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challenge, clothing, fabrics, Fall for Cotton, fashion, patterns, sew exhausted, Vintage, vintage dress, vintage patterns
I live on the West Coast, and it is 8:32 PM PDT. I figure I am good to go and will make the Fall For Cotton deadline. Right? I never thought about time differences and just knew I needed to be up by midnight- But midnight my time is good I hope!
I finished Holly’s vintage Fall For Cotton dress last week and you can read all about it here. Mine was next (although I squeezed in an Anna dress in between for my class reunion). My Fall For Cotton Vintage pattern came from Vintage Martini and I thought it was a great dress and would be suitable for me. It is Butterick 9499, and when I googled it, I got varying dates so am not certain. It is either late 1950’s or early 1960’s. Thoughts?
I went with a green cotton broadcloth, keeping in with the Fall For Cotton Challenge. I bought this a while back, and paid $1.99 a yard for it- which means this dress cost me about $10 bucks to make. 🙂
Cotton… I gotta say it needs same spray starch and a better pressing than I was able to give it. The dress was ready yesterday, but I had noone to take pics! Hence the barely made deadline!
When I came out in all my glory yesterday my youngest told me I looked like Mrs. Teapot. My eldest told me I looked like the lady who had a bunch of stuff in her suitcase. Ahhh, children! I let them BOTH know I felt like Beavers mother. (And I received blank stares) 🙂
I like the dress for the most part. The cuffs are fantastic… I covered my own buttons for both cuffs. The 2 buttons on the bodice came from my button jar. The belt is dreadful. I am going to make my own belt and make a few changes to the dress. I love the dress but I am not sure the pleated skirt is flattering to my shape. I am thinking about removing the skirt and making it an a-line skirt. I love the bodice and the collar though. And I really like the shade of green. 😀
I do have to confess to an “ooops.” I did not notice it until I was buttoning up the cuffs for picture time! I put one of the cuffs on backwards! 
Not sure where my head was at that moment but I guess I will have to remove it and see if I can fix it. I may have to make a whole new cuff though!
And this is my Fall For Cotton/ Mrs. Teapot/ Vintage dress. Should I change the skirt out to an a-line? And do you use spray starch to iron your 100% cotton dresses?
OH! By the way, this dress also takes care of one of my Sewlutions from Jan 1, 2013. I wanted to make 2 vintage dresses for myself in 2013… WHEW!
~Laurie
Sew Exhausted 
Very nice, the green looks good on you. I think you’re right about the date; based on the price .60
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Looks wonderful on you. 🙂 “great looking chick” 🙂
Thanks! 🙂
I like your dress! The collar and cuffs are really great details. I say only change the skirt if what you have now is going to keep you from wearing it. Maybe you just need to play with the pleat placement to like it better – perhaps if you fold them out toward the side seams instead of toward center front.
I, personally, like sizing better than starch because it’s not quite as stiff. I don’t usually use it on my cotton unless it is a thin drapy cotton though.
I put one cuff on backwards for one of the dresses for my sister’s wedding and didn’t have time to fix it. Luckily, it was the only dress with cuffs and I don’t think anyone noticed. That’s what happens when you are sewing fast and tired!
You need to make your kids watch some old tv shows so they understand who June Cleaver is, hehe. It’s a great dress! =)
Yes…my girls DO need to watch some of the older shows. Just for fun if anything! I am torn on the dress. I DO like it… I think it may need some adjustments though. and TBH I don’t even know where I’d wear it! But I think I am determined to wear it somewhere. I DID make it after all. I have decided for my 2nd vintage dress I am going to make something TOTALLY different than what I would normally gravitate towards and see how that goes. :}
Yeah- I couldnt BELIEVE I did that with the cuff… but then again I guess I can! 😀
Thanks Brooke. 🙂
I love the dress as is.. if you want a crisper look on the collar, spray starch will fix that. I did the same thing with the cuff when I was making a shirt muslin for my husband. Lol 🙂
Those cuffs! I tell ya! Thanks Tanya- I feel better now. 🙂
VERY pretty! 🙂
Thank you kindly! 🙂
I love the collar on your dress, it really makes a statement. I also wanted to stop by and thank you for your words of encouragement for my epic failure post, the comments gave me the courage to carry on and make a few fitting changes and finish my project! What a wonderful online sewing community we have and your participation is part of what makes it so great! Thanks again!
🙂 You are welcome! I am so glad you finished! YES! The sewing community IS very supportive and I have appreciated the comments and support I have received this past year. Thank you! 🙂
The skirt looks great to me and I love the colour! If you’d feel more comfortable in an A-line though, change it. You gotta feel happy in what you wear!
And I don’t use starch when ironing anything – I possess some only to tame unruly floaty fabric! Most of my cottons behave well when ironed but I do use one of those pressurised irons with a separate water tank!
Thanks Vicki! I like the color too! I think if I had spent more time with a water bottle and hot iron it would have been “tamed.”
Well, I guessed you were a west coast girl from your pic on we sew retro, but with that palm tree growing behind you, I’m guessing your further south than me, LOL. Too bad about the cuff boo-boo, but it should be easy enough to correct, if you care to. And yes…as flattering as this style is, I say go for the A-Line version just to shake things up!
I love the color, the collar, the buttons (I could keep going!). I think you can keep the skirt as is, but only if you think you’ll get wear out of it. If not, the great part about being able to sew is that you can change it. Great job on having two makes before the deadline! I really like the sepia shot – you look great!
Aw thanks Shar! My girls think I look like a Prairie lady in that shot- they really need to get their fashion and history right! I really like it and am deciding what to do… For now I will wear it as is! 😀
Ha,ha girls are the best for telling you exactly what they’re thinking! My daughter has no problem telling me that something makes me look old, etc. Sometimes I just get the eye-roll.
It looks great Laurie! Very vintage, for sure. And, well, ya, it does remind me of June, the Beaver’s mother, Lol. I have to say, I don’t know who Mrs. Teapot is, so no comment from me there. I like the pleated skirt, it stays true to it’s vintage style, but I think an A-Line would make it more modern and perhaps easier to wear. And, folks won’t call you June Cleaver. 🙂 My Fall For Cotton dresses were made with cotton knits and one is a 4 way stretch, easy to sew, no ironing required. The other was a thicker, almost sweatshirt cotton knit, and it wrinkled like you would not believe!! I had to iron the whole dress, but did not use spray starch. I don’t that works with stretch knits, but I’m really not sure. I would probably use it on a cotton woven though.
Mrs Teapot is Chips mother in Beauty and the Beast. (Chip is the teacup). Actually I don’t know HOW I look like her- but I guess that was the first thought that popped in to that girls head! I will have to see your Fall for Cotton makes! You made 2 for you! And after being under the weather! Impressive!
I love the color of this dress- it is a great color for you! I love the collar on this. It is a great dress. I almost feel like the front being a little less bloused would make more of a difference than switching to an A-line skirt. Maybe not, though.
Actually Laura that was one of my thoughts too and I have considered removing the skirt and making the bodice more fitted. I do like the skirt I just wondered if I looked too hippy! I may try that first tho! Thanks! 🙂
I think if your waist is accentuated enough (by taking out some of the fullness right above the belt) it will look less hippy anyway. If you still don’t like it, go for the A-line. If it is to your liking, you will wear it more!
I think you are right Laura. 🙂 I am definitely going to try that first. The extra work removing the skirt and slimming down the bodice I think will be worth it. I will wear it more if I am happier with the shape of it. Thanks!
She is verry beautiful! Congratulation!
🙂 Thank you!
You did great with your dress, cuffs and all! Shows we’re only human 😉
I like it as is, I have serious trouble imagining things different when my eyes have seen it made in a particular way 😀 I am sure an A-line would be nice, too! Well done 🙂
Thanks… I am tempted to LEAVE the cuff as is but I will probably fix it… I am the same way. What if I do all that work and find I liked it better the first way??!!
The collar and cuffs are great – love details like that on vintage patterns! You did a nice job on it. I don’t think the skirt is too pouffy (is that a word?) but then I like 1950s dresses with full skirts. I made a Vogue 1950s dress from 100 percent cotton a few years ago. I use Niagra aerosol spray starch on it to get the wrinkles out or I’d be ironing forever. It’s not too stiff. Congrats on finishing your project by the deadline!
Thank you very much. I DO like pouffy skirts too (not sure if that IS a word but if not let’s make it one!) I love fashions of the 50’s too. They are pretty and fun and very stylish! I would like to see your dress. Did you post about it?
So, let me ask you then . . . are you into the underpinnings of the 50’s too? I saw a dress one sewist made and she obviously had a petticoat under the skirt and it was cute as a button. Got me to thinking perhaps I “need” to be into proper 40’s/50’s under garments.
You say what?
Lyric
Wellll… I know some that do and some that don’t. Right now I don’t BUT if I am going to go someplace where its appropriate I think it would be fun! Right now I JUST don’t have the place to wear the proper undergarments. But as you said those petticoats are super cute!
I don’t think I’ve posted about that dress. It’s white and cotton so I only wear it when it’s hot here, which means I only wear it to work about twice a year! San Francisco isn’t a very warm city. I live in Berkeley, which is warmer so maybe I’ll do a photo shoot this weekend – high 60s. I’ll let you know if I post about it!
Oh, you got in on the Fall Cotton Sewing Challenge. Good for you. if/when someone else does this I hope to find out about it in time. For this Challenge I was in the process of relocating and just couldn’t swing it. I’ll bet pouring over those pictures was a ball.
Good job, Laurie!
Lyric
http://www.facebook.com/sewandcro
There were so many good makes! I made 2- one for me and one for one of my daughters. It was FUN! Hopefully next one you can get in on!