1947 – WeSewRetro.com

Super Cute Sun Suit from 1947

By Housewife Betty on August 1, 2013

I have had this pattern, which is Simplicity 1944 from 1947, in my collection for a while. My cousin just had a baby girl, so I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to make up this cute little sun suit. The pattern is a size 3, so it will be awhile before she grows into it, but it was so darn cute I had to give it a whirl. I used plaid lightweight cotton, and went with a rickrack trim in fuchsia. There is a fuchsia stripe in the fabric, but it is not showing up well on camera. This is View 1, which has self made ruffles. View 2 uses purchased trim. I also contemplated using elastic in the legs, but in the end I went with the self made bias tape that is called for in the pattern. I did some quick and dirty hand bound buttonholes, which look less than great but do the job. Definitely more practice needed in that department. Unfortunately, the brim pattern piece for the matching bonnet was missing. I contemplated drafting a new one, but decided against it because I already have a giant pile of stuff in my sewing stash I need to get to, so I kept in simple with just the sun suit. Enjoy!

vintage toddler sun suit — Simplicity 1944 back view

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1940s | Blouses | Vintage Sewing

Advance 4858 (1947-1948): Peplum blouse alteration

By LittleBlackCar on May 30, 2013

I have three cousins getting married in the next few months. Luckily, I am running out of cousins to marry off because I can barely keep up with the sewing.

I had to be realistic and accept that I had procrastinated too long and frittered away too much time on non-necessary projects, and I wouldn’t be able to complete a full dress for the first wedding. I’m old-fashioned enough that I feel a bit weird wearing black to weddings, especially summer weddings, but . . . oh, well. It was time to trot out the black skirts and settle for making a new blouse.

I picked one that looked comfortable but also looked like it couldn’t have too many fitting issues. Advance 4858 is from 1947 or 1948:

Classic postwar design: Extended shoulder line, long waist, big skirt.

The red flags were length (easily remedied; I always have to add length) and neckline (thin shoulders; boat necks and I do not get along. But necklines are also easily altered). I decided I’d switch to a back-button closure because I seem to be going through that kind of a phase (see the Simplicity 4727: Black sundress post below) and make the whole thing into a peplum blouse.

It didn’t need a lot of help–I lengthened it a little, closed up the neckline some, and changed the button opening, but the bodice itself was basically fine.

I completely winged it on the peplum: I drew a rectangle (two, actually, front and back) that matched the waist circumference, then slashed and fanned it out until it looked the way I wanted. And that was it.

In fact, it was so OK that I put the entire thing together without a hitch despite the fact that my copy of the pattern has no instruction sheet.

And here it is. Sorry, my hair won’t do anything. I live in braids.

The fit is a little blousy but I think that’s intentional. It also has massive shoulder pads. They look less ridiculous here than I thought they did, actually.

The necklace is a double-strand of faceted crystals that belonged to my grandmother.

Close-up of the back with the awesome huge iridescent plastic buttons:

The fabric is, as usual, cotton. I had originally chosen a purple stylized floral but then decided it was too funereal. It was also an out-of-print remnant and I didn’t think I had enough, and couldn’t get any more. I’m not wild about splattery magenta prints but at least it was happier. (Don’t get me wrong: I love me some funereal fabric, but it wasn’t my wedding, right?)

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1940s

Sew for victory – 1947 outfit

By LadyD on March 12, 2013

As part of the sew for victory sew along I made myself a 1940’s ensemble. I used butterick 5209 for my dress. I also made a complementary matching bag and hat using the instructions (with a few modifications) from a 1940’s newsreel.

the shoes are modern but I think look rather 40’s as are the gloves. Wore it to a swing dance and found it nice to dance in .

for more details and photos see my blog

Swing Suit

By Laura Mae on January 25, 2012

Vogue 2444 is one of my recent projects. And although I was unsure about the silhouette to begin, I am converted! I love the swing jacket, and the sleeves. Pure glamour! And best of all, I have nothing else like it in my closet. I feel like I have expanded my wardrobe horizons. Sometimes stepping out of one’s comfort zone can be a good thing!

While the suit was in its planning stages, I remembered this hat that I made years ago. It has been seriously neglected and deserved a little time out of the hatbox.

As always, more pictures and construction information may be found over on my blog, Lilacs & Lace.

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