Whom the shoe fits...

Whom the shoe fits, wears it. Is that even an expression in English? I may just have translated that fairly litterally from a Dutch expression which basically means that a comment (usually but not per se a negative one) should be listened to by those it applies to, while the others are free to ignore it. 


In this case however, it's not meant to be an expression...
I found these last Saturday at the market: vintage shoes. And they were in my size and after some deliberation, the sellers agreed that they were 2 euros a pair. Of course, at that price, I had to take them home.

I went for these lovely things first. They've been worn but not a lot. They're still in very good shape. Leather shoes, with cute bows and a wooden heel. Very pretty, although that elegantly shaped heel is quite unstable (I think that's down to its placement. So far forward). The text on the insole is in Dutch, so I guess they were at the very least sold and maybe even produced in the Netherlands. No idea about the date though.

There lovely black sandels with their dainty ankle straps were next. Their shape looks similar to what I've seen in early 50's magazines, the stitching has discoloured a bit with age (old black thread often goes brown-ish). 

The insoles look a little worn, but they also contain quite a bit of information. I loved this: 'lasted by hand' Wow.
There's also a brand name in one shoe and a store name in the other, both American, both unknown to me (A'mano Californian Bootier and O'Connor&Goldberg of New York and Chicago respectively, just in case you were wondering)

And last but not least... I was look at these before I even considered buying. I was marvelling at their outrageous look. Of course they had to come too. These  exotic slippers have definately seen better days. I think all the colours have faded and browned a little and the insoles have warped and cracked (I've put a bit of fabric inside, otherwise the weight of those rosettes pushes the front of the shoe flat). They're slippers with a low vamp so I don't think anyone would have liked to walk in them for a longer distance. But what a look...
I can easily imagine how the first two pairs might have been worn. The tan ones with a neatly tailored suit in spring (because of the light colour), the black ones with a dress. But these? Lavish home parties? The opening night of 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Raincoat'? 

Oh, and this is a store name I have read about (over at Couture Allure): Bonwit Teller, Chicago. I'm still not familiar with the brand, created by Jerro, New York.


If anyone has any idea about the dates of these shoes or any suggestions about their original habitat (occasion, outfit etc.), please speak up. I only know they all came from the same house.

Withstanding the test of time

Do you think sewing and craft books age badly?

I tend to think a lot of the techniques stay the same, even though new, and maybe more 'convenient' stuff may be added over time.

So, when I found these 1970's craft books (part of a 'Time Life' series, if that means anything to anyone) at a local thrift store at 1.50 euro a piece, I decided to take them home with me.

They include the usual techniques for sewing and fitting.

They also feature simple projects, some of which I would still make and wear today.

Of course, the styling pictures are terribly dated.

But I have never found a better tutorial for making leather gloves,

Or a boxy handbag.

And there is a surprising amount of knitting patterns, many of which might still look good.

All in all, I think this was a very good find and I'm sure I will use these in the near future. I'll make sure to credit them when I do.

As ever, more later.

Best thrift store find EVER!

Looking around at the place where I usually find my 1 euro second hand silk shirts, I spotted these:

At first I thought they were fashion magazines, but then I read the red text on the right one, which said: "patronen op radarblad" (=traceble patterns included)

These were sewing magazines. The left one, "Revue de la mode", is French and from winter 1951, the one on the right, "Record", is Dutch and from spring 1952. Both have adorable fashion drawings inside, "Record" also has some photographs and both have an incredibly densely printed pattern sheet (which may just feature each pattern in one size only) included. And no sewing instructions in sight.

I was so thrilled to find these. I've never seen anything like this being sold there. The seller let me have them for just 5 euros. For the two. Isn't that amazing?

Size tags are evil

Who never claims sizes are evil? And I don't believe it is only when we have to go and pick a larger size than expected...

I hardly ever shop or use normal patterns, so I tend to forget about this particular issue. However, I do sometimes buy second hand/vintage clothes. I usually don't look at the size on the label. I concentrate instead on material and shape/style or refashion potential.

In my previous post I, and some of you, already mentioned how different fashion eras champion different shapes and ideas of fit. This is an issue you definately come across when shopping second hand.

I bought this silk ladies' shirt for 1 euro several weeks ago. According to it's own size tag, it's a size S and it was made in China. I think, based on the style and that rather generous size (it's on my old dummy here, which is larger in the bust than I am. I still have to find some legs for Mary) that this is an 1980's garment. I like the Chinese knot detail of the closure and thought I might try to wear it as is. But I haven't yet. Even belted, it just feels too bulky. I'm thinking of re-setting the sleeve to narrow the shoulder but it might need yet more work. It's lovely smooth, light and soft silk, so it would be worth the effort.

This shirt is also silk and I bought it today at the same market stall. This material is less finely woven, resulting in a shirt which feels smooth and has a cotton-like hand. According to it's size tag, this shirt is a size 40 and made in "W.-Germany". I'm not sure how to date it. The fact that it was made in West-Germany means it has to be pre-1990, of that I am sure. Although it's undarted, it seems too closely fitted for an 80's shirt. On the inside, both shirts are finished with the same 3-thread serging. The style of the collar doesn't look recent.

And, crucially: size 40??

German sizes are the same as Dutch size and if this shirt was in a shop today, it might make quite a few women comment on the evils of sizing. It's a bit wide on me, but fits about right at the shoulder. Usually, a size 36 will fit me at the shoulder.

I should really do a proper post about RTW sizing, size-inflation etc., some day soon. But I have to think on that a bit longer... For now, I'm just curious about your ideas about the dates on my shirts, your tales of strange sizing and, if you feel particularly helpful, any tips on what to do with shirt number 1.

On vintage finds and useful sewing

If you are new to this blog, lured in by my beloved new dress in its picture on Burdastyle or just wondering who this old nemesis of the Selfish Seamstress might be: welcome! Glad to have you around.

This is a bit of a random post. I actually have some creations to show you, but it's too late for proper light at my usual spot. That will have to wait till tomorrow. It wasn't yet too dark upstairs in my sewing room, so I could photograph some stationary objects.

First up: easily the oddest bit of vintage I have ever bought.

I found this roll-on girdle at my usual vintage stall at the market. It was labeled by them as 'XS' and the inside label didn't state any kind of size. Although there are obvious signs of strain at the center front seam, I don't think it was ever really worn. None of all the different white materials show any of the tell-tale yellow discolouration which is caused by sweat and there was still a small piece of string attached to the pristine looking label.

I bought it, even if it would be just to study its contruction. Of course I tried it on at home, and it fits (although I'll spare you the image) but is quite a challenge to get in and out of.

Secondly, despite being on a massive dress-making spree, which is hartily enabled by my lovely boyfriend E, I have also been thinking about purely practical sewing projects. Which brings me to this.

I bought this fabric in, about, September of 2008, thinking it would be good for some spring/summer trousers the next year. Spring/summer 2009 came and went and this fabric stayed in my stash. The thing is: I'm not crazy about it. It's fairly thin cotton with a bit of stretch. Black, with a cream coloured pinstripe. Nothing wrong with, you'd say. However, it's a very smooth fabric, almost shiny, with a very sharply defined pinstripe and that's the problem. I'm afraid my usual go-to trouser pattern would look cheap and just wrong in it. The belt-pleated trousers? Wrong. Pencil skirt? Very wrong. I guess I just keep getting the worst kind of associations: dress-up maffia-boss costume, cheap and nasty take on 'secretary chic' etc.

All I can think of is to make fairly loose fitted straight leg trousers from it, with casual styling details. I can't feel enthousiastic about it though, and keep thinking up other stuff to make first. Even though with the weather we're having right now, a pair of trousers in this fabric would certainly come in handy. Suggestions anyone?

Just (not quite) jeans and a t-shirt

Outside, it's definately spring now, we've already had some great weather but even within the span of one day, temperatures can vary quite a bit. So, what to wear? The lazy answer would of course be: jeans and a t-shirt.

It is kind of with that thought that show you my latest creations here. Trousers made from firm stretch cotton, and a refashioned t-shirt. Not the most exciting items, but very likely to become wardrobe staples.

I bought the fabric for the trousers when I was looking for something cheap to make muslins. One of the fabric stalls at the market was having a sale: everything on the sale-table was 0,50 euros a meter. So, knowing this stuff had the right stretch for a muslin of V's dress, I bought what was left on the bolt. I actually went home with 14 meters of fabric on that day. 14 meters of nice fabrics which cost me all of 7 euros... You will see other fabrics from this haul show up in the future (although some were rather winter-y, so those may take their time).

The pattern is my self-drafted, tried-and-tested flared trouser pattern. Third time I made it, and no real changes. Scoop pockets at front, single welts at the back, fits at the natural waist and flared from mid-thigh.

The t-shirt was one of two which I bought (for 1 euro each) at a second hand stall at the market. When you buy jersey from the bolt, it's usually thinner than the standard t-shirt stuff. Or, when you've been looking for something thicker, it's actually very densely knit. So, buying t-shirts for refashioning is not such a strange move as it may seem to be. These were 'deadstock' by the way, no signs of wear, about 12 similar ones (most of them blue though) on the rail, some still with tags.

This one of a medium, so a bit big and too shapeless to my taste. I just took it in at the sides.

Then, it was time for the fun part: decoration. I've wanted to make a t-shirt with a bird print for quite a while now, but it was hard to figure out a nice, pretty and interesting way of doing that. In this way, I like how the birds form a neckline-decoration.

I used a very simple method to get the picture on the t-shirt, the method I used for my anatomical heart t-shirt: I look for the right picture (either on the internet of in a book), get it into photoshop, make it bigger (usually to fit onto A4, a little smaller for the bird), print it, cover those areas of the which I want to trace with tailor's chalk, put the print upside down on the fabric, transferring the chalk and then trace the chalk lines. In this case I used white fabric paint and a small brush, the heart was done with fabric marker.

I'm not sure about the t-shirt tuck-thing. To wear it over the trousers seems more 'normal' but I think tucked in looks better on me (and who wants 'normal' anyway??).

Also, what do you think about my hair in these pictures? It has grown very long (and is in need of a trim) and I've been annoyed with 'only being able to wear it in a ponytail'. It looks impressive when worn loose of course, but in that case, it brushing at least every 30 minutes or so and gets into everything. Today, I made a braid and rolled it into a bun high on the back of my head. It sure is practical and stays up rather well, but how about the look? Ballerina-like and kind of cute? Or just granny-ish and not in a good way? And whatever you think of this, do you have any other suggestions for straight waist-length hair (not too high-maintanance, please)?

Of surprising vintage finds

For a while now, I've endulged in the habit of checking out the stalls, selling second hand clothing and accesoiries, whenever I visit my local market (and the market in The Hague is a big thing, open for business four days a week). Usually, I don't buy anything, or just leather clothes to refashion into bags.

Lately however, at another stall, I've found some things I just couldn't leave there.

First up, two weeks ago, I found this dress. I misses a button and although it didn't have a tag, I knew it would be big for me... But those details! The inside betrays it was hand/home made, it's made from is lovely cherry pink wool crepe with a matching lining. Handmade covered buttons with tiny sew-on snaps between them, to keep the gaps closed. Immaculate bound buttonholes with very narrow welts... And did I tell you it was on the '1 euro' rack? Probably because of the missing button.

At home, I put it on anyway.

I found to my surprise that although the lady for whom this dress was made must have had a fuller figure than yours truly, she must also have had about the exact same height and frame. Bust darts and waist shaping are all in the right place for me, and the shoulders (a lovely half-raglan shape) are only a bit wide, no doubt owing to the overall size difference. So I thought that maybe, if I wear it with a contrasting belt... It's not the greatest picture, but what do you think?

At the same visit, I also found this handbag. Small, slightly dented, great shape, thick beige leather on the outside, black plastic inside, ingeneous closure, same at front and back and 4 euros. The look seems 60's to me but it has no tag and I know there were loads of futuristically shaped bags in the 50's already and there have been revival styles ever since. I just had to buy that too.

Now, this week, I was at the stall again and I fear the seller, a very nice lady of about 60 years old, may be on to my great weakness: I will buy anything which has great vintage-y details and costs 5 euros or less.

This coat caught my eye because of its great seaming. It didn't photograph well, but I'll discribe it to you: the sleeves are set-in at front, but cut-on at the back, the seams in which the pockets are, are in fact the only ones in the entire coat, branching out to meet the set-in sleeve and to form a bust dart.

On closer inspection, it also had these great buttonholes. Yep, those are blind bound buttonholes, with bound slits to help you use them. It turned out to cost 5 euros.

It is a bit big on me and looks rather austere. On the other hand, don't you think it reminds one of those classic Balenciaga 'barrel' coats?

Further proof of my new addiction, if any was needed, was my final purchase. I've had 'a thing' for hats for years now. It's not that I wear them a lot, but I own several hats and I just love them. Maybe it's what I get because I never shop for clothes anymore...

I had seen this hat before, but I had restrained myself and had not asked for its price. Now I did. It was 5 euros. It's a black straw hat with black ribbon. To me, the shape seems 50's, but again, I may be wrong. It's fairly small, but I think it was meant to be worn like this, high on one's head. I may never wear this baby, but I just love it.

With all these items, if you've got any idea about their date and the overall style they belong to, I'd love to know. And anyway, is it just me suddenly going crazy over buying vintage? I guess altering the clothes could be an option, but somehow I feel like that would spoil what I love about them... Do I need more restraint or some enabling?? ;)

Just an update

Last week, I had some more time on my hands for sewing. I still dedicated most of it to sewing shirts for certain men in my life ;)My boyfriend has a new job which means he isn't wearing overalls all day anymore. And he happens to be addicted to the comfort and fit of my made-to-measure shirt block... In the past month or so, I've made him no less than three new shirts.The other man benefitting from my shirt making skills is my younger brother. It's his 22nd birthday next week and he loves the two I've made for him before.

For myself, I made the bag (see below) and played around with refashioning an old jumper of E's. I made the cardigan in last weeks outfit and this cowl-thing out of one.

This flappy-collared vest was made from the second jumper.

A few little tips for this kind of thing:

- Use a basic fitted t-shirt pattern as shape to start with. I used mine for both cardigans. It will give you a proper shoulder- and neckline and a proper sleeve (even if you don't use the side shaping, like I did in the last one). When using a thick knit, cut 1 cm wider than you would for jersey. Once you have your basic body-bit, improvise from there.

- I'm afraid you need a serger for knits like this. And take care with the settings. I tested them before I started sewing and ended up with the differential quite high to avoid pulling the fabric out too much.

- If you want to make a nicely finished, invisible hem, first serge the edges, then fold them in and stitch them down by hand.

The last thing is something I started on in the weekend and finished yesterday. Leather trousers. I bought a pair which I knew to be too large for me at my usual thrift stall a few months ago (for just 5 euros). I had to build up courage and come up with a plan to make them smaller. Eventually, I manage to get away with just taking in the side seams (although that meant taking out and re-attaching most of the lining). It's a new look for me and I have to get used to it, but these will be great in cold weather.

Vintage finds

Pictures! I'm finally home by daylight, on my own, without being crazily busy, so I decided to put my somewhat camera-shy self in front of the camera to show you something I found at one of my thrifty market stalls last week.

First up something less intimidating.

These two handbag were mine for 8 euros. There's a good bit of age to them, which shows in their nice clasp closures, leather linings and old-fashioned pulls on their inside zipper-pockets. They've also both seen better days. Especially the handles are in a sorry state. I'm thinking about replacing them. I've got some black metal chain in my stash, but it should really be yellow metal, don't you think?

The one on the left might be eel-skin or reptile and the one on the right snake. However, on close inspection it is clear that there made from leather or even plastic stamped to look like exotic skins (which is good). The 'snake-skin' looks like paper with plastic scales on it when you study the torn bit at the handle. I'll have to ask my bag-o-philiac friend if she can date them or tell me anything more.

The thing for which I had to pose is this:

It's a half circle skirt in soft red leather. Oh, and it has pockets.

I'm always on the lookout for cheap second hand leather items which I can cut up and use to make bags. This one, I found at a stall where I don't usually shop. It was 5 euros. I was intrigued by it but had my doubts about the elastic waistband. But at that price, what could go wrong? It would either be a special garment for me, or several bags.

I threaded in new elastic, making the waistband a bit tighter and I have to say, I kind of like it. The length, fullness and weight of the thing give it, at least in my mind, a bit of 'New Look'-appeal. It may not be practical in real life, but I'll give it a try. Here's one skirt which won't have a date with my scissors any time soon...

Another picture-less post, and my reasons for it.

I still have no new creations to show you all. Nothing new of and for myself, that is. I'll explain how that came to be.

First of all, as I told you before, I've been helping designer friend M get her collection ready for not one, but two important event. The second one of those was a big succes (for this very small eco-brand) and the fall-out of it has kept us busy ever since. Tomorrow, I'll take some pictures to add the new looks to her website. We hope to keep people interested and hopefully, this will allow us to actually make some money for all our hard work.

Secondly, I had a small asignment of my own, resizing two vintage dresses (one of them only needed a new, shorter hemline). Working on that led to the third, sad reason...

My sewing machine broke down. My beautiful, expensive, high-tech sewing machine which I've only own since the end of May suddendly had a problem. Whether turning automatically, or by hand, the needle wouldn't go down to it's lowest position. None of the usual causes were there. No bent needle, no tangled thread. I took it to the shop and the repair guy agreed with me that this was all very strange... That was last Wednesday. The machine had to stay there, so hopefully they would be able to find out what was wrong with it and repair that. If not, it will have to be sent back to the factory. In Taiwan.

(did I mention before how I really need my sewing machine? Not just for my peace of mind but also because right now, it's my only way of making any kind of income.)

Of course, M is happy to let me do my sewing at her place if necessary and my machine is still well with in its garanteed time, so everything should work out in the end.

For the time being, when I not working, I'm drafting patterns, doing a bit of knitting, tell myself I really should work on making a website, read (I found some great fashion history books at the library), watch DVD's (Tudors and DS 9, what does that make me? ;), and somehow buy a lot more at the thrift stalls than usual.

Check back later this week for pictures of my thrifting adventures and a lot more sewing, fashion and clothes related rambling.

Skipped a day to: Thrifty Thursday

I kind of planned to post something every day this week, just to get the blog going but yesterday really didn't leave with the time or the opportunity to take a picture and sit down to some writing. And I had a really hard time getting the pictures where I wanted them when making the kimono-tutorial on Tuesday.

Today, I made the little bag you see in the picture (sorry if it's a bit blurry). It's for my mother and I need to find a belt or something like that to act as a shoulder strap. Next to it is the other half of the thrifted pair of leather trousers I made it from. The trousers may look too good to cut up, and indeed the leather their made from is in great condition and hardly shows any wear. The shape and size however, are a different story. It's a very small size, but the fly and the waist-to-hip ratio seem to suggest it's a men's garment. The legs get very narrow towards the ankle and are short, even for me. Oh, and it's crazily high waisted. So, I think it will be better off being two bags and being enjoyed as such.

Why did I refer to this post as 'Thrifty Thursday', you may wonder? After all, one repurposed pair of trousers doesn't make it a post about thrifting. The point is, this is about what I do when it comes to going to thrift shops. I like to make all my clothes from scratch and have rarely found anything I wanted to own and wear in thrift shops (and stalls. When I'm at home in The Hague, all the thrift stores in my neighbourhood are of high-end expensive kind but the Monday market has several stalls selling loads of junk with some hidden gems). I tend to buy hats (when I'm in England, the Dutch hardly do hats) and gloves, look at bags and look through the clothes quickly.

Clothing in thrift stores can tempt me for two reasons: either it has to be something unusual, a fifties dress for example, or it has to be good raw material for something else. So far, I've never bought any of the unusual dresses. I'm afraid I'd just be collecting more stuff to clutter up my house. Of the 'raw material' stuff, I am buying.

My favorite Monday market stall puts all the small sized items, including lots of leather skirts and trousers on a '5 euro a piece' rail and occasionally discounts some of it to 2 euro. That's where I bought the trousers for my mother's bag. I've got two skirts waiting for me as well. They're what I think of as eighties things: straight skirts high waistbands, belt pleats and a 'midi-length' hemline.

I'm also going to make a postman-style bag for my father using fabric and leather from an old motorcycle jacket a friend gave me (I gave her a bag made from half a leather skirt to say thanks) and several friends have expressed their interest in my bags. So I really hope the thrift stalls will keep coming for a while.