Vintage Stripes for Gene

This was a commission to recreate a vintage dress and coat from the 50's pattern.  Scroll to the end to see the inspiration photo.  I was fortunate to find a lightweight cotton in an stripe that is just the right scale, almost the same colors.  Both the sleeveless dress and coat have full circle skirts and are completely lined in silk/cotton.  As you can see from the pics, the striped of the skirts of the dress and coat go in opposite directions.  The coat closes with a hook and thread loop, then ties at the front.  Matching all these stripes was a bit of a challenge but it turned out adorable, IMHO.  

Brocade and Silk Taffeta Evening Set for Tonner Tyler

 

This one has been on my to-do list for awhile.  I drafted the pattern ages ago.  I bought this gorgeous brocade from Frenchfashions.net quite a while ago and it took forever to find some tissue silk taffeta to match and that came from India last year.  I actually started cutting this out months ago when my wrist was broken but couldn't work with the silk lining with my left hand.  So it sat in a drawer for a few months until it was finally completed yesterday.  The dress and bolero are fully lined in blue silk habotai.  The sparkly brooch is from an assortment of shankless buttons I found on Etsy a long time ago.  It did have to be glued on (which I hate doing) but there is simply no place to stitch it.  Scroll to the end for the inspiration picture.  

Japanese Cotton Two Piece Dress for Tonner Tyler

 

I absolutely love Japanese fabrics, especially the cotton prints.  Since this one is a poplin, the weight lent itself to more of a suit-like structure.  I'm not sure what this type of sleeve is called.  It's half set in below the princess seams and half kimono at the shoulder.  Whatever, it is tricky to do but I finally nailed the fit on this style.  The skirt is not quite a full circle and the excess was pleated at the waist.  Since I don't consider an outfit complete without accessories, I did a quickie clutch and hat with some thin faux leather for a little punch of color.  

Vintage Reproduction for Gene

 

A lovely lady from Australia sent me the picture at the end of this post and asked if I could recreate it for Gene.  I hadn't yet drafted any patterns or sewed for Gene but I purchased a couple of Gene dolls off Ebay a while back just in case.  So I was excited about this project and I knew right away that the perfect fabric for it was the peace silk from Anne Georges.  Shirley chose this color but the fabric is so gorgeous, I wish I had ordered them all.  The full circle skirt and jacket are fully lined in silk habotai and the blouse is fully lined cream silk/cotton.  The skinny belt is faux leather.  I love how it turned out.