Why do you think we collect things?  I collect a lot of things: sewing machines, sewing machine feet, patterns, books, fabric, shoes.  That’s a lot of collecting.  Do you collect things; what do you collect?  Doing a quick search on the internet, I found dozens of reasons why people collect things and here are just a few of them: 

  • Usually because the things they are collecting represent a personal history or personal importance.
  • It’s a way to express loyalty; like football souvenirs.
  • They are proud of rare finds.
  • There can be an obsessive streak.
  • Some may be motivated by existential anxieties – the collection, an extension of our identity, lives on, even though we do not.
  • Purely for the satisfaction of seeking and owning them.
  • For an investment.

And then there is the answer my then 7-year old niece gave to a newspaper reporter, much to my sister’s chagrin, when asked why she likes dinosaurs, “I like ’em, ‘cause I like ‘em”.  (Seems a reasonable answer to me)

And that’s why I collect my sewing paraphernalia.  I just like ’em.   Why do you collect things?  One of the things I have been collecting for about 10 years is sewing patterns.  I started when I saw a Balmain pattern that was very 1960’s but could possibly be worn today.  :

My first pattern in my collecgtion

As I may have mentioned in a previous post, I love the fashion of the sixties. I even have a board for 60’s fashion on my Pinterest page. (Link) I thought it would be fun to start picking up designer patterns from the 60’s, which includes Vogue and McCall’s for me.  Simplicity’s Signature series has never really gotten my attention.  There’s one pattern though, from Spadea I am desperate to get my hands on. Unfortunately when it came up for auction on eBay not too long ago, it was way out of my league.  It was a copy of a Chanel jacket patterned by designer Suzy Perette. Oh well.  One can only dream.

Chanel Design

Mostly I collect patterns of 60’s clothing that I might wear now, and famous or iconic designs, but I also have patterns that I just like, a bunch of patterns that I am not sure what possessed me to purchase them and finally, just about every pattern I’ve ever purchased since junior high school Home Ec class.  One of these days, I am going to sort through all of this and sell off the ones I do not love, which will be a lot.

About 1/2 of my pattern collection

The biggest problem I have is storage – how to store all of these patterns.  Right now they are in banker’s boxes, post office boxes and liquor boxes.  It worries me though, because these patterns are not printed on the best paper, they are old and the boxes I am using have to be some of the worst containers in which to store old paper.  What I really need to do is get some museum or archival quality, acid-free boxes along with a lot of acid-free sleeves and store them that way.  This storage method is expensive, though, so it may be a while before I can get all of the patterns put away like this. 

This may appear to be 1 gigantic bundle of old patterns, but I do keep track of them by storing the important ones in numerical order so I can put my hands on the right box to get one easily.  I try to keep up an index on Microsoft Excel and all of these patterns can be sorted in several different ways.

The remaining patterns of no special interest, which is most of them, I sort by category such as skirts, pants, tops, dresses, suits, etc. –

If I had to pick my favorites, the ones I would grab in case of an emergency, it would be a tough call. I love my Givenchy designs,

but I also love my Yves St. Laurent.

One of these days I am going to make a dress with my favorite Diane von Furstenberg pattern,

and maybe some of my favorites that include in-house designs from Vogue and McCall’s.

In addition to the Vogue designer patterns, I’ve also picked up Claire Shaeffer for Vogue couture designs, like the “French Jacket”.

She has spent so much time in couture houses and looked at the fashions from the inside out, I believe her recreations are accurate.  Plus, she has an incredible collection of couture dresses, jackets, and suits, so she is obtaining her information first-hand.

A very small portion of Claire Shaeffer’s Couture Collection

I get my “first–hand” information from eBay auctions by looking at the detail photographs.

Another source of mine for knock-off designer patterns is Silhouette Patterns, although they are not vintage designs.  I am sure most of them are Peggy Sager’s own designs, but some of them are copies of current designers’ ready-to-wear.

  • Catherine (Malandrino’s) Blouse
  • Mani’s (Armani) Blouse

Then there are the not as well-known designers that have produced designs I really like, which Vogue has turned into patterns.  I like them because they are designs I can imagine myself wearing now like these.

Suit by Molyneux

Coats by Jean Desses and Guy Laroche

Two of my favorite unlicensed knock-offs come from Vogue.  Both were not on the market for long because the designers threatened Vogue with law suits, so now there are not many in circulation.  This purse pattern is great because it has the iconic Chanel bag, the Kelly and Birkin bags from Hermes, and another bag I assume is from Gucci.  I bought this pattern when it was on the market because I liked the bags, not realizing what I had.  I just liked the styles.

The other Vogue pattern is a copy from Givenchy’s designs for the movie, Breakfast at Tiffany’s.  These are not the exact copies, but they do give the general impression of Ms. Hepburn’s wardrobe in the movie.  (Too bad they didn’t include that wonderful pink cocktail ensemble)

Vogue 2396, 2000

One of my favorite categories though, has to be the evening gowns.  There are not many functions these days that call for evening wear, but I think an evening gown covered with an evening coat, along with a pair of long, white gloves is very elegant. I think sometimes about how much fun it would be to have an occasion to wear these:  Black tie or better yet, white tie functions.  Alas, I think these have gone the way of the summer, white dinner jacket.  Here are a couple of my favorites

Not all vintage patterns are valuable, but what makes one more valuable than another?  I try to follow this because I have about 100 that I couldn’t give away.  To be interesting to a collector or valuable, the pattern has to be hard to find and in demand. 

Most of my patterns I buy from Ebay.  They have a very good selection and some of the sellers do not know the worth of the pattern they are selling.  So, I can get them at a good or reasonable price most of the time.  Also, you can set up an alert for something specific.  An example would be one of my alerts.  Any time a McCall’s Givenchy pattern comes up for auction in the U. S. or the rest of the world, Ebay sends me an email. (Unfortunately, most of them are way out of my budget). I have, however, picked up a few patterns this way.

Etsy also sells vintage designer patterns.  These tend to be more expensive than Ebay, so I do not buy from them very often.  You can also pick up collectible patterns from buying a collection from an estate sale.  I bought a collection from an Ebay Store that had recently purchased an estate collection and had no idea that one of the patterns in the pile was worth more than double the asking price for the whole kit and caboodle.

McCall’s 3626, 1957

There are also web sites that specialize in selling nothing but vintage patterns, but they too are relatively expensive.  Beware, however, of the reproduced vintage pattern.  When the price of a pattern is too good to be true, it usually is.  There are a couple of people who reproduce the patterns, digitally, so I assume they are very accurate.  The listing of a seller on Ebay uses a picture of the original envelope in which the pattern sold.  I see these and think, Oh boy a so-and-so for $23! Wow!  Then I read the small print and it turns out the seller has 4 available and they are new.  And I thought I had found a steal. Oh well.  I have not been convinced to buy one yet; they don’t seem very collectible to me.

Now that I have my base of good patterns, there are only a few more that I really want and if I ever find them, I hope they will not be too expensive to purchase.  On the other hand, I am at an age when I should be getting rid of things, not adding more.  Collecting must be an old instinct left over from the Pleistocene age when humans must have collected items related to food, protection, clothing and shoes, of course

Tell us a little about your collections, even if they aren’t sewing related. How long have you been collecting?  I look forward to reading your answers.

Cheers,

P.S.  Recently, my husband and I were on a day trip to St. Michaels, MD.   Of course we had to checkout a boatyard or two.  In one of them, I saw this transom and I had to get a picture of it. Isn’t this great?