Mad Men Style

Most everyone who knows me knows I am addicted to "Mad Men". I've watched every episode, and I think it is one of the best TV shows ever. I suppose I'm particularly drawn to it since I grew up in that same era and so much of the clothing and set design reminds me of my own upbringing. Not that I grew up in New York, but the similarities are there just the same. I especially like looking at the clothing, both the women's fashions as well as the children's clothes. My mom sewed a lot for my sister and me, and purchasing "store-bought" dresses was reserved for special occasions or back-to-school shopping. My mom would let my sister and me look through the pattern books for outfits we might like, and if my mom approved of the pattern, we got to pick out the fabric ourselves, so it was kind of like having designer clothes. Mom also sewed for herself, and favored the Vogue patterns. My sister and I got to pick out Simplicity or McCall's patterns. It was always so exciting to choose a design, pick out the fabric, and take it home. I was always so impatient to get started. Poor Mom hardly got in the door before I was laying out the fabric on the table and pinning the pieces down so we could cut it out and start sewing. Back then, labels weren't really important...what was important was whether or not you were in style, and since my mom sewed, I was always on the cutting edge of fashion. And I never had to worry about someone else showing up for school in the same dress as me! I was very lucky to have a mom who could sew, and was really good at it. I loved the clothes she made. When my daughter was young, I sewed for her, too. There's something so satisfying about seeing fabric go from being on the bolt to becoming an article of clothing. Makes me want to start sewing again! Maybe for my granddaughter....