Vintage Sewing

This past weekend apart from being Halloween where my boyfriend and I sat and watched scary movies and ate to much candy!  I also took a sewing class from a local upcycle artist in Montreal.  Which needless to say was amazing!  We made throw pillows, now I know it is not the most complex thing to make but I was very happy to start of with something small.  I made my pillow out of a men’s vintage linen shirt that had lots of buttons on it. For the pocket on the front I used four white buttons with a navy blue anchor on each button!  I must say I even impressed myself.  Have a look at my creation below!

This beautiful mint condition Singer Featherweight 221K sewing machine circa 1961 is nothing more then amazing! It comes complete with the original 52-page instruction manual, pedal and bobbins, and a hard black case lined with an eloquent rose-embossed satin.  This amazing machine comes from Future Leader 78.  This machine is appraised at $600 but is being sold for $400 as it is a fundraiser item which will providing enough money  to complete a bath-house for an impoverished school.  Check out Future Leader 78 for more information and support their cause.

Now what is having a sewing machine without some amazing patterns to sew. The patterns I picked are very much inspired by Jackie Kennedy’s fashion.  Although Jackie had Oleg Cassini design her wardrobe while she was the first lady we can all attain her fashion by doing it ourselves! This great 1960’s patterns can be found at Historically Patterns along with hundreds of other great vintage patterns.

I am not going to lie I have never looked on etsy for fabric but there is an amazing selection of vintage and new vintage inspired fabrics to choose from. This first piece of rare vintage silk with hand printed butterflies and flowers would be great for a dress, skirt, scarves or if you are more crafty I think it would make a beautiful clutch. Stop by Emily Me’s Shop to pick up this rare find.

I love the color combination of this piece of vintage Japanese kimono silk hand painted with peony iris and eggs. I would love to use this piece of silk for a nice flowy dress. What would you use it for?  This great silk can be found at Suzu SilksnStuff.

I don’t know what it is about this fabric that makes me dream. I think it is the color combination of browns, grays and fuchsias. This rayon polyester blend would be great for any crafts, bags or even a cute skirt! Check it out at Jac’s Shop.

And last but not least if you want to keep the Jackie theme in your outfit alive it can not be finished without a Pillbox Hat! This great hat is found at Hat Vantage. Sadly Hat Vintage is leaving Etsy but good news for hat lovers there are some AMAZING hats in the shop at half price!

I want to you leave you with my favorite vintage sewing blog to date Sew Retro. This great blog is made up of about 130 retro sewing contributors. You can find anything from tips, patterns, and pictures of the retro item they have sewn. It is for sure a blog to add to your blog list!  Hope everyone has an amazing weekend!