vintage dresses

I wish the texture of this dress would show up more, the photo is nice but the dress is even better in person!

Come springtime, I am getting some new shoes!

Don't you just love it when you find a vintage dress at the thrift? Well, I had an incredible day when I found this pink dress. It did have some soiling under the arms, but I searched the web for how to "wash" a vintage garment, I found out that these spots may not be from feminine glistening or a deodorant left on the garment, rather they may be the result of gases that are being released over time. Click here to learn more. All that to say, the spots were suppose to come out with a little baking soda and water paste. Some sites said mix baking soda with white vinegar. Well, I tried that and a lot of the stains did come out but not enough to be able to wear the garment. So, I did the unthinkable and hand washed the dress. Be careful if you are thinking of doing this to a vintage piece. With vintage pieces there are usually only one or two tags with the size of the garment and a company name. This dress was no exception, it had only the size listed, there were no washing instructions and no identification of fabric type. So, I was taking a chance, but the garment felt sturdy and sometimes you just need to do what you think might work, so I hand washed it. I am thrilled that I did. The stains came out along with a bunch of brown colored dirt and what remained was this clean, soft beautiful dress! It is in very wearable condition. Later in the spring, my sister is getting married by the pond on our property, I am thinking this might be a good dress to wear for her wedding day. 

I am going to finish this dress and post on it, it looks really cute on.

I also found this blue polka dot dress at the thrift that I am going to refashion. It fits so well, but I want to make a hemline adjustment to it and make more of an Aline rather than a full skirt. I have chunky legs so the hemline needs to fall in the right place or it's not too flattering. I believe this dress is not as old as the pink one. I would say maybe the 80's, my mom said the pink one looks like something she owned back in the 50's. Well, I am glad to find that there is still some vintage treasures to be found out there. Caring for them and "washing" them can be a hit or miss, but with a little care and some study on how to clean a garment,  it can work out.


Gina