Buy the 222 Unisex Vintage Vests sewing pattern from Folkwear. In Victorian times, gentlemen were not considered properly dressed without a jacket, vest (waistcoat), and tie. Indeed, even smart Victorian women donned fitted vests for street wear, with walking skirts and long jackets. Today, the vest is still an integral part of business attire and fashion for men and women.
Views A and B were originally men's vests, now also sized for women. View C is a closely fitted women's vest. All three are fully lined. The backs are cut from lining fabric for comfort and to reduce bulk.
View A is a simple, collarless V-neck vest with four welt pockets and an adjustable back waist belt. The centre front is pointed at the bottom and rises to high hip length at the sides and back.
View B is bias-cut for a decorative fabric treatment, features a shawl collar, and ends above the hipbone with a shallow point in front. Like View A, a back waist belt adjusts the fit.
View C is shorter, extending just to the waist. Four front darts fit the vest snugly to the bust. A small notched collar plunges into the double-breasted front, which closes with two rows of buttons.
A pattern for a traditional bow tie (with instructions for tying) is also included.
This sewing pattern is available to buy in the following formats:
– PDF (available to download immediately after purchase). What is a PDF?
– PDF pattern Printed A0 copy shop (We print out the A0 pattern sheets, but you’ll need to download the digital instructions, as we don’t print these. The PDF files will be emailed immediately after purchase, and the A0 pattern sheets will be dispatched next working day). What is Copy Shop?
Suggested fabrics:
Outer: Medium to heavyweight fabrics of cotton, silk, wool, linen, synthetics, or blends with or without nap, such as brocade, velvet, corduroy, canvas, pique, velveteen, or synthetic suede. The bias cut of View B is especially suitable for stripes or plaids.
Lining: Light to medium-weight lining fabrics such as cotton, rayon, silk, synthetics, or blends.
Bow tie: Light to medium-weight cotton, rayon, silk, synthetics, or blends.
Fabric requirements: See chart in image gallery.
Sizing: Men's S - 3XL and Women's XS – 3XL (approx. UK 4/6 – 28/30, based on our standardised size chart). Please also check the designer’s size chart.
Notions: Thread // View A: seven 1/2" (13 mm) buttons; one 7/8" (22 mm) wide belt buckle // View B: five 1/2" (13 mm) buttons; one 7/8" (22 mm) wide belt buckle // View C: eighteen 5/16" (9 mm) buttons // Bow tie: 1/4 yd (23 cm) of light to medium-weight interfacing (optional).
PDF pattern includes: Instructions; US letter/A4 print-at-home pattern (30 pages for View A, 30 pages for View B, 15 pages for View C, 3 pages for bow tie); 36″ wide copy shop pattern (1 sheet for each view, 1 sheet for bow tie); A0 copy shop pattern (2 sheets for View A, 2 sheets for View B, 1 sheet for View C, 1 sheet for bow tie).
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