Vogue Young Fashionables

I'm busy with a sewing project at present, but it's top secret, so I can't post about it - yet. So instead here's a short post about something which came up in my studies this week - Vogue Young Fashionables patterns.

The Young Fashionables line was introduced in 1956. Initally they were sold only to schools as an aid for sewing lessons. Two years later however they appeared in the main pattern catalogue. By this stage they had their own logo, and were sold in larger envelopes, similar to those used for Vogue Paris Originals and Vogue Couturier patterns.*

The original Vogue Young Fashionables logo

By 1961 however Young Fashionables patterns were in standard size envelopes with the usual Vogue logo, and just the image of a sew-in ribbon to distinguish them.

Vogue 5230, 1961

Vogue 5597, 1962

Vogue 6166, 1964

Vogue 6277, 1964

I'm not sure if the patterns actually had a 'Young Fashionables' sew-in label from the beginning, but clearly they were available by 1965. In line with the labels for other Vouge pattern lines it did not come as standard with the pattern; it had to be requested when you bought the pattern.

Vogue 6504, 1965

Vogue 6879, 1966

It's hard to see what distinguishes these patterns: most of them do not look noticably trendier or more suitable to younger wearers than other Vogue patterns of the same period. Nor do they seem obviously simpler to make, in line with the original idea of these being patterns to use while learning to sew. The name does always make me smile however, as I am neither young nor remotely fashionable, but would happily make up most of the Young Fashionables patterns in my collection!


* - Information from Blueprints of Fashion: Home Sewing Patterns of the 1950s by Wade Laboissonniere.