Monday Funday 18: Vintage Gypsy Style

Fun board requests always excite me!!  The bride who requested this board wants to create a 1930s gypsy/carnival feel with an jewel-tone eggplant and dark teal color palette.  She also hoped to incorporate stars and tarot cards (used here as the escort cards).  There are a ton of great elements in this board, but I love the veil the most!  It definitely portrays that vintage gypsy feel.  The hanging umbrellas are just amazing too, and the use of vintage suitcases is the perfect touch.

sources:  Luna and Chloe Weddings, Green Wedding Shoes, Style Me Pretty, Element, The Knotty Bride, Ruffled (x2), Blue Sky Papers, Bridal Musings

Vintage Sewing Pattern: Casual Daywear in the 1930s & 1940s

Vintage patterns never fail to inspire or have me wishing more than ever that I knew how to sew. (Is it too late for me to learn, I wonder?) These vintage sewing pattern images are also terrific for seeing what styles of shoes, handbags, hats, and gloves women wore with their dresses! And once in awhile you see a bit of jewelry too!


These vintage patterns all look simple and chic, but upon a closer look we notice the pleated details on the bodice, the small darts on the shoulders, the gored skirt, the slightly puffed sleeves, the buttoned cuffs... so many little details.

Image credits: All of these vintage 1940s and 1930s sewing patterns can be purchased at New Vintage Lady

Vintage Streetstyle | Real Style + Fashions from the 1930s & 1940

These vintage photographs were selected specifically because the clothes the women are wearing don't appear too costume-y or out of reach. Sometimes I see many beautiful gorgeous vintage 30s and 40s dresses at online vintage shops or even at vintage fashion expos, but I always wonder when would I wear these? They will only gather dust in my closet. So, I always tend to gravitate towards casual daywear vintage clothing as opposed to formal wear.

And even though these lovely vintage gals are in their casual clothes, don't they look so dapper anyway? They would frown upon my casual "going for a bike ride" outfit of leggings, t-shirt, and sneakers!


Image Credits: Magnolia Blossoms (c) 1940, Three Lovely Ladies, Two Girls on a Bicycle (c) 1936, Bette & Midge, Showing some leg (c) 1942, Lounging in the Park, Borghese Bologna anni 30, Ladies in Stripes, On The Fence

Vintage Streetstyle | Real Style + Fashions from the 1930s

I cannot express enough how looking through vintage photographs can be the best source for learning more about vintage clothing and styles from the past! And old photographs are just super fun to look at anyway ^_^. Here are a few of my favorites from the "Original 1930s Photos" Flickr Group.


I LOVE ♥ ♥ ♥ 1930s style. I always feel like the 30s has too much of the 20s and too much of the 40s so that sometimes the 30s are a little hard to define. But as far as my personal style goes, I find the 30s to be my main source of inspiration. Loose trousers (belted), feminine blouses that aren't too broad across the shoulders always with a pretty detail (collars, ties, bows, etc), and I love little floral prints and soft flowing fabrics. Also, the length of most of the items are pretty close to the length of everything I wear, but then again, that probably has a lot to do with me being a smidgen over 5 feet tall. *hehe* So everything is below the knee...

Mmmm... I would wear every single outfit depicted in each of these photographs, even the little girls' blouses. So darn cute!

For more about Vintage Fashion from the 1930s, check out our 1930s category!

Dating Vintage: Vintage Sweaters, Twin Sets, + Cardigans from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s

There is something about rainy cloudy days that makes me wish I had more sweaters in my closet. Particularly vintage sweaters and to get even more specific, vintage sweaters from the 1930s, 1940s, and the 1950s.

I never seem to spot them on my many vintage adventures, or perhaps it's because I am not really sure how a sweater prior to the 60s should look. So, to help me, and to help you I hope, here are some advertisements, vintage knitting patterns, and other wonderful images of vintage sweaters from the 1930s, 1940s, and the 1950s.

/// Vintage 1950s Sweaters


One of the things I noticed about sweaters in the 1950s are the popularity of dolman sleeves and towards the late 1950s into the 60s the shapes got a bit more boxy. (But that's another post!) Cardigans and twin sets were also very popular in the 1950s especially embellished styles with fur collars and sleeves or delicate embroidery or fancy beading.

/// Vintage 1940s Sweaters


Sweaters and knitwear in the 1940s were a lot more fitted usually with puff sleeved details and ribbed waistlines. Most of the advertisements and catalog images and knit patterns I have seen for 1940s sweaters they almost always are fitted at the waist and broader along the shoulders. Vintage 1940s sweaters also were cropped shorter in comparison to later versions. A popular sleeve length for 1940s sweaters appears to be right above the elbows.

/// Vintage 1930s Sweaters


One of the aspects I noticed about vintage sweaters from the 1930s was the looseness in shape along the bodice. Most of the knitting pattern images I found were more blouson in shape and there were definitely a lot of bow and sailor tie inspired details on the neckline (which I love love!)

Summer in August: Fashion Illustrations & Patterns from the 1930s

Vintage 1930s dresses and frocks made from silk crêpe fabrics in solid and dainty prints. I especially loved the shirtwaist dress with large sleeves (model 8388) and strangely enough I have those shoes (not from the 30s, but from Neiman Marcus clearance center!)

Image credits: Sue Tarr on Flickr, 1930's Fashion Set

Vintage Clothing & Fashion in the Movies: "The Women" by George Cukor 1939

Fabulous vintage clothes, don't you think? Some of the costumes are so outlandish in the best sort of way! The "eyes" sweater for example... it's so interesting, I could easily see this being snapped up in a heart beat at a vintage shop.



Image screencap credits: Live Journal via Film Stills