Making the 1942 Pants Suit

This wonderful 1942 pattern with a nautical style was just begging me to make it up! I made View 1 in a cotton toile for the top and heavy cotton twill for the pants. I got both fabrics from Mood.

I used my braid foot (first time) to attach the soutache trim on the top. It was a dream to work with. As usual with vintage patterns, I made some concessions to modern dressmaking but still decided to make bound buttonholes. I also mitered the hems at the side slits for a neater finish. The collar was a little tricky to attach as you need to hold the seam allowance out of the way when sewing the front v-notch. I also ended up adding small snaps to those points.

The pattern also called for custom shoulder pads. I used the inside of some unfinished suit pads for the batting and finished the edges with double-fold bias tape. The pad is meant to rest under the sleeve pleats rather than on the shoulder to help create that strong 1940’s shoulder.

I also decided to add both back pockets and a right side pocket to the trousers. Since I was adding pockets to the back, I converted the back pleats to darts. The pants are very wide with a slight flare at the bottom (I had trouble getting them out of my 60” fabric) but they fit well with no alterations.

All in all, I’m really happy with how this one came out. It is a super cute outfit which gives a nod to the 1940’s but can still be worn today.