Pucci 70th Anniversary
May 4, 2017 § Leave a comment
A dress by Emilio of Capri in McCall’s Pattern Book, Spring 1957. Photo: Howell Conant.
Pucci has been in the news this week with the announcement that Josephus Thimister will consult on the next collection, following the departure in April of head designer Massimo Giorgetti. (See WWD.) The house of Pucci is also celebrating its 70th anniversary this year.
Before becoming a Vogue Couturier in the 1960s, Emilio Pucci designed exclusive patterns for McCall’s. Howell Conant photographed Pucci’s earliest pattern designs, including the harlequin dress above, for McCall’s Pattern Book. For more on Pucci see my Mad Men-era series post, The Europeans.
Happy 70th anniversary, Pucci!
Vogue 1351 by Pucci (1964) Image: PatternVault on Etsy.
Designer Swimwear: Vintage Patterns
August 9, 2016 § 6 Comments
McCall’s 7138 by Bob Mackie on the cover of McCall’s news, July 1980.
It’s been another hot summer here in Toronto. One of my earliest blog posts, Heat Wave!, surveys vintage beachwear patterns. This summer, let’s take a look at a more elusive beast: designer swimwear patterns.
1950s
The earliest pattern I’ve seen for designer swimwear is Pucci’s strapless one-piece, McCall’s 3977. This pattern was available in Junior sizes only. The suit was lined in jersey, and could be made with or without the brightly coloured appliqués:
McCall’s 3977 by Emilio Pucci (1956) Image: eBay.
1960s
From another Italian designer, Irene Galitzine, Vogue 1288 is a pattern for a bikini, dress, and hat. The bikini consists of a cropped, cowl-neck blouse and bikini pants with side ties:
Vogue 1288 by Irene Galitzine (ca. 1963) Image: eBay.
1970s
The 1970s were the heyday of designer swimwear patterns, often with a coordinating coverup, and always for stretch knits. Vogue 1416 is an early design by Donna Karan; from Anne Klein’s collaboration with Penfold, the pattern includes both a maillot and a halter bikini:
Vogue 1416 by Donna Karan at Anne Klein for Penfold (1976) Image: Etsy.
From Bill Blass, Vogue 1455 includes a two-piece swimsuit with bra top and bikini briefs:
Vogue 1455 by Bill Blass (1976)
John Kloss licensed a number of swimwear designs with Butterick. This ad promotes his patterns with a poolside photo of Butterick 4808:
Butterick 4808 by John Kloss, Butterick advertisement, 1976. Image: eBay.
Another Butterick designer, Gil Aimbez, designed this one-piece bathing suit. Contrast bias binding outlines the cut-away sides and bodice seaming detail:
Butterick 5449 by Gil Aimbez (ca. 1977) Image: Etsy.
Like the Anne Klein Penfold pattern above, this Penfold pattern includes both one-piece and halter bikini bathing suits. The one-piece and bikini top are cut on the bias:
Vogue 1655 by Penfold (ca. 1977) Image: Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Both Penfold patterns can be seen in a Vogue Patterns editorial photographed in Antigua:
Beach beauty: halter bikini Vogue 1416 by Donna Karan at Anne Klein for Penfold, Vogue Patterns, May/June 1977. Model: Clotilde. Photo: Albert Watson. Image: the Fashion Spot.
Vogue 1655 by Penfold with Vogue 9808, Vogue Patterns, May/June 1977. Models: Lisa Cooper and Clotilde. Photos: Albert Watson. Image: the Fashion Spot.
From spring, 1978, Vogue 1893 seems to have been the only Catalina pattern. Instead of a coverup, it includes three styles of bathing suit: low-backed view A, strapless view B with built-in boning, and blouson view C is a two-piece:
Vogue 1893 by Catalina (1978) Image: Etsy.
The magazine recommended making the Catalina suits in Thompson of California’s “second skin Tic Toc warp knit polyester crepes” in various prints:
Vogue 1893 by Catalina, Vogue Patterns, May/June 1978. Image: Vintage Goodness.
1980s
From 1980, McCall’s 7109 includes three one-piece swimsuits by the Italian label Basile: a mock wrap, belted halter-neck and variations on the strapless suit with gathered bust (available in the shop):
McCall’s 7109 by Basile (1980) Image via PatternVault on Etsy.
Jerry Hall (right) seems to be wearing the view A style in this Basile ad photographed by Irving Penn:
Basile advertisement in Vogue Italia, 1980. Photo: Irving Penn. Models: Michelle Stevens and Jerry Hall. Image: the Fashion Spot.
Also from 1980, Bob Mackie’s strapless, colour-blocked swimsuit, McCall’s 7138, was photographed for the July counter catalogue and news leaflet (seen at the top of this post):
McCall’s 7138 by Bob Mackie (1980) Image: Etsy.
1990s
Finally, this early ’90s DKNY pattern, Vogue 2897, is labelled ‘dress and bodysuit,’ but was photographed as beachwear:
Vogue 2897 by DKNY (1992) Image: Etsy.
After a long swimwear pattern drought, the big pattern companies seem to have noticed the renewed popularity of sewing your own, custom bathing suit. For this summer, Simplicity reissued a 1950s bathing suit pattern, Simplicity 4307 / S8139, and The McCall Pattern Company has released a number of new swimwear designs, including one Vogue and two Lisette swimwear patterns.
Two designers with existing pattern licensing, Cynthia Rowley and Rachel Comey, both have swimwear lines. If we voice our support, perhaps we could soon see patterns for Cynthia Rowley surf wear and Rachel Comey Swim…
Wetsuit by Cynthia Rowley for Roxy, 2010. Image: Pinterest.
Willy Somma self-portrait for Rachel Comey Swim, T Magazine, May 2013. Image: nytimes.com.
Vintage Jumpsuit Patterns
July 25, 2014 § 10 Comments
Vogue 8331 (1972) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Versatile and contemporary, jumpsuits and their cousins, playsuits and rompers, have become increasingly popular in the last few years. Jumpsuits—or all-in-ones, if you’re British—seem poised to move beyond a trend this summer.
The modern women’s jumpsuit has origins in two different garments: beach pajamas and the boiler suit. These twin origins mean jumpsuit styles range from fluid loungewear to utility-inspired or tailored designs. (See Vogue Italia for a short history of the jumpsuit.) Here are some favourite all-in-one patterns from the 1930s to the 1990s.
1930s–1940s
Beach pajamas, often worn with a matching bolero, had become one-piece by the early 1930s. This McCall’s design combines flowing trousers with geometric seaming details in the bodice and hip yoke. A reproduction is available from the Model A Ford Club of America:
McCall 6432 (1931) Image via the Model A Ford Club of America.
(See my earlier beachwear post here; for more on beach pajamas, see the FIDM Museum blog and Amber Butchart’s essay for British Pathé.)
The boiler suits of wartime utility wear are said to have made bifurcated clothing more acceptable for women. This Vogue pattern from ca. 1940 includes both a hooded mechanic suit with cuffed trousers and a more casual, short-sleeved version shown in a dotted print:
Vogue 8852 (1940) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
This early 1940s pajama ensemble with T-back halter bodice was not just for the beach—the envelope says it’s for “beach, dinner or evening”:
McCall 4075 (1941) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
1950s
In the postwar period, more tailored jumpsuits emerged as a choice for casual sportswear. This early 1950s pedal-pusher coverall has cuffed sleeves and pants and a front zipper closure:
McCall’s 8520 (1951) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
From the late 1950s, this trim, one-piece slack suit from Vogue came in two lengths and with a matching overskirt:
Vogue 9898 (1959) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
1960s
The jumpsuit—sometimes called a culotte or pantdress—truly comes into its own in the later 1960s. Here Birgitta af Klercker models Vogue 2249, a loungewear design by Emilio Pucci (previously featured in my goddess gown post):
Vogue 2249 by Pucci (1969) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
In this late 1960s Butterick Young Designers pattern, Mary Quant combines a trim, zip-front jumpsuit with a low-waisted miniskirt for a sleek, futuristic look:
Butterick 5404 by Mary Quant (1969) Image via Etsy.
1970s
Both pajama and menswear-inspired styles continue into the 1970s. Famous for her palazzo pajamas, Galitzine designed this bi-coloured lounge pantdress with criss-cross halter bodice:
Vogue 2731 by Galitzine (1972) Image via the Blue Gardenia.
From Calvin Klein, Vogue 1453 marks a return to the boiler suit style. With cargo pockets, self belt, and wide, notched collar, the jumpsuit could be made long or short, with long or short sleeves:
Vogue 1453 by Calvin Klein (1976) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
1980s
This Bob Mackie disco jumpsuit or evening dress pattern for stretch knits dates to 1980. (See my earlier Bob Mackie post here.) The jumpsuit has a plunging neckline, waistline pleats, and tapered, bias pants designed to crush at the ankles:
McCall’s 7134 by Bob Mackie (1980)
An instance of the late 1980s jumpsuit trend, this shirtdress-style jumpsuit by Donna Karan has a notched collar, welt pockets, and cuffed or seven-eighths length kimono sleeves:
Vogue 2284 by Donna Karan (1989) Image via eBay.
1990s
Also by Donna Karan, Vogue 2609, ca. 1990, is a long-sleeved, tapered jumpsuit for stretch knits with neckline variations, front pleats, and stirrups. View C has a contrast bodice with self-lined hood:
Vogue 2609 by Donna Karan (1990) Image via the Blue Gardenia.
From 1996, Vogue 1821 by DKNY is almost vintage. It’s a novel suit consisting of a single-breasted jacket and wide-legged, halter jumpsuit:
Vogue 1821 by DKNY (1996) Image via eBay.
Finally, this pattern is not yet vintage, but a jumpsuit collection would be incomplete without Vogue 2343, Alexander McQueen’s tailored, tuxedo jumpsuit for Givenchy haute couture Spring/Summer 1998 (earlier post here):
Vogue 2343 by Alexander McQueen for Givenchy (1999) Image via PatternVault on Etsy.
With their demanding fit, jumpsuits are ideal for home sewers. And they’re not just for the tall and leggy: many of the later jumpsuit patterns are marked as suitable for petites.
If you’d like to try your hand at an early all-in-one, Wearing History has a repro pattern for 1930s beach pajamas, and Simplicity 9978 includes a 1940s boiler suit.
Clash of the Titans: Goddess Gowns
February 20, 2013 § 16 Comments
Oscar season is upon us, and that means goddess gowns. Goddess gowns usually share elements of classical drapery and the simple construction of the toga and chiton. Here’s a selection of patterns for Greco-Roman-inspired evening wear.
This 1920s evening dress from the House of Worth features elegant back drapery, with a beaded appliqué holding more drapery at the left hip:
McCall 4854 by Worth (1927) Evening dress.
The illustration for this 1930s Lanvin ‘scarf frock’ plays up the classical mood with a fluted pedestal and ferns:
McCall 8591 by Lanvin (1936) McCall Style News, January 1936. Image via eBay.
This late 1940s one-shouldered evening dress has a long panel that can be worn belted in the back or wrapped around the bared shoulder:
McCall 7862 (1949) Evening dress.
Toga-like drapery distinguishes these short, Sixties evening dresses by Pauline Trigère and Jacques Heim:
McCall’s 6599 by Pauline Trigère (1962) Image via PatternVault on Etsy.
Vogue 1333 by Jacques Heim (1964) Image via the Blue Gardenia.
This late ’60s Yves Saint Laurent evening dress has a classical simplicity, with the bodice gathered into a boned collar:
Vogue 2093 by Yves Saint Laurent (1969) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
This Pucci loungewear has culottes on the bottom, but still has that ‘goddess’ flavour (modelled by Birgitta Af Klercker):
Vogue 2249 by Pucci (1969) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Angeleen Gagliano models this mid-Seventies Lanvin evening dress and toga:
Vogue 1147 by Lanvin (1975) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
This Pierre Balmain evening ensemble, modelled by Jerry Hall, shows a more literal interpretation of classical dress:
Vogue 2015 by Pierre Balmain (1979) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Finally, this jersey gown with beaded waistband, from Guy Laroche by Damian Yee, is an example of the recent trend for goddess gowns:
Vogue 1047 by Guy Laroche (2008) Image via PatternVault on Etsy.
(From the Spring 2007 Laroche collection, the pattern is still in print now out of print.)
“Goddess” was the theme of the 2003 Costume Institute exhibit; the catalogue, Goddess: The Classical Mode (Yale UP, 2003) is still available.
Caped Crusaders: Vintage Cape Patterns
September 25, 2012 § 8 Comments
Originator 299 (c. 1952) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
The cape trend of the last two years shows no sign of abating. (Read a Fashionising post about the trend here.) In terms of sewing patterns, Donna Karan’s V2924 was ahead of the trend (see Erica B’s version here) and this fall we have V1322 by DKNY. Paco Peralta has several cape designs available including the sculptural Funghi. In vintage reissues, Butterick has re-released some vintage cape patterns in their Retro line: B6329 (from 1935) and B6411 (a reissue of Butterick 4570 from 1948).
I often find myself reaching for the vintage version of a current trend, and I’ll have a cape project to share with you soon. While looking for the right pattern, I was struck by the variety of cape designs over the decades. Here’s a selection of vintage cape patterns from the Twenties to the Eighties.
1920s
Two 1920s patterns in my collection have capes with interesting details. This mid-Twenties pattern for a dress by Renée also includes a cape with button/strap closure:
McCall 4134 by Renée (1925)
And I still love the pointed yoke of this Miler Soeurs cape (see my grey version here):
McCall 4459 by Miler Soeurs (1926)
1930s
The Thirties were a good decade for capes. This 1936 copy of McCall Style News shows a matching cape and dress ensemble:
McCall Style News, February 1936. Image via Etsy.
Sewing bloggers’ 1930s capes show how contemporary these vintage outerwear styles can look today. Debi’s mid-Thirties cape pattern has a similar look to the ensemble illustrated above, but with a false front creating the illusion of a matching jacket. Click the image to see her finished version:
McCall 8501 (1935) Image via My happy sewing place.
Puu’s late ’30s cape has a high-collared yoke, arm slits, and rounded, gathered shoulders (click the image for her construction post and see the finished version here):
Simplicity 2522 (c. 1938) Image via puu’s door of time.
1940s
The fashion for capes continued into the Forties. The decade’s strong-shouldered silhouette is visible in these two cape patterns from my collection. The first, from the early ’40s, has a pronounced, boxy shape and optional broad stand-up collar:
McCall 4134 (1941)
The second cape shades into New Look sleekness, with a narrower collar and lower hemline:
McCall 7179 (1948)
1950s
In the Fifties, capes showed a de-emphasis on the shoulders and a fullness that carries over to the early ’60s. Vogue 1089 by Robert Piguet is actually from 1949; I thought it might really be a capelet, but the envelope description calls it a “flared cape with diagonal double-breasted closing below soft shaped collar”:
Vogue 1089 by Robert Piguet (1949) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Here’s an illustration of the Piguet ensemble by Bernard Blossac:
Bernard Blossac illustration of a cape and dress by Robert Piguet, 1949. Image via Hprints.
This mid-Fifties cape by Jacques Fath has big, buttoned cuffs at the arm vents. The shaped collar is part of the suit underneath:
Vogue 1358 by Jacques Fath (1956) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
1960s
The Sixties were another good decade for capes. On this Vogue Pattern Book cover, Wilhelmina Cooper exemplifies the “thoroughbred look” of Fall 1963 in a tailored yellow cape:
Vogue Pattern Book, October/November 1963. Model: Wilhelmina Cooper. Image via flickr.
This elegant cape by Nina Ricci has a wide shawl collar and is shaped by released inverted darts. The model is Maggie Eckhardt:
Vogue 1217 by Nina Ricci (1963) Image via Etsy.
Astrid Heeren models this fabulous mod cape by Pierre Cardin:
Vogue 1722 by Pierre Cardin (1967) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
This late ’60s design by Pucci is modelled by Birgitta af Klercker and was photographed in Rome at La Cisterna:
Vogue 2231 by Pucci (1969) Image via Etsy.
1970s
As the Seventies progressed, capes generally kept their collars, but gained a new fluidity. This mid-Seventies Halston “poncho-cape” has a collar and button front, but is reversible:
McCall’s 3966 by Halston (1974) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
This late ’70s Chloé design by Karl Lagerfeld, featuring Jerry Hall, includes a three-quarter length, circular cape with pointed bias collar. The cape gets its strong shoulders from an inside button and tab at each shoulder:
Vogue 2020 by Chloé (1978) Image via PatternVault on Etsy.
1980s
In the Eighties, fluidity gained the upper hand, as seen in these full, collarless, and unstructured capes by Yves Saint Laurent:
Vogue 2790 by Yves Saint Laurent (c. 1982) Model: Terri May.
Vogue 2163 by Yves Saint Laurent (1988) Image via Etsy.
Would you wear a vintage cape, or do you prefer the cape’s more recent incarnations?
Mad Men Era 5: The Europeans
May 2, 2012 § 6 Comments
Vicomte Willy (Philippe Brenninkmeyer) and Rocci (Justine Eyre) in “The Jet Set” (Mad Men, Season 2)
This week, four established European designers who were based in Spain and Italy: Rodriguez, Simonetta, Fabiani, and Pucci.
Rodríguez (1895-1990)
Born in Valencia, Pedro Rodríguez opened his first salon in Barcelona in 1918. During the Spanish Civil War he relocated to Paris, but returned to Spain when the war ended. Although little-known outside his country, he was Franco Spain’s most celebrated designer. Rodríguez’s drawings are the focus of an exhibition running until June 17th at Madrid’s Museo del Traje, “Pedro Rodríguez: Alta Costura sobre papel. Figurines de Pedro Rodríguez, 1940-1976.”
Vogue 1338 is a slim evening dress with a uniquely shaped bodice, high-waisted in front and dipping low in the back:
Vogue 1338 by Pedro Rodríguez (1964) Evening dress and stole. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Simonetta (1922-2011)
A member of the Italian aristocracy, Simonetta Colonna di Cesarò was born a duchesa and made her first marriage to a Visconti. She presented her first collection in 1946, in newly liberated Rome. During the early 1960s she and her second husband, Alberto Fabiani, combined their talents to form a Paris label, Simonetta et Fabiani. Simonetta was known for youthful, dramatic designs with an emphasis on form and cut.
Vogue 1231 is a glamorous yet simple design for a formal dress with attached circular cape. The asymmetrical fall of the cape gives it a neoclassical, military air:
Vogue 1231 by Simonetta (1963) Dress with attached cape. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Fabiani (1910-1987)
Alberto Fabiani was born into a family of couturiers. He trained for a few years with an Italian tailor in Paris before returning to Italy, where he soon became head of the family couture house. As mentioned above, he formed a joint label with his second wife, Simonetta, before returning to his solo label. Fabiani was known for conservative, tailored designs with impeccable cut.
Vogue 1450 is a short evening dress with waistcoat detail and deep, slashed neckline revealing an underbodice. A narrow, self-corded belt ties in a bow at the raised front waistline, above a skirt shaped by soft pleats:
Vogue 1450 by Fabiani (1965) Short evening dress.
Pucci (1914-1992)
The designer we know as Pucci was born Marchese Emilio Pucci di Barsento, to the aristocratic Florentine family based at the Palazzo Pucci. He obtained a doctorate from the University of Florence and also served as a pilot in the Italian Air Force before opening his first boutique in Capri in 1949. Pucci was famous for his youthful sports and resort wear in distinctive, colourful prints and new fabrics like lightweight silk jersey.
Vogue 1351 is a chic casual ensemble consisting of a boxy jacket, simple blouse, and tapered pants with optional stirrups. The model was photographed in Florence rather than Rome:
Vogue 1351 by Pucci (1964) Jacket, blouse, and pants. Image: PatternVault on Etsy.
I always find it interesting how the Vogue Couturier line drew attention to the designer’s nationality or the European city where they were based—Pucci of Italy, Rodríguez of Madrid—drawing attention to the not-Paris of emerging fashion centres in London and on the Continent. Although Rodríguez was somewhat isolated in Franco Spain, the Italian couturiers were designing for the international jet set.
Heat Wave! Vintage Beachwear Patterns
August 8, 2011 § 10 Comments
A wrapped and tied beach kimono. Reeves cotton printed by Cranston. Vogue Pattern Book, June/July 1961. Photo: Schiavone. Model: Jean Shrimpton?
It’s been a very hot summer here in Toronto. The Toronto Standard’s recent article on nearby Sunnyside Beach is a reminder of how Torontonians coped with high temperatures in the days before air conditioning. The stretch of Lake Ontario shoreline known as Sunnyside Beach was a popular bathing spot from the early 20th century on, and the beach’s popularity was given a boost with the opening of Sunnyside Amusement Park in 1922. The amusement park was mostly demolished in 1955 to make room for the Gardiner Expressway, but some of the original structures remain, including the boat house and dance hall Palais Royale and the Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion.
Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion, archway detail. Image courtesy of Alex Laney via Wikipedia Commons.
Vintage beachwear patterns open a similar window onto summers past. What women wore to the beach can seem to encapsulate an era, both because beachwear is an especially trend-driven category of women’s wear and because of the attitudes to the female body it often reveals. In this post you’ll find a selection of beachwear patterns from the 1930s to the 1980s.* Enjoy!
1930s
Here’s a late thirties Vogue pattern from the Commercial Pattern Archive (CoPA). Follow the image link for CoPA’s virtual exhibition on swimwear patterns.
Vogue 8237 (1938) Bathing suit. Image via At the Pond, CoPA virtual exhibition.
The 1930s also saw a fashion for beach pajamas, lounge wear for days at the beach. This illustration from McCall’s magazine shows new patterns for beach fashions. The first pattern is for a kerchief top, dolman jacket and beach trousers, the second makes a gorgeous beach wrap:
Beachwear fashions in McCall’s magazine, April 1932.
- (You can see the accompanying text in this Etsy listing.) Here are a couple early ’30s McCall patterns for beach pajamas:
McCall 6945 (1932) Beach pajamas. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
McCall 7344 (1933) Sports or beach pajamas and cape. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Simplicity’s promotional material calls this late ’30s halter design “a pajama ensemble for sun-tan fans.” (See linked wiki page for repro information.)
Simplicity 3081 (1939) Pajama ensemble. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
1940s
The forties saw the rise of two-piece bathing suits with pinup-style, high-waisted skirts or tap pants for the bottoms. Vogue 9046 is an early but typical ’40s swimsuit. (See linked wiki page for repro information.)
Vogue 9046 (c. 1941) Two-piece bathing suit. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
This McCall design is for a cute tie-back, halter top style with pleated bottoms:
McCall 5648 (1944) Two-piece bathing suit. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
I found this transitional late ’40s pattern through Oodles and oodles’ series on the patterns of sisters Alice and Edna. It’s one of my favourites:
Vogue 6709 (1949) Bathing suit. Image via Oodles and oodles.
1950s
Fifties beachwear shows the same silhouettes and details as the decade’s women’s wear. The cover-up in this mid-’50s pattern is basically a shorter version of a wasp-waisted, full-skirted fifties day dress (but check out the crazy tiki hat):
Vogue 8883 (1956) Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
In 1956 Emilio Pucci did a series of designs for McCall’s that included this skirted, strapless bathing suit:
McCall’s 3977 by Emilio Pucci (1956) Strapless bathing suit and shirred overskirt. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
(Wade Laboissonniere includes a McCall’s photo of the Pucci pattern in his Blueprints of Fashion: Home Sewing Patterns of the 1950s, p. 127.)
This sarong style of swimsuit carried over into the early ’60s:
Vogue 9749 (1959) Bathing suit and reversible beach coat. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
1960s
Early sixties swimsuit patterns tend to be variations on the modest two-piece with shorts or boy-cut briefs. Here’s the pattern image for the early ’60s beach kimono pictured at the top of this post. The pattern also included a one- or two-piece bathing suit:
Vogue 5263 (1961) Beach kimono and bathing suits. Image via eBay.
Vogue 6212 includes a babydoll beach dress and a hat similar to the one worn by Jessica Paré as Megan in Season 4 of Mad Men:
Vogue 6212 (1964) Two-piece swimsuit, beach dress and hat. Image via the Vintage Patterns wiki.
Two-pieces seem to have made the decisive shift to bikinis in the later 1960s:
Vogue 6752 (c. 1966) Bikini and cover-up. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
1970s
Seventies swimwear showed sleeker lines, still with a lower-cut leg. Maxi cover-ups came into fashion as the decade progressed. Here’s a fabulous early ’70s Vogue one-piece (with a ’60s-style hat and cover-up):
Vogue 7815 (1970) Bathing suit, cover-up and hat. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
During the ’70s Vogue Patterns also released designer swimwear patterns by Catalina and Penfold (including Anne Klein for Penfold). The bikinis are actually pretty classic:
Vogue 1416 by Anne Klein for Penfold (1976) Swimsuit, bikini, cover-up and scarf. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Vogue 1655 by Penfold (1977) Swimsuit, bikini and cover-up. Image via eBay.
1980s
Eighties swimwear had a new, higher-cut leg and favoured the high-contrast brights and prints typical of the decade. Oleg Cassini’s line of patterns for Simplicity included this one-piece swimsuit with pareo:
Simplicity 6884 by Oleg Cassini (1985) Swimsuit and wrap skirt. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
Brooke Shields also licensed some designs with McCall’s, including a few swimwear patterns. Here’s the one that hits the most ’80s trends:
McCall’s 9566 by Brooke Shields (1985) Bathing suit. Image via the Vintage Patterns Wiki.
And in case you needed instruction in swimwear sewing techniques, Vogue Patterns had a book for you:
Everything about Sewing Swimwear (1972). Image via eBay.
*For those interested in pre-1930s swimwear patterns, you can see a repro pattern for a 19th century bathing costume here; some early 20th century bathing suit patterns here and here; and some 1920s swimsuit patterns here and here.
