Well – the weather is better here in WonkyZebra land… lots of pretty spring flowers and sunshine… all very uplifting and happy making.
Time for some pretty dresses; maybe with a little jacket to keep the chill out though!
WZ147
Also time to think of the wedding season coming around soon.
WZ244 WZ244
Here is a lovely wedding dress WZ244. It would have been -still is – quite a good one for a cool weather wedding-and is very demure by today’s standards, where bare shoulders and mostly bare bosoms are commonplace. I would stop short of the full look with the sixties Juliette cap and go for one of those on trend floral headbands…. maybe a even crocheted one… This was originally made in “Kismet“ yarn. An unusual mohair / synthetic mix but with a surprisingly silky texture, with just a little fuzz to soften the stitches. Something like a very fine angora or a lace weight yarn! I still have some stashed… here is a photo for you as it is hard to describe.
More to see in the bridal line here
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/wonkyzebra?section_id=6989036
Or on pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/wonkyzebra/
If it’s not your year as a bride… you may well be going to someone else’s wedding. So… could be time for a serious frock ( such an old fashioned word for best dress… does anyone actually use it nowadays? LOL ).
WZ341
This really is a dressed up sort of dress… very “Alice in Wonderland pretty”. Perfect for looking lovely, while discreetly using the wall to remain upright during photos.
Or maybe you prefer a suit for a more formal affaire. So how about one of these cheeky little numbers…
What about this Barbara Warner couture one, C52… with its neat little “Peter Pan” collar and cuffs? Might be better with just the collar for a more modern look (although those cuffs are kind of cute ).
WZ692
Love these crochet patterns; they are so well written!
You can easily date them too as they were in old and new currency from when UK “went metric”! Around the end of the 60’s /start of 70’s the patterns are marked in both “old money” shillings and pence and “new money” New Pence. Simple ( only it SO wasn’t! ) Plus they did the same with imperial to metric on the fabric and wool measurements; trying it out on us needlewomen first… which was rather mean of them, but we soon learned 4”= 10cm… good old tension squares handy for that! )
The lovely lace suit modeled by Twiggy, would also work very well
WZ359
and for more suits just search here or for “suit” anywhere on the blog.
Maybe you need a dressy mother of the bride outfit; this suit is something unusual.
WZ273
She looks like she is in a vintage version of the “PhotoBooth” all ready!
Classy, pretty without being too fussy, and oh so comfortable while looking fresh all day long. The 3/4 sleeve and bold buttons are very stylish and the bands of lace look great in the slight boucle yarn. It is not mentioned in the pattern but you would need a lining, for the skirt at least. In those days ladies wore slips as a matter of course! A pretty camisole instead, or shell top in plain silk, would give an evening option of removing the jacket….
Or this very informal take on “suit” from Jaeger; so modern despite being vintage!
WZ167
( Which reminds me… here is a very casual one WZ416 featured in “Simply Crochet” magazine recently. )
For an alternative what about this set from Lee Target.
WZ125
A fab coat and dress, with a retro sixties, very “Jackie O”, look… but still so fresh and wearable and dead easy to make in double crochet (US SC). The textured yarn does all the work for this set; although there is a neat yoke detail on the dress and optional beading. (“Topaz” was all the rage.) The stitch variation adds interest on the coat, as do the sweet frilled elbow length sleeves; just enough girlyness creeping in!..
Going back to a more informal look, I have patterns for some nice dresses you can wear without being too “dolled up”. Just add a hat and dainty shoes… and you are all set. However, dressed down, these work all summer and all day long too. ( Digressing on shoes for a moment, the 60’s sling backs on the WZ125 lady are fab ! ). I often wish I could go back in time to get a better crop of some of my pattern images, sigh.
WZ125
But here are the dresses…
A few lovely simple sheath dresses; two in fine boucle cotton for a great texture with only basic crocheting. The first one has a very unusual neck detail that is so 60s.
WZ710
She is another one who looks like she is in a photo booth, with that clearly fake background! Does it remind anyone else of that movie line “under the big W” ?
Or this one from the same set, but even simpler with a dainty shell edging to the neck and sleeve as the only detail.
WZ709
Despite its plain finish it actually works as a very wearable (and easy to make) summer dress. Once again the fake background, but the church is appropriate for a wedding theme (and so the lovely ladies at Simply Crochet thought – they will be featuring it soon…)
I will do a two for one offer on these dresses, as well as my usual sale freebies I always add to purchases. Just type GDO in your message when you buy either.
For a slightly dressier sheath dress, with a more complex lace, how about this beauty. Make it for daytime colour or white; but how about in sultry black for evening? (I will do an evening party set next – pop back soon!)
WZ411
So continuing with the lace theme, there is always the beautiful WZ059. This is so popular and all over the place online; there must have been lots of these patterns published-or maybe a high percentage are saved , as it is such a timeless style. For those who don’t like motifs WZ177 is a good alternative; I usually tend send them together when one is purchased, so just remind me LOL.
WZ059 WZ177
For those who do like a good motif this is cute
WZ626
As is this one; almost identical but made with a totally different method.
WZ617
They both look like “daisy loom” creations but they are actually crocheted. One is made with long stitches worked into a ring, the other actually mimics the loops of the daisy loom. Again I generally send these two together; I would love to know which technique is preferred. For myself I would use the Lister pattern; Mon Tricot ones are lovely but more work to decode. I almost always have to re-write them for modern use, and have even made photo tutorials for some.
But both are as fresh as a daisy… unlike the lady in this neat suit I am ending on. The suit is classy and sixties elegant, unlike the lady in it who looks like she has had had one too many and given up; just sitting on the floor in a state of oblivion!
WZ613
Well, if you are going to do that, you may as well do it in the stylish “Rocco meets Alice in Wonderland” surroundings which epitomised sixties set design!
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