Ladies 1912 Blouse, part 2

....and here's the finished blouse, complete with buttons.

Ladies 1912 Blouse

After taking a break from sewing for an archaeological dig in Israel (tons of fun, by the way!) I'm back at it again, and almost finished with the 1912 ladies blouse. This pattern didn't come with instructions, so it was a bit interesting figuring it out - it's not like any other blouse pattern I've ever sewn! I had a friend over one evening, and we spread out the pattern on the floor to mull over. Thanks to her brilliance, I was able to grasp the concept of the arm seam - there is one continuous seam that goes up the the side of the blouse, under the armhole, and down the sleeve. It was really quite simple once I understood it - simply slash the fabric where marked on the pattern piece, and starting either at the bottom of the side seam, or the end of the sleeve, sew until you reach the corner, miter the corner, sew until you reach the next corner, miter that corner, and sew to the end. One other difficulty that I had with this pattern was that the cuff pattern piece is missing, but it wasn't too hard to make a cuff piece. It seems that I had a bit of trouble with the pleats, but I did those before I left for Israel, and I forgot to take notes, so by now I've forgotten what the trouble was with them. All I have left to do is put on buttons - you'd think that with almost two gallons of vintage buttons, I'd be able to find some that would work, but no, so it's off to JoAnns I go! I had a lot of fun with this pattern, and I really like the end result - I think it's really cute! I might even add it to my real life wardrobe instead of relegating it to my costume bin!

Pattern Review Checklist:

1.  Pattern Description: Ladies Blouse
2.  Pattern Sizing: I didn’t change the sizing, since it was my size, and sure enough, it fits me just right.
3.  Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing it? Yes, almost exactly.
4. Were the instructions easy to follow? There were no instructions.
5. What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? It was a bit challenging to sew this without instructions, but I love the way it turned out!
6. Fabric Used: Cotton
7. Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: None.
8. Would you recommend this pattern to others? Absolutely!
9. Conclusion: This was a fun project that turned out really well.

VPLL Checklist

1.  Pattern Name: 0219 Blouse
2. Sewer’s Skill Level: Intermediate
3. Pattern Rating: 1-Not a Fan, 2 – So-So, 3 – Good/Average, 4-Better than Average, 5-I LOVED IT! and why? This is an unusual pattern in terms of construction, but it worked really well.
4. What skill level would someone need to sew this pattern and why? Intermediate to advanced, due to the unusual pattern.
5. Were the instructions easy to follow? If not, what needs to be changed? No instructions.
6. How was the fit/sizing?  Did it correspond to what you thought? Yes, it turned out just how I thought it would.
7. Did you make any pattern alterations? If so, what alterations did you make? Where they fit or design alterations? No alterations.

Ladies 1912 Skirt part 2

The skirt went together very nicely. The instructions for joining the scalloped side to the front didn’t make sense to me, so I just did what made sense to me. First I rolled a narrow hem on the edge of the skirt front, on the right side of the fabric. Then I tried on the skirt, and marked how far it needed to overlap. For me, the edge of the skirt front came right to the edge of the facing on the scalloped side. I blind-stitched the layers together below the mark on the pattern. I put a hook and eye at the top of the skirt, and a snap at the tip of each of the top three scallop point. When I sewed on the decorative buttons, I sewed them through all of the layers, but I found that the points still flopped a bit, so I tacked each one down at the tip. It’s been a fun project, and I’m looking forward to my next VPLL 1912 project!

Pattern Review Checklist:

1. Pattern Description: 1912 Ladies Skirt
2. Pattern Sizing: 34” waist
3. Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing it? Yes.
4. Were the instructions easy to follow? Most of the instructions made sense.
5. What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I liked the way it used binding on the pointed scallops to add detail.
6. Fabric Used: Cotton Twill
7. Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: I took it in slightly to fit me.
8. Would you recommend this pattern to others? Yes.
9. Conclusion: It was a fun pattern to make, and turned out very nicely.

VPLL Checklist

1. Pattern Name: Ladies Skirt #0200
2. Sewer’s Skill Level: Intermediate
3. Pattern Rating: 1-Not a Fan, 2 – So-So, 3 – Good/Average, 4-Better than Average, 5-I LOVED IT! and why? It turned out very nice for the amount of work it required.
4. What skill level would someone need to sew this pattern and why? Intermediate, to be able to do the binding correctly. I wasn’t able to get it as nice as I would have liked.
5. Were the instructions easy to follow? If not, what needs to be changed? Most of the instructions were easy to follow. The only step that confused me was joining the scalloped side to the front.
6. How was the fit/sizing? Did it correspond to what you thought? Yes, it turned out how I thought it would.
7. Did you make any pattern alterations? If so, what alterations did you make? Where they fit or design alterations? I made slight fit alterations.
8. Other notes: It might be nice for the pattern instructions to include tips on correctly turning all the corners on the bias binding.

Ladies 1912 Skirt

My next project for the VPLL 1912 project is the Ladies Skirt, pattern # 0200. Since I used up my brown linen on my last project, I opted for a nice taupe cotton, brass colored buttons, and red trim for a splash of color. I adjusted the pattern to my size by pinching in a bit at the top of each pattern piece, but leaving the full width at the bottom, since I like full skirts. More to come.....

The Completed Princess Slip

The princess slip is finished, and I love the way it turned out! I would have posted sooner, but I mislaid my camera, and wasn't able to get the pictures I wanted. The most time consuming part of the project was pleating the ruffle. I measured, pinned, ironed, and re-ironed. There must be a better way to do it. I added lace around the neckline and armholes. I decided to skip the eyelet lace and ribbon, around the neck since all of the lace insertions have ribbon running through them. When I tried it on, I realized why I should have done the eyelet and ribbon. The neckline it very wide - the shoulders hardly stay up on me, so if I'd had eyelet around the neckline, I would have been able to use the ribbon as a drawstring, and draw it up to fit. If I make this pattern again, I'll adjust it to make the neckline fit me better.

Pattern Review Checklist:

1. Pattern Description: Slip pattern from 1912, with insertion lace trim.
2. Pattern Sizing: 36” bust
3. Did it look like the photo/drawing on the pattern envelope once you were done sewing it? Yes, except that the neckline turned out a lot wider than shown in the picture.
4. Were the instructions easy to follow? Yes, except that the placket instructions were not clear.
5. What did you particularly like or dislike about the pattern? I love the elegance of the design.
6. Fabric Used: Cream colored cotton
7. Pattern alterations or any design changes you made: None.
8. Would you recommend this pattern to others? Absolutely!
9. Conclusion: I really enjoyed making this slip, and I would love to make it again sometime, altering it to be a dress.

VPLL Checklist

1. Pattern Name: Princess Slip, pattern 0336
2. Sewer’s Skill Level: Intermediate
3. Pattern Rating: 1-Not a Fan, 2 – So-So, 3 – Good/Average, 4-Better than Average, 5-I LOVED IT! and why? It is simple and logical, and yet made a beautiful garment.
4. What skill level would someone need to sew this pattern and why? I would say that any intermediate seamstress would be able to sew this pattern. The insertion lace and the pleating might be overwhelming for a beginning seamstress.
5. Were the instructions easy to follow? If not, what needs to be changed? It would be nice if more detailed instructions were added for making the placket.
6. How was the fit/sizing? Did it correspond to what you thought? Yes, it turned out slightly too large for me, which was exactly how I thought it would turn out.
7. Did you make any pattern alterations? If so, what alterations did you make? Where they fit or design alterations? I didn’t make any alterations.
8. Other notes:
   

The Princess Slip

Closeup of lace insertionsFront viewMaterials

My latest sewing project is the "Princess Slip". This is an original pattern from 1912 which has been digitized and made available online by The Vintage Pattern Lending Library. I chose a cream-colored cotton fabric and matching cotton lace with ribbon running through it. I printed up the pattern on 8 1/2 x 11 sheets, and then taped them all together. They went together very nicely. When I started sewing, I had a bit of trouble with some of the lace insertions. The two going down the side fronts are centered over curved seams, which made rolling the fabric under to finish the inside a bit tricky. The insertions that weren't over seams went a lot better. Once I finished the lace insertions, assembling the rest of the body went like a breeze. I cheated and zig-zagged the raw edges - very un-authentic. I wasn't quite sure what to do with the back button placket - the instructions weren't clear on that, but I just did what seemed logical, and I think it turned out just fine. Hopefully within the next few days I'll be able to finish the project up and post some final pictures.