Where vintage sewing is for everyone.
Pattern Companies
This list focuses primarily on American sewing pattern companies that operated before 1980.
For pattern companies outside of the U.S. scroll down to the bottom of this page.
Advance
Associated
Authentic
Blue and White
Bon Ton, Le - printed by S.T. Taylor and advertised for mail order in Le Bon Ton et Le Moniteur de la Mode magazine. They also operated a dressmaking/ pattern drafting school and likely sold patterns from their storefront in New York.
Burda
Butterick: Catalogs were printed in French and Spanish (Modas Metropolitanas) and advertised in The Delineator Magazine (American) , and Le Miroir des Modes (French magazine). Butterick Quarterly Companion, Butterick Fashion Book, Butterick Fashion Magazine (1930s name for their Quarterly), leaflet Butterick Fashion news. You can read more about Butterick's advertising publication history here.
Daisy Kindgom - established in the late 1960s.
Green Pepper - established in 1973.
Delores of St. Paul
Demorest, Mme. - The first sewing pattern manufacturer in the U.S., printed and advertised in Demorest's Monthly Magazine.
Domestic Pattern Company - created by The Domestic Sewing Machine Company and advertised in Domestic Paper Fashions flyers.
Duart
Duchess of Windsor (See Spadea).
DuPont
DuBarry - Advertised in counter catalogs, and in the DuBarry Prevue store leaflet.
Economy
Elite - sold patterns for mail order via Elite Styles pattern magazine.
Excella - sold via counter catalogs, Excella Fashion Quarterly.
Fashionable Dress - published Fashionable Dress Magazine and Style.
Folkwear
Food Administration
Frank Leslie's - printed a ladies' magazine that included a sewing pattern diagram or printed tissue supplemental pattern sheet.
Godey's
Good Housekeeping
Grit
Harper's Bazar
Haslam - a sewing pattern drafting system with a special chart for drafting children's size up to plus-size women's sewing patterns with foundation drafts and seasonal supplement booklets.
Hollywood - advertised in counter catalogs, Hollywood Patterns of Youth store leaflet.
Home Fashions
Home Pattern Company/ Ladies' Home Journal Patterns/ Journal Patterns - founded by Condé Nast in 1905. The company advertised in the Ladies' Home Journal Magazine, The Style Book store leaflet, The Home Book of Fashions quarterly, and sold from counter catalogs and via Mail Order.
Ideal
Imperial Pinned Paper Patterns - operated in the 1880s-1890s by the Imperial Fashion Company and sold patterns that came pinned together in the shape of the finished garment to show the user how they were to be stitched together. Advertised in their own publications The Imperial Mode and The New York Fashion Bazar.
J.C.Penney
Kut-Eezi (printed briefly by the Ladies Home Journal) as the first pattern with multiple sizes in one package.
Kwik Sew
L'art de la Mode
Le Roy
Lutterloh/ Golden Rule/ La Coupe d'Or
---
Mail Order Companies:
American Weekly
Anne Adams - advertised in newspapers and via mail-order catalogs.
Duchess of Windsor
Fashion Service
Grit - Grit Book of Fashions
Kate Marchbanks
Laura Wheeler
Lincoln Star
Martha Pullen
Modes Royale
Originator
Parade
Prominent Designer
Reader Pattern Service
Spadea
Workbasket
---
May Manton
McCall - Advertised via McCall's Magazine, McCall Quarterly/ McCall Fashion Book, McCall Style News leaflet. Click here to learn more about McCall sewing pattern dating resources.
Modes Royale: available only by mail order from a catalog.
Myra's Paris Patterns - published Myra's Journal of Dress and Fashion 1870s-1890s.
New Idea
New Look
New York - operated from the early 1930s until at least 1950. Advertised in counter catalogs and store leaflets titled New York Fashion News. Read more about their history here.
Originator: (available only by mail order from a catalog.
Pacifica
Paris Fashion Company, The - advertised patterns for mail order in illustrated fashion journals including La Couturière which was later renamed The French Dressmaker, and La Mode de Paris. They seem to have operated primarily in the late 1800s. They were also affiliated with The McDowell Garment Drafting machine Company and shared an address with them in New York.
Peerless (Newspaper Syndicate) - The company advertised primarily in newspapers and magazines. It appears to have begun in 1907 and was active through the 1930s.
Peterson's
Photoplay
Pinned Paper Patterns (see Imperial)
Pictorial Review - counter catalogs, leaflets, Quarterly called The Pictorial Fashion Book (see 1912 edition).
Polynesian
Practical
Priscilla
Royal Pattern Company- Le Costume Royal sewing pattern magazine, began selling sewing patterns in 1895 and printed their magazine Le Costume Royal beginning in 1896 to advertise their patterns. They merged with Vogue Pattern Company in 1924.
Royal Society
Screen Star
Silver Needles
Simplicity - Counter catalogs, Simplicity Prevue, Simplicity Home Catalog etc. Simplicity Fashion News in 1970s.
Singer - Once printed new Fashions for You and Your home advertising other pattern companies.
Smith's (published illustrated pattern bazaar circa 1873)
Spadea
Standard, Standard Designer - advertised in the Standard Designer Quarterly and The Designer Magazine, and the Standard Fashions store leaflet.
Star
Stretch and Sew
Style
Superior
Vogue & Vogue Children's - Counter catalogs, leaflets, and Vogue Pattern Book (monthly).
Vogart - primarily embroidery transfers
Woman's Day
Woman's Home Companion
Woman's Institute of Domestic Arts and Sciences - Fashion News and later Woman's Institute Fashions booklet catalog.
Woman's Weekly
Woman's World - in addition to advertising in their own magazine, they printed a mail order catalog Woman's World Book of Fashions.
Young Ladies' Journal - operated as a magazine with patterns available for mail order.
British and Australian Pattern Companies
This list includes newspapers and publications that either advertised patterns for mail order or included pattern supplements:
Australian Home Journal
Australian Women's Weekly
Bestway
Blackmore
Coming Fashion
Damaret
Dreadnaught
English Pattern Company
Fleetway
IPC
Leachway
Mab's
Madame Weigel's
Maudella
National Needlework pattern series
Odhams
Pauline
Personality Pattern Service
Silver Scissors (pattern drafting system)
Sunday People
The Daily Telegraph
The Express
The Times
The People
Weldon's
Woman, Woman and Home, Woman's Own, Woman's Realm, Woman's Mirror
French Pattern Companies
This list does not include all French fashion magazines that offered sewing pattern supplements.
Bell, le patron
Bru, les patrons
Coquette
Favoris, Les Patrons
Herbillon (Printed in French and Dutch)
Jardin des Modes, les patrons de
Journal des Demoiselles
Jeunesse
Luxe, Les Patrons de
La Coupe d'Or
La Mode Parisienne
La Nouvelle Mode
Marie France
Modes et Travaux, Les Patrons
Parisienne (Les Patrons Sélectionnés de La Mode Parisienne)
Paris- Luxe
Primrose - mail order
Regina, Les Patrons
Universels, Les Patrons
German, Dutch, Swedish Pattern Companies:
Allers Monster-Tidning, dated December 20, 1932
Å Style
Beyer's Modenblatt (publication with supplements)
Der Bazar
Die Modenwelt (publication with supplements)
Favorit (mail order from a catalog called Favorit Moden Album.)
Herbillon - Dutch and French
Neue Modelle - mail order pattern publication
