Redingotes again

Sometimes I can't leave well alone, and sometimes that leads to unexpected consequences. After posting last week about coat patterns in a 1949 Vogue counter catalogue I continued to ponder why two of them were 'redingotes' but a similar one wasn't.

There's lots online about eighteenth century redingotes such as this one, and the always excellent Witness2Fashion has a fascinating post on how the term was used in the early twentieth century (including some great suggestions for 1920s dress styles if, like me, a horizontal line across your hips is not a look which does you any favours!), but I could find nothing on how the term was used in the 1940s and 1950s. So the only thing to do was go back to the source material.

Two redingotes and a coat

All three patterns are for single-breasted, V-neck, full-skirted coats which only fasten to the waist. However, the coat on the right has a one-piece collar, whereas the others have two-piece collars. As the term redingote originally came from 'riding coat', I suspect that the collar may be a crucial element. The redingotes also have pockets, which open along the seam joining the centre front to the side front. Historically redingotes tended to have a long slit at the back, another detail which came from the male riding coat.

So all things considered it's not surprising that when, a couple of days later, I was browsing Style patterns online, this one jumped out at me.

Style 2861, 1997

Single-breasted V-neck, check. Fullish skirt and only fastens to the waist, check. Two-piece collar, check. The back view shows a very high stitching line for the back vent, giving the long back opening.

The seam lines are clearer on the drawing

The back tab is a modern detail, and the front below the pocket flap is in two pieces rather than one. Conversely, the sleeve is cut in a single piece rather than two. But despite these differences, it's still got a definite redingote look to me. Naturally, it has since been added to my collection of Style patterns.

When it comes to coat making, my track record is really not good - Vogue 1266 has been languishing in my UFO pile for years! But if I ever want to make a redingote, I've now got the means to do so.

Second time lucky

I'm pretty sure that this is a first, not just for the blog, but for my dressmaking in general. Since I started vintage dressmaking, I've made up several patterns from the late 1970s, and re-acquired a number of patterns from that era which I had disposed of in various clear-outs. But until now, I had never made up a pattern which I had made previously, when it was 'new'.

Step forward, Style 2703, from 1979.

I think I previously made this in the very early 80s

I made view 2 and it wasn't a success, which was entirely due to poor fabric choice. Unusually for me, I can't remember the exact fabric I used, but I do recall that it was a cotton, and too thick and stiff for the gathers and ties at the shoulder.

Despite this, when I saw the pattern on eBay, I snapped it up to add to my 'Style 1979' collection. I didn't have any immediate plans to make it up, but when I found the crinkle viscose just visible above in the remnant bin of my local fabric shop, I knew that it would be a perfect match.

Resizing the pattern was easy; there is no shaping, so I just had to make it wider and move the pockets up a little. The front and the back are identical apart from the necklines, which meant that I could draft the front only, and add an overlay for the back neckline.

The main pieces, and the all-important pocket

The pattern pieces are for view 1, and the 7cm/2¾" 'sleeves' are removed for view 1. However, I've found that I greatly prefer the longer shoulder seam of Vogue 2787 to sleeveless dresses which end on the shoulder, which view 2 of 2703 appears to do.

Vogue 2787's extended shoulders

My solution was to keep to view 1 at the top, but taper to view 2 at the side seam. This gives me extra length at the shoulder, without the gathers ending up looking meagre.

My pattern alteration

I also cut the dress out as long as I could make it, partly for preference and partly to get maximum use from the remnant. The shoulder ties were cut from the plain mustard section of the print.

After posting last week that I never found errors in the instructions of my vintage patterns, it was probably inevitable that I would find - well, not an error exactly, but something odd. The dress pieces have extensions at the bottom, which form the facings of the side vents. But these are just folded back and then hemmed; there is nothing to keep the top of the facing in place, in the way that you would secure the top of a skirt vent. So I hand sewed the top of the facing to the dress with small stitches, to ensure that it hangs properly.

Really?

I made a tie belt out of leftover fabric, and I have an off-white leather purchased belt which will work with the dress as well. But I had a vague memory of owning a belt with a scallop shell clasp in the late 70s/early 80s, and thought that something similar would look ideal on this dress. So I went online, and struck gold (well, gold plated). I found a belt clasp in exactly the style I wanted, by Mimi Di N jewellery. Even better, Mimi di Niscemi dated her pieces, and this one was from 1979! The belt is made from cotton twill tape, and perfectly matches my original idea.

One half of the dated clasp

The completed belt

I'm very pleased with the end result, and can see it becoming my go-to hot weather dress.

Much better than my first attempt

There's not a lot to show in the seated shot, except how windy it was when I was taking the photos!

#sewnshownseated

As I bought fabric specifically for this project, there's no reduction on the stashometer, either.

2.9m in, 2.9m out

However, a successful make from a pattern which didn't work out previously has got me thinking about other past failures, and how they might be fixed. Hmmm.

Dresses, jackets and ensembles

Back at my late 1950s (?) Style counter catalogue, and this time I'm looking the section marked "Dresses With Jackets / Ensembles". Clearly this was an important element of dressmaking at the time, as it's the second tabbed section in the catalogue, after "Dresses" and its various subsections. Despite this being a winter catalogue, there are no new patterns in this section.

1145, on the section's front page, is the newest design

The dresses are almost all straight, there's only one with an option for a full skirt.

1127, with straight or full skirt

Most of the more recent patterns have loose-fitting jackets.

1137, with a loose, hip-length jacket

But there are a number of more fitted options as well, although these tend to be older patterns.

953 is a very fitted shape

There are also some shorter jackets.

968 has a waist-length jacket

Although the basic silhouette of the dresses remains the same, there are lots of variations in design details.

972 has a bodice detail to match the pockets

1024 also has under-bust detailing

1025 emphasises the neckline

As does 1031

1119 has bows and an interesting jacket back

Of the 27 patterns in this section, all but six are described as "Dress & Jacket". I have no idea why 1030 is described as a "Two-Piece" despite it being, well, a dress and a jacket.

The jacket can be made loose or fitted

This "Dress and Shortie Jacket" only goes up to a 38" (96.5cm) bust, so I'm guessing that it was intended as a younger style.

1126, definitely a more modern look

I'm also assuming that it would have counted as an 'ensemble', as the jacket can be made in a different fabric, whereas in all the preceding examples the same fabric is used for both pieces.

These must also have been 'ensemble' patterns, as they consist of three garments.

983, "Three-Piece"

1077, "Three-piece Suit"

1130,"Cardigan Suit & Blouse"

Including patterns for a dress and a full-length coat in this section seems a bit of a stretch, but I suppose that the implication is that you could create an ensemble by either making both in the same material, or lining the coat with the dress fabric.

1036 and 1046 combined in one illustration

Only a couple of the patterns in this section go up to a 44" (112cm) bust, but that is a subject for another post.

Pattern detective work

I've had a chance to start looking through my 1950s (?) Style counter catalogue. There's lots of inspiration, of course, but I'm intrigued by the age and appearance of some of the patterns. According to the pattern index in the catalogue, the oldest pattern is 4415 and the newest is 1177.

1176 and 1177

Style seems to have had an aversion to putting dates on things, but some of my Style patterns in the 4400 and 4500 number ranges have a reference to the CC41 regulations printed on the envelopes, which indicates that they were issued during the period of clothes rationing. The numbering appears to have gone up to the very early 5000s, and then started again at 100.

All of the four-digit patterns beginning with 4 in the catalogue are for nightwear, underwear, or children's clothing. So are most of the low numbered three-digit patterns. Which makes sense, as these are not going to be much affected by changing fashion.

4415 - this was school uniform for decades

Slips and nighties are timeless

Occasionally a detail in the illustration hints that this pattern has been in production for a while. The stocking in this illustration has the square top at the heel which was common in the 1940s and replaced in the next decade by the pointed top.

Cuban heel stockings

The oldest adult pattern which I could find which isn't nightwear or underwear is this suit, 171.

171 ties in with the other styles shown

I have the pattern for this, and the artwork has clearly been completely redrawn for the catalogue, to make it more up-to-date. The hair has changed, the hat has been removed, and the version with the collar has been relegated to a small sketch.

More jewellery, fewer hats

468 has undergone even more of a makeover, however. I recognised the design as another one in my own collection, but my copy is numbered 4462. The 1940s hairstyles of rolls and snoods have been updated and so (rather oddly, for a garment which isn't normally worn with a bra underneath) has the bust shape!

Spot the differences

I’m intrigued now. I shall be keeping an eye out for these older patterns online, to see how the artwork has changed.

A new Style Patterns find

My love of Style patterns is well-documented on this blog, so when I found this counter catalogue for sale I couldn't resist. It only arrived recently, so haven't yet had time to look at it in detail. It seems to have been issued in December (but contains an oddly high number of sleeveless dresses, possibly to be used as party frocks?), but despite combing the front and back sections for small print, I've been unable to find a year. My guess is late 1950s.

With 6" ruler for scale

Style pattern envelopes were still only black and white at the time, but the catalogue is almost all in colour. The only monochrome images are of the pattern envelopes of the new releases.

Six of the new pattern issues

The other three

I have the pattern featured on the cover. The bodice darts, an important part of the design from a dressmaking point of view, are barely visible on the envelope art but far more clear in the catalogue illustration.

Comparison

I wonder how many people made the version of this dress with the massive collar?

Dramatic, but potentially very annoying!

Some, but not all, of the patterns include a schematic of the pattern pieces.

With schematics

There is a fairly even split between designs with very straight and very full skirts.

Straight

Full

While most illustrations are on plain white, some have a brief sketch of background.

Simple outlines of a chair and fireplace

As someone whose local fabric shop sells a lot of remnants, I really liked the idea of these patterns.

Patterns for remnants - ooh!

There are lots of things I want to look at in more detail, but that’s it for now.

York again

Last weekend I went back to York, for the Festival of Vintage. Although most of my wardrobe is now vintage styles, I wear very little true vintage. It's rare to find items which fit my short-waisted self, and I simply can't bring myself to cut up something which has survived for over 60 years, just so that it will fit me. As a result, most of my purchases at vintage events are jewellery and accessories, and the main reason for going is to catch up with friends and browse.

Of course, there's always the hope that I'll find some patterns or, even better, fabric. The dress length I found last year which became my Bertie Bassett dress was a joy to work with, but such acquisitions are rare - usually. This time, however, the home dressmaking gods decided to smile on me, and I came home with all sorts of goodies.

First of all, buttons and buckles. These are some of my favourite things to buy vintage. They are not size-dependent, mostly inexpensive, and can really add a vintage look to a project. The blue buttons on the playing card and the black ones top right were bought from an antique centre in York, while all the rest were bought at the Festival. I have specific plans for all of them apart from the blue 'Deco' set centre left.

Mostly bought with projects in mind

I also have plans for these two fabulous clasps, which are from the wonderful Fantouche Vintage.

With ruler for scale

Next up, fabric. I am trying really hard not to buy any new fabric - unless it's needed to complete a project mainly being made from stash, for example lining or a contrast collar. I have allowed myself an exception for vintage fabric, and bought several lengths. The first of which is this brown cotton, with a print which somehow manages to look upside-down from both ends!

Which way up?

The drape and hand of the next piece, combined with the diagonal twill weave, make me think that it is most likely Viyella. My pink Viyella dress is a cold weather favourite, it's toasty without being bulky, so the prospect of another dress in the same cloth made me snap this up.

I'm always on the lookout for Viyella

Far less toasty is this 1940s rayon. It will probably be a blouse, as I doubt if there's enough to make a dress, but my habit of working with remnants has honed my skills at eking out fabric - so we'll see.

I couldn't pass this up

There's more of this dark red spotty fabric with an interesting, ridged weft. It doesn't have a lot of drape, which will influence my pattern choices.

I'm thinking crisp 1940s here

The final fabric is this jaunty cotton. It had been sewn up into a bag shape, so may have once been a feed sack. It does seem rather long for that, though - it would have been a very heavy sack.

Feedsack? It certainly feels old

From fabrics on to patterns, and I was delighted to add to my collection of early Style patterns. I bought these two from different traders, and it was only later that I realised that Style had thriftily used the same bodice for two different patterns: camiknickers (4769) and a slip (4770).

Reuse on adjacent patterns

The envelope of this pattern is so damaged that I don't know what size it is. It does still have its original transfer, though, as well as separate instructions for the embroidery.

Style 4860

I can safely say that I never look remotely this glamorous at bedtime!

#goals

I quite fancy making a duffel coat. I don’t think that it would work over this dress with its wild collar, though.

Quite a mixture

Of course, following on from the triumph of my Wondrella cardigan, I'm now taking an interest in knitting patterns as well. It will be a while before I'm up to colour work, but hope springs eternal and all that, and I bought these two at the Festival.

Those hairstyles!

I had some time in York on the Monday, and struck gold in a charity shop - a big basket of old knitting patterns.

My first knitting pattern haul!

Most old patterns are in too small a size for me, so I was interested that both the Bestway and Penelope lacy jumper patterns suggested that they could be made larger by knitting them on the next needle size. The Bestway cardigan pattern, meanwhile, has three sets of instructions for making the same size cardigan in three different thicknesses of wool. Maths nerd that I am, I’m looking forward to comparing them and working out how they differ.

Finally, it is almost impossible for me to go away anywhere and not come back with a secondhand book. Initially I thought that I would be leaving York empty handed, but then I found this.

Still trying to get the sticky label off

The 'Battle of Versailles' was a fashion show featuring five French and five American designers, held in 1973, to raise money for the restoration of the then crumbling Palace of Versailles. I had heard of it, but knew nothing of the details. Flicking through the book, I discovered that one of the American models involved was Karen Bjornson, who featured very heavily on Vogue patterns in the 1970s and 1980s.

Add to all this a great time at the Festival, catching up with old friends and making new ones, and it was a very successful weekend.