vintage slip

after weeks/years of “too busy” and fretting over my aged wardrobe, i decided to spend the weekend making some things for myself. here is one of my finished projects:

i have been enamoured of vintage slips forever. you know the ones: black taffeta, cut on the bias, great for layering or wearing on their own. i have loved many to death. the inevitable rips that are repaired and modified and repaired until the whole things is tattered and in shreds. they languish unwearable in my closet, because i cannot bear to throw them away. whenever i go to vintage or thrift stores, i am constantly on the lookout for a new one, but lately, they seem harder and harder to come by, so i decided to make one.

it is freeing to just make something without having to worry about making a zillion carbon copies graded out to fit the whole spectrum of possible women wearers. it only needs to fit me. i don’t have to draft out a pattern; i can just kind of free-hand cut the whole thing. i used a basic bias dress pattern for the skirt, and made a composite of my favourite bodices of slips passed..

i love the details that were so common in vintage clothes: top stitching, french seams, pinked edges, lace, bows. it is second nature for me to incorporate these little details into every garment i make. here the lace around the edges, and top stitching the seams make the garment look more finished.

i wanted a bottom detail, but not a traditional gathered ruffle (too bulky), so i decided to add this hand pleated ruffle to the bottom. it only added about 45 minutes to the project, but was well worth it, don’t you think? i sewed lace over the seam to tie it in to the bodice detail.

and the finishing touch: a velvet bow. i love bows, and would add them to everything. it just makes a nice finishing touch. now i have a nice new slip that should last me for years, and it only took an afternoon.