The One Hour Dress
21 New Designs with Complete Instructions for Making
by Mary Brooks Picken

CONDITION: new, softcover, crisp and glossy covers, 20 pages, 2008, unabridged, size: 5.5x8.5, published by Bramcost Publications

Mary Brooks Picken, Director of Instruction at the the Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts & Sciences, developed the easy-to-use sewing instructions for her infamous "one hour dress." WIDAS was the largest school of dressmaking and design in the 1920s and produced a number of home study courses to teach sewing and millinery skills. There are three One Hour Dress books -- two from 1924, one from 1925. You can find all three One Hour Dress books under our auction listings.

The 1925 issue of this book contains different designs than the 1924 books. Step-by-step detailed instructions for completing the one piece dress, two piece dress and a slenderizing one piece dress as well as instructions for 18 other variations on the original designs are included. A few simple steps complete the dress:

• taking your measurements
• preparing the material
• cutting the dress (folding the material, cutting the neck opening, shaping the shoulders, completing the cutting)
• making the dress (sewing the seams, finishing the neck opening, putting in hip dart and side plaits, etc.)
• cutting and applying long sleeves

Instructions for the two piece dress include:

• dividing the material
• cutting out the blouse
• proportioning the skirt
• making the blouse
• making the skirt
• joining the skirt and blouse
• making the pockets and belt

The one hour dress sewing method does not require a specific pattern, instead it is a "method of making." The author's instructions use your own measurements for blouse length, skirt length, hip measurement and armhole measurement. These measurements are measured off on the fabric with clear instructions on where and when to cut. Fabric measurement suggestions are provided and detailed illustrations for each step are included in both text and line drawings so you can easily follow along.

This 20 page book is easy-to-use to create fantastic flapper fashions with many of the dress styles still being in vogue today. An infinite variety of dresses can be made based on the style you choose as well as fabrics, colors and decorative trims. 

Please see images for a sampling of dresses included in the book as well as a few of the instructions to give you an idea of how simple they are.  Be sure to check our other auction listings for more vintage sewing books.

Bramcost Publications is your publishing resource for vintage lifestyle books and patterns. Our books/patterns focus on the way our foremothers and forefathers lived, laughed and loved in their everyday lives. Beauty, fashion, millinery, entertaining and handicrafts are the building blocks of our book/pattern offerings with an emphasis on VINTAGE:

• makeup, hairstyling, beauty
• sewing, pattern drafting, fashion design
• knitting and crochet patterns
• millinery, hat construction, hat patterns
• beadwork, jewelry making
• ribbonwork, embroidery, embellishments, quilting
• weddings, bridal interest
• paper dolls, doll books, doll clothes patterns
• Christmas, Easter, Halloween and Valentine?s Day holiday celebrations