1930s Ball Gowns Put the Accent on the Shoulders

These formal gowns from December 1936 feature extra-wide skirts, narrow waists and eye-catching sleeves. Such a thrilling and elegant movie-star quality! Enjoy this eye candy as a way to de-stress from any holiday madness you may be experiencing.

1960s Ethereal Evening Gown

Long and languorous, this lovely Gerard Pipart for Nina Ricci evening gown from 1965 has an ethereal and long-ago look. Gown features a misty moiré skirt, cloud white silk chiffon bodice, and a haze-blue satin sash.

Featured in McCall's magazine, December 1965.

1930s Spring Fashion

Need a beautiful formal for a spring prom? Or an evening at the opera? These formal gowns from 1932 - so willowy and molded close to the body - are sure to inspire!

the back side

Source: Delineator magazine, April 1932

Happy Holidays from 1955

I wish you all a wonderful holiday season, full of vintage beauty, success, and happiness. For your enjoyment, here is a quick splash of seasonal red and green with this elegant sketch of a 1955 formal gown from Balenciaga.

A trailing panel gives a wonderful floating look to the evening gown, which features a deep back-jutting decolletage. Stunning.

1950s Dreamy Dior Gown in Green Satin

This fabulous off-shoulder gown in green satin is from Dior's "Y" line - the stem of the Y branches into width from a high waistline and (inverted) broadens out from waist to hem.

Luscious. Featured in Women's Home Companion, October 1955.

1950s Paris Fashion - A Taste of the Orient

The Oriental influence inspired by the Chinese Opera's first visit to Paris in 1955 resulted in couture designs like this one by Dior. The evening sheath dress of pearly satin  is topped with a richly jeweled and embroidered caftan coat with split sides. This brilliant brocade definitely results in a rich, exotic look.

It seems as though they tried to give her eyes an Oriental look with the use of makeup. What do you think? Seen in Women's Home Companion, October 1955 edition.

Originator Sketch - Gowns That Drape and Dazzle

This Originator sketch from Spring 1946 features two beautiful concepts for evening wear, each featuring draping.

On the left is a full-skirted evening gown with a cowl-like drape just left of center front and below the knees in the skirt. A bit subtle, I think! The skirt is also accented with flowing sequins or bead embroidery.

On the right, a cascading drape on the right hip and small cowl-like drape above the right knee add elegance to this slim frock for dinner or afternoon wear. Sequins or bead embroidery add extra spark & dazzle.

Note that the full-skirted evening gown has a sheer yoke and sleeves, and a decollete under-bodice with sweetheart neckline. Gorgeous!

Spotted in a Shop Window - Art Deco Drama

This figure-hugging strapless evening gown with its dramatic fan-pleated neckline is so stunning. The light accent of Oriental peonies at the waistline provides a perfect contrast to the neckline and the flaring of the gown below the knees.

Spotted in the window of Luly Yang in downtown Seattle.

Spotted in a Shop Window - Sculptured Drapery in a Formal Gown

Spotted in the shop window of Luly Yang in downtown Seattle, this formal gown is simply sublime. It has such an Art Deco look, with dramatic sunburst gathered draping as counterpoint to the gathered skirt. The empire waistline underscores the gathered-draped bodice.

Note the graceful sweep train. And the tiny sprinkle of glitter at the base of the sunburst. Wowza.

Before and After: Vintage Patterns Inspire Student Designer

This "Before and After" is a special one - and so exciting!!

The Trinity Fashion Society (of Trinity College Dublin, Ireland) hosted its annual catwalk event on March 19. One of the organizers was a good friend of the sister of Mark McNulty, who is a customer of my Etsy shop. This organizer offered Mark a chance to make some things for the show. So he purchased several patterns from my shop and modified them for the show. Here is his story. To read more about the fashion show (which mentions "design prodigy Mark McNulty who is a secondary school student" - wow!!), check out this University Times story.

Mark says: "I find vintage fashion has always influenced me. For my outfits, I wanted to have vintage silhouettes but with a twist. I wanted to mix the classic retro look with 90s grunge, so I went for sophisticated, sexy, smokey colours.

Pattern: Butterick 7956 (1950s) 

The Result: Dreamy strapless evening gown in soft, warm black velvet.
 

 

Mark says: "I made the skirt bigger than the pattern and added more fabric to the back to give it a small train. The black velvet was difficult to sew as it was so so so stretchy and I used it for a very structured piece. The dress called for thin sewn-in boning, but I made a built-in corset with steel boning to really hold it up and hold the wearer in. A self-drafted petticoat was also made, though I do regret it as I don't particularly like it;  but ah well.  

Pattern: Simplicity 2170 (1940s) 

The Result: A hot little dress with attitude!

Mark says: "For this green dress, I used the ice skater dress pattern. I altered it, making it less broad at the shoulders, took in the sleeves and waist considerably, and then added 2 inches to each gore of the skirt to give it more volume. I chose a crushed bottle green velvet that really brought that rocker touch to the dress. The extra fabric on each gore really added so much oompf to the dress when it was on the catwalk."

Pattern: McCall's 7002 (1960s)

The Result: A sexy, slim sheath - fabulous! It doesn't hurt that Mark's sister is gorgeous. :)

Mark says: "I made this black dress for my sister, using the ends of the fabric from the black formal gown. She wore it to her friend's 21st birthday the other day. Even in this dress you can see the 90s grunge influence, with the dark lips and smokey eyes."

What can I say? Fantastic results and congratulations, Mark!!

1951 Re-Fashion - Reviving an Evening Gown!

This re-fashion from 1951 focuses on re-draping and re-cutting a problem dress into a fresh, new silhouette.

An evening gown (from the late 1940s, I'm guessing) with weary-looking panniers is converted into this fresh, new dinner dress with a slimmer, shorter skirt. The extra fabric in the old skirt enabled the addition of a center inverted pleat. The neckline was cut a bit lower and wider, both front and back. Scraps from the skirt faced the neckline and provided enough fabric for a wide matching belt. Delightful results!

Scraps from the Past - Pucci Gown in Polyester DoubleKnit?

It sounds like a heresy - but this is the 1970s, after all!

The Pattern: Vogue Couturier Design 2788 (Pucci)

The Scrap: Eeek! Tucked inside this pattern was a heather-y orange polyester doubleknit! The color doesn't look as orange in the scanned image as it looks in real life, but trust me - it is true to the 1970s. :)

And a bonus! Also tucked in the envelope was the original Vogue Couturier design label, for sewing inside the dress.

Home Sewing Tips from the 1920s - Bridal Tips on Informal Evening Frocks

Will Edith ever get to marry? Do we trust that man of hers? As far as that goes, now Mary has another beau! Downtown Abbey continues to hold our close attention.

In this tip from the 1920s, Ruth Wyeth Spears gives tips on choosing the appropriate style evening frock for the figure - what an interesting concept. Do you think the frock on the right is too "youthful"? Both would look perfectly lovely on Lady Rose, I think. :)

Home Sewing Tips for the 1920s - A Draped Formal Gown

"Richness should be the keynote of the draped gown" Ruth Wyeth Spears says. In this home sewing tip, she describes how to create this evening gown with "metal cloth" - what we would call metallic fabric - brilliant, glittery, and dramatic! The skirt is wrapped to create drapes at back sides of center, with velvet flowers and foliage trimming the drop-waistline. Elegant!