Of the many vintage-styled fabrics designed by Gertie that I purchased, three perfectly lent themselves to a 1950s Horrockses style dress.
HORROCKSES FASHION HISTORY
Founded by John Horrocks in 1791 Lancashire, England, the Horrockses textile trade grew to become a fashion house by the 20th century.
After the economic desolation caused by two world wars and the Great Depression, fashion houses declined while ready-to-wear fashion became the norm.
By 1946, Horrockses fashions became available in stores.
The branding was instantly familiar, which led to successful marketing.
The Horrockses fashion collection was exclusive in many ways.
Owning their own mills, their wove their own cotton and even designed their own fabric.
In 1953, Queen Elizabeth I packed cotton dresses from specialist wholesaler Horrockses for her six-month tour of the Commonwealth from 1953 to 1954, proving the prestige of the fashion textile company.
FABRIC AND PATTERN
For my first Horrockses styled dress, I chose stripes of vintage aqua bows interspersed with stripes of red flowers on a white background.
Using Vogue 8789, I easily sewed this dress with many thanks to clear directions.
After cutting the bodice on the bias to achieve the chevron effect, and reserving plenty of length for a full skirt, I had enough fabric left for a vintage 1950s blouse. Stay tuned for that!
My only regret for this project is that I finally finished it at the beginning of October, which is often the last week of warmth in Virginia as the chill of autumn descends.
WASHINGTON AND OLD DOMINION TRAIL PHOTO SHOOT
Nevertheless, I’m hoping the weather is warm enough to wear my second Horrockses dress next week for a photo shoot.
Many thanks to my son for the photo shoot this week.
He had the idea to use the Washington and Old Dominion Trail near the college he attended for this showcase of the dress.
The fabric is a very lovely and soft drapy 100% cotton, making it a comfortable fashion to wear.
