A Dress A Day

A dress.
Mostly every day.

June 25, 2008

Time Out


clock dress


I am obsessed with this clock dress that Theresa sent me. It's already gone, of course, from Posh Girl Vintage ... and it would have barely fit me anyway (and by "barely" I mean, I could have zipped it up, maybe, if I could renegotiate that whole "breathing" thing with my lungs). If one of you bought it, will you tell me that you love it, and that you wear it every (suitable) day, and that you have given it a special nickname? Please?

The best part, of course, is that scrumptious clock print. I bet I could dig up the requisite clip art and Spoonflower myself some of that, don't you think? Should it be a big border print, like this one, or a smaller scatter print? Over red stripes, and or black and white as they are here?

As a joke, I'd love to wear this dress without also wearing a watch. (Which would, even as a joke, last about ten minutes, because not wearing a watch drives me nuts. I once bought a new watch at the airport because mine had broken in the car on the way over. And it was only recently that I stopped wearing a watch 24 hours a day, including in the shower [I have a lot of Swatch watches].)

Interestingly enough, the clock here is set at roughly 8:23, and not 10:10, as fakey watches usually are now. Which means (at least according to Google Answers) that the print is really and truly old.

While you're mourning the unavailability of this one, you might want to check out some of the other pretty dresses at Posh Girl ...

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36 Comments:

  • At Jun 25, 2008 7:03:00 AM, Anonymous Theresa said…

    I feel so special. I am glad you like it. I thought it was the most cool thing I had seen in a long time.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 7:10:00 AM, Anonymous Grace said…

    That's very cool. I saw fabric some what like that at the JoAnn Fabric Store. It was very interesting and I think I'll buy it:]

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 7:15:00 AM, Blogger Heather said…

    A watch comment (having been in that business....). Watches are set at 10:10 because, in that position, the hands usually do not obscure any detail on the dial -- a date window, a logo, etc). Also, the hands look 'happy', they make a smiley sort of face. Back when I was in the business, we introduced a new watch and wanted to call it the Ten-Ten. It was nixed by higher ups in the corporation. Its a catchy name and would have been a nice 'in' joke.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 7:25:00 AM, Anonymous Amy G said…

    Love it. Go with the scatter print on black & white stripes and you'll have a stunner! Or you could go red pinstripes, but wide red stripes would compete with the clocks. Thank goodness for Spoonflower.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:05:00 AM, Anonymous Wenjie said…

    Very cute dress.
    I guess the it is 8:23 instead of 10:10 is because that the clocks are on the down part of the dress and that makes the dress looks more stable and nice.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:11:00 AM, Blogger BeckyW said…

    That is the most gorgeous pattern for a sundress. I love the way the top is high cut. I also love that the skirt is not gathered right in the front, but more over the hips and back I assume.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:39:00 AM, Blogger lucitebox said…

    I love this bold border print! It makes the dress. Were it a scatter print, it'd be any other novelty print (except, you know with clocks set at 8:23.) It's very cool! Thanks for showing that. And thanks for sending it, Theresa. LOVE IT!

    Holly

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:55:00 AM, Blogger tea said…

    Ooh! I love the Casablanca Black Evening Dress.

    Also: I say with printing the clocks, the bigger the better.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 9:08:00 AM, Blogger Lydia said…

    Oh definitely keep it as a border print. Making the clocks small and scattered wouldn't be nearly as effective.

    --Lydia

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 9:47:00 AM, Anonymous Rosesred said…

    That is such a great site! Thanks for mentioning it, I spent a lovely hour just gazing at all the dresses. It's like walking in a museum; I won't buy anything, but I sure like looking at it.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 9:53:00 AM, Blogger What-I-Found said…

    Oooh...is that a key on the end of the belt? A CLOCK KEY????

    Yes, yes, yes!

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 10:08:00 AM, Blogger edot said…

    Definitely border print, definitely larger scale--and why not up the hours 'round the hem? It could be a, ha ha, day-to-evening kind of dress. Go from nine to nine! How could would that be.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 10:13:00 AM, Blogger samsara said…

    Indeed, what-i-found, that does look like a clock winding key at the end of the belt. What a hilarious detail. That just slays me.

    This is an awesome dress. And I agree with lucite box, I like that it's a border print. As for creating fabric like this, I think the bigger the better for those clocks.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 10:23:00 AM, Blogger Alana said…

    Oooh, just having a look at the dresses on Posh Girl vintage, finally I have found dresses with the same bust/hip ratio as me! yay! the second link is gorgeous, shame I don't look good in black/have a spare $625/have anywhere to wear it!

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 10:26:00 AM, Blogger Alana said…

    Oops, that should read bust/waist, not bust/hip (though the hip measurement looks fine too!). I am now a vintage clothing convert.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 12:32:00 PM, Anonymous Eirlys said…

    Nice dress. There's a very pleasing Alice-in-Wonderlandishness about it, but whether Alice or the White Rabbit (suitably feminised) should wear it, I'm not sure.

    I've been watchless for several weeks now (lost one watch, two ran out of batteries concurrently but I haven't got to the repairers yet, and the discarded Swatch that I pinched from my son I...left in a pocket and put through the washer/dryer - totally terminal treatment, I'm afraid). My cell phone tells me the time, of course, and I'm no longer looking at the arrangement of freckles/hairs on my left wrist in perplexitude. But I feel somehow reckless - that's me, over here on the dangerous edge of things!

    Good luck locating this fabric, Erin. I vote for the red pinstripe idea.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 1:06:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    i want to know what the back looks like. i always want to know what the back looks like. we can't see the backs of our own clothing, but the rest of the world can.

    oh erin! pleeeeeease use your enormous adad-clout to get dress-image-posters to include shots of the back. even if it's simple and basic and nothing special, i wanna see it.

    sincerely,
    thorn

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 2:12:00 PM, Blogger Gina said…

    I love the dress, and I love the watch key detail, but otherwise the belt seems stringy. I would replace it with a wider patent leather belt in black or red. Maybe wear the watch key as a pendant.

    I am also a time a holic. I wear a watch and there are usually at least two clocks in every room of my house. Can't live without them!

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 3:46:00 PM, Blogger Deborah W said…

    That is an awesome dress; I love it! I do hope you are able to get some similar fabric; Spoonflower would be a great source. Opposite of you I NEVER wear a watch! I stopped wearing one about 3 years ago and love it. I try to live my life so that I don't need one. I'm so much happier....!

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 3:49:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Ah, Erin, ADaD is my daily breath of fresh air -- and hilarious, succinct writing. I'm still snickering over "Texas compound-long."
    I recently did not win a clock-themed 40s dress on ebay from fave seller Denisebrain (with the more traditional 10:10 time):
    http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280237299208&ssPageName=ADME:B:WNA:US:1123
    Liz F. from Brooklyn

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 3:58:00 PM, Blogger Ivy Frozen said…

    The dress is fabulous! I vote keep the clocks big and red pinstripes might compete too much... I also am addicted to my watch and wear them everywhere, including the shower. I feel like I lost a limb if I don't have it on.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 3:58:00 PM, Blogger Jen said…

    You know something, silk screening has come a long way in recent years.
    I bet you could get the local "T" shirt printing shop (the one that screened kid's summer camp "T"s around town) to print up a pocket watch border print on your choice of yardage at a suprisingly affordable price.
    (now that I think about it, this would be sooooo easy to do, never mind the extra brownie points for patronizing a local business)

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 5:29:00 PM, Blogger barbie2be said…

    i LOVE this dress! i would love to walk up to someone on the street while wearing it and ask, "excuse me, have you got the time?" :) i would pair it with a white shrug and a pair of spectator flats!

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 6:31:00 PM, Anonymous Kim M said…

    I love this dress...everything about it. In fact, I would change a thing. Hopefully you will be able to duplicate the clock and will be able to wear it the next time we get together...how else will I be able to swipe it from your suitcase!??! :)

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 6:32:00 PM, Anonymous Kim M said…

    Okay...that was supposed to say I wouldn't change a thing!! OPPS...

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:01:00 PM, Blogger 3KillerBs said…

    I accidentally stumbled across this blog last week and spent the weekend reading the archives and saving links to dresses I'd like to duplicate. Wow.

    After a long period of remodeling I'm about to get my sewing machine out again and I've found a lot of inspiration here even though I loathe both orange and polka dots, cringe over loud novelty prints, and love culottes and divided skirts. :D

    Wonderful how a simple change of color scheme and details can personalize a style and make it an expression of a person's individuality.

    That is, after all, one of the greatest joys of sewing -- the ability to wear the shapes and colors that I like and which look flattering on me regardless of what anyone else in the world thinks of them and without any reference whatsoever to the dictates of the fashion gurus.

    I'm learning to draft my own patterns because no two measurements on my body are the same size and I do so much alteration that I figure it can't take any longer to start from scratch.

    I'm looking forward to reading your blog daily.

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:22:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Is it a solid stripe, or is it ticking-striped like a mattress?
    Either way, too cute!

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:25:00 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said…

    Please forgive the unrelated comment. Ms. ADAD, did you ever complete your Duro-roundup? And could a Duro ever have a Secret Life?

    Thank you for sharing your wonderful site.

    Teresa

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:43:00 PM, Blogger lorrwill said…

    My spoonflower vote:

    Big timepiece border with small, scattered timepieces - or just parts for a steampunky flare - red stripes. The black is too correctional facility for me.

    ~Punky Steamster
    aka Dixie Hoyt, FRA, Conspirator
    (who has not worn a watch in several years)

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 8:56:00 PM, Anonymous Jessica said…

    Acks! I love the shape of this dress. Anyone know of any patterns that are similar? Vintage or not...and--what's under the dress, giving it fullness? Tulle?

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 9:51:00 PM, Blogger Lavon said…

    cute dress. I can't wear it because I can't wear watches. They alway break.

    :D

     
  • At Jun 25, 2008 10:02:00 PM, Blogger Kat said…

    I am so glad most of those Posh Girl Vintage dresses are too small so I don't have to be too sorry to see someone else get them...

    (Also, great alt text.)

     
  • At Jun 26, 2008 6:49:00 AM, Anonymous Velvet plaza said…

    Lavon - I can't wear watches either! I thought I was a mutant. I stop time. Literally. Every watch I have ever tried simply stops working after I wear it just a few minutes.

     
  • At Jun 26, 2008 2:26:00 PM, Blogger Crabapple Blossoms said…

    That is a marvelous dress! I would Spoonflower myself watch fabric with all the clock faces set to different times and not one of them being the ubiquitous 10:10.

     
  • At Jun 29, 2008 1:26:00 AM, Anonymous Sandra said…

    I was so sad when I saw this dress on her site and it was sold. It's so cool it hurts. Great pick!

     
  • At Jul 9, 2008 7:49:00 PM, Anonymous Fashion Astrology Art Beauty Shopping Food Kitsch said…

    That is a totally cool dress. Very hot!

     

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