We’ve been enjoying a beautiful long fall, with warm temperatures for most of the past month, but in the last few days it’s dropped and that wind is cold in the mornings. I’ve still been wearing my summer wrap skirts and short sleeved tops, albeit with a coat on top, but these last few days have put me in the mood for cozy knits. And what better way to get in the mood for colder weather than some good vintage knitwear! Today I’ve got the 1959 “Easy to Make Fashions for the North, South, East, West” by American Thread Company, Star Book No. 149.
First up this lovely cropped cardigan. I will take one each in black, brown, camel, sage, rose and navy please. Interestingly, this one features a detachable collar, fastened with Velcro, which was still extremely new at this point, having been invented only a few years before in 1954.
On the other end of the spectrum is the long cardigan, which can be made to any length you like. I love this late 50’s look, where the styles held onto some of that 50’s glamour, but had loosened up a bit.
Now for two lovely cardigans…and I have cropped the models faces out of the images because whoever owned this pattern book thought it was a good idea to draw their faces with a blue pen! The cardigan on the left reminds me of Welsh knitwear designs- it’s so intricate!
Now for some his and hers pieces!
I love this yellow one, it’s like an upscale version of a hoodie.
This is my go to winter look- well not with that toque! But I love tucking a pullover sweater into a skirt, especially a cute plaid one like that.
And lastly two beautiful stoles!
Which vintage knitwear pieces are your favourites? Are you looking forward to sweater weather again, or would you prefer that the temperatures stayed warm a while longer?
Happy Saturday everyone! It’s been a while since I posted, except for the duckling photos last week, so here’s some of the things I have been up to this summer…
Years ago I printed a bunch of my flowers and scenery photos, but didn’t really want to have an album full of them. So, I stamped and punched and stitched them, turning them into cards and postcards. It was the perfect way to use them!
I also made yet another pair of baby shoes, for another newborn in our church. Baby shoes are so hard to make because they are so tiny, but so easy to make because they don’t take very long from start to finish!
After about 12 years of using my old water bottle, it was finally time to get a new one. It looked like it had gone through a war, and the paint was flaking off around the top, which didn’t seem particularly healthy, so I got a new one with a stainless steel top edge. It’s also insulated, and has been so nice for keeping my water cool during the hot months! Anyways, I just wanted to share because I thought that my old one was a good example of “Use it up… Wear it out… Make it do… Or do without!” #zerowaste
I’m not sure what variety of apples these are, but we picked quite a few and froze them to use for baking this winter.
My Bible had seen better days, and the cover was falling off, so I decoupaged it with fabric and put in new endpapers. Not professionally done, by any means, but it was fun to do, and now my Bible is hopefully ready for the next 10 years.
I sewed a new little tote bag. It’s just a simple bag without any gussets, and is perfect for rolling up to tuck into my purse for a day out shopping.
I got a new quilt for my bed. I loved the one that I made out of vintage sheets, but because it wasn’t 100% cotton, I found that I often overheated during the night. I was originally looking for a white quilt, but couldn’t find anything in a soft white. When my mom found this green and cream floral one by Laura Ashley, I knew it was the one!
Well, that’s what I’ve been up to the past few months. I didn’t plan to take a break over the summer; it just kind of happened, but I’m planning to blog more this season. I hope you are all doing well, and have a great weekend!
I don’t know why I didn’t post these photos back in June… I didn’t even sort and edit them at the time, but they are too cute to leave languishing in a folder!
My mom got Khaki Campbell ducklings this year, in the hopes she can raise them for eggs. They are almost fully grown now (though still a few more months before they are laying), so it’s fun to look back and see what they looked like a couple of months ago.
Happy Saturday, dear Readers. I haven’t done a Social Saturday post for ages, so these photos are from the past couple of months. Lately I’ve been…
Loving– Flowers, flowers and more flowers! First tulips, then lilacs, irises, roses and soon peonies…it’s such a pretty time of year.
Reading – I just finished David Copperfield by Charles Dickens and enjoyed it immensely. I listened to this version here. My favourite quote from the book is this one, which is such a great example of Dickens’ wonderfully wordy descriptions that I had to share.
“The pigeon-pie was not bad, but it was a delusive pie: the crust being like a disappointing head, phrenologically speaking: full of lumps and bumps, with nothing particular underneath.”
Making– While I’ve been listening to David Copperfield, I’ve been busy sewing up a storm. Some projects have turned out well, others not so well. It’s all learning experience. And soon I’ll have a few new pieces for my summer capsule wardrobe.
ps- my mom’s snake plant bloomed! Apparently, it’s pretty rare for them to do so.
Watching– I was reminded of the Peter Rabbit show we watched when I was a kid and so I searched out a clip of the introduction song. I love absolutely everything about it so much- this is my childhood in one short clip.
Finding– Thrifted treasures! My sister and I went to a bunch of garage sales and thrift shops and found so many goodies, including a Beatrix Potter calendar from 1979 (This one was a gift from my sister. I could actually use the calendar next year since it will fall on the correct days!), some vintage books, bamboo purse handles, a Jadeite mug, some blue and white transferware dishes, wooden rulers (I can’t pass up a good wooden ruler!), and (not pictured) some wooden crates.
Thankful For– Tea parties! This picture is from one earlier this spring. It’s nice to have an occasion to pull out all the teacups and linens.
Well, that’s all for now. I’ve been up to my ears lately in renovations, so I’ll probably be working away at that this weekend. I hope you are doing well and that you have a wonderful day, whatever you have planned. ❤︎
When you collect hats, you soon discover you also need a way to store them. Back in the day, this used to be easy since most hats came in a hatbox. However, most of my hats, either vintage or new, have not come in a conveniently sized box. I used to display them by hanging them on the wall or placing them on hat stands, (I rotate my wardrobe for fall/winter and spring/summer, and only put out the current season) but they always got so dusty. I now only keep out a couple of my really wide brimmed hats that are too large to fit in boxes and keep all the rest in labelled boxes. (I use hanging chalkboard tags so I know at a glance what is inside)
About 10 years ago, round boxes were a very popular trend for storage boxes, and you could find them readily at stores such as Michaels and Home Sense, but at some point people realized that round boxes don’t make the best storage boxes for things other than hats! It’s too bad that I didn’t stock up at the time, because it’s almost impossible to find round boxes now.
Anyways, to get to the point of this post, every once in a while I do still come across a hatbox at the thrift store. They are usually in very ugly colours, or have seen better days. However, it is very easy to re-cover a box with either wallpaper or fabric, so that’s what I did to transform this one!
Supplies You Will Need
a hatbox with a lid
fabric or wallpaper of your choice
Mod Podge or other decoupage medium
tacky glue to secure edges, optional
masking tape
knife and scissors
ruler and measuring tape
foam brush to spread the glue/decoupage medium
lace or ribbon for the lid, optional
I used an unbleached canvas for the outside of my hatbox, and some Art Nouveau wallpaper I had leftover from this antique dresser refinishing project. I chose the canvas because it is neutral and doesn’t clash with the other boxes I’ve done with vintage map printed wallpaper. The thickness of this fabric did lead to a few challenges, but I still like how it turned out.
First, the key to covering a box, is that you need to take into account the thickness of the fabric or wallpaper, which will add bulk. Depending on how tightly the lid fits onto the box already, 2 layers of fabric may add too much width for the lid to fit on afterwards. If you need to make your box a little bit smaller to fit the lid, then remove the wall of the box from the bottom by sliding a blade between them. Cut a vertical line along the seam.
Next, cut a piece out of the side/ring of the box, to make the box circumference smaller. I took out 3/8″ for this box. My canvas fabric was pretty thick, so if you have a thinner fabric or paper, you will probably not need to remove quite that much. Take out a small sliver, and then figure out how much you need to remove by wrapping the top edge with the fabric and testing it. Once you’ve made the side wall smaller, tape it back together with masking tape.
Then, trace the new circle onto the bottom piece and trim away the excess so the bottom will fit back inside the smaller box walls.
Before you tape the box back together, take a moment to trace the circle onto your fabric and lining pieces. It’s much easier to use the deconstructed ring to trace your lining pieces first, rather than after you’ve reassembled it into a box. (I know this because I didn’t remember to do it this time!)
Trace one inside circle for the bottom lining of your box.
Trace one inside circle for the bottom fabric of your box.
Trace one outside circle onto the lining for the lid.
Tape the bottom of the box back to the ring by wrapping tape around the outside, notching it and folding down the tabs. Don’t worry about taping the inside of the box, because the fabric/wallpaper will reinforce that seam.
One more step, if your box is plastic coated, is to sand it lightly so the glue will adhere better. Also, if your box has a bold pattern, like this one did, you may want to check to see if it will show through your fabric. If it does, then cover the box with a coat of white paint before you move on to the next step.
Cut a piece of fabric the length of the circumference of the box plus 1″ and the height of the box plus 1″. Using Mod Podge, glue the fabric to the outside of the box, folding under the raw fabric edge where it meets. If the Mod Podge won’t hold it in place, you can use glue to secure the edge.
Cut triangle shaped notches into the fabric all the way around and fold the tabs down gluing them to the bottom of the hatbox.
Take your bottom fabric piece, or you can do as I did and use a piece of neutral coloured wallpaper, and glue to the bottom of the box to cover the tabs/raw edges. Smooth the bottom, and weight it to hold in place so it won’t curl as it dries.
Turn the box back upright, and simply fold the fabric to the inside and glue in place. Use clothespins if you need to hold it in place until it dries.
Measure a piece of your lining the exact length of the circumference and height of the box wall. Now take your piece and mark a line 1/2″ from the edge. Cut notches up the line. Fold the notches along that line. Coat the inside of the box with Mod Podge and then place the lining on the inside of the box walls. Once you’ve pressed and smoothed the lining and notches into place, you can place your bottom lining circle over top to finish the box.
Now the lid can be done it two ways. I used a thick canvas fabric, so I had to cover the top of my lid with this method, below. If you’re using wallpaper or thin fabric, cover the lid using the same method as for the box- covering the sides first and then using the lining and top circle to cover the notches and raw edges.
If you’re using a thicker fabric like me, then continue with this method.
Trace your lid onto the fabric, and then add 1/2″ all the way around. Attach your fabric piece to the top of the lid and then notch and fold down the 1/2″ along the rim of the lid.
Cut a piece of the fabric the length of the circumference of the lid + 1″ and the height of your lid plus 1″. Glue this piece around the outside of the lid to cover the notches. I cut my top edge very precisely since it was going to be exposed and not folded under. If you have a piece of ribbon the width of your lid, this would be a nice alternative, but I didn’t have a coordinating ribbon.
Now trace your lid onto your lining and add 1/2″ all the way around. Notch the edge of the circle in the same way you did the fabric for the top. Glue in place on the inside of the lid and then fold your fabric to the inside covering the notches with the fabric.
Mine ended up a bit messy where the two meet since I left it with the raw edge, because I didn’t want to add any more bulk. If you have a thinner fabric you will be able to cover those raw edges much more neatly, or you could even cover them with a ribbon.
My fabric also ended a bit lumpy on the outside, since the notches showed through, I glued a piece of lace over the top to disguise it. I really like how it looks so I might even add lace or ribbon around the lid as a detail in the future, even if I don’t need it for disguising purposes!
And then with that, your hatbox is done. Once you let it dry for 24 hours or so, you can start using it.
How do you store your hats? Do you like to have them out on display or tucked into a hatbox?
