Antique Wedding Dress

January 17th, 2012 — Antique, Antique Wedding Dress, Linens 

Wedding Dress

Antiques -> Textiles, Linens -> Lace, Crochet, Doilies

Wedding dresses are a big business today, but many people prefer the look of an antique wedding dress to the more modern gowns. Choosing a vintage dress is certainly one way to make your wedding unique, as it’s highly unlikely that any or your friends or peers will be getting married in the same or even remotely similar dress.

Why choose from a catalog or the racks of a bridal store when you can choose an antique wedding dress to help make your day special. The workmanship and details in an older dress can be amazing, while to get that level of detail today you’d spend hundreds, maybe thousands of dollars more for a dress. If you have an old-fashioned sensibility, an older dress can give your wedding a more vintage atmosphere and make you think of time past.

If you’re shopping for an antique wedding dress, a piece of good advice is not go too antique. While with most antiques, older is better, with wedding dresses or any kind of clothing, older dresses might be in a bad state of repair. Fabric does deteriorate and lose its shape over time, anything that might have been slightly stretchy before is probably only brittle now, thread will rot over the years, and sometimes older dresses can be on the verge of falling apart.

But an antique wedding dress, unlike simply an ordinary dress or pair of pants, has likely been worn little and handled far less than average clothing. The key is to be choosy, especially when dealing with very old dresses. If you’re looking at a dress made before 1900, you could be taking quite a bit of risk as it’s much more likely to be unable to hold up to wear. Silk chiffons from the 1920s are also, because of their style and fabrics, less likely to hold up over the years. If your heart is set on either of these, then simply be prepared that the cost to repair and restore them will be much higher than most other dresses.

Know how much you can spend on an antique wedding dress before you shop in vintage shops or online on eBay, and stick to your budget. Do figure in the cost of alterations and any restoration and repair that a seamstress might find necessary to keep the vintage dress together for you wedding. Cleaning should also be considered, as archival cleaning can sometimes cost more than you paid for the dress itself.

Don’t choose an antique wedding dress that’s in obvious visible need of repairs or has stains. While stain removal is much easier today, that stain has been on that fabric for decades making it much less likely it will come out completely, if at all.

And if you decide to purchase an antique wedding dress from an auction, measure yourself carefully to find the right dress. Sizes were different years ago than they are today, so the auction should give detailed measurements for the garment. If it doesn’t, ask for them before purchasing.

Photo Credits: Just Jefa

Originally posted 2008-11-01 05:00:13. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Patchwork Quilts

January 16th, 2012 — Antique, Fabrics, Linens, Patchwork Quilts, Quilts and Bedspreads 


Antiques -> Textiles, Linens -> Quilts, Bedspreads ->Patchwork ->

Patchwork quilts are an Americana staple, and these items are also highly collectible. While they are most commonly associated with the pioneer times and early formation of the United States, many cultures produce patchwork quilts and many of them are extremely valuable.

The process of making a patchwork quilt is quite labor intensive and for many families, these precious items became heirlooms. Typically, the quilt maker would save little squares of fabric that would then be turned into larger quilting squares during the making of the item. Sometimes, these pieces of fabric would be from old clothes, or blankets, or even feed sacks. Making a patchwork quilt could take months, due to the amount of work that is required.

Collecting the fabric is only the first step in making a patchwork quilt. Once enough of this was on hand, the quilt maker would begin the process of assembling each square, by hand, into an interesting pattern. The history of quilting patterns dates back many hundred years, but patchwork quilts are probably the most quaint. Instead of following a certain set pattern of colors, they were a mishmash of the fabric that the quilter had on hand. Each square would tell a story and that was part of the fun in making this type of quilt and owning one.

Once the squares were all assembled in the right pattern, the quilter would then begin the process of applying them to a backing. Typically, a type of batting would be sewn in between the backing fabric and the patchwork quilt square. However, many times, especially for poorer families, the backing and the squares were the only material that was used.

Each square would be handstitched onto the backing fabric until the entire pattern was assembled. A specific quilting stitch was used to ensure that the finished product would be very durable. Finally, when the finished product was complete, the entire pattern of the patchwork quilt would be made visible. It could take a quilter months to finish this type of project, but some were able to get them done in a matter of weeks once they had the fabric ready.

Typically, patchwork quilts were made during the winter months when pioneer families did not have has much work to do outside the home. However, quilting parties became very popular and gave women a means of socializing outside the home. During one of these parties, several women would work on the same patchwork quilt, assembling the squares, making the pattern and putting everything together.

In many small towns, the practice of making a patchwork quilt for a raffle became very popular. Often, women would construct these quilts and then donate them to their local churches. The church could then use the raffle to raise funds for building or other needs. If you happen to come across a patchwork quilt that is an antique, think about the labor and love than went into it for a few moments. You are holding a piece of someone’s history in your hands.

Photo Credits: Frankie Roberto

Originally posted 2008-08-25 14:00:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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