A 1950s Lilacs Easter Dress

The 1950s Easter dress this year is made from one of my favorite fabric prints I’ve used to date. (Fresh Lilacs by Maywood Studio.)  Made from a vintage mail order pattern, it has a Victorian air to it, thanks to the lace insertion panel and the satin ribbon trim.  I love projects that combine my two favorite eras!

Marian Martin Pattern # 9389

 The Marian Martin pattern I used is very unique in that it has no shaping in the bodice at all – the pattern is a loose, shift like garment that must be cinched in by a belt or sash in order to resemble the standard 1950s shirtwaist style.  It has a bit too much fabric in the bodice width, for a rather balloony fit, but I still love how it turned out.

This pattern has a rounded yoke, bodice gathers, and stiff winged collar.  I left off the sleeves as I prefer sleeveless dresses in spring and summer.  And I must say that the skirt is not really as full in real life as it looks in the pattern illustration!

 I added dark purple piping in the yoke seam on the back and front of the dress.  In the photo above you can see how the collar overlaps in the back, and that is due to a highly unusual collar piece.  Below is a picture of the overlapped collar, with the square portion which was stitched into the neckline.

But my favorite element of the dress by far is the lace insertion.  I simply LOVE the color lavender, so I knew I needed to do something really special with this material.

In the photo above, you can see that the bottom edge of the lace had scallops which I attached on the outside of the fabric.  The top edge of lace was hidden like normal insertion, though.  I did sew the lace over the fabric – (there was no gap like this photo shows).  The picture above was just from my “trial run” when I was trying to determine how the finished product would look.

Once the lace was stitched in place, I cut away the fabric underneath, folded it away from the lace, and stitched it neatly in place.  I adore the finished result. It’s quite sheer on its own, but with a white petticoat underneath the lavender lace really pops.

I love the almost old-world feel to it!  While I adore the polka dots of the 50s, there’s something so refreshing about a crisp, floral print frock.

Here’s a closeup of the fabric while I was sewing the self-made bias binding onto the sleeves.

My husband took me vintage hat shopping a few weeks back and we found this lovely antique number that I wore on Easter Sunday.  Sometimes I wish there were more occasions to wear hats…

So that’s my Easter dress for this year!  This has gotten to be a tradition.

Happy sewing and Happy Easter!

Katrina