Looking back and forward

A new year is almost here and I realise that I will need to start on my spring/summer wardrobe soon if I am to have anything to wear. I'm a little annoyed with myself for not completing the autumn/winter wardrobe this year, but I shan't be too upset about it. This first year demands more clothes to be fixed than the rest as it assumes that a lot of clothes already exists in the closet when you start. Looking back I realise that I could have made this into a five-year plan instead, splitting the first year into two, but now it feels a bit too late. So instead I will finish the clothes I have already started, but will leave the grey wool dress , the brown wool jacket and the faux fur to next autumn instead. There are also a few details I haven't been able to get to yet.

I don't do New Year resolutions but I will try to focus a bit more on my sewing time. Much too often it gets neglected, which is bad as sewing makes me relaxed and happy (if I'm not stupid enough to give myself deadlines). We're also going to fix the sort-of sewing room up and make it a proper working space both for sewing and writing. Right now the sewing room is a bit of a place to store furniture that really isn't practical to have in a sewing room like a Regency sofa and a 1950's radio gramophone. Beautiful, but really no help at all when you work.

Here's an overview with links to the completed items.

Grey Beret

My autumn/winter wardrobe has two berets listed, one grey and one black. The black are to be made in the same fabric as the black wool dress, so I plan to sew that one myself, but I have been looking for a classic grey beret in stores. I haven’t had much luck, but then Retro Chic posted about berets, 3 Ways to Wear a Beret- read it for some nice tips and she mentioned Village Hats as a good source. I looked; I found and ordered a grey one within minutes to a good price. I placed the order on Sunday at it arrived today, which I think is very good considering that Village Hat is in UK and I am in Sweden.

Waiting at the station coat

This week I finally got my coat from Puttin on the Ritz. I say finally as I have been waiting so eagerly for it, but the truth is that it was sent to me 2 days before the stated waiting time ran out, which is 6 weeks in the slow seasons. The coat is beautiful and comfortable and I couldn’t be happier with it. I always have trouble finding coats that fits, so I’m glad this worked out so well. I’ll definitely be ordering from them again in the future, probably a wool skirt for the winter.

How does your wardrobe grow?

The original purpose of this blog was to build a 40’s wardrobe and of course I’m steadily working on it. However, I am not at all so far gone as I had hoped by now. Partly because I have made some clothes that I have worn this summer that is just summer clothes, partly because this first year needs more clothes to be sewn or purchased than the next three. So here is a little overview on the autumn/winter wardrobe status, so far. Perhaps this is also a good opportunity that when I have bought or finished and I have showed it here, then I link to that post in the static year-posts at the top of the blog. So you can easily check there to see what is still missing.

Grey wool shirt dress
I decided a long time ago that I would use the long-sleeved version of this pattern:

New sweater

I recently bought another sweater from Rocket Originals as I was so pleased with the red one I bought. The cut is the same, but this one has a fairisle pattern. I did a little change of colour as my list says a white jumper, and this one is in "stone", which is a pale grayish beige. A bit more practical than white. The pattern is in green, cream and brown, so it will work well with the wardrobes colours.

I know, I know, horizontal stripes are a big fashion no-no when you have a well-developed chest, but I like this sweater anyway.



For once I thought a little before and took photos when I rolled my hair. I know everyone make a post on their pin-curls, but we all do it a bit differently, so perhaps it will be appreciated anyway.

Green felt hat

Here it is, the green felt hat in action. I am very pleased with it, despite all the problems I had when I made it. One thing I noticed when wearing it that the elastic did nothing to keep the hat on. It just slid on my hair- I guess it would work better if I had had my hair down. Luckily I inherited a few hat pins from my grandmother, so I used one of those to keep the hat in place. Much more becoming than elastic anyway.

Trousers

Trousers in the 1940’s were by no means a staple in a woman’s wardrobe, though due to the war, they became a bit more common, due to practicality. We are still decades from where we are today and many women never wore trousers at all. My Mum once told me that her grandmother who was born in the 1880’s and lived to be almost 80, never owned pair trousers in her whole life. Trousers, with few exceptions, belonged to sportswear and for casual occasions. For the whole of the four years my wardrobe plans span, there are only two pair of trousers planned, the first one being part of an ensemble consisting of trousers, jacket and a skirt in brown gabardine.

The Knitting Problem

Blogger grew worse on me and I couldn't even log in- still can't with my usual web browser. Superheidi gave me the tip to use Safari instead, and it works! Phew!

There are some things that I will definitely purchase for my wardrobe and knitted things are definitely among those. I know how to knit, but I’m not good at it. The question is, how to find a 1940’s sweater? Or rather, how do you find two, as I need a white one and a red one.

Evening gowns

According to my list, when I start to build my wardrobe I should already possess a simple evening gown in black crepe and for the spring wardrobe an evening gown in a dotted fabric should be added. For the next spring, a blue evening gown is to be acquired, as the dotted gown clearly just lasts one season before it is to be made into a short dress. The blue one though, it is pointed out, is suitable for all seasons. Now having two evening gowns to change between, the authors clearly feel that the evening wardrobe is filled and for year three and four these two gowns will be used as well.

Current sewing projects

Despite talking about a lot of other things, I do work on my wardrobe. I sew diligently, but I also sew slowly, so it takes time. I’m currently working on this housedress from Decades of Style. So far I find the pattern a dream to work with. I had planned to make it in a black and white fabric, but it turned out to be a tad too short. As I didn’t want a forties mini-dress I returned to my stash and pulled out this fabric:

It’s really a late 18th century reproduction in a thin, but nice, cotton and I have had it for years. Somehow I never found the right gown for it, so now it will be a housedress instead.

The perfect pair of rubber boots

I’m ridiculously pleased with my new spiffy rubber boots . I haven’t owned a pair in years, something I have missed, as it rains quite a lot in Sweden. But all the rubber boots I found where completely flat and I have a troublesome heel that doesn’t like flat shoes. However, as a pair of rubber boots are on my list for year one, I started to look around. Lo and behold, Viking makes rubber boots after a model from 1939. Could I possibly as for more? They are period. They are stylish. They have a 5 centimeter heel .

If the shoe fits

I love shoes and have for as long as I can remember. I can vividly recall the shoe of my dreams when I was four- red mary janes in patent leather. After wanting them for ages my Mum said I could have a pair, but in the shoe store the biggest pair was too small. Only I said they weren’t. I wanted them so badly that I didn’t mind that they pinched my toes, I was just so happy to have them. My Mum tells me that she knew very well that they were too small, but that she couldn’t bring herself not to buy them for me. Nowadays I’m extremely fuzzy with the fit, but I still love shoes and have very clear ideas on how I want them to look. I have, for example, always loved the 1940’s shape with a rounded toe, and not too thin heels. Some shapes I can’t stand at all, and depending on the current fashion I may buy several pairs during a year, or nothing. Though I understand that not everyone want to buy shoes online, I often do it and have been happy with almost every purchase.

It is, of course, possible to buy old shoes and wear them. I rarely do, though. I find it difficult to find comfortable shoes when someone else has already walked them into shape and as I almost exclusively wear heels, I’m also very particular that shoes are comfortable to walk in. Lots of people have told me that heels can never be comfortable, but I don’t agree. There are a few things to think about. The height of the heel. We all have a limit for how high heels we can walk in. Most of my shoes have a 7 centimeter heel, but party shoes may have 8 or 9. 10 centimeters are my limit- I have one pair that high and I only wear them at parties where I know I can sit down a lot. The width of the heel is important too. A stiletto heel is much worse than a broader heel. And last, the thing I think most people don’t think about at all, the angle between heel and toe. It is really important and, at least for me, impossible to judge without trying them on. I have had shoes with moderately low heels, f centimeters, or so, that has made my feet scream in agony after a few steps. Generally I have found that cheap shoes are the biggest culprits when it comes to bad angles.

So, of I don’t want to wear actual vintage shoes, but still want the shape, what should you do? Well, a visit to a perfectly ordinary shoe store may yield surprisingly good shoes. It depends a lot on the current shoe fashion and you may have to look around, but it is possible. Then there are several websites that offer reproduction shoes. I have bought shoes from Pin Up Clothing that I have been very happy with. At the moment I am ogling some of the shoes from Dancestore. Dance shoes are usually very comfy to wear; I once spent three days in London in a pair of dance shoes and didn’t get sore feet at all. There are also possible to design your own shoe. Shoes of Prey is a modern shoe company, but you can design a shoe with a distinct forties feeling out of their options for toes, heels and other design elements. More expensive, but with lots of options for heel height and she and heel design, is Harr. They make shoes for movies and theatre companies and they are not cheap, but their shoes are very well-made and very comfortable. I bought a pair of 18th century shoes from them and I am very happy with them. And last, you can buy unused vintage shoes from Re-Mix. There are definitely some nice shoes there.

This is by no means a comprehensive list, these companies are merely those I have tried myself or have heard a lot of good about. I need to look over my shoes soon and see what I have that works with my forties wardrobe, and what I need to get. The list of shoes for the autumn and winter are; heavy boots, brown sport shoes, black walking shoes, black evening shoes, rain boots, green shoes and black pumps. I have a pair of black suede pumps that I think will work and when it comes to heavy boots, I don’t know if I will even try. Swedish winters are cold and snowy and I need boots that work, rather than look great. To my utter delight I have actually found a pair of reproduction rain boots. They are really from 1939, but I’m not going to be that picky. I am sure ladies didn’t by rain boots every year anyway.

Neat, don’t you agree?

One thing done, a lot more to go

Yay me anyway! I have just acquired the very first thing in my wardrobe that I have made especially for it, namely the green clip. I wasn't completely sure of what a clip was when I started, but found out that it was what I thought it was; a brooch with a clip, rather than a pin, a popular piece of jewelry in the forties. The clip, my good book advice, doesn't have to be placed in the middle of the neckline or on the shoulder. No, you can place it on lapels, on breast pockets, in your hair or on your hat, or as a button. Or perhaps on a bracelet.

Handbags

I'm going to deviate a little from my list when it comes to handbags. For year one I will have to aquire two of them, one brown in reptile skin and one black in suede. As it is I have a very nice handbag from the forties already, but it is green.

Year one and two

EDITED
I have realized that as the first year of this wardrobe building consists nearly the twice amount of clothes, I don't have the time to finish it all in one year. So I have decided to make my project run for five years instead, splitting the first year into two.


It struck me as a bit unfair that I know what the four-year plan will yield and not you, it isn't like the book I take it from is accessible for you all. Especially if someone feel tempted to join in. So I'll make four posts with all the eight seasons and then put a "sticky" on them so they will be easy to find.

You may notice that the lists looks a bit odd at times, and I'm not sure what it means when a similar garment are already on the "what you have"-list and the "what to get"-list. Or the notes just repeats what has already been said. The cut of the clothes are sometimes suggested, but it is the colours and materials that are the most important. It is also clear that the suggestions are based on a rainy Swedish autumn followed by a cold winter and then a rather warm summer.

YEAR ONE
Autumn/winter

Dresses and blouses
Grey wool shirt dress
Simple, long evening gown in black heavy canton crepe. I made a little switch here and will make the black evening gown later, here is the blue one instead.

Housecoat with a belt in thin cotton

Black wool dress

Coats and suits
Coat in grey lamb fur
Brown sport suit in three pieces, jacket, trousers and skirt.

Red Sweater

White sweater, adapted to be a stone-coloured one.

Raincoat in a "natural" colour.

Shoes
Heavy boots
Brown sport shoes
Black walking shoes
Black evening shoes
Rubber boots

Hats
Grey beret
Brown felt hat, well, I made a hat out of fake suede instead.


Accessories
Brown bag in reptile skin
Black bag in suede
Brown knitted gloves
Homemade knitted mittens

Notes
1. Every colour is beautiful with a grey fur coat.
2. The grey shirt dress should be tone in tone with the fur coat and with grey buttons. Then it will look great with brown accessories
3. The sport suit should be made in water-proofed gabardine.
4. A black simple evening gown is suitable for most occasions.
5. All the green things should match each other.
6. A tweed overcoat is practical all year round.

Spring/summer

Dresses and blouses
Black wool dress with short sleeves. Not a wool dress, but a cotton one, in my case, from Heyday.

Brown dress in silk noil, in three pieces. Here are just the shirt and the skirt:

Dress in artificial silk, patterned with small flowers
White washable shirt dress

Coats and suits
Grey/brown tweed overcoat. I couldn't found any born/grey tweed I liked so I bought a grey wool coat instead.

Grey suit in flannel
Raincoat in "natural" colour

Shoes
Black pumps
Clogs
White fabric shoes

Hats
Grey beret

Black beret
White beret


Accessories
Brown bag in reptile skin
Black bag in suede
A bag in "vindtyg" (My English fails me here. "Vindtyg" is a fabric that is wind proofed, does that makes sense?)
White "laundry" gloves

Notes
1. A white washable dress is always pretty in the summer.
2. The brown silk noil dress consists of a skirt, a blouse and a jacket.
3. For summer an evening gown in a patterned fabric is the best.
4. A sandy colour is a good neutral for a coat and can be used with black dress and beret or brown dress and beret.
5. The sundress in white and yellow should be be finished with white details. With shorts and bolero it will be suitable both for the beach and for bicycling.
6. The green silk noil blouse will look good with the brown shantung skirt and jacket.

YEAR TWO
Autumn/winter

Dresses and blouses
Nice black dress in wool

Coats and suits
Grey/brown overcoat in tweed. I couldn't found any born/grey tweed I liked so I bought a grey wool coat instead.

Shoes
Black pumps
Green shoes

Hats
Black beret, made from the same fabric as the black dress
Green hat in felt


Accessories
Belt, scarf and clip in green

Notes
1. A tailored black wool dress should always be in your wardrobe.

Spring/summer

Dresses and blouses
Green blouse in silk noil (the same colour as the green winter hat)
Yellow and white sundress with a jacket, shorts and blouse
An evening gown in a dotted fabric

Coats and suits
Sand coloured coat

Shoes
Brown walking boots
Yellow sandals in leather

Hats
Sand coloured felt hat
Remodel the green felt hat

Accessories
Bag in the same fabric as the coat
Brown gloves

Notes
1. For summer an evening gown in a patterned fabric is the best.
2. A sand colour is a good neutral for a coat and can be used with black dress and beret or brown dress and beret.
3. The sundress in white and yellow should be be finished with white details. With shorts and bolero it will be suitable both for the beach and for bicycling.
4. The green silk noil blouse will look good with the brown shantung skirt and jacket.

First plans

So far I have only had time to start planning and this is what I have come up with this far. I will, if I find something suitable, by it, be it a reproduction or an original. I have little hopes on finding old clothes that actually fits me, but some accessories hunting will have to take place. I feel inclined to use reproduction pattern for size reason as well. Original patterns rarely go up to my size, but if I find one I really, really want, I can probably take the hassle to enlarge it. And I can always draft my own pattern, if I need to. At the moment I have started to look around for a coat pattern I like.

A grey wool shirt dress I love wool, I love grey, but I don’t like shirt dresses. I have a feeling that it’s a pointer that this dress is meant for everyday and not a party. I’m already engaged in Casey’s swing dress sew-along , so I dub that dress to be similar to a shirt dress. And as I already have a fabric for that one and it isn’t grey wool, the colour and fabric will change too. However, it is in a grayish green colour and I think it will work well with both brown and green, so I feel confident it will work in the wardrobe anyway.

Simple, long evening gown in black heavy canton crepe It would be very fun to sew, but how often do one use an evening gown? And I already have one from a Vintage Vogue Pattern, dated to 1944. Blue, but not black and it needs to be re-fitted as it is a bit loose around the waist. So for the time being, a black evening gown will be on the back-burner.


Housecoat with a belt in thin cotton Will I need one? I’m not sure and this will be pushed back along with the evening gown for now.

Coat in grey lamb fur Furs are gorgeous and I feel it was a very important garment in the forties, but I simply can’t stand the thought on getting a second-hand coat. Way too icky. Luckily there is faux fur. A first survey on what can be found indicates that you can get faux Persian lamb, but not in grey. You can get it green or pink, but not grey. I will keep on looking, but I think a brown fur would work as well, and then I can find a lot more. Beaver and seal were also popular, so at the moment I’m inclined toward a faux brown beaver fur.

A brown sport suit in three pieces, jacket, trousers and skirt A part of this project is to push my sewing boundaries, and this one does! You see, I haven’t worn trousers in 18 years. I have a pair of jeans that I use a few times a year, but that is that. And a large part of why I stop wearing them was fitting troubles. I’m high-waisted with a big difference between waist and hips. Even in my thinnest day I had a bit of a tummy, and no matter the weight I have a flat derrière. To find trousers that fitted and looked good was really difficult and as I have always liked skirts more anyway, it wasn’t hard to just wear that. It could be fun to try to sew a pair of trousers, though.

A red sweater and a white sweater I haven’t knitted in years. The jury is still out if I am to try my hand on that again.

Brown bag in reptile skin I think I will change that to a green 1940’s handbag I already have. And then try to find belt, hand and scarf that match the bag…

Autumn and winter year one

A wardrobe is an ongoing project, bits and pieces are added and discarded over time. Therefore this projects starts with the assumption that some things already hangs in the wardrobe.The basics, so to speak. So let's see what the good book says about those.

Dresses and blouses
A grey wool shirt dress
Simple, long evening gown in black heavy canton crepe
Housecoat with a belt in thin cotton

Coats and suits
Coat in grey lamb fur
A brown sport suit in three pieces, jacket, trousers and skirt
A red sweater
A white sweater
A raincoat in a "natural" colour

Shoes
Heavy boots
Brown sport shoes
Black walking shoes
Black evening shoes
Rain boots

Hats
Grey beret
Brown felt hat

Accessories
Brown bag in reptile skin
Black bag in suede
Brown knitted gloves
Homemade knitted mittens

Notes
Every colour is beautiful with a grey fur coat.
The grey shirt dress should be tone in tone with the fur coat and with grey buttons. Then it will look great with brown accessories
The sport suit should be made in water-proofed gabardine.
A black simple evening gown is suitable for most occasions.

This was the basics- there are some "new" things to add.

Dresses and blouses
A nice black dress in wool

Coats and suits
A grey/brown overcoat in tweed

Shoes
Black pumps
Green shoes

Hats
Black beret, made from the same fabric as the black dress
Green hat in felt

Accessories
Belt, scarf and clip in green

Notes
All the green things should match each other.
A tweed overcoat are practical all year round.
A tailored black wool dress should always be in your wardrobe.

My notes
As you can see the cut is very much up to yourself. There are suggestions, but they are very general. The colours and materials are more important, as they are suggested with the idea that the various items should mix and match. The only thing where colour is up to the wearer are the housecoat, which you presumably only wore at home. I'm a bit uncertain what a clip is, but I think it's a brooch that you clip on. It is also clear that the suggestions are based on a rainy Swedish autumn followed by a cold winter. As I quite like all the colours suggested I will go for them. However, I will not wear fur. Either I will find faux fur, or make a wool coat instead. I also need to decide on cut and find patterns.