Whilst visiting Cardigan last week, and keeping my eyes open for a fabric shop – though resisting googling to find one for definite – we spotted something called The Eco Shop.  

Whilst I don’t eat meat and do care about environmental issues, I initially assumed this place would be full of tie-dye, Ecover and vegan lipstick, so ignored it. After wandering around the town a while longer, we happened to approach it from a different direction, and as I noted dogs were allowed inside, decided to take a look. 

It was like a charity shop but larger,  cheaper, and more jumbled. Almost immediately I saw the box of sewing patterns, marked 30p each!  

  I began to leaf through. Patterns, instructions and crumpled pattern pieces were all mixed up, making it hard to tell at a glance which were complete and what went with what. The man on the till said I could have the box for £4 – wow. 

Back at the cottage I carefully sorted through the patterns and tried to marry up the loose pieces. I think I’ve ended up with one that I have just the envelope for, plus a few random bits that don’t appear to match anything.  But the majority of patterns seem to be more or less complete.   

 A wide range of styles, brands and garments, but there are definitely several I would like to attempt. Have you made any of these vintage patterns? Which do you think I should try first? Also, do you have much luck sourcing vintage patterns from charity shops or similar?