"Carefree Patterns From McCall's" Catalog - April 1973

I just nabbed a lot of 35 McCall's, Simplicity, Butterick and Vogue mini catalogs / pamphlets on eBay, all from my favorite decade - the 1970s!  I just love these little pieces of vintage sewing ephemera and, since this particular decade seems to be more reviled than revered for its fashion legacy, it appears that I might be able to continue amassing a collection that won't break the bank (I got all 35 for only $5.00!).  

Are there any fellow 1970s fashion enthusiasts out there?  If so, then this is for you!  I've scanned the "Carefree Pattern From McCall's" issue from April 1973 for you to feast your eyes upon!  This seems to be a special cute couples-themed issue and, unlike most of these free mini catalogs, this particular issue contains no text of write ups about the fashions.

Completed Project: 1960s Plaid Mod Blouse

I actually finished this blouse several days ago, but put off taking photos until yesterday. Taking photos is one of my least favorite things to do. My camera is an older one, and if I try to take photos without a flash, the resulting photos always turn out blurry (thus two mildly blurry photos below). The finished garments always look much lovelier in person, so my photos never do them justice. Sigh!

Here is the mod blouse that I made from the pattern and fabric shown at the end of this post. This is an almost perfect blouse! I successfully lined up all of the plaids at the front and the sides. I did, however, manage to mess up the cuffs at the very last minute. Instead of affixing the button to the under lap extension and the buttonhole to the overlap, I switched them. I didn't realize the error until after I had made and cut the buttonhole. So the cuffs are backwards (and are sticking out and look like men's dress shirt cuffs). However, unless you are a sewer, I think it's pretty unnoticeable. It has rather boxy fit and will look much better tucked into a fitted skirt or a pair of trousers (both of which I have yet to make!).

Photo taken with a flash to show the details of the fabric, which has a lovely color combination. There are sparkly gold lines that are a part of the plaid that you can't see in the other photos. A flash is good for something, I suppose!

Showing off one of the backwards cuffs with a contrasting button that I made from bits of the leftover plaid fabric.

The one addition that I had to make. Since the fabric is pretty lightweight, the top corner kept popping out from under the collar. I had to sew on a snap to keep it in place and it's invisible under the collar.

It only took me 4 hours from start to finish to make this blouse. The fabric is a lightweight cotton plaid cotton that I purchased from Jo-Ann's for $3.00 (labeled as a juvenile novelty fabric!) and the collar and cuffs are made from mustard yellow quilter's cotton. Total cost, including buttons: just under $6.00.

And here is a wrinkled muslin that I made of the Burda Style Marilyn trousers! Amazingly, the only alteration I need to make is to let out the waistband by 1"! Everything else fits perfectly...I was pretty shocked! For anyone who wants to make these, the construction is super-easy. Although it's a muslin and I quickly machine sewed what I would usually finish by hand (like the waistband and the hem), they only took 2 hours to make.

I'm in love with the pleats! These have a very low vote on Burda Style right now - only 2 out of 5 stars. I don't understand why since they are a classic trouser design. The tapered legs, which are the trendiest thing about them, could be easily adjusted for a fuller fit. I have a curvier figure and the high waist and pleats work for me. In other words, they don't make me look huge which is what I believe a lot of others think these trousers will ultimately do.

A Look Inside VOGUE PATTERNS Magazine - July/August 1975

Here's a look inside another fabulous 1970s issue of Vogue Patterns magazine! This one is the July/August 1975 issue so it has a great mix of summer and early fall fashions. Be sure to click on the photos to enlarge them so you can read the text!

Does anyone know who this model is? She was absolutely everywhere during the 1970s...she did lots of modeling for Vogue patterns and I think she was a favorite of Halston too!

I have a hard time believing what this ad claims...that double knit fabric can be made to feel and look like linen, silk, etc. I swear it's just not scientifically possible!

This is an interesting side note on how Sonia Rykiel finishes the hems on her couture garments versus the Vogue technique.

This issue introduced Karl Lagerfeld / Chloe patterns into the Vogue patterns cannon.

"Fall Firsts" in glorious plaid!

A brief profile of Sonia Rykiel. Her pattern run with Vogue was quite limited, I think. I do know that her patterns are super-rare and highly collectible, though!

I love the detailed line drawings included with these designer pattern layouts. It's hard to see most of these details in the model photos.

Finished Project: 1970s Chambray Dress

Here's the first completed projected from my whittled down sewing pattern collection: a denim chambray dress with contrasting yellow stitching and buttons! The total cost of materials, including the vintage pattern, was around $12.00. The 100% cotton fabric is quite wrinkled in the photos; I've been wearing the dress all day and it's super-comfy!

Now for the truth......I don't know what to think about this dress just yet! It was easy enough to sew (although the front placket and collar band gave me some minor troubles) and it's insanely comfortable to wear, I'm just not sure if I like the "tubular" shape or the side slits or the curved hem. I don't think the tubular shape is particularly flattering for someone like me who has a curvier figure. A belt will probably solve the fit issues, though. Oh! And here's my next project:

I'll be making view A (without the bow, though) and will use the plaid cotton fabric pictured above; the contrasting yellow fabric will be the collar. Hopefully I'll have it finished by this time next week!

A Good Reason NOT to Sew

I try not to post photos of my son Brydon on this blog since it's a vintage sewing blog and I like to stay on topic. However, I couldn't resist posting a few photos of him since he wore his vintage 1960s Winnie-the-Pooh blue gingham romper today. This romper is nothing short of amazing - check out the pointy white collar and buttoned belt! And the appliques of Winnie the Pooh and Rabbit are also belt carriers! Genius! Funnily enough, my husband said: "It makes him look like such a...baby!" Ha ha! I guess there is a current trend for dressing babies in adult-style clothing with skulls and guitars and shorts and sneakers. I would love to have some professional portraits made of him wearing this but, for now, my ancient camera will have to do!

A lot of people ask me why I never sew for Brydon.....well, first of all, he's growing way too fast to make it economical. I have made a handful of things for him and plan to keep them for him to have one day as heirloom items. I would like to make him some 1970s style corduroy bellbottoms to wear once he starts walking around though! Second, I just don't have time to sew for him. I barely have time to sew a simple blouse for myself! But I have discovered that he is the only reason in the world that makes it perfectly okay for me NOT to be able to sew. It was hard at first not being able to sew whenever I wanted and as much as I wanted, but I have learned to adapt and work around his schedule. He does like to visit fabrics stores with me, though - he likes to feel the different fabric!

A Look Inside VOGUE PATTERNS Magazine - May/June 1975

I lucked out about a year ago and won an auction on eBay for 20 issues of Vogue Patterns magazine for only $20.00! And all of said issues are from around 1973 to 1979, so I am going to slowly but surely share them all with you! Here's a peek into the May/June 1975 issue.

You can tell that home sewing was a big deal during the 1970s from the amount of money (lots of beautiful on-location photography and detailed styling) and care that was put into each issue. The featured model in this particular fashion editorial (shot in "Mystic India") is a very young Jerry Hall! Remember to click on the photos to see them full-size - you won't want to miss all of the amazing details of these fashions sewn from Vogue patterns!

The three photos above remind a lot of the cinematography from the 1970s Australian film Picnic At Hanging Rock. Everything is so blatantly romantic and Jerry Hall is stunning!

The epitome of 1970s bohemian-chic! The close-up of the first photo was used for the cover of this issue - I NEED those platform sandals, by the way! The horse print batik fabric used for the hooded caftan above is amazing!

Gorgeous evening dresses. The orange dress was made from a Jerry Silverman designer Vogue pattern. The photo of Jerry Hall in the green dress is my favorite one from this issue!

Amazing hot pink halter top, high waist pants and jacket sewn up in fuchsia pink cotton. I love how the male model in all of these photos is basically just a prop. Ha ha!

Introducing a new bunch of designer patterns from Giorgio di Sant'Angelo - robes and dresses that are specially designed to be made from sheets! I'm pretty sure Vogue's translations of Sant'Angelo's designs were limited to the 2 or 3 in this issue - he had a very short run with Vogue, so I guess they weren't very popular.

And now for a few ads! There's an ad for Qiana by Du Pont in nearly every issue that I own. Same with Trevira fabrics, whose illustrated ads are so pretty!

I have a few spools of 1970s Coats & Clark Dual Duty thread on that trademark gold spool just waiting to be used. I seriously doubt that any advertiser today would dare put so much text into an ad!