How to make a vintage slip
Slender cuts and the perfect underlining for slender skirts (pencil skirts). Zipper closings.
• Evening length: Has side slits with daisies cut into the hem. A good vintage fine here would be in black celanese acetate taffeta.
• Half length: In nylon tricot, banded with a deeper grey at the hem.
• Just below the knee: With moulded waist and a back slit. A lace hem of pale beige silk satin.
I enjoy wearing vintage lingerie especially when I can find Van Raalte, Movie Star and Vanity Fair. Why buy vintage lingerie when you can make your own from vintage sewing patterns that have way more allure than those of present day?
When making your own consider what’s most popular in actual vintage lingerie.
Highly sought after vintage lingerie: slips, peignoirs, bras, panties, baby dolls, girdles, bed jackets and other night wear include those mentioned made in brightly colored fabrics: red, black, yellow, pink and green.
Petticoats and slips with permanently pleated fans of nylon taffeta or flounce edging are also highly sought after.
Consider incorporating those features into your own vintage lingerie creations.
How to care for vintage lingerie
Always HAND WASH with a mild soap like Drift.
NEVER place lingerie and stockings in the dryer. Let them air dry. Never wring. Lay clean thick white toweling out on a flat surface. Place the items atop the toweling and allow excess moisture seep out naturally. After this point you may hand the items on PLASTIC hangers to finish air drying.
For white items…BLEACH is a NO NO. Period. Simply deal with the less than perfect white as snow coloring. Vintage lingerie is fragile. It would be a shame to ruin a piece because you wanted pure as snow white.
I wrap my vintage nylons and other small delicates in tissue paper.
Moisture and sunlight are enemies to any type of clothing due to mold and discoloring. I fold and wrap vintage stockings and small delicates in tissue paper then store in a cool dry place. Luckily I have a cedar storage box. If you don’t a dedicated drawer will do.
Most bullet bras are too large and bulky to store in tissue paper, so I stuff the cups with tissue and place the bra itself in a cotton pillow case.
Don’t store lingerie in plastic.
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