Coming Up This Week/Fun Challenges!

This past Friday, I crossed a huge hurdle. The sale of my friend's house came to a close. That part of her estate is officially finished!!! In 3 months time, I was able to clean out the house, set it up for staging, get it on the market, and sell it. Whew!!! The new owner moved in on Saturday. I feel a million pounds lighter, or whatever a house may weigh ;) My husband has been a HUGE help. I would not be this far along without his help. He got up this morning and said that he really didn't know what to do with himself now that we no longer need to go over to the house and work. My house has been completely neglected over the last 3 months, so I told him, "I have plenty of work for you to do!!!"

All in all, I am having the best summer! I have so enjoyed getting out on the river in my kayak. Floating along on the river is just the peace that I need. 

I also have my little 1 year challenge still going along strong. I am having the best time with it. I promise to catch up here on the blog this week. 

A couple of weeks ago, I shared that I am doing a sew together with Pauline of Sew You Think You Can. We are using this vintage Simplicity pattern. 

My muslin is completed, and all in all, I am very happy with the fit. Pauline and I will be virtually meeting on Wednesday to share our progress. I should have a reveal date then.

I have chosen this twill fabric for my jumpsuit. While it's not a vintage fabric, this look will be all out 1970s!!! I'm just so excited!!! Can't wait to get it made up!  

I am also participating in a challenge of sorts with Helena of Gray All Day. She had posted on Instagram that she had purchased a pile of fabric that she would like to share, and have others make up. I thought it sounded like fun. She sent me a message and asked it I like stripes or polka dots. I said, "Both! I have even combined stripes and polka dots." I had no idea of what the fabric would look like, or the fiber content. I was so pleasantly surprised when the fabric arrived. It's a lovely gauze with little yellow, puffy polka dots. It feels like air in my hands.  

The reveal day will be this Friday. So excited that I'll finally be able to share my little creation.

I hope that you are able to find some lovely ways to make your summer special despite all the craziness. I took a ride down Michigan Ave. here in Chicago last week after the madness of last Sunday night. It broke my heart to see all of the destruction. I would like to leave you with this quote from Indira Gandhi. 

You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist.

Monday Morning Inspiration/Timeless Fashion and Resources

Two weeks ago, I found out that the yoga studio in my neighborhood offers a weekly restorative yoga class. The first week, I had an excruciating headache. I hate when I get these headaches. They last for 48 hours, regardless of what I do, or what I take to relieve the pain. I went anyway, and I was so glad that I did. The headache did not go away, but an hour and 15 minutes of relaxation poses was just what I needed. I'm now hooked. Tonight will be my third class, and I cannot wait! 

I absolutely love it when I have the opportunity to bring you resources that you might not know are available :) 

My husband belongs to the Model A Ford Club of America. The club is composed of men and women who love Model A Fords, and enjoy the era in which the cars were produced, whether they own one or not. They even produce a magazine that comes out every other month.  

There's always a fashion related article in every magazine. 

The articles encompass everything from accessories, to tips on how to select the best dress suited to your body type. And even better, access to the articles is FREE!!! You can see an entire list of the articles HERE. Scroll to the bottom of the page and you'll find a link to access archived articles. 

The organization has worked hard to bring their members resources for authentic clothing. HERE you will find their Pattern Project page. 

There you will find patterns for; 

Daytime Dresses,

 Cocktail Gowns, 

Evening Gowns,

Hats

Coats, 

Pajamas,

 And even a pattern for a traditional kimono.

Info on other patterns and how to order can be found HERE.

I think this is a wonderful resource for anyone who enjoys vintage fashion. So many of the fashions are really quite timeless.

Most of you know about the wonderful Decades of Style pattern company. There you can find lots of wonderful vintage patterns that can easily be translated into pieces that work for today. You can find their 1920's patterns HERE. 

Have a wonderful week! I hope that you too can find a little something that can restore your soul :)
Rhonda

Monday Morning Inspiration/The Roddis Collection

When I crawled into bed last night, I told my husband that I was putting a period on last week. Done.

The finale of the week happened yesterday afternoon. My husband and I had gone out for an afternoon drive. Sheridan Road is amazing. If you've seen the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off, the road is actually showcased. It winds through Northwestern University, the most exquisite neighborhoods, and lovely ravines. 

At one point, my car began to miss a bit, but then seemed to straighten out. My husband thought it could have been something in the gas that just worked its way through the carburetor. 

Before we turned around to head home, we stopped for an ice cream cone. When I started the car, it really began to miss, but it had power. As I rolled out on the road, the power began to decrease and it was obvious that it was going to die. Thankfully, I was able to pull into a parking lot before it completely died. Long story a tad shorter, we called for a tow truck, waited an hour and a half, but he came, and drove us home. Home, everything always seems a little better once you are home :)

Last week I shared an exhibit that I saw at the beautiful Museum of Wisconsin Art in West Bend, WI. While the Contemporary Threads exhibit is quite interesting, the main exhibit is; 

American Spirit and Style

Fashions and Lives of the Roddis Family

1850-1995 

This is a spectacular exhibit. The clothes were found in the attic of Augusta Roddis after her death in 2011. Who would have thought that an attic in the small town of Marshfield, Wisconsin would hold so many wonderful treasures. 

What I especially enjoyed about the exhibit was the fact that I could get so close to the clothes. In most exhibits, the viewer is kept some distance away. I loved being able to look closely and even get close up shots of the details.

This is the cover dress for the exhibit. Cut on the bias, I love the sleeve details.

An Yves St. Laurent dress. The exhibit book explains how the women of the Roddis family loved beautiful, well-made clothes, but their taste was very modest.  

The designer of this suit was Gunther Jaeckal, c. 1954.

This piece was one of my favorites. I would love to be able to look inside and see what was used to support the shoulder detail.

An everyday dress made chic with the addition of the cape.

Such a pretty, yet understated dress.

I was happy that I was able to get the close up detail of the bodice. Notice how there are sheer inserts inside the braided detail. Again, understated, but exquisite.

I always enjoy discovering something new to me. The gown below was designed by Gladys Parker, a cartoonist who created the Mopsy strip which ran for 3 decades.

Along with her comic strip, Ms. Parker began designing her own line of clothing in 1934, and even did some costume design work in Hollywood.

This gown was actually worn to a party given by Princess Margaret.

Understated elegance.

Very much from the 1980's! 

The exhibit is much more extensive than what I have shared. It runs through September 17, 2017, so if you can make the trip to Wisconsin, I HIGHLY recommend seeing this exhibit.

The accompanying exhibit book is one of the best I've seen. Beautifully written, it takes you through the history of the family and showcases many pieces that were not included in the exhibit. You can take a look through the book HERE. The best price for the book is at Amazon. I also found the book HERE at AbeBooks(my new favorite book seller)

Have a wonderful week, and if by chance last week wasn't the best, put a period on it...and make this week great!

Rhonda

Take A Peek/A Vintage Garment That Is Beautifully Made

A number of years ago, I found a wonderful vintage evening suit that transcends time. 

The dress is simple in design, but made of the most beautiful fabric. It includes a jacket, perfect for chilly evenings. And even better, it has hidden pockets.

For those of us who sew, the interior of the dress and jacket are just as interesting as the outside, if not more, so I thought you might like to take a look inside.



If you have any questions, be sure to ask, Or if I can take a close up picture of something, just let me know.

Monday Morning Inspiration/A Museum Tour with Lasell College

Over the weekend, Kenneth King posted an incredible link on Facebook to Lasell College. This is such a fabulous resource as they have actually videoed so many of the garments and accessories that they have in their collection. I am just in heaven as the videos show the garment in such a manner that you really see the intricacies of the stitching and the design. Even a trip to an exhibit would not give you the ability to see the garments in this manner. 

I have pulled out 7 videos that I thought you might enjoy. There are MANY more. They are short videos, anywhere from 30 seconds to a little over 3 minutes long. Great for a coffee break. But fair warning, you can easily get sucked in and end up spending a lot of time, so watch a few and save the others for another time. Click HERE to see all the videos that Lasell College has made available.   


















If you have a Facebook account, be sure to pop over to Kenneth King's page and thank him for the link. There are a couple of videos that feature Kenneth, so I'm sure you'll enjoy those.
Have a wonderful week!
Rhonda

A Peek Inside My Collection

I received a message this morning from one of the editor's at Sew News and she said,

"Wow, your MTD post has been the most successful of ALL TIME."

So needless, to say, I am very honored and even more, humbled by your support. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. 

A number of you commented about pieces I have in my collection and said that you would like to see. Now of course, seeing in person is the best, but since that's impossible, I thought that from time to time I would pull a piece out that I think is especially interesting and share it. The jacket that I'm sharing today is well over 100 years old and it is exquisite.

It's a beautiful piece of linen covered in handmade lace. Sadly, the true color did not come through as it is actually a lovely buttercup yellow rather than ivory. The lace is ivory except for the small taffeta pieces that are in the middle of the flowers.

The back.

 A close up of the stitching detail.

 The lace on the shoulder.

This is the best close up shot I could get of the lace. The lace is truly perfection.

The center back.

 Lace was even sewn under the arm.

The jacket is held together with hooks down the front.
Take note that as lovely as this jacket is, the stitching is not absolutely perfect.

 

It's lined with silk taffeta and it is disintegrating, so it really needs to be replaced. I think I know someone that could do that ;) The jacket is underlined and the lace was then sewn to both layers.

Vintage and antique garments and fabrics are becoming more and more difficult to find, but they are still out there, so always be sure to look if you visit a thrift store as you never know what treasure you may find.
I'll be back a little later with a link for Frabjous Couture's Me Made Monday post.