I’ve basically given up on modern patterns. The designs are “blah” at best because they are geared for women who want to finish an entire 30-piece wardrobe in 15 minutes or less. Here then are two of my favorite vintage pattern sources (more sources in subsequent posts). As an aside, I am not listing Ebay because I get frustrated with sellers who are “clearing out Mom’s house but don’t know anything about sewing.” If you are willing to wade through Ebay, you can get terrific patterns. I know I have in the past. I’m simply disenchanted with Ebay these days. If you are an Ebay vintage pattern seller, drop me a line and I’ll add you as a source in a future post.
Pattern Rescue
I haven’t taken advantage of the service–haven’t needed to– but I love the concept behind Pattern Rescue. You can get free, yes, FREE patterns from them! But, more importantly, I think, is the service they provide (with the help of members) to find missing parts of patterns. Did you find a glorious pattern at an estate sale only to find a key part or two is missing? Put out a call and it is likely that a member has the pattern and can provide a copy of the pieces. Now that I think of it, I should really be on the lookout to see how I can help provide missing pieces. I encourage you to check out their service.
Out of the Ashes Collectibles
I love Sheila Savell’s down home friendliness and the great sales she offers when she and her family head out the door to go camping. And, if you are in the US or Canada, you get free shipping if you buy 3 or more patterns.
The website is laid out intuitively and I can skip all of the out of print patterns in favor of the truly vintage patterns. But what I really love about Out of the Ashes is that Sheila sells the patterns for reasonable prices. This website is my go-to site when I’m feeling the urge to be creative in the middle of the night. This website is also my motivation to lose weight so that I can take advantage of the great fashion without having to redraft/resize an entire pattern.
Thank you Sheila for your terrific shop!
Hi just wanted to let you know I have nominated you for an award. please stop by and get it when you can. Thanks for being so great.
Kathy
Julie-Ann, I love Out of the Ashes! And Sheila gives the best service…I just hate paypal!!! *LOL* I also understand your enchantment with vintage. You look so good in it!
Thanks, Carolyn (about looking good in vintage)!
You know, it never dawned on me that Sheila only uses Paypal…
Sheila, if you see this, write to me and I’ll walk you through the process of accepting credit cards. It is a lot easier than you might think! (and you can still accept Paypal, too, if you want.