As far as clothing patterns go, I tend to agree with you. I look through the Big 4 books and see "Vintage" this and "Vintage" that. You know what goes through my mind? "I'll just go home and look through my own patterns, I have plenty of 'vintage' patterns!"

Then there are the craft patterns. If I want to make a tote bag, or a puppet, etc., I can probably find the pattern online. Sometimes those are free, and sometimes I have to pay a little. So be it. When I was sewing for school programs, I could pick up a free pattern for elf shoes, or elf collars, etc., online as well.

Last spring, when I was sewing doll clothes, I managed to snare a few of the Simp-McCalls-Butterick 18" doll patterns in the Joann's sales. But then I took a look at Pixie Faire online, and found that I liked their patterns, they were more modern.

I think the Big 4 may be struggling financially, and are releasing old patterns because it's less expensive. Try to convince the sewing public to accept "vintage" as "in style", that sort of thing.

Donna

I don't sew just to sew. I suspect there are sewists who would take a stab at a vintage pattern just to have the experience of trying a new technique and seeing the result. If someone came to me and wanted one of those patterns made for her, I'd gladly accept the challenge. Well, I'd accept it with the caveat that she may not look like the model on the pattern envelope, no matter how well I craft the item. Almost no one is that slim.

I remember the event that nearly stopped me from sewing my own clothes altogether. I spent a lot of effort making a blazer. I'd been a size ten - forever - at the time, so I didn't bother trying it on or checking the fit during the process. Got it nearly finished and it was HUGE. I was working for a tailor shop at the time, so I took it in to my boss to see if it was salvageable. He pinned out about three inches down the center back. Of course, we realized that threw the balance off.

I haven't had to look at instructions much, but I hear they're lacking clarity in today's patterns.

I don't bother sewing what I can buy for myself - cheaper. I live in an area where there are not only the large national surplus-and-salvage stores (Home goods and whatever it's clothing partner is, and well, you've seen them) but we also have a couple small chains locally based. It used to save money to make your own clothes, but it doesn't any more. I'm glad I *can* if I want to. I make a living making other people's clothes fit. But there's only a Joann's near me, and very little fabric there that I'd wear in public. It's a land of stiff, shiny, sparkly, cosplay fabric, with a backdrop of fleece. Even though other sewists loved Nicole Miller fabric, I couldn't see myself wearing it.

I saw plenty on the Vogue site that didn't involve a lot of fit or structure. I just don't see *me* wearing it. I'm pretty sure I made V 8379 while I was in high school around 1974. Oh, to have a waist again.

One of the greatest cons about sewing anything from a vintage pattern is finding the suitable fabric for them. Almost everyone of the vintage ones in the catalog is a garment that requires a woven fabric. Those were from a time when good quality woven fabrics were plentiful. Now, it is rare to find anything nice and woven and that does not have synthetic stretch fibers that completely change the hand of the fabric and make it unsuitable for most of those old patterns.

Good woven fabric has been replaced by fabric made from old soda bottles/petrochemicals.

Just horrible!!

I did some American Girl doll sewing too and I found the free online patterns to be very good, but I think that they cater more to the adult who sews for their own doll. I was sewing for a doll for my young grand daughter and needed items that were easier for her to handle and that she could relate to better.. The Pixie Faire patterns are good and are intriguing and almost make me want to go and buy myself a doll and sew for her.

One problem that I had with sewing these small doll items is that it is difficult to buy small measures of trims like lace and ribbons. My local Joanns, being the rat hole that it is, does not offer much of a selection by the cut measure. Most ribbons are sold on the spool. For many of these little items all you might need is about a foot of something that will serve for many items.

But, it is non existent.

I was sewing for the Wellie Wisher doll and I did end up buying a pattern for her. If you have the essential elements of bodice, pants and skirt you can create all kinds of things on your own.

Online is a great resource for patterns for many things. That includes patterns for knitting, also.

I have never looked through the pattern catalog and been so uninspired. And, I have been tripping through pattern catalogs for a very long time. I have one from probably the early 80s, Butterick, I think. It is a real relic of days gone by and that will probably never return.

Last time I looked at the modern printed version, it was quite thin and the layout was different. Different layout is fine, but the offerings were pretty thin, as well. And, they are all so dated, even the ones that are NOT vintage or inspired by vintage. So many old shirtdress patterns! When is the last time you saw someone wearing a shirtdress?

I have read conflicting assessments of Joanns in this year of the virus. It looks like they are continuing to try and steer that ship into a different direction. It looks like they are quickly moving away from garment sewing and more towards the glue and glitter stuff, and the offering of places for "makers", as those who were formerly known as "crafters" are now known.

I find much more inspiration online, and the ability to share through blogs is great.

It seems that Australia may still have some fabric availability. I see some intriguing pattern companies out of Aus and I read about folks there going on vacation to places around the Pacific nations where the textile trade seems to be stronger. They blog about buying fabrics while on

"holiday".

The style offerings from these foreign designers and pattern drafters offers a different view from the old and stale and tired offerings of the big 4.

About the only thing that I feel that I can count on anymore is linen that I get from an online source. I like a comfortable and simple pattern and unstructured pattern to go along with it. There is much beauty and pleasure in simplicity of design.

Yeah, I, too am vintage and have some vintage patterns. But, my older and wiser self is also bigger and better than that one that wore that size.

There was excellent styling in those offerings just a few decades ago. Now, not much at all.

Just took a second look at Vogue. V 1746 resembles what a friend of mine has worn - for twenty years. Variations on a theme of course: black, black and white prints, black with jewel tones, but yup. She can pull it off well. And because so many pieces are black or white, she can swap them around. I'd just look like I gave up and swathed myself in yards of fabric. On a practical level, I just can't. I'm scooching down and pinning hems and getting under the sink to tighten up whatever's leaking. I just can't wear flowing things without tripping over them and stepping on them. I've tried.

The sink thing isn't really part of my job description, it's just easier for me to do it than call the landlord.

There was a makers' space for fiber artists (well, anyone who wanted to show up, I guess) near where I worked, but it closed four or five years ago.

Are you talking about Vogue 1746 with the long coat and skirt?

If so, it does look pretty impractical to wear to do anything real.

I think that many of the clothes that are in the stores are impractical for doing much of anything real, as well. So much is focused on being dressed up to go somewhere. There are many fewer practical options for everyday clothes to do what needs to be done.

Like you, I lead a practical life of do it yourself and I dont want sleeves that I have to fight with or slinky tops or skin tight pants that dont keep you warm in the winter and keep you plenty hot in the summer. And I do hope we have seen the last of those tops with a missing shoulder, or two.

I like my garments to be loose fitting, but some that I have seen are just too much!

There was a trend in recent years towards dressing with layers of loose elements.

I think that the Europeans did/do it better than Americans. Whereas the European styles were simple and graceful, the American way of wearing loose garments seems to involve way too many flounces and way too many layers and came across looking more as if one were dressed to play a pirate or a generic tavern wench in some local theatre production. It was way too theatrical to be taken seriously by anyone over the age of 18.

Some of these loose styles can be too much.

If you look at some past history you will see that wearing volumes of fabric has been popular in other times. Some of those Civil War era skirts were yards of fabric pleated around the waist! I dont know how anyone got anything accomplished wearing that much fabric around their waist!

Not everyone was Scarlett Ohara and wore hoops. Some of those who reenact would have you believe that all ladies wore hoops under their skirts. No one wants to dress like the poor folks or those out in the wilderness. They all want to be the lady of means.

I like loose fit and comfort, but too loose and dangly can be supremely annoying and I avoid that.

I could go to Kohls right now and browse the racks of clothes and find next to nothing at all that is suitable to do real things in. Even jeans and t-shirts are not what they used to be. Good, practical and useful clothing is not what it once was. Now it seems to be more about style rather than real function. And, it is my opinion that most of the style is pretty awful and the function is almost non existent. I found the same lack of practicality in the offerings from the Duluth Trading company. Even though they make an effort to at least have pockets in the women's clothes that they sell, the clothes are made of awful and uncomfortable synthetic fabrics with much stretch to them.

Actually, I work in a clothing store that's somewhat upscale, and a lot of the wool now has a bit of spandex in it. Not most I'd say, but a significant portion. Meh - I just alter the stuff. It is amusing though, that in my lifetime fashion has cycled through the natural fibers of the 50s and 60s to Qianna (!) and polyester, back to natural fibers again in the late seventies. In the 80s there was the microfiber craze - hope never to deal with that again - \then back to natural. And now---the big thing my boss tries to include is clothing made from upcycled fibers. Some of it looks just fine. One sweater just - well, it just looked dirty to me, brand new out of the box.

I remember ramie, do you? Oh, it was supposed to be this wonderful, new natural fiber that was washable but looked like linen. I purchased exactly two garments made of ramie. Both looked like dishrags after they were washed. Keeping my powder dry on hemp. And bamboo. I know someone who had a bamboo bathrobe. Really absorbent when she came out of the shower. Hung up the robe, put it on the next morning, and it was still damp. I have to say, we have hanging in the shop a sport coat made from bamboo, and it looks like linen, but doesn't wrinkle. It may be a winner,

It's all above my pay grade. I love better living through chemistry. I'm not sure that just because something is new that it's also better.

The mix of fibers in a textile results in a textile that is difficult to dispose of.

I perceive a big and lasting change right around the turn of the century that has only become more pronounced. The demand and production of more and more synthertic fiber textiles was ramped up to the point that it tipped the scales towards the synthetic fibers in a manner that almost renders it non reversible. Once the factories move towards production with the synthetic fibers, there is no going back to retrofit it all.

All of this talk about sustainability and being circular is mostly just feel good marketing and nonsense.

The only real and positive thing that the world population can do is to reduce consumption, of just about everything that we over consume.

It goes back to that age old wisdom about how an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure. It can be so aptly applied to this situation of over consumption.

The best is not to create the problem in the first place, rather than having to find a solution, or a "cure", for it