The Duchess of Windsor's Sewing Patterns

When Wallis Simpson wasn't busy being one of the most glamorous women in the world she found time to design sewing patterns for the Spadea Pattern Company. "I've done two or three hundred patterns so far and I love doing them, says the Duchess. I usually take my ideas from the clothes I wish I could wear - so as not to put every other woman in high round necks and the severe lines I insist on for myself." (The Windsor Style by Suzy Menkes)
If the Spadea pattern company had two or three hundred of her designs they aren't easy to find today. I have had a few, but these images are from the Vintage Pattern Wiki. 

A Look At The Duchess Of Windsor

I just got a copy of The Windsor Style by Suzy Menkes. It's a fascinating book about a level of high life that none of us will ever see. The home furnishings, the art, the food and of course the fashion. There is no disputing how influential Wallis Simpson was in setting fashion trends, both in her dress and her jewels. Her whole life was glamorous, from her embroidered lingerie to her world famous jewelry. But here are some of her chic clothing choices.

 
"The Duchess of Windsor in the square-shouldered 1940's silhouette..."

"Wallis's severely plain crepe dress decorated with bows is by Mainbocher."

"Wallis using the chic bag as the essential 1940s accessory to trimly tailored suits."

"Wallis in Schiaparelli's carbon blue silk jersey dress and jacket embroidered with baroque gilded scrolls, photographed by Beaton at the Chateau de Cande on the Loire just before her marriage."

"The Duchess photographed by Horst in 1947 in a Scarlett O'Hara dress by Mainbocher. The austere high neck is balanced by the panniered taffeta skirt built out over an elaborate crinoline."