Thursday, May 2, 2013

1920s in Berlin

There's not been a whole lot of sewing happening lately since I've been in Berlin for the past couple months, taking language classes and soaking up the unique atmosphere of the city.  I did, however, bring along the pieces for a 1920s dress which I had cut out earlier this year, and which I then finished in time for a 20's party here.  I'll write more about the event later once pictures show up, but for now here are pictures of the new dress taken at an art nouveau era building (now hotel) in Schöneberg.


My dress is based off an orginal which was for sale on Ebay, and is made of midnight blue velvet with insets of crinkled silver silk lamé.  The overall design is really quite simple, and it took almost no time at all to pattern.  Since I did most of the sewing away from home and far far away from my sewing machine, the whole dress is sewn by hand.

It was really fun to wear this style... I'd not done anything from the 20s before even though I've always liked the time period.  I was constantly amazed at how incredibly simple it all was, especially when you constrast it with clothing from the Edwardian era.  To go from a dress which is a feat of engineering with mind-boggling closure systems to something which you can just slip over your head must have been world-changing for the women back then. 




It was actually slightly stressful cutting out the skirt... I'm normally used to doing earlier periods where the skirts almost reach the ground and the pieces are about 37-40 inches long, while this skirt was only about 18 long including seam allowance.  I had to keep telling myself over and over that, no, I'd measured everything properly and it would be just fine.  But it still seems like the most scandelously short thing when I was cutting!


 

7 comments:

  1. you look perfect! love your dress, hair, everything!

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  2. This is fabulous!! I love it!!

    Caroline

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  3. The dress looks amazing! Just a question, I've been trying to find some 1920s looking shoes like the ones that you are wearing. Do you have any advice on where to find a pair?

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    1. Thank you! The shoes were bought a few years ago and I don't remember where, but you can find really nice 20s and vintage style shoes at Remix or BAIT Footware. Not the cheapest shoes in the world, but good quality and super sute!

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    2. Thanks for the tip! I'll have to go and check those stores out! :)

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  4. I love your outfit! And your tiara is gorgeous! :)

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