Vintage Pattern Additions, Other Vintage Goodies, and Button Organization

Hello lovely readers! I've been MIA around here lately. I have been sewing but I seem to have lost some of my blogging mojo. I have finished objects patiently waiting for their day in the spotlight. That day is not today. I do have some recent vintage pattern additions to show you all, as well as some other non-sewing vintage goodies. I'd also love to chit chat about button organization for my ever multiplying button collection.

First, let's start with the patterns. The majority of these are from the 1970s and almost all children's patterns. I know, I know, I don't have kids. However, my hoarding gene doesn't allow me to pass by 25 cent patterns that I may have a use for a decade from now.

I know this one is a bit blurry, but just take in the strangeness that is this bottom pattern. A teen boy jumpsuit pattern with matching tennis racket cover. The boy on the left is sporting a turtleneck, a jumpsuit, and rain boots. Only the 70's, only the 70's.

In other thrifting news, I picked up a few other vintage goodies besides patterns.

Aren't these little divided vintage plates just adorable? At 30 cents each I couldn't resist.  I also got the matching mugs below for 10 cents each. Sadly, the yellow one was nowhere to be found. Maybe I'll find one one day.

 

 

I'd never seen this particular edition of the Good Housekeeping cookbook before. This one may end up in my Etsy shop since I will be on next seasons Hoarders show if I don't get rid of at least a little of what I bring in.

I also got a great vintage leather purse but it looked terrible in the photos.

Lastly, can we talk about buttons? Or more specifically, my ever expanding button collection.

Behold, the perfect Tupperware container for organization. I already had one of these and I finally located another at the Goodwill this weekend. Readers, if you ever come across these, snap them up. These containers are so perfect for buttons.

Just look at all those sections perfect for buttons!

 I can't wait to get all these organized into my new Tupperware container. Those little orange containers are just too small.

Now that is a perfect picture of button gorgeousness! This is the container I already had. I haven't filled up the other one yet, but rest assured it won't take long. I have a few hundred buttons that are still unsorted. I also have a container of buttons on their card but they don't fit well into something like these.

So, readers how do you all sort your buttons? I love these containers, but they do have one downside. It can be hard to dig through them to find matching buttons. Well, I suppose two downsides. The lids do fit snugly, but as I learned the hard way not snugly enough to prevent a button explosion if you drop one on it's side. Those buttons above have been sorted twice. Ugh!

More Yummy Images from Sears Spring and Summer 1942 Catalog

Hello lovely readers! I had great intentions of actually writing a post for at least one of my three finished objects this weekend, but instead I came down with a cold. Yuck! Instead, I have some more great images from the 1942 Spring and Summer Sear's Catalog. I hope you enjoy and find some inspiration!

All of these outfits are so lovely! I especially like the fun shoes the lady on the right is wearing.

This is an close up shot of my favorite outfit from the previous page. I love the ensemble on the left with the red vest, white blouse, and blue pants. If you look closely, the vest actually buttons all the way down the sides. Since I don't have the skills to knit myself one of these, would it be possible to buy a large mans vest (thrifted of course), open up the sides, make buttonholes, and sew on buttons? Of course it would need to be serged and need some sort of interfacing. I am not really an up-cycler so any advice would be great.

Who says overalls are only appropriate for those doing manual, outdoor labor of those still holding onto the grunge scene. Those bib overalls on the left are totally adorable. The sweetheart neckline and cute pocket detail make them so feminine. As you can see on the right, they also come in a playsuit version, which would probably be a bit more wearable for me.

All of these are super cute. My personal favorite is the tailored blue slacks with the white blouse.

Notice the text on the page reads, " Special Playclothes for larger women". Now, none of these women appear to be "larger" to me, but I suppose the average woman in 1942 was much more petite than I am. Anyways, despite that these were supposed to be for a larger lady, they are every bit as stylish and cute as their smaller counterparts.

I hadn't posted many black and white images but I just had to show this flared skirt. It hangs so nicely and looks so elegant. Try finding a skirt that hangs this nicely in a department store today.

Even though the red coat in the middle is a bit on the boxy side I still think the outfit looks so neat and pulled together. I also love the jumper on the left.

Just look at those lovely prints! I would love to recreate these prints in a gorgeous rayon, but the only way I currently know how to do that is through Spoonflower which is so, so pricey.

Just look at that lovely fit! To most of us, $5.98 seems like a steal for a dress. If you account for inflation, this dress costs about $85 in current USD. While this dress is certainly better made than its modern day counterparts, it still wasn't inexpensive in 1942.

More yummy prints to drool over. I need at least 5 yards each of those polka dots.

That red fabric with leaves is divine.

 The outfit on the right is gorgeous. Sadly, I do not have the head shape nor circumference for hats. I have a rather large noggin.

 I love the skirt and blouse combo on the right. I'm not sure I'd wear this ensemble as is today, but I would definitely wear the pieces are separates.

Apparently, there were lots of dresses that qualified as the Best Dresses in America for $4.98. The dress on the left still has a pretty full skirt for the early 40's, but since 1942 would have been the early war years for the US it seems reasonable to assume the most strict rations had not taken effect yet.

Both of these coats are so divine. The both fit so well and just exude a sense of quality.

Doesn't she look ready to conquer the town in this coat? This coat wasn't an inexpensive purchase at $19.98. According to an inflation calculator, this cost would cost you approximately $281 in modern USD.

Readers, which are your favorites? I'd love to hear your opinions. I do have lots more images to share in time as the catalog is over 1000 pages in length. ( Though I doubt most of us want to see images for replacement farm equipment parts or other machinery.) I will definitely post the fabric and sewing section next!

Shoes from the 1942 Sears Catalog

Hello lovely readers! Today I thought I'd share some images of shoes from the 1942 Spring and Summer Sears catalog.

Also, I do have some finished objects to show you all. Hopefully I can get some pics up by the weekend.

I love the brown shoes in the middle of the bottom row! Is is just me, or are the shoes on the left of the bottom row super strappy for the 1940's?

I'll take a pair in every color please! Actually, had I lived in the 1940's I most likely would have been relegated to the men's shoe department. Most of these shoes only went up to a size 8, sometimes 9, meaning my size 10 hooves wouldn't fit.

The shoes in the top left hand corner are amazing! I also love the pair in the middle of the bottom row.

All of these shoes are so amazing I could just cry. I wish there was a company that remade all these shoes in an affordable ( $50-$75 price range).

 Yes, the pages are out of order. Oops!

I love the ones in the bottom left.

All of these are so bright, colorful, and fun. The white pair with the rainbow colored heels are divine!

I love the subtle peep toes. I am convinced shoe manufacturers today do not understand what a peep toe is. If 4 of my toes come sliding through the "peep" after a few hours, the opening is too big!

Stay tuned for more Sears Catalog images in the near future. I have lots of fabulous clothes to show you!

Spring and Summer 1942 Sears Catalog

Over the summer my mom found a great Sears catalog from the Spring and Summer of 1942 at an antique shop for only $14! It is chock full of fabulous images featuring drool worthy dresses and lust inducing shoes. I thought that I'd share some of these images with my lovely blog readers. My internet is being terribly finicky about uploading photos, so I can only upload a few in each post. I will post multiple posts featuring all the lovely images. I also hope to do a post about the weird and wacky things the catalog sold, such as a cream made by Nestle designed to make a toddler's hair curly.

Look at this adorable cover!

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I really like the pink skirt shown in the top row.

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I love all of these dresses but the white,, green, and red one is lust worthy!

Just look at those swoon worthy play suits!

This is adorable as well!

I had to take an up close picture of this outfit. A play suit with a matching cape? Yes, please!

This is such a smart looking outfit!

I would wear this every day if I owned it.

These fabrics are the other choices for the dress in the previous image.

As I said earlier, I have so many more images I can post. Is there anything in particular anyone would like to see next? I was thinking of posting all the shoe pics next. There are also lots of pictures of foundation garments, but they are almost entirely in black and white. Is anyone interested in black and white pictures or only color ones? I had always thought it would be so strange to order clothing when the picture was in black and white. Much to my surprise there is a card in the back of the catalog, in color, with what looks like very small paint samples with corresponding numbers. The number of the available colors were in the descriptions and you matched it to the corresponding number on the card! How neat is that?