Necklines: The draped neckline

I hope this posting is one of many on the elements of clothing design, as expressed in vintage patterns. :) I'll just jump in and start with necklines.

As the holiday season has begun, the drape neckline is a great element to consider. The drape neckline is exactly as its name implies, featuring soft folds at the neckline. It is not a common neckline, and when I do come across it, the drape neckline invariably seems to be a designer pattern, and one for formal and evening wear.

Vogue Couturier Design 2775 (Valentino)

Advance 7914 (Anne Fogarty)

 

Vogue 5782

Draping can also be applied to collars to beautiful effect. This draped collar from Spadea is a great example.

 Spadea A-2147 (Anthony Blotta)

A Vintage Perspective on "The One Hundred": Animal Print

Nina Garcia includes the animal print as a must-own for the stylish woman, in her fashion book "The One Hundred".

Who would have thought? Finding vintage patterns with animal prints in the illustrations was not easy! And vintage animal toy patterns don't count. :)  But fortunately, I managed to find two in my stash.

This adorable pattern from the early 1950s and McCall's features animal print accessories, including hat, bag, and scarf. This certainly meets the criteria, for Nina states that an animal print accessory is an opportunity to be a little bold.

This is hardly ladies' fashion, but for gratuitous fun, I had to include this pattern from Lovely Lingerie and the early 1970s, which features animal print briefs for men. What a handsome hunk!

Getting to the Point

Dress elements that include an extended point or peak have been popular through the decades, even the centuries. Whether at the waist, drop waist, or high waist, whether sharp or curved, the extended point always adds class.  Here is a short set of examples of the extended point across the decades.

Let's begin with 3 examples from the 1940s. The first dress illustrates the most popular use of the extended point, the basque bodice, here with a short drop waistline. The second dress inverts the point, creating a beautiful mirror to the sweetheart neckline. The third dress narrows the extended point and takes it into the midriff - a delicious design.

 

1950s dresses also made great use of the extended point, as these graceful New Look dresses demonstrate.

These wedding gowns from the 1960s take the upward extended point to the empire waistline, to beautiful effect.

 
These adorable dresses from the 1970s use the same upward extended point starting at high and empire waistline.

 

 

And in the 1980s, formal dresses  such prom dresses and wedding gowns, added a romantic touch with the extended point of the basque bodice.

Before and After "Hit Parade" - 1950s Dress with Bonny Details

 The Seamstress: Jennifer Gough
The Pattern: Vintage 1959 McCall's 4951 Misses' Dress with Slim and Full Skirt

Jennifer picked this particularly adorable dress with its wonderful neckline and collar details.

The Result: A fabulous dress with charm to spare! Jennifer chose a beautiful yellow and black tartan to sew the full-skirted version. Jennifer states: "As far as construction; the measurements were pretty spot on, but I added some length to the bodice and I recall that I had to play around with the skirt pleats quite a bit because of the plaid fabric, but since the pattern pieces there were just big rectangles it wasn't a big deal."

Jennifer has since made this pattern up again in the teal with white collar like on the pattern envelope, too, though she doesn't have photos of it on the web. Be sure to check out more photos of this first version of the dress on Jennifer's Photo Bucket album. Wonderful results, Jennifer - the dress and you look so lovely! Winning style, all the way around. :)

By Any Name...

Recently I had listed and sold the following coat (McCall's 4685 from 1958), described as a trapeze coat.

And then I acquired the February 1962 edition of Seventeen magazine, which featured very similar coats.

The cover of the magazine features this beautiful blue coat described as having a "baby-doll look", with empire waist, flared skirt, double-breasted closing, and slender bracelet length sleeves. And that cute hat is a "checked baby cap." ;D

A few page into the magazine is an advertisement for these coats described as having the "new A-line silhouette". :)

So what is the difference? The trapeze silhouette is narrow at the top and wider at the hem, almost triangular in shape. The A-line silhouette is defined as being narrower at the top, flaring gently wider toward the bottom.  The babydoll dress is defined as having an empire waist and loose, A-line skirt.

By whatever name you call it, it's adorable, inspiring fashion!

Before and After "Hit Parade" - Fresh 40s Frocks!

The Seamstress: Elisabeth

Today you get "two-for-one"! My customer Elisabeth sent me great pictures of two dresses she created using patterns from my shop. Both dresses are late 1940s, have such wonderful, graceful style, and Elisabeth's photos are fashion-model fabulous! You can follow Elisabeth's sewing adventures on her blog: Sewing Fairytales.

The Pattern: Vintage 1940s Simplicity 2907 Misses' One-Piece Dress
 

The Result: Isn't the result sunny and adorable?! I love the choice of fabric, it has a very vintage-style motif. And those cute matching shoes are perfect! Elisabeth shortened the dress to a charming just-above-the-knees length. And if you visit Elisabeth's blog, you will see the back of this dress in the blog header image - awesome!

 Here are her comments on the sewing of the dress:

"I loved the pattern as soon as I saw it. The front and the back of this dress are so elegant and feminine. I used a polyester fabric. This was not the best choice, but I loved the print. Sewing the dress was a bit more complicated. The pattern is not so easy, but the fabric added some difficulties as well. But all in all I really like it. I really have to make another one out of some better fabric (maybe in a nice solid color?)."

The Pattern: Vintage 1940s Simplicity 2842 Misses' One-Piece Wrap-Around House Dress and Housecoat
 

 

The Result: Elisabeth sewed this in its original graceful, beautiful tea length, complete with cap sleeves. Even the fabric looks very much like the view on the right (view 2). 

Here are Elisabeth's comments on the sewing of this dress:

"I made this dress out of 40s fabric I got at eBay. Sewing was easy,  except maybe the finishing. The fabric was not the best for the dress, because it is a bit stiff. All in all I am pleased with the dress. Unfortunately it really is better suited as a house dress, because if the wind blows, it´s a bit difficult to wear. Maybe I will sew another one out of another more suitable fabric one day."

Kudos on a lovely pair of dresses, Elisabeth!

In Search of Style - Designer Couture Evening Gown

This search for style begins with an advertisement from the early 70s for a fabulous evening gown from Saks Fifth Avenue. The advert describes their collection and this gown from their designer salon in romantic terms: "A romantic mood pervades. Soft and subtle draping. Slinks or ruffles. Movement from fringes as you float by. Soft clear colors, jerseys, chiffons and more. Here, all ruffled up. A sleeveless dress, close-to-you on top, full and flounced below. Nylon zigaline in white with navy. $425."

A dream of a dress, don't you agree? Our seamstress found a remarkable match for this beauty with a Vogue Americana pattern designed by Oscar de la Renta, pattern 2879. The stunning plunging neckline trimmed with ruffles and full skirt seals the deal!