Jacques Vert Blouse in Blue With Beautiful Button Arrangement To Copy
- The Jacques Vert Blouse converts a summer dress into a winter evening outfit. Photo by Angela Lansbury.
I thought this was my favourite Jacques Vert blouse. Then I did a search for Jacques Vert blouses on this blog. I discovered a red and white one which is totally different, a simple pull on style. But this blue embroidered white one, plus size, shirt style, has more features to delight and interest anybody and everybody. Amazing buttons, as well as interesting embroidery. I'll start with the fabric and come to the unusual buttons later.
The Fine Fabric - Polyester?
I remember the days when polyester first came out in the late ninetten fifties or sixties. When shopping my mother would look at labels and go for traditional cotton. Cotton was breathable. Polyester was cheap, sticky, hot, looked shiny and synthetic. The worst was polyester bedding. Sheets in cheap hotels which looked clean but felt terrible, like sleeping on plastic. And polyester knickers washed up clean and without stains even in cold water but, oo-er, gave you thrush.
So polyester was easy to wash clean, but at the price of not feeling comfortable. What was worse, no feel good factor in your mind. You felt you were wearing something cheap and nasty. God forbid somebody should spot the label and know your dirty secret, actually a clean secret.
Then along came poly-cotton. This was the best of both worlds. The fabric felt cool and fresh. But creased less than cotton, and was more stain resistant. Perfection.
Finally, the polyester revolution. Polyester went upmarket. It was used for expensive clothes, garments with interesting colours, careful cutting, delightful designs. Now I am happy with polyester. My two favourite big brands for clothes, Britain's Jacques Vert, and American Anthony Sicari, use synthetics. Wearing these brands, you look, as the traditional phrase says, like a million dollars. That may be hyperbolic (exaggerated), but not much. (Joke.)
You don't just look good. You feel good, proud, confident, excited, happy. At least, I do.
Now, let's look at the buttons.
Beautiful Buttons
The featured, obvious buttons are teeny gold colour ones which shine, matching the sheen of the fabric. The front placket (the doubled vertical fabric backing the buttons) has seven buttons, little shirt-size buttons. One on each sleeve cuff, makes a total of nine.
On shanks. I prefer that. If they ever fall off and have to be re-sewn you don't need to sew neatly or find matching colour threads.
But it's the extras which matter. Firstly, the buttons are in parallel two rows. Secondly, the buttons are offset diagonally. Thirdly, under the collarre are two buttons at neck level.
Fourthly, lower down the front, three more buttons, hidden, so they don't make bumps if you tuck the shirt in under your skirt. Different style, flat. Ordinary shirt buttons with four holes for extra security, but a nice pearly colour.
Fifthly, two spare buttons. one pearly, one covered in blue fabric. But that blue doesn't match! Why? Is that a mistake? I recally one of those secrets revealed click-bait articles online. It said that spare buttons are not, as consumers believe, placed on the washing label for the convenience of the buyer to replace a missing button. Nor for the laundry to replace one lost in the wash.
The spare buttons are for the laundry to test if the colour and surface of the button will survive the water temperature, spin-drying, and ironing, and tossing of the laundry washing machine method and spinning.
I conclude, survmise, that the blue button is really to tell you if the blue dye in the embroidery will run at the water temperature you are planning for the wash.
On holiday, as well as at home, the charm of this polyester garment is that you can wash it in tepid or even cold water, hang it up or put it on a drying rack over the bath, and overnight, or a second night, it will be ready to wear (without laundry cost, risk of laundry loss, and without ironing).
If you are washing by hand in warm and rinsing in near cold water, why would you care about hot water temperatures?
I have often found that water changes temperature fast. You turn on the hot tap by mistake thinking it is the cold tap. Or the mixer tap changes the temperature. Or the water at first comes cold so that you increase the turn on the hot tap. Then the boiler heats up and the water turns into scalding hot.
So, the mystery of the non-matching button is solved? Maybe.
The point is that just looking at the buttons on this garment, three styles of button, three arrangements of horizontal line under the collar, diagonals across the top of the plaeuet, and straight at the lower part, revealed or concealed buttonsyou learn so much. The end is an entertainment for the buyer or wearer. Going back in time, the variety of buttons styles and distribution shows how much thought the designer took to benefit the buyer.
The buttons, and buttonholes, are arranged in specific places between the embroidered parts down the front placket.
Label Lessons
Reading the label on the neck, I notice that this garment is from a Plus range. I didn't realise that Jacques Vert had a separate plus range. I have had this garment for years, and never noticed that it was plus size. I used to be plus size before my Covid era diet.
Last Look Inside
My last look inside the blouse shows me that it has padded shoulders. This dates the garment. Vintage.
Final Front Features
I must mention the embroidery on the collar. It goes around the edge of the collar including up the two v shape points. Under the collar is an almost invisble transparent pupper to fasten the top front down neatly.
Lessons Learned
Read the neck label. You might learn about the manufacturer, the shop, the designer, the size, which deigner to look for next time.
Read the washing label in the side seam. It might warn you that the item is delicate. It might show you a spare button. It might reveal the manfacturer or shop, which is not apparent from the neck label.
Useful Websites
Tu/Sainsbury
A chat about shoulder pads, and Canadian second hand clothes shops.
https://www.thevintageseeker.ca/magazine/the-evolution-of-shoulder-pads-vintage-garments
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