I've long lusted after tons of 1930's patterns. I love their fit because it leans toward my athletic trim fit preferences, yet most patterns also have a touch of elegance and flare on top that take a simple garment and elevate it to a "WOW!" garment. I'm also focused on using my stash and making dancewear for myself. It's rare that I find something in my size that is also colorful and stylish. So I gave up shopping for lent in favor of sewing my own clothes. Ha ha! Seriously though I have pretty much given up shopping all together.
I chose to use E30-4027 1933 Frock in Wicking Fabric for this challenge.
How am I being Thrifty for this challenge?
- Both fabrics came from my stash. I originally purchased them from Pacific Fabrics, though at totally different times.
- I am supporting local businesses (I want them to stick around!). Why is that thrifty? Because I make a trip to the Seattle Fabric Stores when I can combine it with another errand or with multiple shopping needs. When I bought these fabrics (long before the contest), I did combine the trips with multiple needs.
- I shortened this to a shirt so that I could wear it with several other skirts and pants that I already have in my closet. Thus making this a dance wardrobe extender!
- I used up the entire amount of fabric
- I had only 1.5 yards of the main body fabric (and the store didn't have more). I ran out of room to make all pieces properly on-grain. So, I turned the center front and back triangle pieces on the opposite grain (running parallel with the selvedges instead of perpendicular). This worked out fine with this fabric because it doesn't appear to have a nap, it stretches in both directions, and doesn't have a pattern. YAY!
- shorten the length of the back opening to finish at the top of my bra strap. I mean really, if I can ensure modesty, why not make it work for me?
- Instead of one single button at the top, I used 4 buttons, spaced 2" apart. The way this fabric sewed up, that opening wanted to splay. A property of the firmness of the main body wicking fabric.
- The shirt was hemmed, the cuffs were not. The Nylon Lycra was much happier that way, plus it's a very narrow cuff opening. That's great because it stays on, but difficult to sew a hem on.
Modifications I might consider in future:
- Lower the back neckline to eliminate that wrinkle/bubble. 1930's women / pattern blocks must have had long necks and long distances between chin and shoulder.
- Shirr the waistband area to create an easy, automatic waist line that naturally pulls up to a high waist/near empire waist style. I found that the shirt has just enough fabric that it walks around and gathers in odd ways while being worn.
You can see from the photo below that I even did my best to match stripes on the cuffs at the inside seam. Aren't those little V's just lovely? I'm tickled with the results. This was a really fun make that not only fits the 1930's styling, but also fulfills my desire to take vintage patterns to a modern style.