Alas, my return to (regular-ish) blogging attempt was thwarted by catching the dreaded Covid. This is our second time catching it, and I did not expect it. Apparently, we’re in a bit of a “wave” right now, so I’m not the only one.
In any case, here’s what I was working on just before.
If you caught a glimpse of the 1930s dress I wrote about in my last post, I decided I needed a nice loosely fit linen summer coat to go with it. I figured a white coat is a good basic and should be able to mix with other outfits. I think I might even be able to make it work for 1920s!
I selected Depew 3176 for my coat, strongly based on the image at right. My coat is actually the shorter length, but it does hit a bit longer than indicated on the illustration.
The pattern is available in a size 38″ bust, which worked out perfectly for me, since that’s my current bust size. Everything matched perfectly, and it was very easy to assemble and sew up.
Here it is mid-process. I used a roughly woven 100% linen I got from an Estate Sale several years ago. I got an absolute mountain of it, so it’s been used for the Eliza dress sample (I still haven’t worn that!), a 1920s skirt I made last year, and I’m sure other things I can’t think of at the moment.
In any case, the fabric ended up around $1 a yard, so the total cost for this jacket ends up around $12-13 including the pattern.
Here’s the jacket close to where it currently stands. Since this photo I have done a stitch line invisibly along the roll line between the facing and the outside fabric (sandwiched right between like a hemstitch), since the under collar was trying to “bubble” out, and I have sewn one side of the facing down. Then I got covid. Womp womp. Still, it should be quick to finish up.
I’ve finished the inside with rayon seam binding. I preferred unlined coats for summer, since it gets so warm in Southern California. The original pattern did call for a lining, so I just adapted it to my needs. I seldom look at instructions when sewing for myself, anyways (that’s what notches are for!).
I’ve also managed to work on blocking an original late 20s/early 30s hat a bit bigger for my head. It was semi-terrifying, but the hat was new old stock so luckily it was good and strong! Here it is sitting on a head form padded out with cotton padding and covered with tin foil. I basically made this up as I went along. Haha. Once I get it trimmed, I’ll take better photos! This photo isn’t such a good one, but it’s “authentic” (as in, my dining room/sewing room mess!) The hat, of course, is perfectly authentic, gorgeous, and I love it. It’s very unusual to find these pretty, sheer, straw-like hats, so I’m thrilled to have gotten it from my friend. More on that later.
And now I have to go back and make a slip for underneath the dress! I realized recently that the only slip I have in my current size is a 1950s nylon number, which is TOO DANG HOT. I’ll be making something out of a lightweight cotton, or perhaps even a silk, which would still breathe better than polymer synthetics.
I actually have no idea where I’ll wear my ensemble, but I’m having fun making it! Perhaps I’ll talk some friends into a tea party, or have a good old stroll around a historic house somewhere.
My Covid project has been using up random bits of yarn from when I had a subscription to Ash and Bumble for sock yarn. Without much thought, I plunged right in to making this crocheted 1908 circular cape. I had no idea if the yarn was the right weight, or the right amount, but it’s oddly ended up working out pretty well! Ah ha! I just realized this works for my “1908 Project” (which I still do think about resurrecting!)
The body of the shawl is a green, and I literally was down to just a few yards left when I needed to start the ruffles. I used up another ball on the first row of ruffles, and now I’m on to another ball for the second. I’m totally going to run out of yarn, but I’ll just have to figure that out as I go along!
Interestingly, I read the instructions and it said to make a “double crochet fully 1 1/4″ long”. I attempted this, decided that *couldn’t be what they actually meant and I must be reading it wrong*, then did a whole row in standard double crochet. Which took ages. This thing is a BEAST and huge around.
After doing the whole circumference, I tried it on my shoulders and it literally just barely grazes the edges. I consulted the illustration again and decided they really *did* mean to extend the double-crochet to be long and stringy, so I gave it another go. And you know what? It does look strangely very authentically Edwardian!
Long stringy bits with little picot bumps. It works!
The original yarn was “Shetland Floss”, which seems to have been a very fine, but very fuzzy wool yarn. Mine will definitely be more sleek so won’t grasp the total aesthetic, but it’s an interesting experiment to have been doing while I feel unwell.
If you’re interested in the pattern, it’s from back when IvaRose did bound books on their website. It’s now available as a download in their Etsy shop. The pattern book is from 1908 and has both crocheting and knitting inside.
That’s about all the news here! Hope everyone is well, and you miss this stinking little “wave.” But thankfully, it’s been semi-mild for us, so I hope it will be for others as well.
Happy summer crafting!