So, when I gained weight a few years ago, I got rid of a lot of smaller size vintage patterns--even some I liked a lot and had used several times. I'm not back to the shape I was five years ago, but I'm closer, and have been thinking about re-acquiring some of the patterns I let go. (One of the patterns I let go--made distinct by the original owner's name written on the pattern envelope--is on Etsy. There aren't a lot of that pattern around, and fewer in that size, but I am...ambivalent about buying it back--I should be able to hack another pattern to recreate it, and in a more suitable size, but...the fact that I found it again at all... Anyway.)
I was looking around eBay at some of the patterns I used to have, and the search for Simplicity 5903 found one in a lot of 11 early 1970s Simplicity patterns for $20 shipped. I wasn't thrilled by the idea of paying $20 for that one pattern, but I had a look at the other patterns, and...some of them were really cute? So I put the listing on my watch list, and an hour or so later the seller offered $2 off and I was convinced to buy. That was 3 days ago and they arrived today!
I was a little concerned that the seller didn't seem to have experience selling patterns, so there was a chance I would receive a pile of empty or incomplete patterns, but I could see what looked like factory folds peeking out from under a flap in one photo and decided to risk it. A quick investigation says that most of them are indeed still in factory folds, and those that have been used give the impression of being complete.
And here they are! (...under the cut)
Simplicity 5903, the reason for all of this, from 1973
(I have also always liked the shoes shown in the photo and illustrations for this pattern)
Here's one of the dresses I made from it, long ago
I have a fondness for the concept of smock jackets, so that's the appeal of Simplicity 6669 from 1974
Simplicity 5642 from 1973 has a really cute (at least in the illustration) gathered detail instead of a dart for chest shaping
Simplicity 5689 may not be as distinctive overall, but it's still innocuously appealing, in a "if you use the right fabric, it might not look like it's from 1973 at all" kind of way
Simplicity 6401from 1974 is in junior sizing, and view1 is a lot like some of the views from Simplicity 6290 from 1974, which is one of the patterns I did convince myself to keep when I downsized the others years ago, but overall the pattern is different enough, and I may be able to work with even this junior size once I reach my weight goal. We'll see.
Simplicity 5803, 1973, has some cute design details. Yes, I have used the word "cute" several times in this post.
1972's Simplicity 9862 has a dropped waist silhouette that I will probably never be able to wear again, but I might try the keyhole view out without the skirt, as a tuck-in shirt, sometime.
(and View 1's shoes are fantastic.)
This 1971 Simplicity 9434 might fit the kiddo, but he may grow another inch while I think about how similar this pattern is to other shirt patterns I have
I've actually had Simplicity 5143, from 1972, before! Back in the late 1990s, when pants like this were cycling back into fashion. I never made them then, and I'll probably never make them now or in the future (for a lot of reasons), but that pattern illustration is amusing to see again.
This one...Simplicity 6405, 1974, was the one I considered the biggest dud in the assortment, in terms of whether I could see any appeal in it at all. However...I might have an idea for it now...maybe... But, its potential for de-1970s-ifying is not as obvious as the rest.
So, yes, I'm happy with this purchase! At least until I start a project and find that something is missing... Now, though: happy.
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