances such as choice of patterns (there are several versions of the “one-hour” dress), fabric, trim (or lack thereof), and what size dress you are making. However, in specific, the case of my dress, no. If memory serves, it took me about three and a half hours, primarily due partly to the very narrow satin bias binding I used on the neckline. It adds lovely detail to the dress that I wouldn’t change, but it was time-consuming. This three-hour-plus construction time seems to be what most fellow costumers find it’s taking to make the dress.
I have plans to make the dress again in medium-weight linen in a period-appropriate pastel, but not immediately, as I have the 1940s calling, and I need to embrace my inner Peggy Carter and Claire Fraser.
As I stated in my introduction to the Gingham suit project, which somewhat ironical will get finished after this project, every fan of Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel has their favorite outfit or two from each of the three seasons. Most get added to the bucket list, some get made as close to screen accurate as possible, and some become inspirations for a variation on the theme, but everyone has a favorite. Mine is the black and white gingham shorts suit. My second favorite is her iconic pink wool swing coat.
What’s not to love about a flowing winter coat that comes down past your knees that just happens to be your favorite color, right? Let’s review the coat and the pattern from which it’s going to be recreated.
I am extremely grateful that the Simplicity Pattern Company has chosen to revive some of their vintage patterns. It makes it easier to make something with a solid base to start from than having to cobble two or three patterns together to come with something. Simplicity’s 8509 “Misses Vintage Lined Coat…” fits the bill to a tee. It even has an option to add pockets, which I’m going to do because a girl needs her pockets. Where else are you going to tuck your silk scarf and gloves? [Yes, yes, I realize that Midge would have put her gloves in her handbag, but I enough stuff in my bag already and the coat pocket is the only place that I can put my gloves and have them when and where I need them.]
So what are the challenges that I am facing with this project?
Grading the pattern up four sizes. Unfortunately, I am overweight, very overweight, and most store-bought patterns are not large enough for me.
Making a toile or muslin. I hate, hate, hate spending the time having to make a fitting garment to prove that my rusty grading skills are still on the money.
Limited fabric and no place for muck-ups. I got my beautiful and luxurious cashmere and wool blend soft rosy pink coating on sale for 70 percent off, once it’s cut, it’s cut and there won’t be anymore. It’s not that I couldn’t find a comparable fabric, but this particular fabric has been sold out. Thus, my need to make a muslin…
Bound buttonholes. I tried to make these years, no decades ago, and worse on bonded polyester double knit, which the masses now know as “scuba knit.” I was a disaster and the vest that I was making out of scarps from a jumper that my mom made never saw the light of day.
Keeping my swearing down to a minimum. I bought polyester bridal satin for the lining. This stuff unravels as you work with it and I forgot to buy a bottle of Fray Check. As a side note, I chose to not line the coat with the same raspberry colored lining as the original one from the show as I wanted something that would go with more than pink would. Also, it was the only thing that Joann’s had that even came close to the same color family as the main fabric color albeit it about three or four shades lighter.
We’ve all seen the references to a mid-1920s dress that can be made in an hour and find ourselves intrigued by the possibilities.
If you are like me, you discovered the “Miss Fisher Mysteries” on Netflix and have become enamored with this non-formula detective drama with a strong female lead. Not only does the show feature the brilliant, smexy as all get-up, burgeoning middle-aged Miss Phyrine Fisher and a delightful group of supporting cast, but some very wearable 1920s clothes.
So now inspired by yet another television drama with fabulous clothes, the siren song of lady google-lay beckons us to comb the web for resources so we can create our own copies of her period-appropriate “Capsule Wardrobe.” [At some point in time, I’ll blog on my love-hate relationship with capsule wardrobes.]
So… sometime back in March, I had a Tea coming up. It was at one of my favorite places, which is housed in a building that was built in 1926. And rather than wear my sad Titanic era dress and the abomination that is the hat, I decided that I would accept the challenge and attempt to make the infamous “One-House” dress and see if it can actually be done in an hour.
I raided my stash and came across some fabric that reminded me of Miss Fisher’s companion, Dorothy (“Dot”) Williams. It’s been washed and ironed. I acquired a pattern, printed it, and read through it, measurements were taken. And as soon as I can get to my sewing room the clock will start ticking.
As a part of my continuing education and refining my skill set, I’m doing a 12-week embroidery and embellishment course via the Embroidery & Embellishment with Denise Hendrick group on the blessed and most holy FaceBook. [Why yes, that was a tad bit of snark about Facebook on my part.] It’s a closed group so you have to request permission to join it.
The project is to create a sampler so I’ve decided to “kill to two birds with one stone” and make my sampler in the final form of an 18th-century stomacher. I’m adapting the pattern that Lauren at American Duchess used for her stomacher.
Today is prepping my fabric and trace the design onto the fabric. I scored a deal on pearl cotton at Hobby Lobby: 105 skeins for $16.99 less 30% off, which works out to 11 cents per skein. I am happy with that. It almost makes up for the cost of the yarn to make the 13th Doctor’s rainbow scarf…but that’s another blog post in the making.
When you start a new project, you always want to start with a review of the foundational pieces: corset, petticoats, and chemises, and then you ask yourself the following questions:
What do I need?
Do I have something from a different era that will suffice or are the shaped so radically different that I need to make a standalone piece?
Do I really, really need to make another [fill in the blank].
In this particular case, since I’m going to be working my way through the entire book, the answer is in the form of a question, “What is the first project?” In this case, it’s easy-peasy: it’s the first project in the book: “Basic Under-Petticoat.”
Step 1: Find myself some heavy linen.
I have some 7 oz. Spruce green, heavy-weight linen. I’ve been planning on making some Outlander cosplay entirely out of linen, and this seems like a good place to start. I have bleached linen, but it’s only 5.3 oz. Linen and thus, not heavy enough for this project.
Step 2: Measure from my natural waist to lower calf.
I got 33 inches.
Step 3: Cut two pieces 33 inches long by the width of the fabric.
Check; trim fabric width down to 50 inches from 60 inches, for a finished skirt width of about 98 inches, check.
I’m using the mantua maker’s seam on the raw edges of one of the side seams and the other I’ve used the selvage.
Step 5: err …take pictures while sewing
Initial stitching — my hand sewing skills are a bit rusty.
I’ve played a little bit with the color temperature of my iPhone photo in a vain attempt in try and get something closer to the actual fabric. Alas, it’s a fail. And yes, since this is an exercise in using what I’ve got on hand, the thread is a bit too green for the fabric.
You’ve probably noticed that the edges of the fabric are offset. This was purposefully done. I used the mantua maker’s seam to finish the cut edge side seam. The seam finish is very similar to a traditional flat feld seam. The book explains it better than I can. I will add that requires a lot of pins to neatly hold the fabric in place while you’re sewing. I like the look of the finished seam as it is very small and very flat. I plan on using it for my chemises and smocks moving forward as it should make the armscye gussets less bulky and thus, much more comfortable.
Tacking down the selvage to form the side opening. My stitching is looking a bit better.
I switched to a black silk thread on my other side seam. It’s a little easier to use a single strand, and not doubled. I tried doubled thread, but it kept twisting up on itself and annoying me.
Stitching the double-turned 1/2 inch-ish hem. I eyeballed it and then pinned it to death, stabbing myself a few times in the process.
Adding bias tape to serve as the waistband with lots and lots of straight pins to hold it and the pleats underneath in place.
The book calls for 3/4 to 1 ” wide linen or cotton tape for the waistband. As I did not have any, only some 1/2 ” wide twill tape left over from my last Trunk Club, and I already had other plans for it, so I used the linen bias tape I made for the 18th-century cloak class I took at Costume College 2016. [It’s the same fabric that I’m going to be using for my English gown. This way if the skirts slip, it won’t be quite as noticeable.]
Finishing the waistband, and using lots and lots of pins to keep the fabric in place while stitching.
Whipstitching the ties closed with a zillion little stitches.
Step 6: Model finished project.
Petticoat as modeled by “the chick.”
As I totally stuck at selfies of any kind and my husband was out running errands to prepare of a business trip, I popped my new finished onto my dress form that we nicknamed “the chick” many moons ago. It’s currently padded out to fit my BFF, so it’s smaller than my measurements, hence the droopy waistband. That extra green fabric that hanging below is a cotton blanket that is being used to pad the chick out and impatient me didn’t bother to pin up out of the way.
Step 7: Conclusion and nitpicks.
Somewhere in my bio, I believe that it states that my mother taught me how to sew as an attempt to teach me patience, and probably what the results of perseverance will bring forth when you chose to apply yourself. When it comes to sewing, I am a speedy girl. It’s one of the reasons why I own a 1/2 horse-power industrial straight machine. I just want to “getter done.” What I am going to suggest to everyone, regardless of the years of sewing under their belt, is slow down and take the time to read the instructions before launching off into the deep end. I completely glazed over the instructions for cutting the fabric and it wasn’t making any sense until I went back and reread the cutting instructions.
All and all, this is a very easy and straightforward project. The instructions are well written, and for the visual group, the photos are worth a thousand words. Once you’ve mastered this project, you’re ready to tackle the next project: the English Gown Petticoat.
There are days when I question my sanity, and then I remember that I’m running a fever and everything makes sense. I started coming down with a cold when I made this earth-shattering decision: I decided that I was going to make everything in the newly published “The American Duchess Guide to 18th Century Dressmaking” book. Some of it will be done all by hand, some it will be mostly done by machine and other concessions along the way, but all of it will be for me.
The book is nicely presented with color photos and illustrations. The text is easily understood. My only initial complaint is the book does not contain shifts, chemises (if you’re French), or stays (corsets). I’ve watched the YouTube videos and heard about the time constraints and that some things had to be cut, and would be covered elsewhere like the AD blog, but how about a book on underpinnings, and just underpinnings?
For the purpose of continuity and ease for searching, the blog posts, this series is going to be referred to as ADBP with the project name. I’ll be using the Twitter hashtag #HandsewingInsanityProject
As part of my personal continuing education and need to keep my brain alive by learning new tricks, I’ve taken up knitting, and not just any knitting, hand-knitting lace. Because I don’t have enough things to drive my insane. Anyways, my neurologist signed off on the idea as being a good one and gave me her blessing to proceed. And ultimate truth be told, I fell in love with all the knitty bits that Claire wore on Outlander and had to have them …and the only way to get them was knit them myself. Fortunately, Lion Brand carries the official Outlander kits.
As my current skill level is slightly better than a novice, there is a whole lot that I simply do not know, thus making any project that’s beyond knitting the 4th doctor’s scarf is new and has a steep learning curve. I’ve ripped it out at least 5 times now because it’s such a simple pattern, it’s easy to get confused.
My chosen project is a Lady’s Wrap circa 1961. It’s to go with my lavender silk cocktail dress for the Friday evening cocktail party. According to the lady from whom I acquired it from on Etsy: “This pattern is from Bear Brand and Fleisher Yarns Hand Knit Mohair Fashions Vol. 55, from 1961….” I invite you to check out her Etsy shop: Vintage Knit Crochet. There are lots of good things to recreate there.
The yarn in question is Patons Lace yarn and the color I’m using what they call “Plum Smoke.” I got it at Joann’s, on sale, before I even knew what I wanted to make because I loved the soft heathery deep lavender color. So when I decided what I was planning on making clothing wise, a wrap for a sleeveless lavender silk cocktail dress seemed natural.
I decided to take a break and write up a little something on this project before I go bonkers and rip it out yet another time.
