1932 Pale green outfit
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1930-1938 A pale green knitted rayon two-piece outfit
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The back of the outfit
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Detail of the pattern round the waist of the top
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Detail of the pattern on the skirt
Description
The two parts of the outfit are knitted in rayon yarn composed of strands of ivory and pale green twisted together, and they are not knitted to shape but cut from lengths woven for the purpose. The body of the top is one piece with no side seams, and ribbing, 2¾" deep round the lower edge; it has columns of a pattern of little checks all round, 1¼" apart, rising from the ribbing, 1¼" wide and 6½" high with mitred tops.
Vertical darts, about 4" long, have been clumsily taken each side at the side back about 1" up from the ribbing and about 1" wide at their tops, presumably by the wearer, to reduce the fullness of the bodice.
The sleeves have 2" of ribbing round their lower edges and the underarm and armhole seams are overlocked, as are the shoulder seams, which have a ¼" wide white cotton tape sewn on the inside to prevent the seams from stretching.
The collar is a 1" wide band sewn round the neck as far as the tops of the front edge bands; they extend for 2½", hanging down, and their ends are folded diagonally into a slant.
The front edges have the 1" wide bands sewn on, which overlap when the hook and worked loop at the neck are fastened. The ends of similar 1" bands are sewn into the edge seams with the top each side, 7½" down from the neck; the band on the right-hand side is a 2" length folded over to form a loop holding two ivory plastic rings, and a 2¾" long band with a slanted end on the left side can be threaded through one ring, folded back and threaded through the other to secure the front edges of the bodice. A second set is at the top of the ribbing. The belt is a similar 1" wide band and one end forms a loop sewn down to the front edge seam, 2½" below the first set, and holding the same ivory plastic rings; there are worked belt loops at the sides of the waist and the other end of the belt is also folded diagonally into a slant, like the other two bands on the left front edge.
The skirt is knitted in the same pattern as the columns on the top; the edge at the waist is turned over as a ¾" deep hem. On the right-hand side there is a press stud with its other half 5" along, making the waist smaller, but there is no opening and two more press studs close the tapering gap for 5" down to the main skirt side seam; this may have been another alteration by the wearer.
The back of the skirt has inverted pleats 7½" apart, stitched down for 17½" from the waist; they are 2¾" deep on the left and 3¼" deep on the right. The hem is finished with ⅝" of ribbing. Shoulder straps of ⅝" wide white silk ribbon are sewn each side at the waist.
The outfit may have been home-made.
Contemporary illustrations
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Fashion drawing in Good Housekeeping, October 1930
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Detail from a cartoon in Punch, May 1931
