Hair Net Giveaway Winners

Hello lovely ladies who entered the hair net giveaway.  I have 10 of you who entered, and I do believe I have enough to go around to each and everyone of you.

Styles will be on a first come first serve basis.  Please let me know your preference for color type a first and second choice (see giveaway list) and also send me your mailing address to my email address listed on the sidebar and a vintage hair net will make it's way to you.  Please remember you must also blog about your experience.  We all want to know what you think:).


Thank you all for participating!

My Plan of Action -Sew For Victory A Peak Into 1942 Fashion

I'm going to a sewing retreat and so excited to meet some wonderful ladies who love vintage patterns like I do.  So, this will be my last entry before I return.  I had all these grand plans of multiple muslins and things to do but life got in the way.  I'm hoping I can just get through one muslin and wing the rest while I am there.

I decided that I would also like to try and make something for Sew For Victory.  I'm not going to formally put my name in the bin until after the retreat, in case it ends up not being the direction I take but I thought I'd share my plan of action.


Sew For Victory is such a fun event and the historical nature of this event very much appeals to me.  I like the idea of seeing all of you lovely stitchers embellishing the moments and thinking about the 1940s.   I thought I would also take on a historical perspective to this event too.

Here is my plan, I'm not sure how it will unfold but my thoughts are to create a blouse from 1942 and to try and be within the perimeters of fabric usage of the period for one of the attempts on the blouse.     My main goal is to be within the "feel" of the Advance Pattern Book I'm going to showcase below and you will see why when you see the pages of this gem.

So how perfect could this reference magazine (pamphlet) be for Sew For Victory?


Of course upon receiving this book, I attempted to see if I could find the exact patterns to some of the illustrations in the book.   It is so interesting to see all the different textures and since this book is closed from daylight, these swatches are just as you imagine the fabric to have been like in 1942.

If some of you ladies haven't yet selected your fabric, maybe this might also help.

"Patterned For Victory"

I love the print on this one:

How interesting is this?  Actual stocking samples from 1942.  They actually feel better than a lot of the stockings today.

Here is an example of the blouse I would like to make (center).  I'd also like to use similar fabric.  I'm going to go with the blue polka dot as in the illustration.

I very much wanted to do the same blouse above but it isn't available.  So, I found a similar Advance blouse pattern, which I will work with.  Funny thing is after I bought it on ebay, which wasn't much, I found that I already had this blouse pattern in my stash that I'd forgotten about.

After finding the blouse pattern for Advance, I stumbled upon the Vogue Special Design in an auction.  I don't know if it is possible to make this pattern for myself since it is two sizes too small but I figured it was worth looking into.  The directions were quite frail in nature so I copied them.  But, my goodness, "Holy Day of Seamstresses", does it make it look complicated.  

Doesn't the blouse and swing pants look grand?  Hey guess what, it's 1942 as well.  Coincidence?

So, yes, I decided to see if the fabric for the blouse above might be floating around.  And, I stumbled upon an auction ending in a couple of hours for 1940s cotton fabric kind of similar in pattern.  Coincidence?  I'm thinking this blouse is just calling my name to be made.  I won 3 yards of this lovely vintage cotton fabric for only $18 (including shipping).  Great deal.  I'm taking the pattern with me to my sewing retreat and hopefully I can get some of it deciphered and see if it is at all possible to make because I do certainly have use for a pair of swing pants.

Here are some other pages that were loose within the Advance Pattern Book.  As you can see most of the pages of the Advance Pattern Book were larger than my scanner, but it does give you a good feel for the period and such a great item to reference too.

Stitch or Ditch and Sew For Victory, Are You In?

I'm going to try for a simple blouse for  Sew For Victory.  It looks like such a fun event and I figure I should just go for it.

Any of you fine ladies joining in?


When I've had the opportunity, I have been working on my 1940 Simplicity dress but it's not quite turning out how I imagined.   Here's a link to the first muslin.  This is what happens when you add extra things into the mix.   I'm wondering if I should just scrap this dress and start over or maybe I should just continue it for the learning experience but I'm not that happy with all the "poof".  Difficult decision. I think if I do scrap, I may not actually do this pattern again.

My problem is the piping,  I thought this would be a great extra touch to accent the front blouse but I didn't foresee extra tucks to the corners that are unavoidable.  I think it just adds "to the pucker effect".    The original pattern didn't having the piping in it (now I understand why).   So besides the extra pleats the pattern calls for in the bust area I also have an extra bit of "poof" to the corners because of the piping.  The reason for this is that this pattern called for the collar area to have an outward flap so the piping had to be adjusted to compensate for this.  It might turn out better as I progress but I'm not the most happy with this outfit at the moment.  Also, I am now having to separate it into a top and skirt due to pattern alternations.


Here's some WIP pictures..
I haven't quite stitched down the right side so the piping isn't flush yet.

Here's the pattern below:

The poof is a killer!  lol  I might just look better with the sleeves and actually on and tucking it under the piping a bit.

I'm taking a break from this pattern and going to try the Sew For Victory, even though I normally do like to complete one pattern at a time.


Are any of you planning to join Sew For Victory?

Next post, I'll share my pattern and fabric ideas for Sew For Victory.  I just found both the pattern and the fabric but the fabric is cutting it awful close in amount needed, no pun intended.    Hope it works!  Going for the 1942 look.

Hair Net Giveaway Additional Details

In the last blogpost, I mentioned a giveaway of five hair nets to five different DVM readers.  Please see the last post to enter your name into, if you'd like to participate.

It occurred to me after your responses from the last post, that the interior contents might be just as interesting to you.  

It is kind of a little bazaar to think of these caps as human hair (although rayon was also used)  but think about all these ladies with extensions and wigs made of human hair today so what's really wrong with a hair net of human hair?  Interesting idea eh?  Also amazingly interesting how someone was weaving these into a cap!

My selection of rayon hair nets is very limited and most are human hair, which is also very fascinating so if you'd like to participate please assume you'll receive human hair.  I think you might find the human hair to blend in better anyways and it is much more light weight.

Elite Hair Net 1946 human hair. Dark brown pictured also available in medium brown, light brown and black.

Venida Hair Net (human hair made by hand) light brown.  No date thinking pre-war

Unicum Invisible Rayon Hair Net in Black 

1944

Rayon Hair Net White Vogue in white.  I wonder in what ways you would utilize white.  Unless it was for older ladies?

1943 ladies!

Remember if you'd like a chance at one of these hairnets you must leave a response in the previous blog entry and you blog about your experiences.  Good luck!

Vintage Hair Net Giveaway But There's A Catch.

I recently acquired a bunch of vintage hair nets.  I was curious about if they actually were worth using.  So, dear vintage readers, I'd like to use you as my testers.   I am offering up five hair nets to five different DVM readers.   The catch is that you must blog about your usage of the hair net within three weeks of your receipt of the hair net.   I'd like to see how you styled your hair in usage of a hair net and if you really thought they were worth using.

I'm ending the giveaway March 29th.

  I will ship internationally, but remember you will also need to blog about what you think of hair nets.  I'd love to hear your thoughts.  Once you are notified of your win, I'll ask you your hair type and try to match up as best as possible.

There are five opportunities to win!

 <NOTE I REALIZED RAFFLECOPTER WILL NOT ALLOW MULTIPLE WINNERS SO I WILL DRAW WINNERS RANDOMLY, LEAVE A COMMENT BELOW IF INTERESTED.>

This one below is made of human hair but it's not as fragile as you'd think.  I do have a couple of synthetic types but most are human hair.  I have all kinds of different colors so if you win, we can try and match you up.   Our vintage lady counterparts must have used these in abundance.  I wonder if they do the trick and hold you hair in place naturally and maybe with a nice pin curl set.  We shall see:)

Jacques Fath 1947, Here's Your Invitation To The Event.

Yes, it is that time again, to revel in the mastery of Jacques Fath.   Here's a link to Jacques Fath in some past posts.   I also have a Pinterest board devoted to Jacques Fath, please check it out.  I admire his style and he was (is and will be) spot on with artistic merit.  I'm so mesmerized by his work and I hope one day to view a couture dress by him in person.  Oh to just be a fly on the wall as he played out his ideas to his seamstresses.   I won this photograph in an auction and thought it captured such a moment in time.  To have been at the Jacques Fath couture house and witness first hand his creations walk the isle.  If placed back in time, I'm all the way in the corner mid-right, won't you join me?    Amazing fashion times!

This photograph was taken in 1947.  Yes, the same year that Christian Dior was also taking the fashion world by storm.  

Another funny note, I actually did double check the picture to see if the mole on the models  face was a blemish on my scanner. lol.  It's actually quite meant to be.  An ode, to Marie Antoinette I'm thinking.  It is interesting how the model is not wearing earrings but is draped in a wonderful sparkling necklace.  Wouldn't this have been quite interesting if he would have had the model wear a powdered wig too?  But really think about the style and cut of this dress…this is 1947.   This could easily have been made 10 years later and been quite in style.  

Details to the photograph...

Another image of this dress via this link.

There are also two celebrities in the audience Nita Raya and Maurice Chevalier.  They met when he was 46 and she was 19.  They were married until 1946 per Wikipedia.  Nita Raya may very well still be alive today.  I've looked up a little about her.  What is also interesting is that she was jewish so this must have been difficult for her to be in Europe during the wartime.  It is interesting they chose to stay and not come to the USA.   If you'd like to hear more about their war years here is a link.  I wish there were more resource material about her.

Image of Nita Raya source

Nita Raya

Link to her history.

YouTube Clip:

More details of the photograph:

Love those shoes!

A fur on the ground, interesting.

Jacques Fath Gown labeled as 1948 via MET    From what I can see a gift in 1951 to the MET.  Quite interesting to receive this only a few years after it appeared on the runway.  

A similar Jacques Fath gown 1954 via Decades

In researching this period about Jacques Fath, I came upon the V&A's exhibit about the golden age of couture and came upon a lovely segment about Jacques Fath and Lady Alexandrea.

Here she is in a Jacques Fath gown from the V&A website.  I invite you all to read about how she acquired the gown.  1948 Jacques Fath Gown.  I also love that she documented the event of wearing this gown and people's reactions.  

Here also is a podcast on the event.  Just lovely.  A must listen.

Images via V&A.

A rare look at  other Jacques Fath gowns in color via Pinterest.

I know this is also unrelated but for you vintage seamstresses, I also came across this wonderful link to make a 50s dress from the exhibition that was at V&A.  So interesting!

Anonymous Lady In Full Glamour 1940s

Anybody have any clues who this young starlet might be?   I have no date on the photograph but it is from MGM.  The photograph is actually quite large in nature so I'm able to zoom into a lot of details. I am thinking this is an early 40s look, what do you think?

It's so wonderfully put together.   The tilt hat with the pin curls formed to complement the hat.   I also love the angular nature of the gloves.   Notice the backdrop, and the diagonal pleating effect.   A  very masterfully placed composition.  Below are more detailed shots and if you are new to my blog, click over on the link to the side "vintage fashion photography" to see others in this series.

There was a small chip to the photograph right near her eye.

Yes, I'd like a pair of these shoes hot off the presses.

Check out the details in her lovely pin curls.  I'll have to see if I might be able to do this one day.

So there you have it, a detailed look at this smashing young lady and please let me know if you figure out who she is.