Saturday I am going to my Aunt Evelyn’s 95th birthday party. She’s just as spry as ever and has one of those contagious laughs that makes her so much fun to be around. Nowadays she likes to spend her time doing jigsaw puzzles and word searches, but in her day she was quite the cook and NOBODY could make a coconut cream pie from scratch like she could. She was the aunt who received the Montgomery Ward catalogs that had dresses and outfits in them that I used to copy when I was younger. I looked through those catalogs and figured out which ones I could sew up the fastest…
I did a couple of posts a few years ago and thought I’d rerun them in honor of her… Happy Birthday Aunt Evelyn. I might show her this post at her party and let her know just how much her “sewing machine” influenced my sewing career! :o)
Here’s the first post…called Copy Cat Creations, written on August 10, 2014.
When I was a little girl, probably around 8 to 12 years old, I used to love going over to my Aunt’s house… she had 2 things I liked… a Pfaff sewing machine and Montgomery Ward catalogs. Even at that early age, I loved looking at the catalogs and would get lots of ideas and then duplicate them as closely as I could. It was fun for me and by 10 years old I was in 4-H and off and running with my sewing. Her Pfaff probably got a few extra hundred miles of wear because of me! I made many a Barbie outfit over there and still have some of them that I’ll share in a later post.
When I started making doll clothing to sell, I turned to the catalogs and smaller fashion magazines again for inspiration. I have quite a few old Sears and Montgomery Ward catalogs in the 1940’s range, some 1904 and 1905 McCall’s Fashion Magazines, a few 1970’s pattern books and some very old 1894 and 1896 Delineator Women’s catalogs filled with more ideas than I could use in a lifetime.
Here are just a few of my copycat creations…
Look at this price…. $2.98!!
Hope you enjoyed this short trip down memory lane…
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Then I thought you might like to see some of those creations that were sewn on her Pfaff machine… they aren’t great as I was probably 9 or 10, but it was my start and I still have those Barbie outfits! :o)
This post was written October 3rd, 2014, and was called Earlier Barbie Clothes.
I bet you think in this post you’re going to see a vast improvement in my sewing, right? Well, don’t hold your breath. What I’ve saved for today are some pictures of how my sewing became more focused on the details. Now, don’t laugh when you see my pictures, but just remember I was 8 to 10 years old when these were made and they are nearly 50 years old. I was positive I had some pictures of my Barbie and Midge modeling these outfits, but I’ve searched for hours in my photos and finally have given up. I only have one of my Barbie in the blue “Regency” dress. (That’s what I’m calling it… when I made it, it was probably a nightgown.)
If you click on my pictures they will enlarge… that way you can see those crooked stitches even better! :o)
Let’s start off with Barbie in that blue dress. My mom found me in cut up pajamas one day because I wanted the shirring from the elastic in the waistband of my pants for my Barbie dress. I was pretty little when I did this but not exactly sure of my age.
Now, let’s move on to this “lovely white” robe! White? That’s not white! Well, it was, and believe it or not, it was one of my very favorites I ever made. I don’t know why, but I think it was the way it “skimmed” over Barbie’s curves! Must have been….because that stitching isn’t doing anything for me! Ladies, just take a close up look at the way that lace is sewn on. See, there’s hope for ANYONE to learn to sew!
I think this was going to be a party dress for Skipper. Notice the lovely black velvet ribbon sewn around the hips….pretty crummy, isn’t it? Oh well, if you can overlook the stains and the way the back is much too narrow, you can see how I was starting to think a little more about the design of the dresses… not that my sewing had improved terribly, but if you use your imagination, maybe it was!
Oh, and how about this lovely number….a little color blocking going on. I remember making this one. I used the inside and the outside to create this look. The pockets were supposed to be the feature of the dress. Notice too, how crooked it is… that’s just the way it turned out. Oh well, do you think I’m getting better? Obviously this was WAY before I realized the inside needed to be as neat as the outside.
This one was pretty creative too… I quilted my own fabric and made this “adorable” robe for Skipper. Again, I added the patch pockets, only this time with lace.
…and finally, my grand finale! I thought this was my best Barbie outfit ever… I can’t seem to figure out why I thought that though. I made it over at my Aunt Evelyn’s house and still remember the day. I thought it looked exquisite on my Barbie, but I must have needed glasses back then, because there is a lot to be desired with it. Oh well, at the time, it was perfect!
So, those few pieces are the remnants of my past… my sewing past, that is. I went on to major in Clothing and Textiles and specialize in Apparel Design. I’ve come a long way, but it’s always good to visit where you came from occasionally. It helps you see how far you’ve come.
Hope you enjoyed this trip down memory lane with me.
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Well, that’s enough fun for your eyes today… Happy Birthday Aunt Evelyn! Thanks for letting me use your machine all those many years ago.
See everyone soon,
Blessings, Jeanne
What fun post, Jeanne! I enjoyed seeing the inspirations behind some of your fashions, as well as your very early Barbie fashions!!
Sadly the links didn’t work for me–not sure if it’s my computer or just what.
Happy birthday to your Aunt Evelyn! (I used to have an Aunt Evelyn, too–she was my great-aunt, married to my grandma’s brother, and a lovely and very stylish lady.)
HI Charlotte,
I wanted to let you know… I put the titles of my posts in bold lettering, but I copied the entire post and put it below. You didn’t miss anything because the bold lettering wasn’t a link… it was just the title… I wanted to make sure you knew that.
Blessings, Jeanne
I certainly enjoyed seeing your “lovely” creations, Jeanne, from way back, and they gave me quite a chuckle! I almost spilled my coffee while reading through and seeing those early outfits! They looked like mine did when I started sewing! I started when I was about 6 or 7, but by hand. There were lots of things I “overlooked”, just to get them done, and yes, the inside was a mass of threads and whatever else went on in there! Just so the outside looked decent, that was my mantra!!
I guess my grandma was the same to me as your Aunt Evelyn. I used my grandma’s sewing machine and she showed me how to sew, or tried to! My mother has a Kenmore but it was electric, and she didn’t feel comfortable letting me use it while I was young.
You really had an eye for fashion, way back when! I loved those catalogs, and spent many a day drawing clothes for the various cut out people from them. I was more of the drawing kind than the sewing kind though, compared to you. Your skills certainly took off, and I love the way you fashioned those doll clothes to match the catalog dresses. That blue and green plaid dress Molly is wearing is one that I don’t remember, but it suits her very well! Wish I had that!
Have a good day with your Aunt Evelyn and Cindy!
I used to use the catalogs either as paper dolls or I would use the clothing as ideas for making clothes for my paper dolls. I loved designing clothing as I was growing up and wanted to take fashion or costume design in college. But life intervened the year before my senior year in high school and kept on intervening so I never got to follow one of my passions. But I have always sewn and designed and will continue to do so. I have an Etsy shop, which I got it in the fall of 2013 with the idea of making Easter dresses for little girls. Before I got started I had my auto accident and never got the sewing done, since I lost the use of my right hand for a couple months. I was also studying music at that time (voice and piano) and it became more intense than I bargained for. My biggest problem in life is I have two passions, each requiring a lot of time.
How very interesting and fun it is to see your old creations as a child. You certainly were determined as a young girl for your passion of sewing and creating. I’m glad you still have some of those Barbie clothes. They are a testament to your talent and determination.
The black jumper Elizabeth (?) is wearing is a favorite. of mine. What gorgeous material. It reminds me of the styles I wore when I was in grade school. It’s neat that you can refer to those old catalogs for the older era styles.
Have a wonderful day celebrating your Aunt Evelyn ‘s 95th birthday!
Jeanne, I, too, learned to sew on a Pfaff sewing machine. It was my mother’s and she won it on a radio show! It was in 1950 or ’51, they had a lot of contest programs on the radio back then. She was visiting a friend in Winter Park, FL and they were in the audience. They picked her as one of the contestants and she won the grand prize, a Muntz tv, the Pfaff, a set of luggage, a set of silverware, a diamond wrist watch and bags of citrus fruit. The first garment I made on that machine was a bride dress for my doll. I later made many garments for myself on it. It was still good when she passed in 1997 and I gave it to my sister-in-law.
Thank you so much for tweaking my memories by sharing yours! I got my Barbie in 1962 and her hair is in near perfect condition because I loved Troll dolls better because they could live in a shoe box and play in the dirt! But I did make a few clothes on my grandma’s treadle sewing machine. My hubby remembers sewing Barbie clothes for his little sister too.
Somehow my long list of memories got erased while I shed a few tears for my mom…I lost her 22years ago on Monday. She always fussed at me because the dresses needed the inside seams finished. (no pants allowed at school until the early 70’s—my dad was Air Force and every time a school would allow pant suits, we moved)
Anyway thank you for the trip down memory lane, at least yours were illustrated! Have a happy birthday Aunt Evelyn!
Donna
So fun, Jeanne. I can surely see why at that young age, why you thought the clothes you made for Barbie were “the bee’s knees”. I think they’re absolutely splendid for one of that age. We’re so glad that you kept on sewing. You’ve become a marvel at it.
Happy Birthday to your dear Aunt Evelyn! Thanks, Aunt Evelyn, for taking interest and encouraging your niece to sew. It’s been a great gift for us.
Happy Birthday Aunt Evelyn! Hope your day is filled with fun and surprises.
What a fun post. Your Barbie/Skipper creations were terrific endeavors. Such small sewing for a little girl. Not easy at all. How wonderful that you actually still have them.
I think my favorite is the nightgown/dress rendition. I can just see you with those cut up pajamas.
Have a great weekend.
Happy Birthday, Aunt Evelyn!!
Very fun topics today! I love old catalogs and read them for fun and for research.
Your early projects were great. I think it was wonderful that you were doing that at such a young age.
Hope you have a good day and a great time with Aunt Evelyn!
Take care —
Yay for fun memories! I cringe at the thought of my grandkids using scissors etc at that age. Guess that goes with in the front seat with mom and her arm for “safety restraint”. My grandma taught me to crochet and I made sweaters, hats, scarves, dresses, and my own version of popcorn stitches, unfortunately I only had so much yarn so I would tear them apart to make a new one. After 4 or 5 redos the yarn was a wreck, oh well. Thanks for a fun post and hope aunt Evelyn has many more birthdays. Let us know her reaction.
Jeanne, I remember this post from 2014. Back in those days Jack was recovering from a massive heart attack and a triple by-pass. I was on Caregiver duty 24/7. Often I would be reading your posts during the middle of the night. I remember being quite amazed with your natural talent at a young age. Very impressive. My own sewing skills at the same young age was not as developed. Quite primitive actually. Time and practice plus lots of failures cured that – sort of !!
I hope your Aunt has a wonderful 95th Birthday. Celebrate !!!
Happy Birthday to your Aunt Evelyn. What a mile stone. My husband and I have a friend in Colorado who will be turning 101 this month. We hope to visit with her when we go to Colorado at the end of this month.
Regarding your sewing efforts, as they say, you’ve got to start somewhere. Been there, done that. I still look back at things I made a few years ago and see where I could have improved on something. These days I rarely sew for me. Too hard to fit anymore. So I switched to sewing for my numerous dolls. I can dress them in anything I like and they never complain. I do see personalities in them though, like my H4H Dell is kind of a tomboy and she doesn’t like fancy duds. My H4H Lilian is very feminine and her favorite color is pink. I see patterns and fabric and it “speaks” to me as to which doll it should belong to. And do I like to embellish?! Oh, yeah! Bows, buttons, laces and trims of all sorts. I would love to sew more for my 6-year old granddaughter (one of my favorite ages to sew for), but her mother lives in a “no-iron zone” and most of the things I like to make definitely require more upkeep than her mother is willing to do, so I stick to embroidering t-shirts for her and her brother and buying things that don’t require much upkeep. I often say I’m a frustrated wardrobe mistress because I love fooling with clothes. I loved when my children were small and I could dress them as I wished. That was before junior high and t-shirts and blue jeans became the staple of their wardrobes.
Jeanne, I ran across something regarding you and your doll fashions and photography (can’t seem to find it again). Amazing! I would say you’ve come a very long way from where you started. Your things are beautiful. I agree about the shoes going with the outfit, but then I feel like that for me. I love shoes. When I sew for my dolls I decide on the fabric and then, if they don’t have the shoes already, I order them a pair that goes with the outfit. My Little Darling Claire has a red and white jumpsuit, so she has red and white shoes. Purple ones for the purple dress and orange ones for the orange and turquoise outfit. For my Little Darlings I always shop Debs Adorables. She has the largest inventory of LD shoes. I shop there for others too, but JuJus Dolly Mall is good too and she is very helpful with hard to fit dolls like my two rescue dolls. They are 12″ and 16″ but the 12″ has feet like a Ginny doll and the 16″ dolls feet are not much bigger. As for photography, I haven’t tried that much yet. Love the idea of turning the stand around, since that was a definite dilemma for me.
I do so remember that post with your old Barbie dolls and clothes! We were not allowed to have Barbies…my mom thought dolls with breasts were just not right! I would have been so envious ! You did so well because sewing for Barbies is harder than bigger dolls.
My favorite is the pale blue nightgown…with the empire waist and all!
I’m missing my older relatives…now we are the old Auntand Uncle and Grandparents!
Have fun at her party..take lots of pictures and make her one of those fun books on Shutterflyor Walmart photo site. They are so much easier to make than they used to be.
Give her a hug from all your blog friends…we miss our Special Aunts!
I had a 95 year old aunt named Evelyn. I’m glad you do too. My friend Evie has an Aunt Ruby, still speaking at local history events at 104. She gave up driving a few years ago — a very few years ago.
Learning to sew takes a little while but what’s remarkable is your design sense, especially that last outfit. That hat is very clever. The yellow and blue coat with the diagonal stitching is something to be proud of. At about the same age, I made a small doll out of one of our anklets, made a wig out of black thread, and then hand sewed a whole wardrobe of international costumes. I used the “Dress” section from World Book for inspiration.
The black jumper Paula likes — I’ll bet you thought twice about putting that one in — I always want you to duplicate it for Julie and someday you’ll have time to do it. But you’ll have to make two — one for Julie and one for one of her dolls. The year will come.
I think it’s nearly cool enough to mow the lawn. Have a lovely Sunday, everyone.
Jeanne, what a wonderful story! I can so relate. I also have an aunt that age. She sewed too! She would serve me date nut bread with Philadelphia Cream Cheese. That was our special treat.
I didn’t learn to sew though. My grandmother gave me a sewing machine one Christmas when I was in my 20s. I think it was a Singer. Okay, brace yourself, I gave it away. I never told her that.
I was laughing when you described (and showed photos of) the results of your early attempts at sewing. That’s what my sewing would look like now (chuckle).
Clearly you had talent as a child and you followed your passion. How wonderful!
I agree with the others that Barbie clothes are hard to sew… those tiny bits are pretty frustrating. I only did it as an adult for my daughter’s Barbies when she was little. Seeing your work though is inspiring me to do a bit more doll sewing (once I’m finished with my last 2 classes — I’m almost done with one of the 2!)
I also really like your inspiration pages. I miss those catalogs, although I do rip pages from the Sundance catalogs and keep them with my jewelry making supplies because that is one thing I can “copy cat” well.