1944 Daisies Maternity Dress

My second #vintagepledge dress is done!  It's another maternity dress from a a real vintage pattern, also dating from 1944.  (See the first one here.)  I loved this pattern for the creative use of belt ties for an adjustable gathered waist, the neckline, the sleeves, and the pockets!

My fabric is a bright and cheerful red floral rayon challis that I bought on a whim from Denver Fabrics last summer.  I got the piece on clearance for $8!  I was quite pleased with that purchase.  It was a 2-yd remnant - 60" wide - and of course the pattern called for 3 1/8 yards of 42" wide fabric, so that was going to make cutting interesting...

I started with a mock-up, which I actually made at the same time as the mockup for my first maternity dress.  On this one, I decided to try out both sleeve options:

Actually, there are three sleeve options - the third is a wrist-length sleeve gathered into a cuff, but I didn't really like that one.  I was torn between the short sleeve and the 3/4, but I was fairly certain that I wouldn't have enough fabric for the longer sleeve, anyway.

I was right, as it happens.  I *barely* had enough for the short sleeve!

I had also added a bit of extra width to the mock-up because I thought I would need to size up again (turns out I didn't) from 18 to 20, but I ended up not having enough fabric to do that, either.

I cut everything out except the belt ties, but you can see above how I left as much space for them as possible the middle of the yardage.  I knew I would have to piece them.

This is how much fabric I ended up with for the ties:

I pulled threads to get the straight-of-grain, then lined up the pattern piece to get the width:

More thread pulling:

I ended up with one piece the full width of the fabric, and two shorter ones that I added onto each end.  Then I cut the seamed piece in half to make two ties, which ended up being only about 6" shorter than the pattern piece.  Close enough, I said!

The dress construction was quite interesting, but unfortunately I did not take many photos as I was making it.  It was kind of fun how each of the notches for the seams were numbered in the order in which you are meant to sew them together.  I've seen this before on vintage patterns, but the was my first time using one like it.

One small change I made was to omit the neck stay from the cutting layout, mainly because I didn't want to waste any of my precious fabric on a piece that would never be seen.  Instead I used seam binding from my stash:

I also had to fudge the seam allowances on a couple of pieces, which resulted in spots like this:

Not a big deal, as long as the missing bit is confined to the seam allowance.

I used the same package of seam binding above to finish the hem in the same way as my previous dress, but there wasn't enough to also hem the sleeves.  I found another package of similar tape:

Slightly different edge:

The directions were a bit confusing at times, and used some terminology I was not familiar with.  For instance, "waist" instead of "bodice."  Also, because of the way they are printed the written descriptions of each step do not always line up with the corresponding line drawing, so I had to read them over several times before proceeding.  But I didn't make any mistakes!

All in all, I liked the pattern.  I did skip the bows at the neckline, and the shoulder pads.  I also did not add snaps to the front yoke, as I didn't have any problems with the neckline gapping.  The dress is a comfortable pull-over style (and I love any dress that doesn't involve me sewing zippers!), but as it's meant to be worn it's not terribly flattering:

At least, not over a 39-week pregnant belly.

Pockets are nice, though.

It might have been cuter in the first few months of pregnancy.

Brian the Engineer opined that it looked more like a housedress than a going-out dress.  So I re-styled it slightly.

All I did was lift the front waist up above my belly, cinching the belt tighter for more gathers.

Now I have a defined waist!  Much better.

Accessories help, too.

I'm wearing Victory Red Lipstick from Besame Cosmetics, vintage gloves from my collection, Loraine shoes by b.a.i.t. from Royal Vintage Shoes, and seamed stockings from What Katie Did.

I really like the fact that the top edge of the pocket is larger than the side front skirt panel where it is attached, which makes the pockets stand open just a bit.  It makes them an obviously intentional design choice, and not an invisible afterthought.  It's a little thing, but it makes me happy.

I'm hoping that the dress will be more flattering after I have the baby and my waist goes back to its normal position (and size).  The great thing about these vintage maternity patterns is that they're clearly meant to be worn past pregnancy, with lots of adjustability for a fluctuating waistline.  You'll see this dress again!  

My Vintage Pledge

I meant to sign up for the #VintagePledge2017 last month when I first read about it, but my blogging has been very slow lately and I never got around to it.

I have, of course, already made one vintage dress, but I have more planned!

My Vintage Pledge:

I, Chelsea of Sartorial Statement, pledge to sew at least two vintage maternity dresses, at least two vintage nursing outfits, at least two vintage baby outfits, and at least two vintage non-maternity outfits in 2017.  

Here are my specific plans:

Vintage Maternity

One down, one in progress!

1944 Polka Dots

1944 Red Floral

Vintage Nursing Outfits

Two or more of these:

Vintage Baby Outfits

I should be able to get several outfits out of this pattern.  I plan to use mainly old sheets - some of which will also become the nursing outfits above.

1948 Baby Layette

Vintage Non-Maternity

I have a couple of UFOs from last summer's 1940s plans that I can finish:

Not to mention the other planned outfits from that post, as well as my whole Winter Wool Wardrobe from the previous winter.  I'm hoping that by the time cold weather rolls around, I'll be back to my pre-pregnancy size!

1944 Polka-Dot Maternity Dress

For my first vintage maternity dress, I chose Simplicity 1228, view 2.  I loved the sweet details of the ruffles, and the creative pleats at the waist to allow for expansion.

I made a mock-up of the bodice first so that I could try it on.  The pattern is a size 16, and I'm measuring closer to a size 20 at the bust these days (at least in vintage measurements) so I figured I would need to size it up a bit.

I added 1/2" to the center back fold, for a total of 1":

And 1 1/2" at the center front fold, for 3" total:

I assembled the mock-up and tried it on, pinning the pleats at the waist to get an idea of how it would fit when finished.  I found that it was too big at the neck with all of the extra width I had added, so I pinned most of it back in:

I measured the amount I had pinned at the neck:

I had the foresight to jot down some notes while I was working on the mockup:

This became invaluable when it came time to cut out my fabric, especially since four days went by in between.

I had chosen this old fitted sheet because I liked the whimsy of scattered florals over polka dots, and it felt vaguely vintage to me.  I measured the sheet and found that I had almost two yards of 54" wide fabric.

I had previously soaked the sheet in Oxy Clean to brighten it up a bit, but the center was still noticeably more faded than the edges, so I tried to keep that in mind when laying out my pieces.  I didn't want a visibly faded piece sewn next to a non-faded piece.  This proved to be complicated, with my limited fabric, but I managed it.

I had to cut the center back skirt piece as two with a seam allowance, instead of on the fold.  But otherwise I got everything laid out properly.

You can see above how I angled the bodice front piece so that it widened at the waist but stayed pretty close to the original size at the neck.  I made sure to lay out the front skirt panel so that it matched the new width of the bodice waist.

Oh, the shoulder ruffles were also supposed to be cut on the fold, but I had to piece them as well.

Some of the pieces were laid out in the opposite direction as the others, but the print of the fabric is not obviously one-way, so this was fine.

I appreciated that the pattern did not include paper pieces for the neck ruffles and bias bindings.  Few things annoy me more than a paper pattern piece that's just a rectangle.  :p  I did not get quite 93" for my neck ruffle, and I had to piece it, but it worked out pretty well.

I used tailor's tacks to mark the darts in the bodice.  I had learned to use them in college, but for some reason I tend to forget about them in my everyday sewing.  The pattern instructions brought them back to my attention.

I decided to add pockets to the dress, using a pattern piece from one of my other vintage maternity patterns:

But I only had enough of the scraps to get two halves of the pockets, so I cut the other two out of muslin.

I used the fashion fabric pieces for the back sides of the pockets, since they would be more likely to show:

I understitched the seam allowance to the muslin side of the pocket, to help keep it folded in properly:

Partway through construction, I tried on the bodice to check the fit.  I was pretty happy with how it looked.

The one problem area I had was the shoulder ruffles.  I had needed to cut them from the center of the sheet, were it was the most faded.  Compared to the shoulders of the bodice, which were cut from close to the edge, there was a definite difference in color and brightness.  These photos are with the ruffle pinned in place:

I decided I didn't like how it looked, so I ended up leaving them off.  I finished the armholes with bias binding, instead:

After I attached the skirt, I tried it on again and found that the tailor's tacks for the thread eyes that are supposed to get hooked under the belt ties to hold the pleats in place were a bit off:

The belt tie is just pinned in place, but you can see that the pleat does not quite reach the marks for the eyes.  I may have forgotten to move the paper pattern piece back to the fold, after cutting it out with the new width, before marking these dots.  I debated moving them to where the pleats naturally fell on me, but decided to wait until I had finished the dress.  Besides, I was still growing.  :p

I pinked all of the seam allowances, which was one of the treatments suggested in the pattern to prevent fraying.  I liked how frugal the pattern was, with no lining.  I used lace hem tape from my stash, which was also suggested in the pattern instructions.  I really like the hem it gives:

Finally, I sewed the thread eyes as marked, but did not add the hooks yet.  I decided that the hook-and-eye closure was not necessary to keep the pleats in place, as the belt ties held everything together properly.  I might add the hooks later if I end up wearing this dress again for a second pregnancy.

And the dress was done!  Here's how I accessorized for my vintage-themed baby shower on Saturday:

I wore my green 1940s-style shoes by b.a.i.t. from Royal Vintage Shoes, which I bought last summer during my Agent Carter-inspired vintage wardrobe kick.  This style appears to no longer be in stock, sadly.

I also wore vintage white gloves from my personal collection.  I'm not sure where the purse came from originally.

My seamed stockings are from What Katie Did.  I'm kind of in love with them.

I don't quite have the patience to get my hair to do the polished 1940s look I was going for, but I think I managed a decent approximation.

My necklace is jade, a gift from Brian the Engineer that he bought for me on a recent trip to Japan for work.  I'm wearing Black Cake Mascara and Victory Red Lipstick from Besame Cosmetics.  I also have Turkish Rouge from LBCC Historical Apothecary on my cheeks.

And here are a few photos from my baby shower:

Lavender lemonade - yum!  

These bottles of lavender simple syrup were party favors that everyone got to take home:

The cake was three flavors!  Chocolate on top, strawberry with strawberry filling in the middle, and almond with raspberry filling on bottom:

I've never seen so much lavender in one place!

There was also strawberry simple syrup for the lemonade, but the lavender was definitely more popular:

There was a onesie-decorating table with stencils and fabric markers:

My friends are quite creative!

We also played games like Old Wives' Tales trivia and guess-the-circumference-of-the-baby-belly - two people got it spot on!

Good eye, Ann and Rebecca!

My lovely friends Stacy and Heather put this whole thing together for me:

(I switched to flat shoes by the end of the shower - my feet are no longer used to wearing heels!)