Friday, January 6, 2012

Vintage Dresses

I finally got around to taking pictures of a great many of my vintage dresses that I've made recently (ok, so some are two years old).  Posting just after all the pictures of my relatives in vintage dress made sense!   I'm planning on an entire 1930s wardrobe for a long Hawaiian cruise I'm taking this Spring, so be prepared for a lot more of this sort of thing.

Late '30s or early '40s in wool plaid. Simplicity 3162.

'30s in a poly suiting material.  I based it on Hollywood 832, though I couldn't afford the pattern!

 '30s in a sheer wool (the buckle is 19th century).  Butterick 7879.

'30s in very light printed cotton.  I don't know what pattern this is based on, but I found an image of a torn-up fashion book online that I liked!

Late '30s in some sort of Rayon or Poly.  A mail order pattern.

'30s in cotton seersucker.  Another mail-order pattern.

'40s in sheer rayon/poly.  A well-worn DuBarry pattern.

 My reception gown for my wedding.  Silver silk lamé with glass beads.  Inspired by Ginger Rogers gown in Roberta.  And yes, we did do a Astaire/Rogers style first dance.


 My wedding gown.  Stretch silk charmeuse with a silk velvet Spencer.  The buttons are death heads of course!  Based on a 1950s gown, but I think it evokes an earlier time as well.


Our "rehearsal" dinner was at a Hawaiian restaurant, so I made up the classic '40s/'50s sarong dress from a cotton batik print.  Unfortunately it was below 50* out that night (record cold in Florida that winter).  I froze, but I still wore it!

20 comments:

The Lady Ship said...

Simply wonderful! You look fantastic in all of them. I can see Joan Crawford in 1931's 'Possessed' in the fourth picture. And the reception/wedding gowns are so amazing!

Lauren R said...

Yowza! Your vintage wardrobe puts mine to shame! Your silver reception gown and wedding gown are absolutely incredible. They look like museum pieces!

/so much jealous.

Greeneggs said...

Inspiring.

Luna said...

WOW this is sooo stunning! i love the wedding dress :) wish I had such clothes, looks like I have to learn quicker how to sew ;)

Maggie said...

Oh wow - so much awesome! Your wedding gown is to die for! It's absolutely gorgeous! I love the silver gown too!

Sarah W said...

You've got some really pretty dresses there! Very inspiring :)

Augustintytär said...

The dresses for your wedding are to die for. I especially love the unique choice for the reception. It must have been perfect with the dance and all.

Kleidung um 1800 said...

Beautiful! This style of dresses looks wonderful on you - radiant wedding garments!

Sabine

Green Martha said...

Wow wow wow ! I'll join in the choir and say once again your wedding dresses are to die for. And the rest is just fabulous as well - and that's comign from someone who isn't particularly into vintage.

Isis said...

Simply beautiful!

Anonymous said...

All around stunning. But what really got me, was the first photo of you in your wedding dress looks just like Elizabeth Taylor! Just...wow!

--Rebecca

Lauren said...

Perfection!

Drew Watts said...

These dress ideas are simply looking fabulous. I am in love with that black one with polka dots. For me there is nothing like such dresses for parties. On my birthday I wore silver outfit and it looked perfect. I hosted outdoor party at one of best venues.

Samantha Smith said...

Perfect elegant dresses!

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I also appreciate how the author's passion for vintage fashion shines through in their writing. It's evident that they not only love these styles but also want to share their knowledge and help others recreate these beautiful pieces.
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