Growing my vintage fabric stash

This has already earned me a bit of side-eye from Mr Robot, but before we went on holiday I ordered some vintage fabric from Etsy seller Gertie Gusset's Vintage Drawers. (What did he expect? He bought me a sewing machine!) It arrived before I went to India, promptly and beautifully wrapped, but I've only just had time to blog about it.

This is one of those times when being into 60s styles is to my advantage, as 1960s knit is really affordable compared to, say, 1940s cotton. The check and the aqua fern pattern are both crimplene, and will probably make a good couple of skirts. I know knitted fabrics mean using a ballpoint needle.

The bolder blue and orange fabric is a synthetic crepe, so woven rather than knitted. I'm not 100% certain what that one will become. I bought it with simple sleeveless tops in mind – I already have a Simplicity pattern that would work really well. But now I've got it I'm wondering if there's enough to make a simple top and line a jacket. Probably not. Another option would be to make a royal blue dress and use the crepe for fake-blouse sleeves and a scarflike bow at the neckline. So many options...

We did buy fabric while in India. The first batch was some beautiful handloomed silk in Kolkata, three metres of gold and three of burgundy. We got it with sofa cushions in mind, so we'd have a beautiful and practical souvenir, but there will be enough left over to do something else with. It's fairly stiff, so I'm not sure what that could become. A structured bodice? A skirt? I guess it depends on how much fabric the cushion uses.

The other fabric was two metres of eye-wateringly expensive paisley-printed silk. (On reflection, I probably should have haggled over that one.) I believe it's 'habotai', it's a lightweight, liquid fabric like a high-end scarf. Needless to say I'm not planning to cut into that for a few years, not till I've got my skills brushed up. I'm picturing it as a late 1930s blouse, with ruching above the bust to make the most of the incredible drape.