Still gettin down with the frumpy 1920s and Butterick 6399!

Ah, I am learning to love the 20s frump. It sort of grows on you. I you have been anywhere near the Pacific Northwest in the last week you know we have been hot hot hot. Bear in mind most of us PacNW peeps don't have AC in our homes so when the temps soar we get bitchy. Even with hot weather there were two events on Saturday that needed to be attended. Now initially I was thinking of trying to wimp out. However, my tough as nails friend The Countess, inspires me to "just do it" so off I went on our Saturday adventure. I was planning on dressing 1911ish but I was not feeling the corset love with the possibility of temps in the 90s. This is why the 1920s are the costumers friend.

How Butterick 6399 came to be:
I started B6399 for the New Deal Picnic. Actually it was almost done the week before that event and I hated it. It just looked Laura Ashley circa 1985 to me. The sash and big bow were just too much. Keep in mind that this is supposed to be an evening dress. I think the sash/big bow would work fine for the evening dress look; but for a cotton lawn dress it was too over the top.

Size/Alterations/Design Changes:

I am sort of smack between size 20/22 in pattern land. Seeing that this was going to be loose fitting (even the under slip which is described as close fitted) is still somewhat loose fitted. I decided on a size 20. For my 20s dresses I choose to wear a "leisure bra". Like I have ever worn a bra that made me feel like laying upon a fainting couch, eating bonbons and reading a novel full of long winded prose. Nope. However, they make good 20s bras. Ok here we go!

Alterations:
I shortened the skirt on the slip and dress by a couple inches. That sucker would have been a bit past ankle length on me. That is all I did.

Design changes:
This is where I got confused by the yardage requirements on the back of the envelope and had to read through the instructions to understand.

Costume Fabric:
This is for the underdress/slip.

Contrast 1:
Sheer fabric, like chiffon.

Contrast 2:
Scalloped lace.

Underdress;
So once I figured out what the chiffon was for I knew I wasn't going to be needing it. My under dress/slip has a cotton bodice and a China silk skirt. I would have like to make the whole thing of China silk fabric but I didn't have enough. I used petersham ribbon for the straps.

Overdress:
Double edged scalloped cotton lawn fabric with a micro black polka dot. The overdress has a very time consuming closure on the back scallops of snaps. Lots of little snaps to sew on. I skipped all that and made the overdress a pullover. The back neckline is finished with self fabric bias and my arm openings are just narrow hemmed. On my dress front the center panel is a rectangle of scalloped fabric sewn into the V shaped front opening. Then I trimmed it into a V shape after it was sewn in. The model dress on the envelope doesn't have a center piece in the V, that is the slip/underdress you are seeing (teal fabric).

Sash and big ass bow:
I didn't have any fancy fabric for the sash so I used a black cotton sateen. It went together fine but was just too heavy for a day dress. I made a narrow waist tie and added 2 belt carriers at the side seams. Works fine and keeps with the light airy look of my day dress. My belt could be a bit wider but I was in a hurry.

End Notes:
If you skip all the extras; like snappy closures, you can make this fairly quickly. I wound up liking this dress once I left off the sash and added the center front panel. It was super comfy to wear on a hot day. I will wear this one again for sure. If you have a really large chest and small frame I am not sure this could be a slip over. I have a large chest but the rest of me is fairly proportionate to it. If you make a muslin first you will know for sure. If I need a 20s style evening dress I would use this pattern again.

What events?!
Our morning started out with the Kent Historical Society's home tours. Then it was off to be costume judges for a SASS (single action shooting society) event in Renton. I don't normally take pictures at the SASS event because I am busy looking for good costumes. Also there is tremendous gun fire going on and it is a bit jarring. In spite of being spooked by gun fire like a skittish Shetland pony I did have a great time.

 A modern straw sun hat with a tacked on wide taffeta ribbon.

 All along the offset scallop seam is where the back closure is supposed to be.

 Enjoying the Japanese Mimosa tree.

 The Countess being surprised at her strumpet like behavior in her 1890s swim dress.

There was a little horseback riding at the SASS event. The Countess was the only one wearing bloomers for astride riding. ;-) 

Sash and bow. Meh on a day dress.

Under dress/slip. It closes in the back with 2 hooks and eyes.

In spite of my being completely ladylike The Countess awarded me with the best "soiled dove" certificate. She knows me so well.....;-) We didn't have any contestants for this category so I won by default. So you see, the frumpy 1920s is totally the sexy!

1920s Elsewhen Millinery Sybil hat take 2

Madame Mimi's amazing vintage 1920s tablecloth hat.

The first version of Sybil I made almost two years ago. I used yellow silk taffeta. So technically I have already reviewed this pattern. However I could not resist making this lovely again for an up coming 1920s-1930s picnic.

Hands down this is probably one of the most well drafted hat patterns I have ever worked with. All the pieces fit together without any finessing.
I have made quite a few hats and let me tell you some of the patterns out there are bad. Big 4, I'm looking at you. I have literally had a 1 inch difference between crown and brim to finesse. I don't like that. It makes me stabby.

Size and materials:
This pattern goes up to a size 25 head. Truly wonderful. I have a 23.25 inch head so most "one size" hats and patterns don't fit. Since this hat needs to sit all the way down on my head I use the size 24.

I found this old tablecloth at the thrift store about a year ago. Beautifully cross stitched, stained and faded in spots. I don't know why I bought it. It may have been the bright happy colors of the embroidery threads. Or that little voice in my head that says "you can use this for something".

Needless to say because of all the fading and stains I had to do some serious fussy cutting. My second  concern was there were 8 motifs on the tablecloth but they weren't all the same. With a 6 piece crown I knew 2 crown pieces wouldn't match. Oh well, my work is never about perfection. I gather up my creative inspiration and just go with it. I decided to match the 4 front and side pieces and put the non matching ones on the back. The brim also had to be cut with some of the cross stitch design on it. I fused a crisp woven interfacing to all the crown pieces and used a heavyweight home decor interfacing for one of the brim pieces.

RST=right sides together
WST=wrong sides together
The pattern maker gives you 2 options on finishing the wired brim. Method 1 is to sew the brim RST and insert the wire afterwards. Method 2 is to stitch the brim WST, attach the wire and use bias tape to finish off the brim. You will have to sew the bias on by hand. The first Sybil I made I did the insert the wire into brim method. It was not fun. You can't attach the brim until after you have wired it. That was a huge pain in the ass. I wound up hand stitching the brim on because it was super awkward to run through my machine. So this time I used the bias tape method. It was so much easier. You can attach the brim BEFORE you wire it. What a difference! Even though you need to stitch on the bias tape by hand, it was worth it. I also use petersham ribbon as my hat band instead of fabric. I just stitch it in by hand and when it gets soiled I can always change it out.

I really like my tablecloth hat. The shape of Sybil is very flattering and the brim gives some sun protection. There was no reason to add any additional decoration because of all the pretty handwork. I would like to think the person who made this tablecloth would be pleased with the repurposing of it. Or they are rolling in the grave cursing my name for abusing their tablecloth.

You can see the beginning of my non matching panels in the back. That little bit of not perfect makes me love my hat even more.

ElsewhenMillinery is on Etsy. They sell both hats and hat patterns. :-) 

ElsewhenMillinery PDF Cloche hat pattern The Sybil

I love hats! And I do enjoy making them. I have several patterns by ElsewhenMillinery on Etsy. This is the first of her patterns I have made. With this pattern you will be using millinery wire in the brim. If you haven't done this before or made any hats ever, then I would probably go with an easier pattern first.

In most of her patterns she is asking for mid weight fabrics. I used a lightweight silk taffeta. To give the fabric more body I underlined it with mid weight cotton canvas. The hat body also has a lining. I used a light weight cotton lawn.

What I really love about her patterns is she goes up to a size 25. The 20s cloche was meant to sit way way down on your head. Well this chick Mimi has a big head, 23 1/4 inches. Her instruction are very thorough. And she does discuss sizing and how the hat should fit on your head. I made the size 24.

The whole process of putting the hat together is very straight forward. However, if you make the view without the bias binding on the brim you will be stitching a wired brim to the hat body. I chose to do this by hand instead of trying to wrestle it on my sewing machine.

The finished hat is lovely and it fits perfectly. I forget I am wearing it because it is so comfy. My advice is to read through all her instructions before you get started. Look at all the pattern pieces and don't forget to add seam allowances. I would highly recommend her patterns.