1930's Afternoon Dress : Sewing Through the Decades

Regarding the ribbon around the neckline - I think, I'd align it with the neckline of the garment to be able to topstitch both edges of the ribbon. Also, if the ribbon is a bit stiff and the neckline curves slightly, you might be better off making a very slight gathering of the ribbon through the inner curves. It will be difficult any way if the ribbon is heavier than the fabric, but I think you can tame it just a little bit better with a slight gathering. Maybe even give it a press after gathering to make it stay in shape better. But really - I think you did great job on this one. It can be so frustrating to finish something, learn a lot through the project, and then sitting there afterwards wishing you had known everything from the start. That's just not how it works, is it now... ;) We really should try to focus on the fact, that if you already know ten ways of doing it better, right after you finish it, then OH MY, that really is a steap learning curve! And you should pad yourself on the shoulder for that! Good job, girl! :)

Yes for capes! I vote new fabric and try again.

You look lovely in this dress! You were saying that fabric manipulation tutorials that aren't darts are hard to find (I agree) and I would love it if you would make some. Just little quick videos like your beading one showing more gathering and shaping options

I commented on the video in YouTube, but I'll put my suggestions here too. Try attaching some light weights (like binder clips) to the hem as it hangs. It'll help get all the warp out of it. Also let it hang for a few days rather than overnight. Loosely woven material like rayon is prone to more warping than say quilting cotton. Also, I think you should fix the dress so that you're happy with it because it'd be a great addition to your everyday wardrobe. :) Cheers!

Regardless of your "dislikes" of the construction, etc, you look quite lovely in this orange dress, and, of course, I like the pattern you chose. Drapey material is quite changeable, so don't beat yourself up over it. Sometimes, I wonder if just hanging the pieces cut on the bias for a couple of days, prior to construction would make the difference.....? Otherwise, as usual, it's a pleasure to watch any of your videos. Thank you for continuing your work...!

I think using a light cotton fabric would work better.

Home sewing machines have been around since the 1860's, so I'm surprised by the amount of hand sewing you had to do. I suspect top stitching hems etc denoted a home made garment instead of a tailored (seamstress made) garment. Also, most women learned to hand sew as children, so it was just what they knew how to do. Not like today :). I've had clients come into my shop to ask if I could sew a button on their garments, as even this basic skill is beyond them :(. Keep up the good work. I'm looking forward to the 50's, my favourite era for fashion.

Even the best of us has an off day. I'd be happy with a tenth of your sewing skills :)

I think that if you overall like the fabric and design of dress you should take a day and try to fix it rather than use up more supplies that could be used for a different project. But I'm also no expert and the decision is all yours! I'm sure we will all be happy to see the final product either way :)

Thanks again Angela, always amazing how much effort you put into the videos, it really shows! Adding my two cents, I would let it depend on your overall feeling about the dress. If you do like the overall style and like to wear it, remake it. If you feel it’s not your style, I’d move on. Enough other decades to focus on. Or you could the techniques you’d like to retry in a design of your own. But, like I said, just my two cents, no expert opinion.

Very nice ironing pillows. I want them.

I think it looks really nice overall! We don't notice all of those little details nearly as much as you do, I promise! I know I am always far more critical of the things I make than other people are. You could use a white fabric of some sort cut on the bias to make your own ribbon for the neckline and matching belt. Also, I would recommend folding the dress rather than hanging it, this should decrease the warping.

I’m pretty sure whoever pinned the pattern pieces realized this pattern wasn’t worth the cents they bought it for which is why they never made it. Since it’s early 30’s, the producers made a great deal of assumptions about who would be making this dress and I don’t think it was meant to be worn by anyone with curves. That being said, you did what you could with it and it turned out okay. I’d be interested in seeing you fix the dress and remaking the pattern. I’d buy that pattern in a moment! Also, using synthetic cloth is probably where a lot of the problems came from. This was probably made with a light cotton voile or jersey as synthetic cloth wasn’t available until the 50’s. The rayon relaxed much more than a natural fiber would when hanging. Perhaps you could starch the whole dress before hanging to ensure less warping?

I really love the fabric and colour of it, and I think it would be really interesting to see how you fix it!

It’s beautiful still! But if you intend this to be wearable on a regular basis, you may simply want to remake. Woven rayon has pretty bad elasticity and shape retention in its nature, Especially when it’s got a looser weave. This garment will probably continue to warp as it hangs, getting more out-of-shape, for the lifetime of the garment. This is why you typically see rayon blended with other things, and typically in jerseys, it reinforces the fabric so you can keep the benefits of its softness while also getting a garment that you can... Actually get good results out of.

I think showing people how to fix a dress would be an interesting video as well because we're going to not make perfect stuff too and the video both shows sometimes stuff goes wrong and then also how to correct it.

But like I don’t think anyone would notice anything wrong. The finished garment is stunning!

But maybe fix it for a Patreon bonus or something. Idk.

I’d fix it. It’s probably warped because the pieces cut on the bias dropped after you’d hemmed it.

Personally I think you should try to fix the dress. The color and fabric pattern look amazing on you. And it be interested to see what tips/ ideas you have regarding fixing up vintage style clothes.

i would love a modern version of this dress or using the gathered and tuck Technic for a custom dress.

I like the idea of seeing fix the dress.

I'd like to see the dress fixed and I think that would make great content too. I'm all about repurposing and reusing if possible. The color is lovely on you and the design is adorable.

I think i would like to see how you fix this dress. I like your pointers and process tips on how to do stuff. This dress is such a cute color, I love the fabric, but if you are really frustrated with it, do as you please

I love the dress. The color and print and the ribbon are so beautiful and compliment your skin tone beautifully. If you think you can fix it to where you are happy and it turned out as you dreamed it would, I think it would be worth doing. Otherwise I think redoing it would be better.

I'd like to see if you can fix what you're unhappy with about the dress. Sometimes it's a lot less baggage to start over, but seeing you talk about the skill to be able to fix an existing garment would be really interesting. I struggle with that at times as a seamstress when I buy an off the rack dress and know it could be fixed, but think it'd be "easier" to just dupe it and make it from scratch.

I love the way the dress looks, but can understand your frustrations. I would probably remake the dress, mainly because I hate when I have to make more than one alteration to a dress. :)

Fix it. That color is really cute on you.