Treasures: McCall 6520

I love coming home when there is nothing but one yellow envelope posstamped in the USA on the doormat  (I could have written "in the postbox", but it wouldn't have been true!). Old patterns come in yellow envelopes, I've learned.

This was another one of those patterns that no-one bid on, that I found irresistable. Even though I don't really wear blouses, and I'm certainly not comfortable in bows. But I love this bowed blouse.

I think if I team it with a simple (and short) enough skirt I might carry it of. Either way, I must make one and see, the cuffs alone would be enough to make me want it!

I had guessed this was a late 1940's pattern, and it does say copyright 1946 on the envelope, so I may be right. Not that I entirely trust copyrigh-dates, I've seen very clear examples of early 1930's dresses that are copyrighted in 1921on Ebay, but the hairstyles on this envelope are more 1940's than 1950's I think... (with emphasis on think!).

Humour!

Found on Facebook by a friend of mine... makes me wonder... (but it's kind of cute!).
Now I'm off to kill me some fashion!

Bidding, nervous... and Marian Martin 9403

I need to do something to keep my mind off my bidding! 7 minutes left on one auction...

Thought I'd show my favourite pattern so far. It's a 1930's dress, but I think I will shorten it and make a jacket.

I love the collar, the button-details and the slim shape.

I was lucky with this one, I was the only one who bid on it, which I find a bit strange since it must be early 1930's and I think it's rare. Rare and old usually seems to mean expensive. But I guess many of those who buy old patterns collect the brands, and even though this pattern is signed Marian Martin, it's a mail order pattern and not from one of the big pattern-companies.

As long as it's a good pattern I'm happy, so fingers crossed I made a good deal, but we'll see...! I dont really know if mail-order patterns were good or not, only that the packaging is more simple.

I think this pattern is the next one I will use to sew after the dress and cardigan I mentioned below, and like I said I'll probably use it for a jacket, in black wool from my stash (my stash is huge after one of my favorite fabric stores had a remnant-sale this spring).

Hopefully soon (but then knowing how much time I've usually got to sew, it'll probably be a while!).

I love the instruction sheets that come with old patterns... the drawings and the layout, eye-candy!

Oh, I almost forgot, the bidding!

I won one out of three auctions, but it was the one that I wanted the most. It's a 1930's blouse/dress/skirt-pattern (it has a logo printed on it that apparently was used only between 1933-35), the dress is sleeveless with a nice collar with lapels that run down the back, hard to explain, and the blouse has very puffy, long sleeves. It wasn't cheap but that one I really wanted so I'm happy!

Copying patterns

Sunday, and I keep myself busy copying old patterns. I SHOULD be out on the balcony, I have to empty it before tomorrow since it's going to be renovated (it's going to be a BIG improvement to my apartment, so I'm really quite excited about it!).

The pattern I'm working on now is the 1930's coat/dress that I posted a picture of below. Some of the pieces are so fragile they shatter when I touch them, but I think I managed to make an accurate enough copy first. Now I'm working on less fragile pieces (phew...).
I've read tips and trick on the internet that you should iron your vintage patterns before copying them, but for me that's a big NO! The heat will accelerate the deterioration-process that is inevitable, so instead I try to flatten them as much as possible by carefully unfolding them and placing my rulers on them when making the copies.
If they're very scrunched up (this one was, partly...) I use moisture instead of heat. You can use an ever so slightly damp piece of cloth and gently press the creases until the fibers straighten. Too much moisture will damage the pattern too, but it works pretty well. I got that trick from my mum who works in an archive... I trust her more!

I've made photo-copies of the instruction-sheet and envelope to preserve the originals that are very brittle too. Weighing the pattern-pieces down by placing rulers on them works pretty well and is a big help, otherwise they seem to walk around by themselves!

Loads of little marks and punctures to copy.... I'm intrigued by the system, and since I use chalk-crayons to mark up the material when I sew I think I'd actually prefer this system to modern printed patterns. I don't punch the copies though...

Woodland cemetary Halloween

Halloween the trick or treat way is a rather new tradition in here Sweden, although we've always celebrated Halloween.
What we traditionally do is visit our ancestors graves and light grave-candles. Now, I live in Stockholm and my family is from the north of Sweden, so I don't have any graves to visit, but if I get the chance I still go to the great Woodland Cemetary designed by Gunnar Asplund and Sigurd Lewerentz in the 1930's. It's always a beautiful place (it's on the list of World Heritages) but at Halloween it's magic.
Most of the graves are located in a forest-like park, among tall pine-trees. At Halloween the forest sparkles from all the candles placed by the graves and in the meditation groves (which are places where you can have your ashes spread if you don't want a grave of your own, it's quite common).

The Almhöjden (Elm-hill) meditation grove lit by thousands of  candles.

The forest looked like a starry sky with all the candles.

More candles, in another meditation-grove.

Heather and candles. Heather = autumn here, I might have had some on the balcony if I hadn't had to empty is this winter.

Look at this floor in one of the chapels... aaah, beauty!