Monday, January 4, 2010

More wonderful creations by the designer Mainbocher






Some simply beautiful gowns by Mainbocher, who designed a lot of the Duchess of Windsor's clothes, including her amazing column-like wedding dress wedding dress and trousseau for her marriage to the former Edward VIII (the Duke of Windsor). If you'd like to know more about this designer go to http://community.livejournal.com/bygonefashion/228353.html

What happened to that gorgeous wedding ensemble by Mainbocher the Duchess of Windsor wore?

It was kindly given by The Duchess of Windsor (Wallis Simpson) to the Metropolitan Musium of Art, New York in 1950.

Famous quotes from the Duchess of Windsor





"You must always look like you stepped out of a bandbox."

"I'm trying to collect money for a third clinic, but I hope you don't mind if I buy one or two dresses."

"You have no idea how hard it is to live out a great romance!"

"A fool would know that with tweeds or other daytime clothes one wears gold, and that with evening clothes one wears platinum."

"My endowments were definitely on the scanty side. Nobody ever called me beautiful or even pretty."

"The most important thing is to take care of your face. The other end you sit on."

"You have to wear black, aging or not, because when the little black dress is right, there is nothing else to wear in its place."

"I am not a beautiful woman. I'm nothing to look at, so the only thing I can do is dress better than anyone else. If everyone looks at me when I enter a room, my husband can feel proud of me. That's my chief responsibility."

"In my opinion, there is only one important rule about clothes: it is that they should be so simple and unobtrusive as to seem unimportant."

"I have always had the courage for the new things that life sometimes offers."

"A woman's life can really be a succession of lives, each revolving around some emotionally compelling situation or challenge, and each marked off by some intense experience."

"For a gallant spirit there can never be defeat."

"Never explain, never complain."

www.divasthesite.com

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Fabulous original vintage patterns







































Have just discovered a great website selling a large range of original vintage dressmaking patterns http://www.sovintagepatterns.com/. These patterns always take me back to a slower time when we made our clothes after carefully selecting the pattern and fabrics. Most were successful but I can remember a few disasters. I just wish I had kept more of these clothes after so much time and effort went into making them. Seeing these wonderful patterns makes me feel like taking up the scissors and sewing machine again.