Saying Good-bye to Michael's Mom

Sad news: On Saturday, August 24th, Michael's mother, Dorcas Hanko, died.

Dorcas had been living with lung cancer for more than a year.  A diagnosis (Stage 4) that would have devastated most was, for Dorcas, a challenge to be met head on.  She fought valiantly and never gave up hope.  During her final year she got to do the things she loved best: travel, cook, garden, spend time with her family, and even see Michael perform his show twice.  Till this summer, she had more energy than most healthy people.

The end was swift: her doctors recommended palliative care on Thursday and she passed peacefully Saturday morning.  Yesterday her ashes were interred at a military cemetery in New Jersey.

It wasn't until I started digging for photos for this post that I realized how much time I've spent with Michael's family over the years.  We visited his parents nearly every major holiday and they even came to my brother's wedding.

At the Finger Lakes

Brunch in Chelsea

At my brother's wedding, with my mom

Even though I knew Dorcas for only a decade, her passing leaves a big absence in my life.  Dorcas was hugely supportive and enthusiastic about everything I did.  When I started sewing, there wasn't anything I made that she didn't find "awesome."  She wore the beige fleece hoodie I made her in 2009 almost every time I visited.  She even subscribed to my blog!



When she and Michael's dad sold their house this spring, guess who got her circa 1969 Kenmore sewing machine?  Two years ago she also gave me these wonderful 1940's fashion drawings she'd found: 

 



Dorcas had a beautiful spirit, an open heart, and was just fun to be around.  I'll never forget how, every time we parted, she'd say how thankful she was to have me in the family.  I feel grateful for having gotten to know and love her.

Always up for fun!

Good-bye, dear Dorcas!

Back to the Kimono

There are two kinds of sewing projects, readers: the ones you think will be hard but end up easy, and the ones you think will be easy but end up hard.  My kimono is the latter kind.

A robe like this should be easy: it's just two fronts (right and left), a back, and two sleeves.  But I'm frankenpatterning here without instructions and I've added long kimono sleeves that attach to the torso along half their length, and hang open along the rest.  I decided to close the torso sides, which isn't classic kimono but seemed easier and more robe-like.



There are a lot of seams to finish and I probably didn't finish them in the best/easiest way.  I used French seams on the shoulders.  I flat-felled the armscye and side seams -- not easy with a delicate cotton lawn fabric.  To finish the open end of the sleeve (not the cuff, but the end beneath the armscye) I rolled 1/4" twice and stitched.  At the point where the sides and armhole meet, I had to clip 5/8" into my fabric (since the top of the side piece attaches to the sleeve and the bottom attaches to the back, creating a very fragile area.



To strengthen the area on both the torso side and the sleeve, I cut four triangular gusset-like pieces of fabric and stitched them along what's essentially the underarm.  It wasn't difficult but it was painstaking. 







The result is nearly invisible.



Maybe there's a better way to have addressed this issue but I couldn't come up with one.

Meanwhile, I attached my cotton sateen trim to the sleeves, the neckline and fronts, and the hem.



I used the trim pattern piece from my vintage Eighties Butterick kimono pattern.  The trim is cut parallel to the grainline even where you're attaching it to a slightly curved front.  In an ideal world this trim would be stitched right sides together, folded over and then slip-stitched closed on the wrong side.  I didn't want to hand stitch, however, so I carefully, carefully stitched this with my machine.  I even used a little double-sided fusible web to hold things in place.  Also in that ideal world, the trim would be silk.  My cotton sateen looks great, but it's a little heavy, frankly.

Enough about kimonos.  Here are some gratuitous chihuahua shots from this morning.









I'm fried and eager to move on.

In closing, have you ever made a kimono robe?  Was it easy or hard?

Have a great day, everybody!

NAME THAT PATTERN: End of Summer Edition!

Friends, it's late August and the days are already getting cooler -- and shorter.  Before you know it we'll be turning back the clocks and wearing long underwear.

While we still have time, let's play another round of the sewing blogosphere's favorite pattern-naming game, MPB's exclusive NAME THAT PATTERN.

The rules are simple: I post photos of patterns I've found online (these are not from my personal collection, btw), and you have to give them a name.

As always, we have some fabulous prizes lined up for our winners, including two weeks of dog-sitting Freddy and Willy -- at your house!  With no further delay, let's play NAME THAT PATTERN!

Grab your pencils -- here's Pattern #1!



Need a bathroom break already?  Here's Pattern #2!



But wait -- there's more: Pattern #3!



Now something for the guys: Pattern #4!



Finally, our last pattern, Pattern #5.



But wait!  As always, we have a BONUS PATTERN for those who feel especially creative (and competitive) -- Pattern #6!



Readers, thank you so much for participating in another round of NAME THAT PATTERN.  As always, I'll be playing too, but don't wait for me: get your answers in ASAP.

Good luck, contestants!

1920's Pattern Score -- SWIMWEAR EDITION!

When it comes to the history of women's swimsuits in the Twentieth century, the trend has been toward short...



shorter...



shortest.



This is the edited version, obviously.  There have been so many swimsuit variations in between.









This weekend, I was thrilled to win this Butterick pattern dating from approximately 1919 on eBay.  Not only does it offer three different versions (love those ruffles) it even includes a hat!



A few of you are probably thinking, That isn't a swimsuit, it's a DRESS.  Well, yes, by today's standards it IS a dress -- a dress worn over very baggy bloomers.  You wouldn't want to swim laps in it.  But it was the swimsuit style of the period (though soon to be replaced by one-piece knit suits that revealed one's shape a bit more).

I know I haven't finished my Twenties robe/pajama set yet, nor have I even started my Twenties men's shirt with detachable collar.  Plus it's nearly autumn.  Still, this pattern looks like it would be fun to make.  And as covered as it is, it could be worse:



By the way, if you are interested in learning about the history of swimwear, a well-written, generously illustrated book I recommend is "Making Waves."  (You can see some photos from the book here.)



In closing, readers, do you agree that while vintage-inspired swimwear is popular today, swimsuits from this era (Teen and Twenties) would be considered too unflattering by most people? 

How does one find that happy medium between floor length and floss?

Have a great day, everybody!

Dreaming about 1920's men's shirts

Readers, what is it about 1920's men's shirts that makes them so alluring?

It's hard to separate the shirt from the homoerotic imagery of illustrator J.C. Leyendecker, whose artwork was so often used to advertise American menswear during this period.   Check out this Pinterest board and you'll immediately know what I'm talking about.  Be still my heart!

So I was excited to find this shirt pattern recently on eBay.





I'm almost certain it's from the early 1920's (because of the "Deltor" in the title) even though roughly the same pattern had been around for decades.  Mine originally sold for 40 cents (or 1 cent at Joanne sales).

Here's one (for sale by New Vintage Lady on Etsy) that was priced at only 15 cents.  Notice how similar these Buttericks are.



And here's another.  This one sold for 25 cents: presumably it's later than the one above but earlier than mine.  A slightly different collar shape is the only difference I notice -- you?  (Tie shape/length too)



I originally read about these shirts over at the fascinating blog Unsung Sewing Patterns.  (Also here.)  They were often called outing shirts or negligee shirts.  They had either separate left and right front pieces like most modern dress shirts (called a coat closing back then), or were made from a single front piece with a center placket and were pulled over the head like nightshirts.  The collar is detachable.

I made a late-Thirties shirt with a detachable collar a few years ago.  Honestly, I never wear it with the collar but it was still fun to make.

My 1920's Butterick shirt pattern should arrive in the mail any day now.  I'm excited.

Have you ever made a shirt -- or any clothes -- from this pre-Thirties period?  I've grown to love Twenties styles (for men and women), many of which look more modern and wearable to me than the fashions of the Fifties.

In other news, I'll be gone for the next few days but hope to be back on the weekend to continue my other Twenties project, the kimono robe and women's pajamas.

Enjoy the rest of the week!

(For you insatiable Leyendecker fans, this tumblr.)

More Robe Progress + Rethinking My Pajama Fabric

I made some progress on the robe today, though not a great deal.  The construction is a bit more complex than it looks: half the sleeve and half the side torso hangs open, so I have to give some thought to how I finish the exposed edges as well the seam allowances.  I originally thought I'd want to use the chartreuse sateen on the cuffs and hem as well as around the front, but I kind of like how it looks now. 

You may recall that these were the silky cottons I'd picked out for the pajamas.





As fond as I am of them, they're somewhat drab.  I've already used most of the tan cotton for my shirt and I have enough left for trim only.  So off I went you-know-whating again.

I came home with this lavender dotted swiss and what looks like a Moorish-inspired, lawn-weight cotton print.  It may be a little bright for the period (or how I picture the period), but it's more cheerful than the drab tan and gray-purple.





I love the idea of pattern mixing but it also gives me agita. I remind myself that I can always use this for some other project if I change my mind and choose something else.  Celebrity sighting: Judy Collins in the cotton aisle!

That's it, folks, a short post.

I hope your projects are coming along swimmingly; it's starting to feel like the summer is winding down for me.

Have a great day, everybody!