February Contest - Your Oldest Folkwear Make

Andrea

February 27, 2026

First of all… how did I not know until now that one of my favorite pattern companies was also my neighbor in the 70’s?!! Many years of my childhood were spent in Forestville.

I didn’t find Folkwear until I was in middle school. I have no idea how many garments I’ve made from Folkwear, but highlights would include umpteen bodices for attendees at Renaissance Fair, gowns and waistcoats for the Black and White Ball, costumes for countless theater productions, the Afghani Nomad Dress for my high school bestie, the Model T Duster for me, the Victorian Underthings for a parade, and of course my collection of the Edwardian vest … especially the one I was wearing the day my husband and I met!

Constance Hallberg

February 25, 2026

The first Folkwear pattern I made was the Missouri River Boatman’s Shirt (#204) for my husband in 1985 for him to wear at the Feast of the Hunter’s Moon in Lafayette, Indiana. We were historical reenacters in the soap-maker’s booth. I made it of a deep rose Kettle Cloth on my 1916 Singer treadle sewing machine. For the cuff buttons, I used some well-used metal buttons from my grandmother’s button box. I haven’t seen the shirt or the photos since our last move. In 1998, I made a miniature version of the shirt in unbleached muslin for our infant son. This was entirely stitched by hand. He wore it with a pair of the Turkish Bloomers from the Little Folks pattern (#109). We carried him around in a willow basket and many other people took photos, but I haven’t found ours either .His bloomers were red calico with a dense pattern of blue and yellow flowers. I am sure the shirt and bloomers are in a box with other favorite baby clothes. The first Folkwear pattern I bought was the Kinsale Cloak pattern at a large JoAnne fabric store in Rockford, Illinois.

Elvie Rubio

February 25, 2026

I fell in love with Folkwear patterns when I moved to Brattleboro, a small town in southern Vermont, in 1980. I was a foreign student from Venezuela, and used to visit the local fabric store where they were sold. I bought a pattern of the Gaza dress. Later on, many years later, I found Folkwear in the internet, and was able to buy other patterns. Recently, I bought the book The Folkwear Book of Ethnic Clothing. It’s wonderful!

Linda

February 17, 2026

Don’t have any photos; - I don’t do photos of myself, anyway; - and the prairie dresses I made are long since donated; but I practically lived in that prairie dress pattern! Wore them nearly every day to work in the ‘80s. (I was a sign maker for a dept.store, so the apron came in quite handy!) Had the dresses in a brown calico, a navy calico, another in a green and blue floral with green rick-rack trim. (my favorite!) I miss those dresses! But have recently gathered some new fabrics; and will be sewing some larger sizes to fit my older (and larger) figure, when I can. Always loved how ’sturdy’ your patterns were, too; and, despite it being ‘too small’ for me now, I still have the old pattern.

Monique Rigling

February 17, 2026

My first encounter with Folkwear patterns was at the Smithsonian’s gift shops. I have found them to be fascinating for decades. Since then, I have lost track of how many of these patterns I have owned and made.

Jennifer Brooks

February 16, 2026

I think the first Folkwear garment I made was a shirt for my husband from the Russian and Ukrainian shirt pattern. We were folk dancers; we still are. I think it was around 1976, because I was singing in a folk dance band, and Art called me at a rehearsal to ask me to come home, because our daughter, who would have been around one year old then, was chasing around the house and he was falling asleep. I was embroidering Kieven roses for the placket and cuffs during breaks in the rehearsal. I’ve made his shirt bigger with gussets, because he is not as slender now as he was as a young dad. I adapted the pattern to make myself a short sleeved shirt with a different one of the embroidery patterns-I made that one around 2000 and took the pieces to embroider during a bike trip in Ireland. I have a shirt my grandmother brought from Byelorus around 1903 when she immigrated to the US. It’s too fragile for me to wear now. I wore out a couple of others when I was a teenager. My father explained about embroidering on waste canvas; I have another shirt I may have made from a random pattern even before I made Art’s shirt. How, pray tell, do I post a picture?

Angel Dye

February 16, 2026

My oldest Folkwear make was my wedding dress in August 1984 – I made the Gibson girl blouse into a long dress with an elastic waistband covered by a white, silk cumberbun. It was a shiny polyester fabric – our wedding was at 3:00 pm on the hottest day of the year!

Vivien

February 16, 2026

Gibson Girl Blouse

Made this in a sewing class in white muslin/cheesecloth and therefore learned lace insertions about 40 years ago.
I wore it to a fundraising dinner with a navy velveteen skirt I had also made.

I recently made the blouse again.

Linda H

February 16, 2026

Prairie Dress
About 40 years ago. A lavender cotton with tiny flowers print. I remember wearing it to an informal gathering at my husband’s work – and indeed I remember all the gathering involved in making it, too.

A couple of years later a neighbour borrowed my child’s prairie pattern and made dress and apron for her young daughter. She was German and that dress looked as authentic for her heritage as on the American Prairie.

leilani hagberg

February 16, 2026

I made a cheesemakers smock for my brother to wear as he juggled and walked a tightrope in the Novato Renaissance Faire long ago when they still had the kissing booths