Turquoise 1950s Vintage Dress Find

I may have a closet full of vintage style clothes, but I hardly own any true vintage clothes. A few suits and jackets, coats, and one or two dresses is about the extent of it. It's just hard to find something that fits me and is in my price range, and is also sturdy enough that I feel comfortable wearing and washing it. As a busy mom, I can't have a lot of high maintenance clothes, which is why I usually prefer to make my own.

But when you're visiting a new local shop that has some antiques, and spot this beauty, realize it probably would fit, and check the price tag – and it's only $35 – what else can you do??

I believe it was hand made, and can appreciate the skill of the seamstress for sure. Often I don't want to spend money on something I can make myself, but this was inexpensive enough and not necessarily something I would have wanted to tackle making.

I think it's linen, or a linen blend. So it wrinkles after I've been sitting on it, but has a lovely drape and weave.

The neck detail and those adorable pockets are the special factor. Actually, I think the neck could be fairly easy to do if you cut and faced a square neck with a scallop and then underlaid it with a band of contrasting fabric – but scallops are not my strong point, so I'm delighted someone else did them. And who would have thought of using machine stitched buttonholes as decoration??

Aside from my usual trouble with the back being a trifle long waisted, it fit me very well. It has a careful darn under one arm – clearly has been well loved.

After wearing it for a day I need to reinforce a few seams, but otherwise it stood normal wear very well. I washed it in cold water on a delicate cycle, and dried it flat, which seemed to work just fine.

Of course I had to pair it with ivory accessories, including a new to me 1950s hat and my favorite vintage summer heels.

So my small vintage clothing collection has expanded a little, and I'm very pleased. Oh, and I have to include a quick photo with the children since we all happened to coordinate for church.