A late 1940's suit

When I was 19 my grandmother Greta gave me a suit she wore in the late 1940’s. I remember her telling me that it was made up for her by a seamstress and that it was in “the new style”- the jacket has no shoulder pads and the skirt was a long, pencil skirt, not an A-line. It was made in heavy hound tooth’s wool in red and navy blue. In my early twenties the suit fitted me perfectly and I wore it a lot. Sadly I cut off the skirt to make it a lot shorter, but to my defense my grandmother heartily endorsed that. All her life she re-made her clothes to prolong their lives and she thought it only natural that I would do the same. Well, I sure wouldn’t have done that today, but it’s a bit too late to regret it now. On a side note; I have a whole box of my grandmother’s 1960’s dresses that has one or two seams opened awaiting a change that my grandmother never got too. Basically they just need to be sewn together again to be serviceable. One of them is in red gold lamé…

Giveaway reminder and a Happy New Year

Don't forget to enter the 200th follower giveaway, if you want to get the chance to win some vintage perfume samples.

And a very Happy New Year to you all! I have had so much fun writing this blog and I'm so happy you enjoy reading it! I look forward to next year!



The lady on the picture is my grandmother Greta at a New Years Eve-party in the late 30's. I still have the blouse, it's in pale green with darker green leaves and is probably one of her "America-blouses". I have forgotten the exact story, but a relative or friend worked in a clothes store and they were sent blouses from America to get to choose what to buy to the store. They came in a very small size and my grandmother who was very petite was just about the only person who could really wear them, so she was given a lot of them. I really need to take pictures of that blouse, doesn't I? (And no, the gentleman is NOT my grandfather, it muct have been taken before they got to know each other around 1940.)

Yellow and white skirt

I’m back from my vacation and a very good vacation it was. I have spent a lot of time in my family’s summerhouse, swum in the sea, spent time with family and friends, hosted a cocktail party and generally had a good time. I have sewn a little too, but not as much as I had hoped. I did finish my green hat after much gnashing of my teeth and have started on a brown felt hat and I have made a white washable dress. I also renovated my grandmother’s skirt that I mentioned in an earlier post.

My grandmother's portrait

In 1949 when my grandmother Greta was 36, she and my grandfather rented a cottage for vacation. The cottage next door was rented by an artist who, at the time, was quite in when it comes to portrait painting. He is quite forgotten now and I have plain forgotten his name, I'm sorry to say. The families became quite friendly and my grandmother asked him if he could paint my Mum. Being sensible he declined- my Mum was three at the time and only an insane person would do that, I think. Instead he offered to paint my grandmother, free of charge, because he loved her colouring. The only thing he wanted was to paint a second portrait that he could sell. That never happened, but this lovely portrait of my grandmother was completed.