Vintage Couture Sewing Patterns -1920's to 1960's Fashion

Collecting vintage dress patterns or using them for dressmaking can be interesting, addictive and financially rewarding.

Dressmaking patterns of a past era affords vintage fashionistas the opportunity to collect, experiment, sew, mix or blend the 20th century styles of apparel with today's modern fashion, and with the advent of modern technology, these dress making patterns, many of which are in states of disrepair, can be reproduced to the last detail, or 'reconstructed' using Computer Aided Designs (CAD) sewing patterns software.

For many vintage addicts, the love for classic clothing patterns may have been inspired by:

• An appreciation of the artistry of authentic vintage couture patterns' envelopes. These antique and vintage envelopes are known to interest collectors who want to preserve and keep the lovely works of vintage art.

• A 'blast from the past'. Vintage sewing patterns remind us of our grandparents. The chic flapper dress worn by grandma in that ornate frame black & white photograph placed on the fireplace mantel.
• The desire to preserve pictorial images or items from eras of style and fashion of women through time, and also recognise the changing roles and tastes of women through history.

• Their appeal. Vintage designs are appealing enough to the fashion conscious, so much so that if they can't get the authentic vintage clothes to purchase, they can always buy sewing patterns and have the exact replica of the vintage couture designs of the 1900's.
• The absolutely famous wrap around dresses designed by Diane Von Furstenberg, or the Empire dresses.
• The need for costume wear, for a fancy dress party, a Halloween costume party, etc., or an absolute adoration for those elegant dresses worn by the fifties movie stars and screaming old Hollywood, the strapless dresses that made beautiful ball gowns, or the halter neck outfits popular amongst the southern Europeans and worn in summer.

1920's - This was the period when a radical change in fashion couture emerged, soon after the war. Dresses with long trains gave way to dresses that were above the knees, and pinafores. Bouffant coiffures gave way to short bob hairstyles, and there was no more need for corsets, because women's clothing trends was 'boyish' inclined.

At first, many couturiers were reluctant to adopt the new fashion styles but they were eventually embraced fully from around the mid-twenties. At the time, flat bosomed waist-less styles emerged, and by then it was the norm for women to dress-down. Fashion silhouettes were mitigated by feather boas, embroidery, and showy accessories.

1930's - Couture fashion became more romantic, waistlines returned and the hems 'dropped'. The bosom re-appeared and the backless evening attires and soft slim fitting day dresses become newly appreciated.

The female body became slim and well toned and this became the vogue as women's outdoor activities increased. The newly discovered interest in athletics stimulated fashion designers' creative abilities, and they began the mass production of sportswear, referred to as 'ready to wear', in the 1930's.

1940's - This was a time, back in the old days when "Made in China" was a marvellous thing, with quality at its best. There were elegant and glamorous hostess gowns that were even worn for informal parties at home.

Fabulous fabrics used include heavyweight silks and rayon blends, jacquard fabrics, light sage silk embroideries echoing designs of motifs such as roses, thorns, leaves and tiny rose buds.

1950's - There was a new femininity in women's fashion in the 50's. Clothes and accessories became more conventional with women wearing bright scarlet lipstick and blood red fingernails.

The famous fashion designer Dior created new looks which influenced the creations of styles with softer shoulders, corseted waists, and fuller longer skirts with stiff petticoats.

In the fifties, corsets were one of the most important items of lingerie found in a woman's wardrobe. This is because the fashion at the time called for the 'figure 8’ hour-glass shape, the ideal shape required to attract a man for marriage.

1960's - In the sixties, there was 'revolt' against fashion houses by hippies, rockers and mods. The internationalisation of the fashion scene also contributed to this unusual trend in no small measure.

From the early 60's, skirts started to reduce in length, culminating in the mini by 1965. That was when the quintessential girly look of the sixties evolved.

And by the seventies, the aesthetics of inspired retro couture dresses became evident in mainstream fashion with the return of flares, bell bottoms, fly collars, low-rise pants and platform heels.

For those looking for authentic sewing patterns of those times, the following list should help in guiding you as to where you can find vintage dress patterns.

• Visit thrift stores.
• Rummage through yard and boot sales.
• Drop by during estate sales, and search for the rarest patterns amongst the seeming pile of junk.
• Go to auctions of vintage and antique goods.
• Check on eBay and Amazon.
• Buy dressmaking patterns on-line.
• Dig for finds in your own basement or storage chests.

You may discover that many authentic patterns are still complete with all their pieces, and in most cases they've never even been used and are still factory folded.

There may be some missing parts such as the envelopes, instructions, or even some few pattern pieces, so it's good to be careful and observant when buying vintage couture sewing patterns. There is no reason to worry much about missing envelopes anyway as pattern envelopes can be reproduced if need be.

Pieces such as trims or facings if missing, need not bother you either, but never purchase vintage dress patterns with missing instructions. It may be difficult to figure out how to put the style together, asides the fact that they are definitely in-reproduceable without a master.

You may be lucky to find some packages with the original silk labels in them, to sew onto a made outfit this makes the apparel seem like an authentic vintage piece.

Look out especially for vintage dressmaking patterns produced by:

• Vogue Paris Originals
• Vogue Couture Design
• Vogue Special Designer antique and vintage patterns.
• Butterick
• Hollywood
• Advance
• Simplicity
• McCall's
• DuBarry.

You can start a business by becoming a reseller of vintage sewing patterns. The old dated patterns can be reproduced by drawing them out on a CAD software application and sell as downloadable sewing patterns.

And if you are a dressmaker and you buy vintage patterns to make unique outfits to wear, you can also have a small enterprise of sewing unique styles created using vintage patterns and sell the clothing exclusively to a few select clients.

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