In Which A Crabby Old Man Is Lucky

Lucky I don’t beat him to a pulp, that is. 

So.  In writing earlier this week about my grandmother, I was reminded of a photo of her that used to exist.  Note the use of italics.  Because, Gentle Readers, I have come to the sneaking suspicion that my miserable wretch of a grandfather has either lost or destroyed it.  Explaining why he might have done such a thing is too long and horrible a story to relate to such delicate ears as you Gentle Readers possess.  Let’s just agree that such a thing could and in all likelihood did occur.  Which explains why my rotten grandfather is lucky (yes, lucky!) he’s a feeble old man and even I am unlikely to pound on such a person.  Maybe.  He’s lucky my grandmother isn’t around to hear of it, because I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t have such scruples.

I bring this all up because I’d had the fleeting thought of sharing said photo with you.  It was truly fabulous.  I mentioned before that my grandmother was stylish.  She sure was.  The missing photo was taken sometime during the war.  It defies description, but those interested in vintage fashion would have loved it because it resembled nothing so much as a fashion plate.  Alas, that wretched excuse for a person called “Grandpa” has made the point moot.

All I have is this photocopied (photocopied) picture that was taken around the same time.  The image is so degraded that I can’t even tell for sure what type of material that hat is made out of.  Velvet and lambswool?  Fur?  The mind boggles.  I think that dress is a wool jersey.  Hard to know for sure and of course I never thought to ask when she was around to tell me.  I have no doubt that she would have remembered, in great detail.

My recollection is that this was taken in 1939, which if true would  make my grandmother 16 years old and it’s roughly a year after the invasion of Austria.  If this is more recent then it’s from during the war or maybe even slightly after.   If I knew more about hats, I might be able to date the image better.  Either way, I find the fact that so many women managed to maintain their sense of style during a period of such intense uncertainty pretty mind-blowing.  Although if you knew my grandmother, it wouldn’t surprise you to hear that she managed to find a fur hat in the middle of an epic war.  Nor that she would insist on wearing it with such aplomb.  That is how she rolled.

In Which I Can’t Think Of A Title

A certain selfish person recently inspired me to go through my back issues of BWOF.  Every month when my new issue arrives, I immediately photocopy the line drawing insert and file it in my Pattern Binder.  After I've perused the actual magazines, they dutifully go into the magazine file and I hardly ever look at them again. 

I do frequently peruse my pattern binder.  As you all know, what you see in the line drawings of BWOF look like a whole 'nuther animal in the photo shoots.  Whole 'nuther.  So I thought to myself, "Self, you might should take a 'nuther little look-see at those photo shoots."   Apparently my self is now from the hills of Kentucky.  Anyhoo, a little look-see I have taken.  And can I just say: WTF?

People wonder why patterns don't fit them?  I give you exhibit A.

E927 fall/winter - 406 Top

What is up with that girl's sleeve?  I mean, we're just going to completely ignore the whole "this is a plus-sized model who has arms like twigs" thing.  But look at that armscye!  Yikes.  Who would that fit?  Even my really truly plus-sized sausage arms wouldn't make that sucker work.

And no, I'm not trying to single-handedly destroy Burda Fashion or anything (despite evidence to the contrary).  This is hardly a phenomenon unique to them.  It's just that they had the misfortune, or rather lack of insight, to shoot this particular transparent top in such a way as to be completely unable to hide the flaw.  That's their mistake, no doubt about it, but every other pattern company I've ever dealt with (with the exception of one, who seems to consistently have the opposite problem) has this type of armscye issue somewhere along the line.   Which does somewhat beg the question of how mere mortal home sewseamstressers are supposed to cope.

You know what would be cool?  Spray-on clothes.  You know, like in the movie "Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs" (which I have seen waaaay too many times).  Spray on shoes?  Like that.  Spray-on clothes.  Then we could all just walk around in big blobby coatings of rubber.  Like pod people.  Ooooooo.  Pod people.

The Living Is Easy. Or Not. Whatever.

So when it's snowing (which it is here right now), your sewing mind naturally turns to... summer dresses. Naturally.  Well, mine did because yesterday I received the Spring 2010 Papo D'Anjo catalog.

Ah, Papo D'Anjo.  I have a sort of love-hate relationship with them.  Liberty fabrics? Check.  Classic styles.  Check check.  $250 for a child's dress.  Che-- uh.  Wait.  What?  No.

However, this catalog is an inspiration for planning a little girl's spring and summer wardrobe if you are inclined towards the classical in clothing.  If you are in the habit of making traditional little girl's dresses, this catalog will no doubt alternately amuse, enthrall and irritate you because these dresses are basically what you already make at home.  If you charged $200 for them.  Which is about $200 more than most of you charge right now, right?

 
Check out this new item, as shown below.  The “cross-back sunsuit”.  I have no less than three patterns for this outfit and when my kids were babies they wore these all summer long.  I didn't charge them $70.  I'm not saying I shouldn't have... but I didn't.   They do take up a massive amount of fabric, so at least that justifies the cost somewhat.

 

One of the Big4 always has some version of this pattern in stock.  Always.  Butterick has it right now:

Doesn’t this just shout “summer picnic”?  Every summer I try to make at least a few traditional sundresses for my kids.

I still have some pieces of floral lawn that I got last summer from the fabulous Farmhouse Fabrics.  They have lovely fabrics at good rates-- not super-cheap to buy but high quality and worth the price.  (And I have no affiliation of course, I'm just a big fan.)

I still have this fabric, which is one of my all-time favorite prints:

 

And here's a dress I made for TLo last summer.  I used the cotton lawn from Farmhouse (which they still have in several colorways), fine cotton pique for the collar and cotton batiste for the bodice lining.  It’s a little messy looking here because strangely enough it’s been hanging in the closet for four or five months.

My original plan was to do a lace insertion on the front bodice, but I had absolutely no luck with it and it kept pulling apart at the seams. I didn’t have enough fabric to recut the bodice, so I finally decided to do a fix with pique insertions instead, which didn't go so well because of the bulk.  I was also going to do some sort of piping or trim on the collar, but I decided it was a bit too heavy already and to just Let. It. Go.  So it’s not quite as nice as I was planning, but it’s ok.

 

I can't tell you what pattern I used, because I basically mashed this together myself by altering  a drop-waisted bodice from another dress into an empire waist, changing it from a front button placket to a back button placket, adding a lining and then creating the skirt out of a rectangle of fabric.  I drafted the collar to match the neckline of the bodice.  If I could remember what bodice I started with I would tell you but I can't and frankly at this point it probably doesn't matter anyway.

And that is today’s little walk through the sunshine.  Well, I guess I'm off to shovel some snow off the driveway.  Ahhhh... makes you think of halter tops, right? 

(Edit: And just so you don’t think I’m completely deranged, I do realize that this little dress isn’t anything like as nice as the catalog dresses above.  I’m not totally delusional.  It’s just that this is the only one I have that I could find and that I remotely remembered how I made.  You just wait, Doubting Susans, this summer I will have a plethora, plethora I tells ya, of nifty summer clothing to show off.  I will.  No, I am not being defensive.   I am not!  Quit saying that!)