Copse and Spinney

February 3, 2023|Sewing and Whatnot! Originally published at Naturalposhvintage.com

My grandma was masterful at remaking, reworking and cleverly redeeming clothes.  Even in the Great Depression she had the knowledge to reuse, fabrics to make beautiful coats that looked like new for her daughters, Louvelle and Gay Lynn. Louvelle had red-auburn hair and deep green eyes. Her stair step sibling, Gay Lynn, had platinum blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. Grandma had been given a couple of old wool coats that were weathered and worn. One was dark blue and the other was dark green. 

Grandma knew that the fabric was still good on the inside behind the lining that had never seen the sun and the elements. So, she removed the lining and cut out the pattern for a pea coat and hat out of each, and of course, put a fresh lining in the little girl’s coats.  She had enough money saved to buy some dark green velvet as well as navy blue to add velvet collars to the coats and to make a matching beret. She trimmed each beret with floral rosettes. So, her blonde haired blue eyed baby, Gay Lynn, wore the blue coat and hat while her emerald eyed Louvelle wore the green. Her astonished husband just said in not so many words, “Well, that’s one way to beat the odds!”  Others noticed and asked often how she could make something so beautiful with so little. She simply said with a smile “I manage!” 

And she managed to keep three more girls and one more boy in togs and shoes while working as a seamstress and then passed down her knowledge and wisdom seemingly effortlessly to them all.

I don’t know the exact cut and style of the pea coat that she made but these coats (link) would give you an idea of how they might have looked. 

 When I was a new mom, Grandma (and my aunts) put their heads together to rework a lovely periwinkle, sage green and cream floral Laura Ashley dress which I could no longer wear. They reworked my dress that was too small. (even though it had a lot of fabric). There was enough fabric in the dress to make a shift for me as well as a little dress for my daughter when she was about three months old. (She added a bodice made of a cream honeycomb pique to the pinafore). I don’t prefer to cut into a vintage Laura Ashley dress and felt a little guilty at the time. But with her skills, I was able to use the dress more efficiently and loved our matching outfits. I have long since given away the dress to another young mom. (Grandma had given it a secret nursing panel), and so the dress was long gone. But I still have the baby dress.  Not too long ago, I was able to procure a duplicate of the original dress that fits my daughter today. Someday she can wear matching mother daughter dresses! By using repurposed fabric to make this little dress, it is almost like the Laura Ashley Mother and Child Store re-imagined.

I hope you have enjoyed this short story. For more fashion inspiration and other stories please read our journal! For sewing inspiration check out my pin board,  words my Grandma taught me.

Love, 

Laura