From mother to daughter

[Kitty_Sheridan]

A nice story from todays paper about a girl who is the fourth generation to wear an 1884 wedding dress...

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/a...r-old-dress-worn-great-great-grandmother.html

 

[Miss Sis]

That's lovely. I somehow doubt I would fit in my Great Great Grandmother's dress! They were all shorties, for a start.

 

[BoPeep]

A few of my favorites . . .

my great grandmother's yellowware bowl and rolling pin were both passed down to me. This bowl was kept continuously filled with batches of bread and German potato salad (I have the recipes). Great Grandma emigrated from Austria to Milwaukee when she was in her early 20s (circa 1890).

I also have my grandmother's wedding cake topper. She and Grandpa were married in 1938.

 

[wahine]

I didn't know where else to post this.
The mother of a good friend of mine just moved into an old house that carries loads of remains of the past owner, an old lady. Now, she sent a package with some clothing to my friend, who handed most of it over to me (she's no vintage girl). Most of it is 60s/70s stuff or even later, but there is one dress that puzzles me.

My friend washed everything in the washing machine, although there were several items saying "100 % silk, don't wash". Almost unbelievable to me - all but one survived it without major changes/damages. The silk became a bit rough but still okay.
The yellow in the left is silk. I like the pattern of the one in the right, but it's too much. I think it might be nice as a blouse, worn to a navy pencil dress. What do you think?



Now, the one that fits the best is the one that makes me think. When was this made?

The fabric - probably some sort of rayon - looks fifties, but the design looks fourties to me. Especially the sleeves that carry some sort of a padding to enhance the puffy look, also the hip "attachments" (peplums? last pic) - I never saw this on a fifties dress. The collar seems to have been added later, also the zipper (which looks awful). Most of the dress has been sewn by hand, but there are also some machine stitches. This seems like a special dress to me, although it's not very wearable on an everyday basis




Sometimes, the smallest things are the ones that please the most.
Some not very nice collars were wrapped in a handkerchief which I just luvv!

Travelling motifs - my favorite - were very typical in the fifties in Germany - this is obviously a merchandising item of a shoe polish company (kiwi still exists today).

The sad part: my friend's mother has loads of other clothes and stuff in that house - way too much to send it all. Since she can't tell a 20s dress from an 80s dress, she can't really pick more things. The place is very far, neither she nor I have a car. She doesn't have a digi cam to take pics.
So the other stuff will go to the church or (I hope not!) to the trash can.
But, considering that she has no clue, she made a good pick and I'm grateful that both of them thought of me!

 

[Folly]

I didn't inherit anything from my grandparents, mostly everything I have from my grandmother was salvaged when her house was being cleared after she died. No one wanted any of these bits, which was lucky I suppose as they got to come home with me. Lots of lovely furniture was left in the house as we had nowhere to put it and I also left a tea set as there was no room for me to put it.

Broken watches which I couldn't sit back and see binned. I am a sentimental soul.

Cute 1950's purse.

A brooch she used to wear on her jacket.

The glass dish was my nan's

But I was given lots of costume jewellery and photos which I adore as well as these!

 

[Louise Anne]

I didn't inherit anything from my grandparents, mostly everything I have from my grandmother was salvaged when her house was being cleared after she died. No one wanted any of these bits, which was lucky I suppose as they got to come home with me. Lots of lovely furniture was left in the house as we had nowhere to put it and I also left a tea set as there was no room for me to put it.

Broken watches which I couldn't sit back and see binned. I am a sentimental soul.

Cute 1950's purse.

A brooch she used to wear on her jacket.

The glass dish was my nan's

But I was given lots of costume jewellery and photos which I adore as well as these!

What a nice group of items you have here, I bet the watches might not take much effort to get working again, the clothes drier was my night mare as a kid we had one the same and if it collapsed with the clothes on as there is only two wires stopping that from happening I was in so much trouble from Mum.

 

[Louise Anne]

I didn't know where else to post this.
The mother of a good friend of mine just moved into an old house that carries loads of remains of the past owner, an old lady. Now, she sent a package with some clothing to my friend, who handed most of it over to me (she's no vintage girl). Most of it is 60s/70s stuff or even later, but there is one dress that puzzles me.

My friend washed everything in the washing machine, although there were several items saying "100 % silk, don't wash". Almost unbelievable to me - all but one survived it without major changes/damages. The silk became a bit rough but still okay.
The yellow in the left is silk. I like the pattern of the one in the right, but it's too much. I think it might be nice as a blouse, worn to a navy pencil dress. What do you think?



Now, the one that fits the best is the one that makes me think. When was this made?

The fabric - probably some sort of rayon - looks fifties, but the design looks fourties to me. Especially the sleeves that carry some sort of a padding to enhance the puffy look, also the hip "attachments" (peplums? last pic) - I never saw this on a fifties dress. The collar seems to have been added later, also the zipper (which looks awful). Most of the dress has been sewn by hand, but there are also some machine stitches. This seems like a special dress to me, although it's not very wearable on an everyday basis




Sometimes, the smallest things are the ones that please the most.
Some not very nice collars were wrapped in a handkerchief which I just luvv!

Travelling motifs - my favorite - were very typical in the fifties in Germany - this is obviously a merchandising item of a shoe polish company (kiwi still exists today).

The sad part: my friend's mother has loads of other clothes and stuff in that house - way too much to send it all. Since she can't tell a 20s dress from an 80s dress, she can't really pick more things. The place is very far, neither she nor I have a car. She doesn't have a digi cam to take pics.
So the other stuff will go to the church or (I hope not!) to the trash can.
But, considering that she has no clue, she made a good pick and I'm grateful that both of them thought of me!

Gosh fabulous dresses here and you look wonderful wearing the red one.

 

[Folly]

Thank you Paul. The clothes horse recently fell, folded, onto my bare foot, my goodness it hurt! I would like to get the watches fixed, it's a skill I would like to learn as we also have a Westclox that got overwound and every time I see it, it niggles at me!

 

[wahine]

Gosh fabulous dresses here and you look wonderful wearing the red one.

Thank you Paul! My aunt, the tailor, picked the red dress up today to refresh it a bit, meaning she'll mend the broken seams, replace the shoulder pads with new ones (a bit smaller), get rid of the ugly zipper, and if she'll find a collar that matches a bit better (this one has been added later and is not as finely made as the dress), she'll replace that as well.
Now, I learned that the material isn't rayon but most likely crepe de chine (silk). That makes it even more remarkable that the dress survived the washing machine (the shoulder pads didn't, though).

 

[wahine]

I didn't inherit anything from my grandparents, mostly everything I have from my grandmother was salvaged when her house was being cleared after she died. No one wanted any of these bits, which was lucky I suppose as they got to come home with me. Lots of lovely furniture was left in the house as we had nowhere to put it and I also left a tea set as there was no room for me to put it.

Broken watches which I couldn't sit back and see binned. I am a sentimental soul.

Cute 1950's purse.

Folly, those watches are cute, I like esp. the one in top. I wear one like that (from my grandma) once in a while and it feels wonderful. Maybe you can have it repaired. Over here, such services are pretty expensive, hopefully it's different in the UK.
Also love the purse

 

[Folly]

I'm glad you like them wahine x I like dainty watches very much, as I have tiny wrists, so I really would like to get at least one of these going again.
My husband got a pocket watch fixed about three years ago and that cost him £100, so I think it'd probably be comparable, if not more.
The purse is very sweet but now sits looking pretty as I don't want to damage the zip, it feels almost sticky and I'd hate to break it.

 

[wahine]

...
My husband got a pocket watch fixed about three years ago and that cost him £100, so I think it'd probably be comparable, if not more.

ouch!

The purse is very sweet but now sits looking pretty as I don't want to damage the zip, it feels almost sticky and I'd hate to break it.

did you try to rub over the zipper teeth with a pencil? it usually helps to make it glide a little better.

 

[JennieWren]

My Gramma's wedding dishes. They are Shelley "Dainty Blue" pattern, and a complete set of 12, including the tea service and soup tureen. They were her absolute pride, and on prominent display in her home. Every birthday she would take them out for use, and she never failed to remind me that they would be mine some day and to take good care of them, then she would tell about how her father had saved up to get her something really posh for her wedding, and how she had never expected it since she was the last of six girls. She came from a poor family of working musicians and was very proud to have a set of "good dishes". They are really very beautiful. I have them in a cabinet in my dining room, and some day they and their story will go to my daughter, but I'm not brave enough to ever use them. I am so terrified of breaking them!

 

[Folly]

I shall try the pencil trick wahine!