Show us your vintage patterns!

[Elaina]

Well they update the patterns and make them more of a modern fit. McCall's generally updated the directions and expanded them too.

Personally, I think that sewing is increasing in popularity due to the choices offered. Head to Wal-Mart or Target and walk through the women's and children's aisles. It's not too surprising vintage is making a comeback.

 

[GOK]

Yes but over here it is very much on the decline. There are very few haberdashers around these days and what few places there are tend to deal mostly in dance fabrics and occasionally upholstery and furnishings. Shops rarely carry stores of patterns these days, and have to order them in indivdually.

I buy most of my things from the States now because even with shipping it is cheaper and generally quicker than ordering and buying in this country. There are exceptions of course but gone are the days when I could just walk into a fabric shop.

I'm not sure what is responsible for this decline; lack of time or an abundance of cheap slave-labour clothing. It is actually more expensive to make one's own everyday clothing than to buy it. Although with vintage wear's rising prices, it's about even - but for evening wear it's probably still cheaper to make than buy.

Earlier in the year there was a Karen Millen gown that some of my friends were oohhing over. It was a pret a porter number, priced at £250. I remarked it would cost about £50 for me to make and that would be including a proper foundation. Suddenly said friends were waving their chequebooks at me....until I pointed out that I said would cost me that to make it and if they wanted me to make them one, it would probably cost roughly double the shop price! lol

 

[Elaina]

Yes but over here it is very much on the decline. There are very few haberdashers around these days and what few places there are tend to deal mostly in dance fabrics and occasionally upholstery and furnishings. Shops rarely carry stores of patterns these days, and have to order them in indivdually.

I buy most of my things from the States now because even with shipping it is cheaper and generally quicker than ordering and buying in this country. There are exceptions of course but gone are the days when I could just walk into a fabric shop.

I'm not sure what is responsible for this decline; lack of time or an abundance of cheap slave-labour clothing. It is actually more expensive to make one's own everyday clothing than to buy it. Although with vintage wear's rising prices, it's about even - but for evening wear it's probably still cheaper to make than buy.

Earlier in the year there was a Karen Millen gown that some of my friends were oohhing over. It was a pret a porter number, priced at £250. I remarked it would cost about £50 for me to make and that would be including a proper foundation. Suddenly said friends were waving their chequebooks at me....until I pointed out that I said would cost me that to make it and if they wanted me to make them one, it would probably cost roughly double the shop price! lol

Well, gone are the days in the states of getting quality fabric by walking into a store. Other then Wal-Mart $1 fabrics (of whihc I buy maybe one out of 20 times I go) I order everything online because it's not JoAnn's cheap and it's quality apparel. And I don;t have to drive to Dallas' garment district and fight with the artsy guys or threaten to punch them out.

Personally I ascribe the decline to sewing in general to the Women's lib movement. Sewing was like aprons: you got tied to something that is consiered "women's work" and they wanted all that stuff gone.

And I hear you about the cost. I saw a Chanel suit for about $950. I replied to my friend that I could make it for about $150 and she wanted a piece of that. Then I said roughly the same thing you did. "*I* could make it for that, for you it'd be about the same price that one is."

 

[Paisley]

Personally, I think that sewing is increasing in popularity due to the choices offered. Head to Wal-Mart or Target and walk through the women's and children's aisles. It's not too surprising vintage is making a comeback.

To quote from the article:

Judy Ni, a 28-year-old from Parsippany, N.J., started out as a knitter. "I did a bunch of scarves," she said, before wanting to go a little further. Since last winter, she has taken four classes. After starting with a portable tissue holder and progressing on to zippers, she recently took private lessons to learn how to design patterns that fit her own body. She says she was tired of fashions that seemed dull, repetitive -- and expensive. "Everyone's starting to look like clones of each other," she says. "Why pay $1,000 for something that everyone else has?"​

 

[LizzieMaine]

What I wonder is if this trend will send the price of actual vintage patterns thru the roof -- right now they seem to linger around the $5-$15 range on eBay most of the time, but if they start going up to the $25 range or so because of trendiness, I fear that I'm going to have to drop out of the bidding.

I'm kind of hoping this won't happen -- actual vintage patterns, especially the non-printed kind, can be daunting for the dabbler, and maybe that'll be enough to keep the prices down. But then, five years ago I was saying "vintage housedresses going for $30 apiece? Hah -- never happen!"

 

[RetroModelSari]

It seemed that I started learning how to sew just in time!!! I´ll keep my eyes open for the new vintage patterns!!! I can´t wait to see them and to chose (the easiest ones for a bloody amateur like me).

I just got me another one from Butterick eventhough I´m not done with the first one for now, but I just couldn´t resist since they are REALLy easy.

 

[Elaina]

Luckily with the big 3 and Vogue putting out so many patterns (and the $1 a pop sales) it should leave vintage patterns alone. I think that vintage patterns started rising when mainstream patterns started increasing in price. Heck I remember buying patterns at $3 each, then it seemed overnight they were 12.95 and up.

Grandma chic won't last. It takes effort and work, and I don't see many people keeping up with it in this throwaway, wash and wear society.

 

[GOK]

And I hear you about the cost. I saw a Chanel suit for about $950. I replied to my friend that I could make it for about $150 and she wanted a piece of that. Then I said roughly the same thing you did. "*I* could make it for that, for you it'd be about the same price that one is."

I know, I know! People just don't understand do they? I get asked by friends why my clothing is expensive (I don't think it is actually - I make excellent quality apparel) so I then show them my costing sheets. They are always amazed. Some of my chums were going on and on about things they'd seen in the glossies and how designers were just arty farty types raking in the cash - I pointed out that some of my stuff has been in the glossies and there was that jaw dropping silence...followed by;

"Yeah but you're different - you deserve to get paid loads"

Just not by them it seems!

The thing that bothers me is people equating hand made with home made. People expect something not made in a sweat shop to be inferior in quality and therefore cheaper than something made by people paid by the garment, working all the hours the gods send for a pittance. What's wrong with this picture?

And besides, home made is good! We go to the Women's Institute and craft fairs to buy jam (you know, the stuff you put on bread - made with fruit and sugar!) because it's so much nicer than shop bought stuff. And it doesn't contain nasty chemicals. A prime example of home made being superior.

Oh I could go on all evening........lol

 

[Honey Doll]

I've never really understood why sewing wasn't more popular. Its incredibly freeing to know that you can make that darling item, exactly to your size and desire for a reasonable price....seems like an easy enough decision. This is probably easy enough for me to say as I've been sewing since I was a bity thing.

Finding appropriate fabrics and patterns has until more recently been something daunting. I remember mail ordering for tiny little scraps of Thai silk, or calling into shops in larger cities asking could they kindly cut me some swatches. Joann's and their chain store ilk have been on the decline in quality for years. Also, pattern companies offerings in the 90s had been less than remarkable. Now that one can confidentally shop online for higher quality fabrics, and there is more selection in newly released patterns available to the general consumer I believe more women will attempt sewing.

Honey Doll

As a P.S. my 4 year old is eager to learn-- we just started some running handstitch and she's taking to it like a duckling to water!

 

[Elaina]

What do you mean "buy homemade jam"? You don't make it yourself?!

Son and I spend a good day or three making homemade strawberry jam every year.

 

[GOK]

What do you mean "buy homemade jam"? You don't make it yourself?!

Son and I spend a good day or three making homemade strawberry jam every year.

Actually I used to! Back when my children were young and I was the epitome of domestic goddess-ness that would have put most of our grannies to shame, I grew most of our own food, baked bread every day (I still do that but have a machine to do it for me now!), baked cakes and cookies at the weekend, took my children hedgerow harvesting and made jam in the autumn, along with more apple and blackberry pies than you could shake a very big stick at. And of course, I made most of their clothes too.

Then they grew up and left home. :eusa_doh:

Now it's just my partner and I, we indulge our jammy fondness by giving money to little old ladies! Kevin's mother makes the most wonderful jam but do we get any of it apart from one small jar in our stockings at Chrimbo? Oh no..."It's for the church", we are told as we get rapped knuckles! OK the knuckles bit was a lie but the church does get all of her jammy goodness. 'Snot fair y'know!

 

[Snookie]

Earlier in the year there was a Karen Millen gown that some of my friends were oohhing over. It was a pret a porter number, priced at £250. I remarked it would cost about £50 for me to make and that would be including a proper foundation. Suddenly said friends were waving their chequebooks at me....until I pointed out that I said would cost me that to make it and if they wanted me to make them one, it would probably cost roughly double the shop price! lol

You should say "The materials would cost...". When you make things for yourself, you're not factoring in your time and your expertise -- but you should! (That way you can say you've got a million dollar wardrobe!)

I hate to be a naysayer, but I doubt that new interest in sewing will be long-lived or great enough have any major impact on the home-sewing industry. Most people want instant results, and it takes a long time to learn all the different sewing techniques, and there aren't many people around anymore to help them. Plus, I think it's really expensive to make your own clothes, since decent fabric-by-the-yard is hard to come by and so much more expensive than what manufacturers have to pay.

But, I see opportunity for the individual to cash in by offering sewing classes!

 

[Elaina]

Remember the knitting craze 5 years ago? How many of them still knit?

Sewing is always going to be something only a few do. My 7 year old son is learning, and out of a school with about 300 kids, he's the only one who has a sewing machine in his house, and I'm one of 5 parents who CAN sew something without having help.

That to me says more then the articles in the Journal ever could.

 

[Miss Dottie]

I was about to reference the knitting craze too. About five years ago WSJ wrote an article about knitting too as a response to the 9/11 and people's desire to find comfort in things as well as a backlash against technology.

I have a friend who owns a knitting shop and she says that her sales have been going down over the past few years, but there are still a lot of people who have taken to knitting and don't plan to give it up any time soon. And the flush of neophyte knitters made for better kntting supplies and yarn available to all, which is great.

 

[Lauren]

I know, I know! People just don't understand do they? I get asked by friends why my clothing is expensive (I don't think it is actually - I make excellent quality apparel) so I then show them my costing sheets. They are always amazed. Some of my chums were going on and on about things they'd seen in the glossies and how designers were just arty farty types raking in the cash - I pointed out that some of my stuff has been in the glossies and there was that jaw dropping silence...followed by;

"Yeah but you're different - you deserve to get paid loads"

Very well said!! I still get girls coming to me on occasion to make wedding dresses for them, and when they say "I'd like to spend $300" then I send them to bridal chains... I guess if I had to put a price in hours and cost on some of the things I have made for myself that people want they're about $5,000, and I'm not even a known designer! Sure, you pay for name, but the hours and quality of fabrics, and design just for your figure of custom makes it more sense to make something for yourself for the same cost as buying some cheesy off-the-peg garment- plus you're paying for a hobby AND a garment!

 

[Paisley]

Last year I looked at bridal dresses for a costume. Even the 20-year-old, dirty wedding dresses in need of mending were $60.

I don't sew because if I watch the sales, I can buy something far nicer than I could make for far less than the materials would cost. Therein, I think, is the key to whether the trend of sewing becomes a general practice: whether women can save a lot of money by making clothes for themselves or their families (the reason that women used to sew). If it's more a matter of taste, fashions will eventually change.

 

[Elaina]

see I hunt the fabirc/pattern sales like that and generally get clothes far nicer then I could buy. I think it's a matter of what you want to wear versus what's out there and cost.

 

[Lauren]

I don't sew because if I watch the sales, I can buy something far nicer than I could make for far less than the materials would cost. Therein, I think, is the key to whether the trend of sewing becomes a general practice: whether women can save a lot of money by making clothes for themselves or their families (the reason that women used to sew). If it's more a matter of taste, fashions will eventually change.

I totally agree with this. For the most part, unless making an exact period replica, period inspired piece (like victorian or 18th century) or evening or wedding gown the cost is MUCH lower to purchase new- and you can get the quality clothing on sale, as Paisley mentioned. It is still possible to save money by making things at home- but even a blouse after buying a pattern for $1.99 at joann plus two yards of material at $5 a yard, plus a spool of thread at $2+, plus buttons at about $6 will get you a $20 shirt that you can get on sale- and you didn't have to spend the time making it. If you're looking for a particular fabric or style or fit, then sewing is definately worth it, but it's not always a cost-effective way to clothe yourself and your family.

Now, if you have a garment district or wholesaler, of course it's cost effective- but it may not be time effective

 

[Elaina]

I figured it up once what it cost for me to make a standard princess seam shirt the way I'm cheap:

$4 for fabric
$.75 for thread (I get an average of 4 projects out of a spool: 2 shirts and 2 purses. Since the thread for the shirt is more, I round down more.)
$.03 x 5 for butons= $.15 (because you can get them at places far cheaper then JoAnn's)

So the cost is $4.90 or round it to $5. I don't do anything overly special to save money, buttons I got from an online site for shirts that makes them .03 per each but I'm curious where you go to buy buttons for $6. I've never paid more then $1.25 on a card, and that was with 5 buttons.

 

[Lauren]

Oh, I definately agree it can be made cheaper- but that usually comes from time and experience. The average person starting out sewing is probably going to go to a chain like Joann or Hancock and get everything there, and not know much about how to get things cheaply.

And the button thing- I usually pick up cards if I'm in a pickle at Joann and they seem to range from $2-3 per card with 2-3 cards needed per project, from my experience- so that's where I got the $6 figure.

I'd love to hear if you have a good button source!