Vintage Look- 1930's Depression Era Flour Sack dress

This 1930's dress is one of my favorites. It is from the era of the Great Depression, a time when many women turned to cloth from flour and feed sacks to make their clothes. My moma was born in 1951 and can remember going along to pick out the flour so that she could have a pattern she liked for her clothes. And lots of that cloth then found its way into the quilts Grandma Betty made. I have one on my bed right now...

I like to wonder about the women who first owned my dresses. This woman had a wonderful eye, the pattern and colors in this dress are so fun. It is very well-made ( still going strong today!) and in a popular style of the time.

It also has deep slash pockets. Lots of my vintage dresses have pockets, which is so handy. Women who don't wear pants have a dearth of pockets. I mean, I have to carry my pocket knife in my purse, for goodness sake! In the above picture I am wearing the super sensible and hideous tan flats that I wore to work at the Wooden Spoon. They are comfortable, and so I will wear them till something better comes along.

The shoes above are much better! They were a pass-along gift from my sweet friend, Andrea. Her sister got them from a friend who couldn't wear them. The sister couldn't wear them and passed them to Andy. They were a hair too small for her, and so she gave them to me. Fourth time's the charm, or something like that.

They are very sweet leather heels from... Sweden, I think it was?

The dress had a decorative tab at the neck that was missing the button that originally adorned it. I replaced it with one of my Great Granny's Bakelite pins. I think the yellow daisy is perfect with the dress pattern and color, and it is just the size of a button. It's even the appropriate age, which I love.

The fabric of this dress had been washed and worn so much that it is as soft as a baby's blanket. But, it also has a few places that have worn through in it's long life. One of the greatest things for repairing vintage dresses (or vintage tablecloths for that matter) is iron-on patches. It is almost impossible to make a cloth patch that doesn't call attention to the hole. Instead, choose the closest color of iron-on patch to your garment and apply it on the inside. This one is so close a match that when I tried to show the holes to someone, I couldn't find them while I was wearing it! Not only does it fill in the hole, it stabilizes the fabric where it is delicate, and keeps the edges from fraying and widening the hole when you wash it. They are just fantastic!

You can tell the age of a garment by its cloth, and style. But you can also tell by the way it is made. In the 20's and 30's most dresses pulled on over the head and had a side closure that fastened with snaps or hook-and-eyes. This dress has both, and they are a motley assortment of whatever the lady had on hand. Remember, this was a time when you simply made due with what you had. No one was heading to Wal-mart for matching snaps! In the 40's this side opening was closed with a metal zipper. In the 50's the zipper began to be located in the back, although some were still on the side. In the 60's they began using nylon zippers, and by 1968, almost all zippers were plastic. And there's you a little history lesson...

These shoes are lovely and would go with just about anything, but, unfortunately they are not going to take the place of my ugly shoes. These have wooden soles and are very stiff, so I don't see myself wearing these to the restaurant. (What is it with me and wooden soles? As if I don't sound enough like a horse clopping along without the addition of wood!) But I am very grateful for the gifting.

So how many dogs did you count in the photos? I think they all three managed to sneak in somewhere. They're all girls, so they're probably crazy about vintage too ;). How about you, do you love vintage? Maybe you have a dress or quilt made with flour sacking? I love to hear about it!

 *Would you like to dress Vintage? Take a gander at my Etsy store, MsSamWearsDresses . I have all styles and sizes, with so-o-o many more things to list.