:: so much to say ::

I have so much to show and tell you–it is just practically jumping about in my head dying to get out! But I won’t reveal it all at once; don’t want to subject you all to The Post of the Century, do I? hehe!!!

Before we delve into this week’s super-special Double Vintage Monday feature (I know!! So exciting!), I wanted to show a little something I whipped up on Saturday:

The top is modified from the Burda Style Lydia pattern. I found some gorgeous, black jersey recently; and it was a very tiny length (a little over ½ yard). My original top idea had to be modified quite a bit to get all the pieces to fit on the material, but I did it! *jumps up and down* I left the body of the pattern pretty much as-is, just scooping out hte neckline a bit more. The sleeves is where all the action is: I shortened the piece, slashed and spread from cap to hem, added about 5” and reshaped the bottom edge a bit. The cap was shirred to its original width, and I gathered the bottom onto a wide band. Voila!! Pretty, fun sleeves!

The skirt was originally a rummage sale find from last autumn; I think I spent $1 on it. Although I loved the waistband, the rest of it was kinda blah and a bit frumpy. So I chopped off the old hem (a good 11”!!), rehemmed it and replaced the back buttons. The pockets I made from the leftover pieces of the old hem; just eyeballing the size and proportion, and topstitching them to the front of the skirt. I added a couple vintage buttons for the cute factor and now I have a new skirt! Hurrah!!!

I tell you: this recycling/refashioning and sewing-from-scratch experiment is proving to be the little kick I needed to really get back into sewing for myself. I’m having a ball!!

Anyway, now to compose myself and move on to the Double Vintage Monday! Here is the “official” image for today; a series of four, lovely shirtwaists from 1906. Aren’t they so pretty? I can think of at least half a dozen ways you could reinterpret any one of them into something very modern and cute. For instance, that large, Bertha collar on the middle left blouse? You could reuse that idea (possibly scaled down a bit) on a light, sleeveless summer dress. What ideas do you see?

The bonus feature today is a series of photo-excerpts from a 1964 Vogue pattern catalog!! I inherited this years ago from my grandmother, and paging through for ideas and inspiration is something I do frequently. Unfortunately, its a bit of a chore scanning this behemoth, so pictures are the only solution! I do hope you’ll enjoy these! Click on the image above to be taken to my Flickr album, or view the whole set here!!! Feel free to comment on the photos with your ideas and inspirations!

I hope you all are having a simply lovely and inspired Monday!!!

Cheers!

[ Poppytalk Handmade Market is up? And this month it’s got an eco-friendly theme!

 

:: deep breaths ::

Just a quick note to pop in and say “hello!” to all my lovely friends! My apologies if I have been tardy in responding to comments or commenting on your blogs… I am in the throes of wrapping up midterms before Spring Break next week. (Hurrah!!!) So my mind has been on books and exams lately!

Remember this sneak peek last week? Here is the dress it became! I’m pleased as punch with how it came out, ‘cause I fell in love with the soft, windowpane plaid cotton when I spotted it. I was somewhat terrified that the dress would end up just being a sack, since it is so loose-fitting, but a belt remedies a thousand things. hehe! I modified the length and sleeves a bit, to make it more me. Click on any of the photos or my Burda Style page for more snippets of “technical sewing” details!

Here is the Vintage Monday (on Tuesday… but I had a test yesterday, so I hope I can be excused for the belated feature!) installment for this week! Another 1940’s inspiration! I love the dress on the left especially; the sweet bow and stripy fabric just seals the deal for me. hehe!

Have a lovely week my sweet friends! I shall return around Thursday or Friday–hopefully in a much less distracted state! hehe!

Cheers!

[

 

:: the ugly duckling is really a beautiful swan ::

Thank you all for your sweetness regarding my “Ugly Duckling” dress!! hehe! I am happy to report that I wore it today, and quite liked how it looked. It is definitely a blank canvas in so many ways; I could liven it up quite a bit if I wanted with colorful accessories! But today, I was feeling a bit on the less is more side, and kept everything pretty simple (sort of like those Japanese craft books that I so admire!):

Reminds one a bit of Toast or Saltwater, don’t you think?

I tend to go through cycles with my clothing. For awhile, I like to wear bright, happy colors; lots of layering and frilly things! But right now I’m enjoying a bit of a respite with my clothes. Dresses are very much in favor; especially the shift style. Subtle, neutral colors that rely more on surface pattern or texture than pops of color. I’m also wearing my beloved “ancient reproduction” earrings a lot more (simple, gold hoops). I think it is quite amusing in a sense to see myself go through these visual, aesthetic moods! I daresay my next move will be onto much brighter, girlish cuts and colors!! hehe!!

I hope you all are having a lovely Monday–I was quite naughty and went thrifting today (I have a huge post I need to do on my latest adventures)! Here is this week’s bit of vintage to liven things up, and perhaps give you some visual inspiration!

Enjoy your day (or evening… or morning, whichever the case may be!), my dears!!!

Cheers & Creativity,
♥ Casey [ email me ]

p.s. Speaking of surface texture, have you seen the new lovelies over at Gibbous?! Yummy!!!

 

:: farmgirl ::

Oh my goodness… I was just rereading some of my posts over the last week and realized how dour and gloomy I sound! Away with the dull mood, I say!! Now we shall focus on happier, more whimsical things! hehe!

The title of this post refers to the dress I just finished sewing! It turned out… a bit different than I imagined. Not a disaster, but not a roaring success; its a bit of a odd-duck if you ask me! lol. I think part of it is the material I chose (a very light denim), and partially the pattern isn’t very well drafted (totally not my fault! hehe!). But I didn’t let that get me down–I just whipped out my collection of belts (I knew I had been hoarding them for a reason! hehe!) and found that when cinched in a bit, it looks quite cute (even if the sleeves are a wee bit longer than I envisioned–despite shortening them!). I shall eventually post pictures of me wearing this; but right now I have a horrendous red thing on my forehead, that I shall spare you all the horror of seeing!

Then I realized what this dress reminded me of as I observed it from various angles in the mirror… Rather like a dress I remember seeing in a National Geographic of an Eastern European farm worker back in the early 1990’s. I knew my childhood fascination with that part of the globe would resurface somehow one day! Oh my… and tying a scarf around my head didn’t help matters any… *giggle* Still though, I shall think of this “ugly duckling” dress as my work-a-day, serviceable number (perfect for art days). To whip out whenever I feel a bit (more than usually) eccentric! Ta-da!!

And here, are the inspiration links for this past week! They’re all gems, if you ask me!!

♥ inspiration [ twenty-seven ] ♥
♥ pondering unusual collections
♥ emily katz’s inspiring fashion line
♥ inspiring (and pretty!) storage inspiration
♥ ruffle vest tutorial [ + ultra-swank variation! ]
♥ old, penmenship books! [ via ]
♥ colorful 1920s fashion illustrations [ via ]
♥ discovered a lip moisturizer that actually works

Enjoy exploring the links and I hope you have a fabulous, creative day, my friends!

Cheers & Creativity,
♥ Casey [ email me ]