Gifts for Thee, Gifts for Me

Part of the irony of shopping for gifts for friends and family is that I often find just as many things that I would like to see stuffed in my own stocking. Does this happen to everyone, or just me, I wonder. But I digress. Here are a few select items just right for a sewing and/or fashionable friend or relative, or maybe for a treat for yourself, as well.

Colette Patterns has come out with a Sewing Planner which is divided into two sections: Spring/Summer and Fall/Winter. There is lots of room for listing goals, priorities, and inspirations, as well as two-page layouts for individual projects. This planner makes sense to me, and I think it will finally encourage me to keep a record of fabric swatches for each of my projects – something I have been wanting to do for a long time, but never got around to doing!

The December 2016/January 2017 issue of Vogue Patterns featured, in its Must Haves section, Handy Tape II. Although I haven’t ordered this yet, I am going to (if I don’t get it in my stocking), as I think it could come in quite, well as they say, handy! It is self-adhesive repositionable tape marked in 12” repeats.

Many of you have probably already purchased a copy of The Tunic Bible, by Sarah Gunn and Julie Starr. Who doesn’t like a tunic? They really are timeless, which appeals to my penchant for clothes that transcend current trends. Once you see some of the examples in this book, you will definitely want to make one – or more. I guarantee you will love the photographs and diagrams in this book. After perusing The Tunic Bible, I discovered the perfect solution for what to make out of a piece of vintage embroidered linen which I own. Bought on a whim, its future was a mystery to me until I realized it will make a beautiful tunic dress. More on that in a future post!

For those of you who, like me, love the fashions from the 1950s, and have a preference for Vogue patterns, you really should go on eBay and find yourself one of these handkerchiefs.

The one I own still has its original tags on it.

The designer was Pat Prichard, who along with Tammis Keefe, was known for her whimsical and creative compositions for textiles (although Keefe was the better known of the two.) The colors are charming, the fabric is a beautiful handkerchief weight linen, and the design is a dressmaker’s dream. Most of us don’t use linen handkerchiefs any more, but this one, framed, would be perfect for the walls in your sewing room.

How delightful that this handkerchief features Vogue patterns!

No list of gifts is complete without something for pleasure reading (although I must admit that reading sewing books is pleasure for me, too!) If you, or a friend, is a lover of historical fiction, then “run, do not walk”, to get a copy of The Time in Between, by Maria Duenas. The heroine is a dressmaker and her profession both saves her from ruin and puts her life in jeopardy. Set during the Spanish Civil War, in the lead up to World War II, this book is also a love story, a story of redemption, and a story of resilience and bravery in the face of incredible odds. It is a wonderful, captivating read, and the descriptions of fabrics, patterns, sewing deadlines, and fashions will thrill anyone with a knowledge of fashion sewing. I read the English translation from the original Spanish. I love this story!

Perhaps you have a young girl for which to buy a special gift. I have written on this book before, but I want to again recommend Brave Irene by  William Steig. As the title implies, it is also a book about bravery, pint-sized, but every bit as meaningful, especially for a young future dressmaker. The story is charming, the illustrations unique, and the lessons implied are ones of old-fashioned values: family, love, duty, and perseverance. I love this story, too!

This book is still in print and available on Amazon, of course!

The title page.

I will end my list of gifts with something that would be right only for those of you who don’t mind splurging on an occasional ready-to-wear piece. But, really, who among us who loves haute couture could possibly pass on these pajamas?

Featured in the Gumps (of San Francisco) Catalogue, they are called “Fashion Week in Paris” pajamas. If we can’t be in Paris for Fashion Week, then surely we can dream about doing so, right?

Right about now I am dreaming of a white Christmas, as the song goes. Whatever you may be dreaming of in this busy, happy season, I hope you find it, settled comfortably under your tree or, especially, comfortably in your heart.