Belts, Part One: Have One Custom Made!

Vintage dresses often feature a matching self-fabric belt and buckle. I adore this look, don't you? Vintage sewing patterns will direct you in making one, or more cryptically, instruct you to "have one made." I suppose in the 50's, there must have been places you could easily go to and have a belt made. Well, times have changed. Now there appears to be only one business that offers this service (that I know of).

Pat Mahoney is the proprietress of Pat's Custom Buttons and Belts, a mail-order business out of Lodi, California. According to this fascinating article, "Mahoney began as a home-based dressmaker, but when Singer Sewing Co. discontinued its button and belt covering service in Lodi, she bought the associated equipment."

There's no website, so you either need to call or write to get a catalog. (How quaint!) I read about Pat in Threads magazine a while ago, and being desirous of some fancy custom-made fabric belts, I gave her a call. She was enormously sweet and nice to chat with, and she sent out a catalog on the double. (Note that there is a five dollar charge for a catalog.)

The catalog is, in a nutshell, a seamstress's dream. Just look at some of the fancy buttons you can have made!

So, having just bought the red silk duchesse for the sheath dress, I figured this was the perfect opportunity to try out the service. I was very pleased, all around. All you have to do is find the style buckle you want in the catalog (there are a whopping 127 styles!), and choose from a few other options (thread or metal eyelets, etc.). I mailed out my form and fabric and received my belt back in under two weeks. And it was gorgeous, all for the low low price of $17.50.



If you'd like to try out this service (and I highly recommend that you do), you can contact Pat as follows:

Pat's Custom Buttons and Belts
(209) 369-5410
537 York Street
P.O. Box 335
Lodi, CA 95241

If you'd rather DIY, check back soon(ish) for a post on making your own self-fabric belt!

The Making of the Satin Sheath Dress

Here she is! The fabled red satin sheath dress! Sewn entirely on Mrs. Exeter, my "new" 1952 Featherweight.

The late-day, short sheath dress.

The perfect dress for informal evenings is the slim, supple sheath, photographed here in satin with a fur stole. Change the accessories . . . and it'll have another smart look. You'll learn to handle fabric with a nap. When completed, you'll know how to fit a bodice and face a square neckline. It should take about ten hours to make.

- Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing

Sewing this was a very cool experience. Of everything I've ever made, I must say this is the garment that I'm the most proud of. Sewing on Mrs. Exeter really feels like dressmaking, you know what I mean? I never thought I'd say this, but I actually preferred it to sewing on my computerized machine (Sorry, Betty). There is something to be said for simplicity in a good machine.

Here's an inside shot for construction detail.

I stitched flat seam binding to the facings for a neat look. I also applied seam binding to the zipper before installing it, a tip from Claire Shaeffer that Cindy wrote about on her blog.

And a shot of my lapped zipper, which went in without a hitch!

A few miscellaneous notes:

• Why do my pinked seams look more like they were chewed on by rabid wolves? Is this a tool problem or a user problem?
• Sewing flat: a revelation! When I was worried about sewing in the round (i.e. sleeves) on this machine (which doesn't have a freearm), commenter Elephantschild made the suggestion to sew flat as much as possible. So instead of constructing the bodice and skirt and then sewing them together at the waistline, I stitched the front bodice to the front skirt, and then then back bodice to the back skirt. Then I sewed the side seams. This was a HUGE help on this dress, where there are so many waistline darts to line up perfectly.
  
• As I mentioned earlier, the belt is custom made by Pat's Custom Buttons and Belts. Look for a post later this week on using this service.
  

VoNBBS also includes instructions on making this in flannel, in linen, and in corduroy. I love the idea of corduroy, perhaps in a vivid mustard yellow. As VoNBBS says, "For a cool weather country dinner dress - or to be coupled as a jumper, with your cashmeres and shirts." I can just see myself, perhaps up in the Catskills for the weekend, in my cool weather country dinner dress! I also love it as a jumper, illustrated above with the jaunty scarf. I'll have to add some cashmere to my wardrobe, darlings.

But, for now, I'm putting the sheath dress pattern away, with just a little bit of sadness. (I'm going to miss the old girl.) Next up is the bolero in black velveteen. But first I'm going to take a little break for some other exciting projects (including a dress for a dear friend to wear at her wedding reception!), which I will update you on soon.

Here are the closing thoughts from VoNBBS on this dress:

Finishing touches: Remove all basting threads. Overcast seams. Press lightly on wrong side. Isn't it wonderful? We hope you have a special date soon - so you can surprise everyone by announcing, "Why thank you! I made it myself!"

The Sheath Dress: A Test Drive

So, I can't tell you how glad I am I did a test version of this dress, as I wrote about in this post. I'm having some serious bodice fitting issues.

Essentially, the bodice is just too long. See how it rumples in the photo above? I need to take about a one and a half inch tuck above the waistline, and then the fit will be perfect. Here I have the tuck pinned out:

It's very fitted at the waist, as you can see. I think if I were making a casual version of this (which I definitely will, since I love this shape), I would add about one more inch of ease to the waistline for everyday comfort. But since the red satin version I have planned will be a special occasion dress, I'm going to go for the fitted look.

Once I get the fit down, I can see myself making several versions of this. It's the perfect work dress, either with a cardigan or as a jumper.

I made the belt on my own, using 1-inch belting and a little rhinestone buckle ($1.99 at Pacific Trim!) I think it looks all right. Just wait, though, until you see my custom-made red satin belt. It is to die for!

So, what do you think? Any fitting issues I'm missing?

Next Up: The Sheath Dress!

So, back to my goal to sew every project from Vogue's New Book for Better Sewing. And the next one up is a personal favorite: "the late-day sheath dress."

This project is an important one to me for several reasons. First of all, it's the one on the cover of the book. Secondly, I bought an amazing red duchesse silk satin to make it in. Thirdly, I ordered a custom made belt in the same fabric. And lastly, this pattern belonged to Doris, and I feel I owe it to her to make it fabulous. (It's worth noting that Doris also made it in red. Well, at least her notes indicated "linen - red.")

I love that it's on the cover of VoNBBS, and my plan to is to recreate the cover look as closely as possible. Hence, the red satin. VoNBBS makes the suggestion:

"Satin, when used sparingly as in this sheath, has an 'after-five look.' If, however, you're shy about satin, make it in a faille crepe or - wonderful idea! - a grey flannel. And if after-five clothes don't fit into your scheme of life, make it in a sun sheath of linen, pique, or Shantung."

It's possible that I am a little shy about satin, but no time to get over that like the present! And I'm sure I'll find some occasion to wear it, right? Besides, just look at this gorgeous ruby-red duchesse:

So, I'm excited. But I don't want to just go whack-whack into this beautiful and pricey fabric, obviously. So I'm going to do my usual tissue-fitting, and then do a test run in a less expensive fabric.

I bought this white cotton matellasse when it was on sale at gorgeousfabrics.com, and I never really figured out what to do with it. It's so pretty though, with tone-on-tone roses all over. I want to get some use out of it before the summer is over, and I think this is it! The darts and fitting lines will be clear in the white. I like the idea of doing this, rather than a muslin, so that I can wear it out for a day or two to really test out the fit. Does this seem like a good idea to you? Or would you do a muslin?

Also, the editor of VoNBBS herself suggested making this dress in a wide variety of fabrics. Check out this cryptic observation:

"Wisely, Chinese women repeat a style in a gamut of fabrics. Why shouldn't you, once you find a fashion that's becoming?"

Ah yes, the wise Chinese women.

Um, what? What in the world does that even mean? Are they possibly referring to the cheongsam? I know this type of style was an interest to fashion-forward American women in this era, just like the sarong dress. What do you think?

Anyway, stay tuned. Hopefully, I'll have the cotton version of the sheath dress ready to show you soon!