AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Good Things Come To Those Who Lie In Wait (on Ebay) DATE: 5:26 AM ----- BODY:

For reasons that should be painfully obvious, I have wanted more of this fabric for years. I bought some the moment I saw it, and made a big circle skirt, which I have altered at least a couple of times. But it's quilting cotton, which means it's not especially sturdy, and the skirt was beginning to look a little sad. Which made me more than a little sad. (That's one of the downsides of sewing -- even if something you make costs less than the $20 throwaway item from H&M or Target, it costs more in time and emotional investment, so you get madder when it wears out/rips/gets spilled on.)

And unfortunately, with fabric, even if you know the manufacturer's name and the fabric name, you can't rely on the seller knowing either of those pieces of information. So the only thing you can do is hit eBay at regular intervals and think "if I didn't know anything about this fabric, how would I describe it?"

Which is what I did, and now FOUR YARDS are on their merry way to me. Woo! With a bonus Hoo!

Do I know what I will sew with this yet? Not especially. But I know I will love it and hug it and squeeze it and call it George.

Labels: alphabet_prints, ebay, fabric, fonts

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sarah DATE:Apr 26, 2010 6:07:00 AM LOL! I use that line all the time! Congrats on your fabric conquest. I am guessing it will be made into a lovely Heidi dress! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Debi DATE:Apr 26, 2010 7:51:00 AM hehehehe...I love that line too :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nora DATE:Apr 26, 2010 7:56:00 AM helvetica! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

daiyami DATE:Apr 26, 2010 8:21:00 AM you get madder when it wears out/rips/gets spilled on.

I have just started making clothes (half-circle skirts so far), but I think I will feel opposite---since I know I'll be able to replace an item with something I like as well, I feel more willing to let go. But that may be a side effect of having hoarding tendencies. Plus I haven't made anything very complicated yet, so fairly small investments.

Have fun with the fabric! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nicole DATE:Apr 26, 2010 9:52:00 AM I think you've articulated my frustration with searching for fabric on ebay -- I've pretty much given up on it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

The Hillbilly Banjo Queen: DATE:Apr 26, 2010 10:06:00 AM Shoot. I just turned green. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nada Gordon: 2 ludic 4 U DATE:Apr 26, 2010 10:19:00 AM OMG. I need that fabric. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kariann DATE:Apr 26, 2010 2:42:00 PM This is why I love Erin. She uses the same quotes I do and loves the same funky prints I do.

You can never wrong with type as a design! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

ztoamom DATE:Apr 26, 2010 3:29:00 PM One of my favorite George fabrics ever is a Michael Miller with "etc" and asterisks in pairs all marching along is perfect type face rows. In black and white. Love it. I love this George, too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Happycindys DATE:Apr 27, 2010 6:37:00 AM Wow! Just fell in love with your fabric!! I try to find it ( to share your luck!!) but...no! Instead, I,ve found a FABULOUS eyechart fabric! O'm an optician and i teach how to do glasses in collèege...Wow! My students will be crazy when i'll show up with my new 'eyechart' skirt!
Yahou! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Donna DATE:Apr 27, 2010 7:02:00 AM I'm curious! Have you ever thought of just printing your own at Spoonflower.com? You could even use the font of your choice! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jan DATE:Apr 27, 2010 9:13:00 AM hahahahahahahaha! I feel your excitement and angst... Excitement - much better indeed - congrats on the find! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sophie DATE:Apr 27, 2010 10:31:00 AM make sure to reinforce the fabric a bit to make it last as long as possible- or maybe just put aside one yard of it for later use. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 28, 2010 8:44:00 AM Another good source for fabric (especially quilting cottons) is www.missingfabrics.com. I can't tell you how many times this site has saved one of my quilt projects with just that last 1/4 yd of fabric that was short! It's amazing what you can find in someone else's stash.

donna in nj ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

pam DATE:Apr 29, 2010 1:26:00 PM Whoo hoo, and congratulations!

I had the most awesome fluffy crinoline square dance petticoat back when I was in college. I loved it, and called it "George" too. What is it about that name?

(P.S. after moves, when I come across it, I always call my kids over and introduce them..."kids, this is George, my totally awesome square dance petticoat!" They roll their eyes but I love it!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anne Beekman DATE:May 3, 2010 10:58:00 AM Ohhhh, I love this - I teach Typography and the font is HELVETICA! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: I did not make this dress DATE: 8:47 AM ----- BODY:

Thanks to Robin for pointing out this eBay listing to me -- this totally looks like something I'd make, doesn't it? I didn't, unless Future Me gets that time machine I've been noodling on (I have very elaborate diagrams, drawn on a cocktail napkin; the problem is finding a battery the size of a chest freezer and made of highly purified unobtainium) and goes back to 1960-something (and, evidently, loses her iron). The spooky thing is that it's totally my size ...

Hmm. Anyway, if you buy this dress (click here), would you check and see if the hem is finished with bias tape and the notches are clipped in instead of out? That would help me figure out if Future Me ever made it back. Thanks!

Labels: dresses, ebay, rickrack

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

xstpenguin DATE:Oct 19, 2009 12:00:00 PM Yep, definitely looks like an Erin original, but I'd need to see the pockets to be absolutely sure.

Unobtanium - brilliant. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Oct 19, 2009 12:45:00 PM Have you considered the fact that you may well have an alternate personality, that sews while you sleep? This personality may be telling you that sewing is vitally LIFE ENABLING to you. (Or that you need more money...not sure why Erina put it up on ebay?) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Serenity Love Sincere Peace Earth DATE:Oct 19, 2009 12:57:00 PM Looks very patriotic ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Teresa aka MarieSews DATE:Oct 19, 2009 1:23:00 PM Yes, it is missing pockets so it can't be a true Erin production but maybe they are well hidden in the side seams. That's a lot of blue. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Oct 19, 2009 2:04:00 PM Cute dress...very Erin-y. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

plaidribbon DATE:Oct 19, 2009 3:26:00 PM I also clip my notches IN! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

brocadegoddess DATE:Oct 19, 2009 5:20:00 PM Ooh, What a fantastic idea for ric rac! This is going right into the inspiration folder, thank you! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Carolyn DATE:Oct 19, 2009 10:27:00 PM Doesn't everyone clip their notches in? so much easier...
Love the blog and look forward to it every day, thanks for the fun and smiles!
And yes, it is patriotic colours; if you're French, British Austalian or New Zealand, Russian (and many others)... as well.
Great dress! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lauriana DATE:Oct 20, 2009 12:29:00 AM It would also be patrioticly coloured if you're Dutch... but IF we do patriotic colouring at all (only some people ever do, for soccer championships), it's usually orange. Long story, royal family is called (literally translated) 'House of Orange'.
And eh, I also clip my notches in and finish most hems with bias tape. It's the rick rack which makes it look Erin-esque, but I'd only be convinced if it were bright green (or another of your special colours) and had large pockets. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Hana DATE:Oct 20, 2009 3:18:00 AM Yes, sure, blue and white and red is patriotic for a lot more countries than the USA! My home country, Czech Republic, and France, and Britain...
Could you, please, explain to a Czech girl what "clipping notches in/out" means? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

JustGail DATE:Oct 20, 2009 8:00:00 AM I agree - to be a true Future Erin, it has to have pockets!

Hana - the "clipping notches in/out" refers to the notches on the patterns used to match up the pieces. On the pattern, those notches usually are shown as a diamond that is centered on the cutting line, and some people cut out around the marking, leaving a little "ear" on the fabric. Others just cut along the line, and then go back and clip a notch into the seam allowance. Clipping in is faster/easier/more acurate, but sometimes I miss clipping one. Cutting out takes more time, but are easier to see when trying to line up the pieces. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Becky O. DATE:Oct 20, 2009 8:40:00 AM I just started using bias tape hemming a few select dresses- I like it.
As far as clipping, I was taught to clip my notches out so if I ever needed to alter the garment I wouldn't lose any seam allowance. Sound advice, although I have never needed the extra room. My first sewing teacher (other than my mother) was a seamstress from Canada.
The top/skirt combo of this dress is such a classic. It looks great on almost all body types. Good to know it will still be popular in the future, lol. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

the_lazymilliner DATE:Oct 20, 2009 11:03:00 AM I think this dress has the Fourth of July written all over it. Just in invisible words, of course. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Oct 20, 2009 11:20:00 AM If this was indeed made by Erin's alternate personality, while the "host" slept, the lack of pockets may be a cry for identity. The "silent self" may be tired of lugging Erin's stuff around, and wanted a dress that suited HER.

But I still don't understand why she then put it on ebay.

It's all very mysterious. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sheila / Out of the Ashes Collectibles DATE:Oct 20, 2009 11:20:00 AM Looks like someone is a glutton for ironing punishment! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Bean DATE:Oct 20, 2009 12:27:00 PM ooh it just had to be mine! I'm going to wear it every fourth of july, and every other year when I work the election polls! <3 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

STL Mom DATE:Oct 20, 2009 6:54:00 PM Unobtainium! I love it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca DATE:Oct 21, 2009 11:02:00 AM Erin, as much as I love reading about dresses, your humor always makes me smile more. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Bean DATE:Nov 1, 2009 11:58:00 AM I got this in the mail yesterday - the notches are clipped to the inside! the hem is just turned & stitched though. I love it, and it fits me like a glove too - I might wear it for our veterans day parade :) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: I hate to see you go but love to watch you walk away DATE: 8:59 AM ----- BODY:

I'm only showing you this one image from this eBay auction (from seller findsbyrebecca) because one should be all you need to click through.

This kind of "back interest" on a dress is so interesting and pretty (although I hardly ever make/wear anything that has it -- I cover things up with cardigans too often to bother, I guess). This one is truly gorgeous; if it's your size you should snap it up (B36) because the price is right (BIN under $25!) and it looks to be in decent condition.

(Thanks to Robin for the link to the auction!)

Labels: ebay, embroidery, shirtdress

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sheila / Out of the Ashes Collectibles DATE:Sep 29, 2009 9:15:00 AM Looks like too much ironing to me! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Latter-Day Flapper DATE:Sep 29, 2009 9:15:00 AM I'm torn: I adore that but I'm olive-skinned and I know that it would make me look like I'm all one color.

At the very least, I'm taking notes. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Sep 29, 2009 9:48:00 AM Pretty. And I've never seen a detail like this before! Like a tattoo! This could be an option for people who have to cover up their body art for work...you could embroider or stencil them on your clothes. (Better make several complete, quick-transfer sets, to cover a variety of garments.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

fabricgirl DATE:Sep 29, 2009 10:03:00 AM This dress is so pretty. I love detail on the back, which shouldn't be reserved just for wedding gowns. And it looks like the sleeves are some sort of modified raglan - with a shoulder saddle or something. Too bad it's not my size (or color). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Mary DATE:Sep 29, 2009 1:23:00 PM Pretty - it might be an incentive to sit in the front row to catch the attention of that cute guy in class. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ms. B DATE:Sep 29, 2009 3:06:00 PM That's lovely! Alas, too small in the bust for me :( ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 29, 2009 3:51:00 PM Me too, Mrs. B. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Birgit / Stitches & Loops DATE:Sep 29, 2009 7:47:00 PM I just love those embellishments, and the detail stitching on the collar - oh my - it makes it look like there are 4 layers. This is just the sort of thing that takes any garment from nice to wow.
Have you noticed how the belt is contoured to be narrower in front - no digging into your stomach or ribs when sitting.
Sadly, the color would look dreadful on me... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

emilyjayne DATE:Sep 30, 2009 2:18:00 PM Soooo pretty!

Layer a long sleeved fitted T underneath it instead of wearing a cardigan over it.

Problem Sorted :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Hanna DATE:Oct 1, 2009 9:09:00 AM I know you like pockets - check out this dress! http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=31692922 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 3, 2009 8:50:00 AM or better yet, do this pretty detail on clothes instead of a tattoo! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: A Song in Her Heart (And Everywhere Else) DATE: 9:46 AM ----- BODY:

I thought I'd posted about this pattern before but a quick search of my archives (and, more tellingly, my image files) sez no. I have an eBay search set up for this, but I keep not buying it since I think I already have it. Somewhere. In a box. (Underneath another box, which is underneath a plastic bin, which is sitting on top of the one box cutter in the house that still works. Can't you tell I love moving? Also, have you seen my screwdriver? The tool, not the drink.)

However, if YOU don't have this pattern it's up right now (in B34, but the image was crappy so I used this one from the wiki) on eBay. Click on the image to visit the auction.

And -- is it just me, or does this pattern illustration look like a scene from a movie musical? The lead is in the dark dress, belting her heart out about some man, while the other women pretend not to notice that someone is SINGING in PUBLIC, while chiming in on the choruses.

Labels: Butterick_7308, ebay

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sandy DATE:Aug 17, 2009 11:35:00 AM I love this part... "while the other women pretend not to notice that someone is SINGING in PUBLIC, while chiming in on the choruses"

Hope you get your boxes sorted, soon!
Sandy in the UK ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Bella Bliss DATE:Aug 17, 2009 12:04:00 PM maybe you have that modern vintage one. I know I've seen that on here ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen DATE:Aug 17, 2009 12:22:00 PM Absolutely, this view is taken from the musical, and I can assure you that the costume designer for this midwestern dinner theater production produced in 1956 did not have the budget to buy the original pattern, but copied it instead by combining the ever popular bodice style (seen in sooooo many patterns) with the many gored skirt (also in her pattern collection).

Long life and Good Luck with the packing and move too! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Zoltar Panaflex DATE:Aug 17, 2009 1:00:00 PM What is coming out of the derriere of Stripey Girl?

That's a great neckline, perfect for showing off a lovely vintage necklace!!!

It would look wonderful in a full skirt for an evening event! Lovely swishy sounds and a taffeta skirt (Taffeta Darling!) with a rhinestone belt buckle! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Aug 17, 2009 1:22:00 PM Of course, if it were a sonic screwdriver it would be in your pocket. Always. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sara DATE:Aug 17, 2009 1:30:00 PM Lovely dress! I hope you find the pattern. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

evalyn DATE:Aug 17, 2009 1:40:00 PM That black version looks like chiffon over taffeta - I'd sing too, if it were mine. But my collar would be faux fur or rhinestones.

If you can't find the tool, perhaps the drink is what you need - screwdriver-wise. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Chantelle DATE:Aug 17, 2009 1:47:00 PM I love this pattern! I wish that these sorts of patterns loved me like I love them. The top is ok but the skirt would be too much for my height and weight.

I like the idea of the chiffon over taffeta with a luxurious collar - velvet? fur - and a sparkly belt.

Good luck with the unpacking, Erin. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lizzy DATE:Aug 17, 2009 1:54:00 PM I like the dress! I love the collar! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Packrat DATE:Aug 17, 2009 2:14:00 PM Funny! I thought the same thing - I saw the pattern before I read your title.

This is such a flattering dress. See the seam down the middle of the front and back? So slimming.

Chantelle, just take some of the fullness out of the skirt and it would be great. (I'm really short and fat and I'd make and wear it in a flash!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

What-I-Found DATE:Aug 17, 2009 2:26:00 PM All lost things can be found in your bathrobe pocket.
Never fails. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Little Hunting Creek DATE:Aug 17, 2009 2:52:00 PM This is actually a rare outtake from a never released sewing musical from the fifties. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Aug 17, 2009 3:29:00 PM You're right...this image is SO "I'm in Love with a Wonderful Guy!" from South Pacific. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

brocadegoddess DATE:Aug 17, 2009 3:39:00 PM Either that or she's in the midst of having a 'vision'. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marjie DATE:Aug 17, 2009 5:46:00 PM I believe you left your screwdriver drink on the coffee table immediately after you packed the tool. The drink was confiscated while the coffee table was being packed. And you will soon be singing with the ladies on this envelope. Isn't moving hundreds or thousands of miles grand? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nadine DATE:Aug 17, 2009 6:12:00 PM What, is singing in public not allowed any more? Damn. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Aug 17, 2009 7:33:00 PM << What, is singing in public not allowed any more? Damn. >>

Recent laws DO allow for singing (of all types) in public, but most states stipulate that you have to be wearing this dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rachel DATE:Aug 17, 2009 9:21:00 PM I was thinking the Trolley Song from Meet Me In St. Louis... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Aug 17, 2009 11:34:00 PM YAY!
Cookie's cookie picture is back!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Latter-Day Flapper DATE:Aug 18, 2009 2:33:00 PM Oh. My. God.

Party dress with flattering square neckline and kimono sleeves!!

I'd be singing, too! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kathie DATE:Aug 19, 2009 6:34:00 AM I can't stop laughing out loud! You're ALL too funny... what a great way to start my day. I hope you all have a wonderful day too and that screwdrivers of all kinds start appearing as if by magic where ever and when ever they're needed... Now, that's a reason to burst into song! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: I Am Almost There DATE: 7:00 AM ----- BODY:

Robin sent a link to this compelling (if you're me) eBay auction where you can get FIVE (count 'em, FIVE) shirt/bag/skirt sets for an opening bid of $9.99.

(That's four; the last one is just "eh" so I'll let you click through to the eBay auction to see it.)

I am so intrigued by this, because I can totally see myself headed down this road. I already have shoes that match a dress and a skirt -- and by "match" I mean THEY ARE THE SAME LIBERTY PRINT -- plus I color-coordinate my watchband with my sneakers, and so on and so forth. And in the summer I pretty much wear the same uniform of A-line skirt, polo shirt, and loafers or Jack Purcells EVERY DAY. So it's only a matter of time before I indulge in the complete Garanimals-for-Grownups experience, right?

The seller mentions that all these outfits belonged to her aunt. (I would like to point out that although I am an aunt, none of my nieflings are, as yet, literate enough to write an eBay listing. So I have time.)

I just love the idea of waking up every morning and pulling a complete outfit out of the closet. I'm assuming she hung each outfit on a single hanger. (And also in my little fantasy world, the woman who owned these wore them with matching Keds.) Neighbors would know what day of the week it was by whether she was in the green thistle set or the pink one (Penguin Fridays?).

It's totally obvious I've thought WAY too much about this ... as I said, I'm almost there ...

Labels: ebay, matching, skirts

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

robin DATE:Aug 11, 2009 7:37:00 AM i kinda like the green skirt and bag--it's the matching t-shirts that throw this off for me. they're too much my mom's generation. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Aug 11, 2009 8:22:00 AM I agree that the tee-shirt makes it too... too.

When I was a kidlet, my mom made me many skirts- and I made matching drawstring bags to carry my lunch for school. This is a grown up version of that concept, and something I should consider.

On a side note, this summer, my daughter has been working on Girl Scout badges and wanted to sew on my machine. She made a skirt with matching headband. (adorable!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Aug 11, 2009 8:53:00 AM I actually liked the last one better. Lavender's not for you?
that aside, you must be younger than I am, because anything I've actually seen someone wear when it was new can't possibly be vintage.
They look very 70's conserative country club housewifey. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Organic Make Up DATE:Aug 11, 2009 9:49:00 AM I quite like the idea of co ordinated stuff.We could also use them without the set if we want to break the boredom. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cosmetic Brushes DATE:Aug 11, 2009 10:11:00 AM I quite like the idea of co ordinate d stuff.We could also use them without the set if we want to break the boredom. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

xstpenguin DATE:Aug 11, 2009 1:56:00 PM PENGUINS!!! Sorry, the excitement. You need to be wearing that and the green one. The other colours, meh. But did I say PENGUINS!

Cheers
AJ
aka
xstPENGUIN ;-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Aug 11, 2009 3:48:00 PM If I had been drinking a beverage, it would have come out my nose when I scrolled down to the penguin ensemble. Whee.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

tringyokel DATE:Aug 11, 2009 4:14:00 PM Love the penguins!

And you've taught me a new word today. Shame I haven't any nieflings. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

evalyn DATE:Aug 11, 2009 4:43:00 PM Yeah, I could do Penguin Fridays. The rest are pretty -eh- for me. Too much like a uniform. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Aug 11, 2009 5:01:00 PM Oh My God. OH. MY. GOD!

The shirts are obviously excellent candidates to be cut into cleaning rags....BUT THE SKIRT AND BAG COMBOS ARE THE LIMIT!

I adore them. HOW do we get them for you??

And are these the long-lost, official ensembles of the International Sewing Conspiracy?? Maybe this lady's house was the headquarters. Or did the Society's pledges just wear these during hazing week, when they were forced to try to spin straw into gold, etc.? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cathy DATE:Aug 11, 2009 6:58:00 PM Thank you for "nieflings"!

No matching panties? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Vegan DATE:Aug 11, 2009 11:57:00 PM These are hysterical! I clicked through to the eBay auction, and these were all commercially made! I thought for sure she made all of these pieces herself. You know when you see some really strange piece of clothing and you assume it's homemade? I don't mean shoddy workmanship. I mean oddities like the wrong kind of fabric for the garment, or some weird print being used in a weird way?

Or a penguin on a T-shirt with a matching penguin skirt and penguin bag?

These are worse than Garanimals. I had Garanimals when I was a kid, and they weren't so bizarre. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

propriatress DATE:Aug 12, 2009 10:30:00 PM hey now, there is a lot to be said for Matchy Matchy...but not too much....I love the prints...so...meadowy. I'd have lost my mind while raising kids if it wasn't for the concept of garanimals....tho some days the kids looked like they dressed with style tips from Pippi Longstocking... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Pamela D. DATE:Aug 13, 2009 10:33:00 AM Does anyone remember the company Clothkits from the 70s?

http://www.clothkits.co.uk/index.php

Well, these outfits remind me of Clothkits silk-screened sewing kits. I even remember you could buy Clothkits at the Scottish Lion in North Conway, NH, which must have operated out of Vermont when the seller's aunt purchased her ensembles. I remember all my mother's friends wearing this sort of thing.

I like the way Clothkits has upgraded its styles and prints for the "noughties."

I'm a bit sick of the current fear of being too matchy. I love a matching shoe and bag, better yet a matching skirt and bag! While visiting a nursing home here in NH, there was a delightful lady, aged 102, garbed daily in the most colorful and carefully matched outfits of this sort of prepster ilk. Such a charming effort when all around her were in sweats! What's wrong with a bit of effort? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Aug 14, 2009 12:23:00 PM I really love the idea of Penguin Fridays - you gotta run free when you can :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Penny DATE:Aug 14, 2009 1:52:00 PM DID YOU win this auction Erin, boy what a deal! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

erma DATE:Sep 5, 2009 12:55:00 PM "nifeling" seems like it really needs to be added to wordnik. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Fontana Attempts the Difficult and Dangerous Reverse Bolero! DATE: 8:05 AM ----- BODY:

Fontana of Italy, in a feat never before attempted in pongee, novelty cottons, shantung, or faille, is performing the incredibly difficult REVERSE BOLERO with this pattern.

Previous attempts have ended in weird stomach wrinkles, odd tan lines, intermittent choking sensations, and having to ask strangers in the ladies' room to unbutton you when you get too hot.

Fontana, however, remains confident that this pattern will be the one to pull it off. "It will take a special kind of woman to help me complete my dream. Preferably, one who never sits down. That would be ideal."

Independent observers are skeptical. "Even if he does pull it off," said one Austrian judge who preferred to remain anonymous, "Everyone knows the Russian judge will give him lower marks on principle. As will Chanel."

Thanks to Lisa for sending me the link to this eBay auction ...

Labels: bolero, ebay, patterns, Spadea_339

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lisa Simeone DATE:Aug 6, 2009 8:34:00 AM Wow -- a pattern from the fabled Fontana Sisters??! This is pretty impressive.

As is the description written by the seller, which has me giggling almost as much as your blog posts, Erin:

"For a gay twosome, a smooth fitting bodice is set atop a buoyant skirt then given a dashing tri-cornered escort."

Wish I could have that dress as an escort . . . ! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

QuiteLight DATE:Aug 6, 2009 8:41:00 AM Perhaps the choking sensation caused by the devilish reverse bolero woul be a greater issue for those without 3 foot long stalks for necks? The Great Fontana has clearly designed this dress to curry favour with his chinless model. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ladygrande (Texas Marie) DATE:Aug 6, 2009 10:49:00 AM This pattern (or a very similar one) was made by my cousin many, many years ago. She looked lovely in it ---- but, she was and is a teeny size. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julia DATE:Aug 6, 2009 11:08:00 AM Oh. My. Goodness.

I just laughed and laughed and laughed. Thank you so much. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Mimi Jackson DATE:Aug 6, 2009 11:35:00 AM And with a simple sleeve alteration, it could easily be converted into a fashionable straight jacket! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

floribunda... aka Julie DATE:Aug 6, 2009 11:49:00 AM ack! I get claustrophobic just thinking about that pattern! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cathy DATE:Aug 6, 2009 12:21:00 PM I'm sorry, I thought she had a napkin tied on for spills. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sara DATE:Aug 6, 2009 1:13:00 PM Hahahahaha! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kristen DATE:Aug 6, 2009 2:03:00 PM lovely from the back though. (silver lining, anyone?) am fighting the urge to rub my neck. feeling choked just by looking at it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen ~ MOMSPatterns DATE:Aug 6, 2009 2:21:00 PM *Can't speak.. choking* lol ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Aug 6, 2009 3:54:00 PM Difficult as the reverse bolero is, the score would have been higher if the designer had attempted the even higher degree of difficulty of the reverse fauxlero, which enjoyed renewed interest in the 1980's. --the French judge ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

evalyn DATE:Aug 6, 2009 4:12:00 PM Egads! I'm sorry to be blunt, but that's just a bad idea. The simple dress, while not outstanding, is a nice look. No need for the upside-down/bib/choker thing-a-majig. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Little Hunting Creek DATE:Aug 6, 2009 8:04:00 PM The reverse bolero is a well meaning yet doomed attempt to make Giraffe Lady's neck look shorter. Pity. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Shelia DATE:Aug 6, 2009 8:07:00 PM I love your commentary Erin!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cel Petro DATE:Aug 6, 2009 8:12:00 PM Have I said this month yet that I love how your mind works?

BTW--months ago you posted contact info for Little Dresses for Africa...I passed the info around and first my mom made about a dozen, then a friend made 8 or 9. THEN, my quilting group made 100! So, good on you, and thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

emedoodle DATE:Aug 7, 2009 12:24:00 AM Awesome site! I think I may have met a family member of yours today? An older man, grey hair, pleasant? I think he said you were his... daugher in law? Anyway, I was rather busy at the time and at work (used book store); he was selling some books which included a couple of Sew U books (way cool) and I was chatting with him about it. He called someone (his wife maybe?) to verefy what the website was named. There are two "dress a day" websites. This one seems more sewing related.

Anyway, great site, and cute old man. Hope you're related to him. Oh and I now own your old Sew U books! :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

emedoodle DATE:Aug 7, 2009 12:29:00 AM Oh, and after all that, I forgot to add. This all happened just outside of Chicago, Il. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

La BellaDonna DATE:Aug 7, 2009 8:27:00 AM Aaaaiieee. Even the awesomeness of Erin cannot salvage what is, essentially ... a really unfortunate design idea. It is a credit to your cousin, Ladygrande, that she looked lovely ... but I'm guessing that she looked lovely despite, and not because of, this pattern.

Reverse fauxlero for Teh LOSE ... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Aug 7, 2009 8:47:00 AM Oh, emedoodle, yes, that was my fantastic father-in-law, George! He's a sweetheart, told me all about the "nice girl at the bookstore who loves to sew!" :-)

Your store got a lot of my "sewing book duplicates" and ones that didn't make the moving cut. I bet you had to add extra shelves to that section just for me ... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Aug 7, 2009 11:13:00 AM Spadea is my favorite! (Though I would rate this choice of theirs merely...valiant.) The story is they supposedly worked closely with design houses to create patterns of their garments, using the featured designer's TOP SECRET techniques and ideas. Hence the enormouse PATTERNS ARE NOT RETURNABLE FOR EXCHANGE warning. For you see, Dear Customer, once you have glimpsed the inner secrets of Fontana of Italy or Biki of Milan or whomsoever, it goes to the grave with you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

theresa DATE:Aug 7, 2009 7:16:00 PM so, is this why Spadea costs so much ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Aug 7, 2009 7:17:00 PM I had this dress in high school. I got called into the office and was forced to wear a male teachers handkerchief pinned in the back of the bodice so I wouln't "excite" the male students! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Mischka DATE:Aug 17, 2009 5:31:00 AM Is it just me or is that the Hunchback of Notre Dame's niece there at the bottom? ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: "lovely, clever, labor-intensive" DATE: 7:00 AM ----- BODY:

"Lovely, clever, labor-intensive" was how Robin described the dress in this eBay auction, and I just love it. I am loving it from afar, though, because it's $160. I don't even think I'm going to attempt this myself, although I'm always tempted to be clever with striped fabric. There's clever, and then there's too clever by half, and every time I veer into "too clever by half," I wind up with something that never gets finished, much less worn.

(I actually just put a lot of "unfinished business" -- i.e., projects that I finally accepted that I'm never coming back to -- in the box for the Salvation Army today. There are still a few "somedays" left hanging in my sewing room, but they're precious few.)

I'm trying to let go of a lot of "somedays", or "just-in-cases", especially when it comes to books and fabric. If I am not head-over-heels in love with fabric, I think it's going to leave me in search of a more appreciative owner. And if I take a book off a shelf, open it, and don't feel like sitting down to read a few pages, it might wander off, too.

The Internet has obviated the need for hoarding, in my opinion. For instance, years ago I bought a copy of this book. It was a dollar, and it looked interesting, so I bought it, and read it. (I really liked it, although its author has the prejudices of his time and the vocabulary to match.) But now (as that link suggested), it's available online, and I don't have to hold on to my copy for fear that if I let it go, I wouldn't be able to find it again. Google can hold on to it for me — and I can download the PDF (it's well out of copyright) and have it on my hard drive in reserve against any Chicago-meatpacking-magnate's-advice-to-his-son emergencies.

Of course, you can't download fabric and keep it on your hard drive (although I'm sure my long-suffering husband wishes you could!) but I don't feel the need to hold on to "eh" or "just-in-case" fabric when a few clicks will take me to plenty of fabric that makes me say "ah" instead ... and when I already have enough "ah" fabric to swathe my entire house, Christo-style, if I felt like it.

(Another thing the Internet is making it easy to let go of is petty resentments. If I want to feel angry and pissed off, there are plenty of places I can go online to read stuff that will make my blood boil. Why carry that around with me in the meantime?)

What is the Internet helping you let go of?

Labels: ebay, stripes, sundresses

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lynn DATE:Jun 15, 2009 8:06:00 AM TV ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Joni DATE:Jun 15, 2009 8:10:00 AM >and when I already have enough "ah" fabric to swathe my entire house, Christo-style, if I felt like it.<

You totally should! Christo's installations would have been about 1,000 times awesomer if they were done in Liberty print.

The internet recently helped me let go of my long-seated desire for a serger ;-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

L Johnson DATE:Jun 15, 2009 8:10:00 AM This dress is amazing!!!! I love the fact that you can sift tru a bunch of info, and get down to a few pieces of information before printing or saving!!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jun 15, 2009 8:15:00 AM Is there a support group for long-suffering partners of fabricoholics? I'm fairly sure mine would join. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Trudy Callan DATE:Jun 15, 2009 9:02:00 AM What an extraordinary dress. No telling how many hours went into it. $160 is probably a good price for it. More than I would like to pay, but I'm sure it's not over priced. It's certainly not a project that I would want to take on.

www.sewingwithtrudy.blogspot.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Melissa DATE:Jun 15, 2009 9:02:00 AM It's a weird thing, and I guess I'm lucky to have been born just at the right time, but I've always had a crippling fear of talking on the telephone. I've worked on it in therapy, but made little progress. But email is lovely! I can compose my thoughts and see them in black and white before sharing them with others! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jonquil DATE:Jun 15, 2009 9:28:00 AM That is a miracle of construction.

Medications are making me lose my once game-show-worthy memory for trivia. Fortunately, Google brings it back. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Crabapple Blossoms DATE:Jun 15, 2009 9:52:00 AM What a fascinating book! I plan to read it online (though this is one thing I *don't* prefer to use the internet to accomplish) as I have the time.

Yes, that is one thing I cannot generally tolerate online ... the reading of books. I might have to find some way to purchase this tome myself.

Michelle
Crabapple Blossoms ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

the_lazymilliner DATE:Jun 15, 2009 10:20:00 AM Internet has made me let of go need for a plasma television. I might never get another TV. Who needs it? So much time, so little to do. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Evelyn DATE:Jun 15, 2009 10:40:00 AM First time I have ever seen you mention Mr. Dress-a-Day! Wish I could afford to bid on that eBay auction... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen DATE:Jun 15, 2009 11:01:00 AM About the dress: it's alot easier to pleat stripes than solids, so actually, this dress really isn't as impossible as it looks
(a rare example of 'harder than it looks')

internet makes it easy to let go of: TV, it's soooo gone, won't even buy an adapter, 'cause I'm getting more movies and TV than I can watch on Netflix and Hulu! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gail DATE:Jun 15, 2009 11:05:00 AM I agree on both books and fabric. I have a hard time letting go of either. I am going through that right now. We have decided it's time to get at least one car in the garage which means a lot of stuff has to go,including books and fabrics.

One thing the internet has saved me from is clipping recipes and articles from magazines, which usually ended in a disorganized pile. I can find anything on the internet from a recipe for a Mardi Gras dinner and the name of a good restaurant in Athens. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marjie DATE:Jun 15, 2009 11:19:00 AM I'd be so afraid of that dress, because I know that puffy skirt would make my behind look like a Toyota with feet. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

sewbettie DATE:Jun 15, 2009 11:23:00 AM the dress is amazing. though i definitely can't afford to spend 160 on a just because i love it dress, i do say it amazes me that the amount of love and work that went into that dress and then be sold for so little. if i ever made something that detailed, i wouldn't be able to part with it for less than, oh i don't know, a few gs.

unfortunately, the internet makes me want more -- more fabulous fabric, more handmade dresses, there is just so much inspiration. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lucitebox DATE:Jun 15, 2009 11:30:00 AM Great dress!

Internet=good. Things it helped me let go of:
~the need to own more than one shelf of cookbooks
~the desire to buy expensive decorating magazines--so MANY great blogs cover the decor porn.
~the feeling that I'm nuts. Well, maybe I am, but clearly, I'm not alone:
http://iamneurotic.com/
~Impulse buys. I shop less because sometimes, I just put things in a cart, think about it, see the total, and then forget about it.

I'm hoping to one day add this to the list:
~hour long conversations with my mom which start with just one simple question. How to get mom to use email, though? I love talking to her, but sometimes, I just don't have that much time to spare for just a simple question. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

tamtay DATE:Jun 15, 2009 11:37:00 AM Books, TV, DVDs and videotapes. CDs and audiotapes, hardcopy planner, magazines. Almost any information I could need or want is out there and accessible. It blows my mind. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

oracle DATE:Jun 15, 2009 11:58:00 AM Like sewbettie said, the internet makes me want more, too.

And I'm with Crabapple Blossoms in that I can't bear reading books online. I want the associative and peripheral approach where I can flip through them physically and see a lot at once. I want to feel the artifact physically in my hands. And my eyes don't want to stare at backlighting, at electric lighting, all the time! They are a thousand times more comfortable looking at finite ink on a page that is ideally illuminated by daylight.

Besides, lots of people will never have access to the internet. Nor should they have to have lest they be denied access to good reading.

So I want my books unplugged. And un-batteried! But I want them printed on truly renewable and sustainable paper made from hemp or grasses or bamboo. Paper's long overdue to stop being made from wood. This shift needs to happen. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rachel DATE:Jun 15, 2009 1:14:00 PM What is the Internet helping you let go of?
Money. Amazon one click ordering is just way to easy! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jun 15, 2009 2:25:00 PM The internet is helping me let go of books, too, yet still have books to read. Paperbackswap.com is a great place to trade books you've read for books you want to read. I prefer a physical "real" book too, and even if books are in the library, sometimes the waiting list is long! Erin, sounds like you're doing an enormous spring cleaning, which we're doing at our house, too. Things are going to charity, consignment store, school band yard sale, etc. And I'm considering trying Craig's List for the first time in hopes that it will help me part with a full-size quilt frame.

Dawn ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Latter-Day Flapper DATE:Jun 15, 2009 3:22:00 PM TV, mostly. Although I was never a great TV or movie watcher in the first place. I'm sort of breaking even on fabric, because I love "window shopping" for it online but don't always trust to buy what I can't see/touch in person. What if it's chintzy and I didn't know it? I'd rather go to the fabric store.

I'll never read books online, either. Paper, please. I buy used, re-sell, and recycle when they finally fall apart.

It's actually made my sewing pattern and music habit worse, if that was even possible, because now I know how much more is out there, and how to get ahold of it. I tend to listen to a lot of regional and obscure music that I can't get in "live" music stores. Now I can find it, and more, online. And I can find out what other bands I might like that I might never have heard of otherwise.

Ironic as it may sound, I think the Internet might be the best thing to happen in years to old-time music. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Miss Rayne DATE:Jun 15, 2009 4:09:00 PM Fab dress but it's probably patterns like this that caused many 50s housewives to have a breakdown, or murder their husbands.....

Unfortuantely the internet hasn't helped me let go of anything, I've just accumulated more stuff. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

What-I-Found DATE:Jun 15, 2009 4:15:00 PM The internet has made my entire lifestyle possible...we live and travel full time in our RV. If we didn't have internet and the wonderful technology available we couldn't run two businesses out of 40 feet of space. I couldn't stay in touch with my family easily, swapping news and photos so I don't feel so far away. I rely on my GPS so I can find my way back to wherever is home this week.
Next I plan to figure out the iSight feature so I can watch my baby granddaughter grow up...even if I'm several states away.
And I love being able to read Dress A Day while going down the interstate. :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anan DATE:Jun 15, 2009 6:15:00 PM It would be less daunting to attempt this as a skirt only with a wide waistband like the bodice...

I think the internet has kept me sewing. :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sandra DATE:Jun 15, 2009 10:38:00 PM Melissa,

That's not weird... well, maybe it is, but I have terrible phonophobia, too. I don't even like to talk on the phone to family and friends; but if it's business-realated I have to psyche myself up to picking up the phone. I love email.

But to answer Erin's question, I don't think the Internet has really allowed me to give up anything much. In fact, probably the opposite. I hord more stuff than ever, but now it's all in my Favorites: Facebook, Twitter, AIM, my blog, Erin's blog, etc., etc., ad infinitum :( ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Alyssa DATE:Jun 16, 2009 8:11:00 AM While I certainly haven't given up my beloved old books, the combination of my library and its internet inter-library loan system has helped me to get rid of a lot of my other books and almost all my dvds.
My computer has helped me get rid of my CD's, via internet radio (rockabillyradio.net) and music downloading in general.
Internet helped me feel no need for a TV as well - although I really don't watch much anyways - because of sites like hulu. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jun 16, 2009 10:48:00 AM the internet is helping me get rid of my stash. I found a place that gives pajamas to foster kids, so I sew up my stash and they get the pajamas. Also seeing the various bags that people have made keeps me improvising with my leftover scraps. the thing I like about fabric is how it looks made up. Flat fabric doesn't do a thing for me. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Jun 16, 2009 12:16:00 PM This is a really neat dress....but I can't believe someone went to that much effort and used a dull brown fabric. Wouldn't just about any other color look sprightlier? A minty green? Maroon? Or black and white? (Maybe I have an aversion to brown because it doesn't look very good on me.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

chickdowntown.com Eliza DATE:Jun 17, 2009 2:36:00 PM This dress is gorgeous! I love the colors and the design, and $160 doesn't seem overpriced at all for such a unique item. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

robin DATE:Jun 17, 2009 3:18:00 PM definitely music...my collection is a LOT smaller now that i can download things that i owned once on vinyl, cassette, or even 8-track.

Thing is, as "in-depth" as the internet is, I still find that some things i look up, i can't find hide nor hair of, so i have to hold onto said LP/cassette/8-track, which is now more of a surprise than not.

-robin ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Bri DATE:Jun 18, 2009 1:45:00 PM Love the skirt. I don't know about the bodice, but the skirt is great.

Would love to see your house swathed christo-style. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

barbie2be DATE:Jun 25, 2009 9:20:00 PM oh. my. gosh! i love, love, LOVE this dress! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Shiny! (Even better, shiny for a good cause!) DATE: 8:45 AM ----- BODY:

Check out this fantastic silver and black brocade dress (currently up on eBay), which is being auctioned to benefit Writercon, the wonderful conference for fanfic writers and enthusiasts.

I'm only showing you the close-up picture because you *have* to click on the image and check it out for yourself. It's hand made from vintage fabric! It has a watermelon-colored lining and matching petticoat! It's princess-lined! It's also B39/W32, with a 19 inch skirt -- putting the voom in va-va-voom! (And, when I wrote this, it was going for $24.99!)

Proceeds from this auction are going to benefit the scholarship fund for Writercon, which helps folks who couldn't otherwise afford to attend, attend. (I've never been to Writercon myself, but I've heard fantastic things about it -- in my book, anything that encourages writing of any kind is totally a good cause.)

So, now that we've established that this dress is great, and Writercon is great, we have time to get to the important question: Would Xander Harris like this dress? Discuss.

Labels: brocade, charity, ebay, writercon

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marjie DATE:Mar 31, 2009 9:51:00 AM Well, your readers have been bidding it up.

And I'm ashamed to say that I have no idea who Xander Harris is. However, I do like his name.

And my 9 year old spins fantastic stories, beyond (I think) the ability of a normal 9 year old. Maybe he goes to Writercon some day? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Joni DATE:Mar 31, 2009 10:33:00 AM Writercon! All this time I've been writing fanfiction and I had no idea that such a thing existed. If only I lived a little closer to Minneapolis, I'd be all over that one AND with a dress on. (I write mainly in the NCIS 'verse so I have no idea what kind of fabric would lend itself to being a fanfiction dress. But Alexander Henry is always a good fallback) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Laughing Magpie DATE:Mar 31, 2009 11:08:00 AM I think Xander would love this dress.

I've often thought Anya showed a vintage-inspired fashion sense (which makes sense given that she was over 1000 years old), and we know how Xander felt about Anya :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 31, 2009 2:34:00 PM I'm pretty sure Xander would be skeptical about the dress if he saw it on a hanger, but would definitely enjoy it on Anya! (Or off of Anya, as the case may be....)

-Jesse ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Outbackgirl DATE:Mar 31, 2009 4:48:00 PM Fits a 39" bust... I'd say Xander would be thinking of linoleum. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 1, 2009 6:20:00 AM I can see Anya giving a lecture on the exchange of goods and services, and then buying the dress, and Xander loving it.

Ah, happy days. I can't write to save my life, but I've read some good (and some truely truely awful) fanfic. I enjoyed most of it though!! Writercon, Best.Idea.Ever.

Anon in Ire ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Matchmaking: Fabric and Pattern DATE: 10:44 AM ----- BODY:

Somebody needs to take this fabric (from Pins-n-Needles' Sewing Emporium):

Here it is at a different scale:

And make this dress (from MOMSPatterns.com) with it.

Volunteers?

Wouldn't it look adorable with a red patent belt and flats? I love narrow dresses in linen-look fabrics. They're so elegant and summery. And I (as you know) am SO TIRED of winter. And inelegance, come to think of it.

To make it easier for you to fulfill my request, Jen at MOMSPatterns is having a sale -- you save 20% off your order from RIGHT NOW until midnight EST Sunday, March 29, 2009. There are new patterns in the SALE section and she's listed tons and tons during the month of March ...

Labels: ebay, fabric, novelty_prints, sales, Vogue_4503

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marjie DATE:Mar 26, 2009 11:16:00 AM What, no story about Red wondering how the one legged chair holds up white dress? She must be a ghost. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

fabricgirl DATE:Mar 26, 2009 11:40:00 AM I would have been happy to make just that dress from just that fabric if it hadn't been snapped up already! gahhhh!
I love just thinking about summer clothes - since it will be awhile before I can actually wear them. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lisa DATE:Mar 26, 2009 12:02:00 PM That fabric reminds me of the Mr Mort logo of the butler and his tray. LOVE it! But I'm a sucker for red....... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Birgit DATE:Mar 26, 2009 12:31:00 PM Oh great - after seeing the fabric, I am stuck with "Putting on the Ritz" playing over and over in my head.
It is very cute though... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jenny DATE:Mar 26, 2009 12:53:00 PM Love the pattern! Now if I could just get this baby out of my belly so I have a waistline again... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

meherio68 DATE:Mar 26, 2009 2:26:00 PM I'm sorely tempted - but I already have such an intimidating stash of to-be-done patterns and fabrics... I will definitely get a dressaday.com tee-shirt though - and definitely turn it into a dress! But before that, I wanted to let you know that I really enjoy reading your blog and to let you know I have picked it for an "honest scrap award". You can find the details on my own blog: http://lebarduvent.blogspot.com/2009/03/honest-scrap-awards.html
PS: this is neither spam nor phishing... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

gwensews DATE:Mar 26, 2009 2:39:00 PM Wonderful fabric! It wants to go dancing! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

ZombieLace DATE:Mar 26, 2009 3:41:00 PM Yay, what an adorable combo! I love unexpected combos like a sophisticated dress with somewhat wacky patterned fabric. Hope someone takes you up on this, unfortunately my sewing skills would never do it justice. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Myra DATE:Mar 26, 2009 5:26:00 PM Too cute of a fabric! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 26, 2009 9:39:00 PM Wonderful fabric and wonderful dress, but a narrow dress in linen fabric, to me, spells wrinkles in the lap area. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Pretty Little Pictures DATE:Mar 27, 2009 1:41:00 AM We are just getting into winter now, but i do think winter can have some elegance about it. But not as much as spring and summer. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Beth DATE:Mar 27, 2009 8:37:00 AM I can do the graphics sometime this week, set up to Spoonflower specs, and email them to you. How tall would you like the individual figures to be? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Mar 27, 2009 8:58:00 AM I would but the dress pattern it too small. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Mar 27, 2009 9:05:00 AM Wow, Beth, what a fantastic offer! If you want to do that, I'll host the files for download for everyone ...

I dunno about size, though. Three-quarters of an inch? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

The reluctant sewist DATE:Mar 27, 2009 12:46:00 PM That fabric makes me think of Lord Peter Whimsey, which is a definite plus. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sarah DATE:Mar 27, 2009 3:42:00 PM I find it funny that for you, Winter is an "inelegance" - I've lived in Chicago for a year and I know EXACTLY what you mean, what with not being able to leave the house without looking like a puff-ball and still be freezing (only to remove the layers of puff and be covered in feathers from your jacket!).

Here in Australia we look forward to winter, when people start to actually wear clothes, and everyone looks so smart and polished. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 27, 2009 9:19:00 PM Sarah: Similar in Vegas. In winter, I look forward to not being a disgusting sweatball.
-Sandra ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Greta DATE:Mar 28, 2009 8:38:00 PM *sigh!* I want! But college textbooks come first... I am tired of being practical! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Solo DATE:Mar 30, 2009 3:28:00 AM Great fabric and a pretty dress.;D
Nice post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

mysterycreature DATE:Mar 30, 2009 12:23:00 PM What a lovely fabric - it would work great on that wiggle dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

alba-ny DATE:Aug 23, 2009 8:00:00 PM Am I really the only person to think "It's Raining Men" when looking at that fabric???

I'd love to make a dress from that! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: It's Pointy Shoulders Week! DATE: 6:42 AM ----- BODY:

Well, two in a row make a set, yes? Check out this atomic-print dress that's up on eBay right now (from seller MemphisVintage).

Here are some more pictures, click on them to check out the auction:

Teri gave me the heads-up on this one, and I'm grateful, even though I don't think I'll be bidding. Lately I can't seem to get excited about buying vintage dresses off eBay. Vintage coats, vintage sweaters, vintage shoes, vintage jackets -- for sure -- but I seem to want to MAKE all my dresses. Go figure. (Although the longer I look at this one, from the same seller, the more I want to make an exception! Pockets!)

Labels: atomic, ebay, pointiness

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sal DATE:Feb 17, 2009 9:13:00 AM It's GLORIOUS. I wonder if I can shoehorn myself into a dress with such a teensy waist. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Libby Fife DATE:Feb 17, 2009 9:25:00 AM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Libby Fife DATE:Feb 17, 2009 9:25:00 AM Those dresses are so fantastic. I would for sure have to stop eating to wear one, however. Can't imagine where our societal neurosis about food came from...:) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dee Dee Warren DATE:Feb 17, 2009 10:45:00 AM I could fit in the waist, but the bust is a bit too large.

Does anyone know of a pattern like this? I would love to make a similar dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

hip chick DATE:Feb 17, 2009 11:20:00 AM It reminds me of something the Jetson's would wear. What was her name...June? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Birgit DATE:Feb 17, 2009 1:07:00 PM Wow, that does look like it closely matches the very pattern you posted yesterday, even though it has a manufacturer's label...

And that other dress is just too lovely. It looks like it would be just the thing on a hot summer day. Dressy and casual all at the same time... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Feb 17, 2009 1:10:00 PM Hip Chick, I can't believe you, too, don't have the Jetson's theme song burned into your memory. Maybe it's just me. Anyway, "Meet George Jetson. His boy, Elroy. Daughter Judy. Jane, his wife." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nadia DATE:Feb 17, 2009 1:14:00 PM Wow! That is some dress! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Feb 17, 2009 1:21:00 PM Now the Jetson's theme song is in my head! Well, at least it pushed out Rancid's Time Bomb - Black Shoes, black hat, Cadillac! The boy's a time bo-omb! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Feb 17, 2009 2:18:00 PM If you lined the shoulder points with steel, you could easily clear pathways in crowds if need be. Maybe this is a special, emergency feature of the dirigible hostess uniforms? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kelly DATE:Feb 17, 2009 2:47:00 PM I would love either one of those dresses... but darn they will neither fit in the waist or the bust... I could probably starve myself for awhile and maybe squeeze into that tiny waist with lots of extra help if you know what I mean.. But that bust would never fit. I would swim in that bodice. :( Oh well.. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

50sgal DATE:Feb 17, 2009 4:09:00 PM Darn, I would love that dress, but I too could not manage the waist, but perhaps my diet of black coffee and dry toast and Jack Lalanne will eventually pay off! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

gwensews DATE:Feb 17, 2009 5:11:00 PM This is a Star Trek ball gown!
Fabulous! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

PZR DATE:Feb 17, 2009 6:27:00 PM That is the fabric of my dreams. Swoon. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Brigitte DATE:Feb 17, 2009 9:17:00 PM I love that dress! Looks like something I would sell on eBay too. I'd love to have her link on my share your auctions blog I've just started. I really love
vintage shoes and vintage purses too! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Katie DATE:Feb 18, 2009 1:26:00 AM I heart this dress even though it makes me giggle when I think of how dangerous it would be for two slowdancing teenagers. (And I have no idea why that's in my head!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lucitebox DATE:Feb 18, 2009 8:57:00 AM This dress is wonderful! I love Ashely's dress even more after seeing virtually the same dress so beautifully presented. Woot! Way to go Memphisvintage--great stuff all around.

Gosh, I just love the Trigere on your site. If airship hostesses are allowed to deviate (or hostess during a later era), that's what I'd want to wear. It has a capelet, after all.

Once again, Cookie's comment gets me giggling! Cookie, if you're ever in Chicago, look me up, please. You're too funny!

Thanks for these back-to-back airship-hostess posts, Erin. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy DATE:Feb 18, 2009 12:27:00 PM me to, the Trigere is gorgeous. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

wundermary DATE:Feb 18, 2009 1:28:00 PM Dang! Who cares about the waist? Most anyone could make this thing in their size. By the time you'd get a crinoline under it and with those giant, wacky shoulders; your waist would be dwarfed by comparison.

This is the most fabulous thing I've seen in ages. You'd need some serious, pointy stilettos to go with it and not much else. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ginger DATE:Feb 18, 2009 2:29:00 PM Oh man, I went to the auction, expecting to see it already way above my price range, and there aren't even any bids yet! And it would fit me...I'm keeping an eye on this one.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Brittany DATE:Feb 18, 2009 3:40:00 PM I love how styles come back in. I cant believe we're taking things from the 50's! That dress is absolutely adorable, and I'm sure it's extremely flattering too! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

miss vintage love DATE:Feb 18, 2009 4:57:00 PM WOW!! That first dress is gorgeous! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Chrisy DATE:Feb 19, 2009 3:34:00 AM The dresses are works of art! Thanks for sharing... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cisa DATE:Feb 25, 2009 8:09:00 AM If anyone is interested in making a dress like this, I JUST bought the pattern. It is Anne Adams 4677. I got mine online and I'm sure there are more out there! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Mambo Dress! Bongos! DATE: 6:00 AM ----- BODY:

Lisa sent me the link to this eBay auction, ending Saturday. Go ahead and click through, you really owe it to yourself to look at this dress.

It's listed by Fast Eddie's Retro Rags (Their motto: Vintage for Your Inner Delinquent) and, at time of this writing, was at a Buy It Now price of $175 ... Bust 38.

Forget bicycles and rulers, I am now feeling a distinct lack of bongo-themed clothing in my life. I am also saddened to realize that my inner delinquent is pretty much my outer delinquent, except my inner delinquent 1) remembers to PUT ON the red lipstick she bought and 2) never gets it on her teeth.

Labels: bongos, ebay, novelty_prints

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Myra DATE:Jan 9, 2009 9:03:00 AM That is too cool. Erin, you should look for a print like that and make something sleeveless to wear with a shrug. What a fun dress, but $175??? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

MadeByAmanda DATE:Jan 9, 2009 9:10:00 AM What a cute neckline! I love it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Simone DATE:Jan 9, 2009 9:26:00 AM totally inspired to paw through my vintage fabric and pattern stash and sew...thank you! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

caseykoester DATE:Jan 9, 2009 9:33:00 AM I like the cut and style, but I'd need a special occasion to justify wearing the mambo theme to myself. Although, I am conjuring up images of big bead bracelets and a scarf tied around my head if I did wear it. ;) I think it's one of those dresses that has a mind of its own and would impose its will on the wearer. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Little Hunting Creek DATE:Jan 9, 2009 10:23:00 AM ...and she puts on the dress and realizes that she is compelled to dance the Mambo Italiano over and over and over again (like that girl in The Red Shoes). This is the Stephen King version of the Mambo Dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Elrond Hubbard DATE:Jan 9, 2009 10:46:00 AM . . . or listen to Talking Heads' "Slippery People" on the Stop Making Sense album, with its bongo into. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 9, 2009 12:45:00 PM Love the dress - the style and proportion are very nice; hate that chokey little collar, but it's cute. Looks like something Annette wore in a Frankie Avalon movie, or maybe it was some blond girl with a stubby pony tail dancing with Pat Boone at the hop.
-Evalyn ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Jan 9, 2009 12:54:00 PM Although I seem to be wearing a big, dark brown corduroy blazer over everything this winter (which I originally intended to dye navy), it is not a color I would normally seek out. I'd doesn't do anything for my coloring, or my spirits. I do think a chestnutty brown looks spectacular as an accent with turquoise, though. (This has inspired me to dye that stupid blazer this weekend, because I am wearing it with alarming frequency. It's really cozy!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julie The Vintage Goddess DATE:Jan 9, 2009 1:06:00 PM Too Cool!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Alyssa DATE:Jan 9, 2009 1:29:00 PM What a fantastic dress. It makes me sad to know that I have no access to fabric up here in Quebec until I return home in four months : ( ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

real-vintage.com DATE:Jan 9, 2009 1:52:00 PM I LOOOVE that dress!!!

Ang ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lavon DATE:Jan 9, 2009 1:54:00 PM I love the look of this print. I would change the neckline.

If I cannot find fabric like this then maybe if I can come up with a design I can get spoonflower.com to create the fabric for me.

That's something for me to work on. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen ~ MOMSPatterns DATE:Jan 9, 2009 2:25:00 PM ONLY $175 is a steal for a fabulous vintage print like that; talk about your One of A Kind dresses for Viva Las Vegas?! I LOVE it.. wowsers, novelty dresses in a good, wearable size like this on auction sites or vintage stores in MY area seem to skyrocket to $200-$300 when they're as unique as that one.. Pretty darn cool!

I love the color combination; I seem to ALWAYS be drawn towards a chocolate brown & black lately. Someone, tell me it's not my old age??? hahaha!

Kim, while I'm in a loving mood, I LOVE your store slogan! And you've got some lovely things.. good luck to you with that dress! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Evis DATE:Jan 9, 2009 3:24:00 PM Erin, you may have seen these, maybe not:
Court shoes with robot print and a robot buckle:
http://www.schuhstore.co.uk/item_main_frameset.asp?s_ref=110566&fav_size=0&fav_colour=0&C2_Ref=0&C3_Ref=0&junior=0&dep=&ref=&s_group=0

If the link doesn't work, go to the main page and look for Irregular Choice among the brands. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cel Petro DATE:Jan 9, 2009 4:01:00 PM I think Doris Day just walked into the room. Geesh, it's fantastic. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Pinup Dresses DATE:Jan 9, 2009 7:04:00 PM Fast Eddies always has the best stuff! :) Love it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

50sgal DATE:Jan 9, 2009 7:17:00 PM I Adore this fabric. I can tell you, here in 1955, if I could get my hands on that fabric (in excess of this dress of course) you can bet I would use it on the curtains behind the bar and throw pillows in the 'rumpus room'. A bit of Beat in the Burbs, you might say. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Fast Eddie's Retro Rags DATE:Jan 9, 2009 7:44:00 PM Aww, thanks you guys! Lisa (AKA Vintage Fashion Library/Miss Helene's) told me to come and peep Erin's blog today and lo and behold, little ol' me gets a shout-out? Swell! Thank you so much, Erin!

The print is seriously beyond cool, and the pink/brown combo is never wrong. (What *is* beyond cool, you ask? I don't know, exactly.)

~Kim~ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen ~ MOMSPatterns DATE:Jan 10, 2009 8:00:00 AM Ooooh how'd I miss THAT?! PINK and brown?! *drools* ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Run's House DATE:Jan 11, 2009 8:01:00 AM Nice... Vintage rocks!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Musie DATE:Jan 12, 2009 1:10:00 AM Must... resist... hypnotic charms of bongo dress...

how amazing! And covetable. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Faith DATE:Jan 13, 2009 7:33:00 AM wow so oldy worldy such a great style though brown is not really my favourite colour but this is nice. Did you manage to sell it? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Coffee with Cathy DATE:Jan 13, 2009 8:25:00 AM Another great find. Thanks so much for sharing! And when you figure out how to wear lipstick without getting it on teeth, please let me know -- my daughters are constantly looking at me and pointing to their mouths in desperate attempts to clean me up. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Pink of Perfection DATE:Jan 13, 2009 1:10:00 PM holy heaven, yes! but what's with the crazy price? what happened to the days of $20 vintage dress finds? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Eirlys DATE:Jan 14, 2009 3:27:00 AM Never thought I'd live to say this but "Look at the bongos on that!!!".

[Little bit of role reversal good for one.] ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

L DATE:Jan 14, 2009 9:29:00 AM i'm concerned... where are you? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Jan 14, 2009 3:43:00 PM Yes, What L said. We are concerned...where are you? ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: New Fabric! (Well, New To Me) DATE: 6:36 AM ----- BODY:

(It's actually vintage, but it's new to me!)

I swear, folks named Rita are really good luck for me lately. Rita C. emailed me out of the blue and said "Not positive you would be interested in this bicycle fabric ..." Bicycle fabric! I don't think I finished the sentence before I clicked the link. I can't remember the last time I browsed fabric on eBay, so there's no way I would have seen this fabric without Rita's kind offices.

It was Buy It Now, too! Check it out:
bicycle percale

It was from seller MarilynSue, although she doesn't have too much other fabric listed right now.

I love that this was marketed as a time-saver -- don't wait for your fabric to be cut, just grab a "pak" and go! This is the fabric equivalent of bagged lettuce (which I love, btw)! I wonder if it was sold at stores that didn't otherwise have a fabric department, like the crappy thread they sell in the grocery store -- or used to, I haven't seen a notions section in a grocery store for ages.

What will this turn into? Well, it's 4 yards at 35 inches wide, so probably a narrow shirtdress of some kind. When I know, you'll know!

Labels: ebay, fabric, fabric_shopping, novelty_prints, shirtdress

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Emerald DATE:Jan 5, 2009 6:41:00 AM Lucky, lucky ebaying! Well done! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Alyssa DATE:Jan 5, 2009 7:14:00 AM The Job Lot near me now has a pre-cut section of upholstery fabric. My boyfriend( who works there) got so excited and told me I had to come in because they had "Fabric, really cheap fabric!" Well I came in and needless to say we were both rather disappointed, because I can't really use upholstery fabric.
Well I could, but it would be very very hard. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 5, 2009 7:28:00 AM I like the bike print, Erin. I bought some of that same print, different colorway (red) a couple years ago, for my daughter, who likes to ride a tandem bike with her sweetie.
Colleen ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sal DATE:Jan 5, 2009 8:03:00 AM Eeee! Can't wait to see it. That print is utterly adorable. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

What-I-Found DATE:Jan 5, 2009 9:02:00 AM The fates have smiled on you...that is a great find! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Amanda DATE:Jan 5, 2009 9:03:00 AM I'm happy to report that my grocery store still has a notions section. Well, maybe not happy to report, since, as you noted, it's crap thread. They also have a random set of size 5 double-pointed knitting needles. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rachel DATE:Jan 5, 2009 9:18:00 AM Oh my. That screams "full circle skirt" to me...with rick rack trim? I could see it done with a white, criss-cross wrap style, v-neck blouse...some chunky black/grey necklace/braclet/earring combo...maybe a black cardigan. Okay. So I'm a sucker for a full circle skirt...with matching belt and shoes, of course...lol... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

the_lazymilliner DATE:Jan 5, 2009 9:44:00 AM Bicycle fabric for a little cycling fun? Cute! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

winifred DATE:Jan 5, 2009 10:13:00 AM That fabric is adorable. It reminds me of a cardigan sweater my friend Jina had in college that I absolutely coveted. No matter what you end up making with it, you should definitely ride a tandem bike while wearing it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Defrost Indoors DATE:Jan 5, 2009 10:34:00 AM That is *very* you! I love it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Birgit DATE:Jan 5, 2009 12:09:00 PM Love it! An auspicious start to the new year, no?

I do believe I have a much smaller piece of that print stashed away for a blouse - in red ;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

xstpenguin DATE:Jan 5, 2009 1:20:00 PM Daisy, Daisy indeed - some of the bicycles are tandems! We have a grey thing going in my house at the moment and that is a particulalry nice shade. Just the thing to set off bright accessories. Great!

Don't suppose you had time for sewing during the holidays? Any stunt dresses for the festivities?

Cheers,
AJ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

vespabelle DATE:Jan 5, 2009 1:22:00 PM Love the fabric.

I was reading a sewing blog the other day (name escapes me) and she was in Paris and went to several shops that sold fabric pre-cut in 2 or 3 meter lengths. (these stores had "coupon" in their name.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

elke DATE:Jan 5, 2009 1:28:00 PM Rita is a true friend (or possibly an enabler). In the past, one could find pre-cut fabrics in non-fabric stores, like Woolworth's, Zeller's, and also some larger places (sort of pre-Walmarts). I made a skirt when I was about 13 from one such piece. Thy had paper labels stapled on, and they hung on racks like the skirts they would be. Price was around C$2.99 for the skirt length, I think. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 5, 2009 2:30:00 PM I'd buy pre-cut fabric, especially if it came in decent chunks. 3 yards, minimum!

Just last year I went cold turkey on remnant-bin browsing, and the addiction lurks just beneath my veneer of sensible fabric buying.

But doesn't everyone buy four or five yards at a time, without knowing exactly what will be made of it?

I don't even understand people who peer at the back of their pattern envelope and request "2 and 3/8 yard, please." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marge, Born Too Late Vintage DATE:Jan 5, 2009 4:20:00 PM I love that fabric! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marge, Born Too Late Vintage DATE:Jan 5, 2009 4:20:00 PM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jean DATE:Jan 5, 2009 5:00:00 PM Might I suggest that "if" the fabric came with this tape on it and it's been around (vintage)... you best have some good tape remover stuff available! I had some trim that I got years (too many to think about) ago and just recently took off the tape! It was a mess... white trim with yellowed tape stuff on it. Let's just say that it will take time to get it out! Hopefully your's won't be the same type thing!
Cute print though! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Jan 5, 2009 6:55:00 PM Mmmm! I think red trim on this would be nice. Look how neat the red wrapping looks on it! Plus some other people have mentioned owning this is a red colorway....so it's really all a karmic "cometogether". (I especially like grey with navy, yellow or lavender...but this bicycle print calls for something more active, I think, as a partner.)

Cute! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Jan 5, 2009 7:00:00 PM PS: Someone in the Global Sewing Conspiracy needs to take on the [advertised] name "Priscilla Percale-Pak", don't you think?

(signed) Francesca Bentley ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nora DATE:Jan 5, 2009 7:57:00 PM So. jealous.
Can't wait to see it made up! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 5, 2009 9:13:00 PM This can't be vintage, can it, if its still for sale by the bolt at retail stores?
How old does something have to be to be called vintage? Is that just a special word for second hand?
I ask because I bought this same print off the bolt just a couple years ago. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Little Hunting Creek DATE:Jan 6, 2009 8:24:00 AM I love the bicycles- they are crying out for rick rack, can't you hear them? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Jan 6, 2009 8:30:00 AM I saw cut packs of fabric somewhere recently...big lots? Dollar General? YEs, it was Dollar General! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

AuntieShel DATE:Jan 6, 2009 9:39:00 AM Great fabric, Ein. Can't wait to see what you make. One year when I was in grammar school, my mom make my sister and I matching, but different color, shirt dresses and the print was bicycle wheels. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

neighbourhood.gal DATE:Jan 6, 2009 3:24:00 PM Too excellent! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sandra DATE:Jan 6, 2009 7:16:00 PM Ya gotta love a label with alliteration! Such a cute print, but I'm a sucker for cotton novelty prints. I think it's genetic. My mom was a sewer, and always made us dresses and shirts out of fabric with cute prints. Anon. must know that many companies are making reproduction prints and she probably purchased one of those. The 35" width and label pretty much dates yours as vintage, as if you need provenance for fabric you like! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Jan 6, 2009 9:58:00 PM Anon: The term "vintage" means different things to different people. I myself would consider the 1970's "vintage"...so that's what, 30 years?

Enough time has to have passed for the era to have really been looked at, with some distance. Personally, there also has to be enough time that's passed that someone like me, who has memories of the era, can see it anew. Otherwise it would just be classified in the mushy, grey area of "out-of-style".

Some old fabrics that haven't been stored under good conditions can rot, among other things, making them fragile...so a new manufacture of a "vintage" fabric print is sometimes better. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Coralie Cederna Johnson DATE:Jan 7, 2009 5:58:00 AM Great vintage fabric! I also love to work with feedsacks from the past. For a dress, you'd need more than one feedsack but one will go a long way for quilting or other small projects. The novelty prints are wonderful and the colors from the 30's, 40's, & 50's are amazing! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Jan 7, 2009 12:55:00 PM Interesting, Coralie! Thanks for the tip. I looked up "feedsack" and got this:

http://www.rickrack.com/feedsack.html ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Pinup Dresses DATE:Jan 8, 2009 9:30:00 PM Don't you wear skirts riding bikes.. no that was roller skating, right? lol

I'd make a breezy full skirt out of it and find a bicycle made for 2. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

JuliaR DATE:Jan 10, 2009 11:21:00 AM I am jealous! The DH and I have 7 bikes, including a tandem. I can only wear skirts on the tandem and travel bikes because they have a low profile (they are Bike Fridays). I'll have to look for something like this for our days on the tandem! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Last Week, On Vogue Pattern Theatre ... DATE: 9:27 AM ----- BODY:

I think the eBay auction for this is over, but Rachel sent it to me as another fauxlero example. Isn't it magnificent? (The original seller was Cinderella's Ball.)

Can't you just hear the narrator's voiceover? "Last week, Victoria found out that Geoffrey wasn't just a striving young businessman ... he's the missing heir to the throne of Graustark! He's come to beg her forgiveness ... but will he love the spoiled society belle as much as he loved the glove-counter clerk she was pretending to be? Let's find out this week on Vogue Pattern Theatre!"

Frankly, clerk/belle or businessman/prince, I don't care, I just think I *need* that skirt treatment ... even if I will always be getting it caught in the car door. And I need it in that sensational teal color.

(But Victoria better take that hat off before he kisses her, or someone is gonna lose an eye!)

Labels: ebay, Vogue_487

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gremly Girl DATE:Sep 5, 2008 9:34:00 AM JINX! I blogged about this very pattern yesterday!
http://patternjunkie.typepad.com/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sold A Moke DATE:Sep 5, 2008 9:36:00 AM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sold A Moke DATE:Sep 5, 2008 9:38:00 AM Totally love, love, love that pattern.

Alas, but a poor farmwife am I. The cows would never appreciate it.

guess I'll stick to my 40's 'mop-dress' patterns. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 5, 2008 9:57:00 AM I lust for that skirt.
-Sandra ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Sep 5, 2008 10:00:00 AM I notice a certian faux-leroness to the bodice as well ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Doris DATE:Sep 5, 2008 10:06:00 AM Wow, is that a dress or is that a dress?!?

Love it! Color. Style. Hat. The whole enchilada! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

the_lazymilliner DATE:Sep 5, 2008 10:19:00 AM I love the Vogue Pattern theater analogy. The old radio shows are great, which reminds me to tune into a local one tomorrow... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Sep 5, 2008 10:46:00 AM poshy mcposhness this dress
lurve the skirt treatment
lurve the color
lurve the lol vintage pattern story
happy friday! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Sep 5, 2008 11:39:00 AM VOGUE PATTERN THEATER! One of the brightest spots in the new fall lineup! This could also be the final scene from A Streetcar Named Desire, with dithering Stella trying to stall the psychiatrist at the door as fancy Blanche waits to be taken off to the carribean by her imaginary boyfriend. (The costume designer decided to put them in the same dress, but in different fabrics, to underscore the fact that they're sisters.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julia DATE:Sep 5, 2008 12:23:00 PM OK, now I'm going to have to go request _Graustark_ from my library. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Maranda DATE:Sep 5, 2008 1:30:00 PM Aww come on Erin .. the hats just floofy! It couldnt hurt a fly! I love the whole ensemble. Its a beautiful dress. Oh I so wish my sewing machine worked at the moment. I have a few patterns that are calling my name. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gidget Bananas DATE:Sep 5, 2008 2:24:00 PM Ah, the New Look! Kissing Rosie the Riveter good-by and saying hello again to Cinderella! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Little Hunting Creek DATE:Sep 5, 2008 3:13:00 PM This is what's missing from pattern illustrations nowadays. I love teal, I love that skirt, I want Victoria's gloves! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rachel DATE:Sep 5, 2008 3:27:00 PM hehehe...i just love the stories, but I do really want that skirt...give some shape to the bootay ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rachel DATE:Sep 5, 2008 3:31:00 PM holy moly....it went for $40 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kathleen DATE:Sep 5, 2008 3:51:00 PM I think he already lost not just an eye, but an entire face. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

baylibrarian DATE:Sep 5, 2008 4:45:00 PM This dress defines the very word. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Eirlys DATE:Sep 5, 2008 5:01:00 PM "Seemply laaahvly, Daaahling!"

OK, let's hear that Vogue Pattern Theater, complete with atmospheric crackles! It's time to disinter the heart of early soap opera! Gotta do it. Could this be some kind of wierd wiki project? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Toby Wollin DATE:Sep 5, 2008 5:33:00 PM Aw, I thought the man at the door was John Berensford Tifton, the guy who, in my very early youth, used to show up with the big but anonymous check for deserving people. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

enc DATE:Sep 5, 2008 5:50:00 PM Oh, the humor of this blog. I love coming back day after day. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Beth DATE:Sep 6, 2008 7:19:00 AM What is the proper terminology for that kind of draped overskirt? I'd like to know what to use as a search term.
Love it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

andrea.at.the.blue.door DATE:Sep 6, 2008 12:33:00 PM My mother, who trained at Traphagen in the '50s, had a silk dress in a print very similar to the one in the background. But hers didn't have the fantastical back draping, more's the pity! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

andrea.at.the.blue.door DATE:Sep 6, 2008 12:33:00 PM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

saidee DATE:Sep 7, 2008 2:25:00 AM Fabulous! Please, SOMEONE let us know how to draft that back skirt treatment! Just to see the pattern piece with the grain line would be great!

Can you tell I'm too lazy/daunted to figure it out for myself???

When can we expect another exciting episode of Vogue Pattern Theatre? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 7, 2008 8:36:00 AM The real question is, can she love him even though he has no facial features? It's kind of hard to tell what he's thinking, so he'll need to express himself with hatch patterns and watercolor tints. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Leigh DATE:Sep 8, 2008 4:33:00 PM I love Vogue Pattern Theater! Please pen us some more episodes! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Allison DATE:Sep 8, 2008 8:52:00 PM To me, for some reason, it just looks like she caught her skirt up in the waistband when she was in the washroom and now her slip's showing. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Cleaning Out My Closet, Part 1 DATE: 8:06 AM ----- BODY:

I spent a few hours yesterday moving the winter clothes OUT and the summer clothes IN. This involves a great deal of dusting, both mental and physical. (For instance, why did I let another year pass without wearing my turquoise shantung hostess coat?)

Every time I make this switch I *vow* that I will finally pare down my closet to essentials. Just a few well-chosen pieces, blah blah blah. The truth is that I am not a "few well-chosen pieces" kinda gal. I am the kind of gal that has fifty cotton summer dresses and wears a different one every day, if she can.

However, I *am* getting rid of a few things, such as this brown-and-gold wool crepe wiggle dress. I made it several years ago (maybe even five or six?) and wore it, I dunno, once. I was having a wiggle-dress moment, back then; I don't know why. (Perhaps it was the joy of no longer looking mildly pregnant?) Anyway, I spent a lot of time on it and figured I should now set it free to live a full life with someone who will love it the way it ought to be loved.

Here's a closer view of the bodice:

brown and gold wool dress

The points on the tabs are a little lumpy, I have to say. Luckily the buttons are so nice (vintage!) that it draws the eye away.

This dress measures B 36-38, W 32, H 46, and the skirt is 28 inches waistline to hem. From the front neckline to the waist is 13.5 inches; from the back neckline to the waist is 14 inches.

So here's the plan: I'm going to put it up on eBay, at a very very low starting bid. If it sells for that, fine. But if it sells for anything upwards of $25, anything over that will go to charity -- I'm thinking helping victims of rape in the Congo. How does that sound?

Here's the link: Brown Crepe Wiggle Dress.

Labels: ebay, erin_sewing

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

karooble DATE:May 5, 2008 8:46:00 AM Yes! This is a wonderful plan!

But I don't suppose a sundress could be the next item on the menu? Please? :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

anthrokeight DATE:May 5, 2008 8:48:00 AM Excellent plan. It's a (potentially) modestly priced garment being used to support people in need of aid. And give pleasure to a wearer.

I love this blog. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

dulcet DATE:May 5, 2008 8:57:00 AM Um...could you guys define "wiggle dress" for me? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Deirdre DATE:May 5, 2008 9:07:00 AM Wiggle dress -- so tight at the hem that you have to wiggle to walk around.

But this doesn't seem to be the case -- Erin? Is the dress just a wiggle shape and doesn't actually sport a 22 inch hem circumference?

I've decided -- and here comes a revolutionary idea -- to write down an entire week's menu so I know what to eat every day.

And I though, hey that's a great idea to do with clothes, also! Because although I don't have a fabulous shantung coat in my closet, I do have other things I never wear because I forget about them.

I love this blog too! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:May 5, 2008 9:09:00 AM I found this definition online....and it's from A Dress A Day 2005! ("A 'wiggle" dress' is a dress with a tight, tapered skirt that doesn't allow for normal-sized steps. So when you wear it, you wiggle. Think Marilyn Monroe and the 'sexy secretary' trope. Searching for 'wiggle dress' on Ebay will get you many, many excellent examples.") ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Elles Niche DATE:May 5, 2008 9:14:00 AM A beautiful dress for a beautiful cause! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Adaora A. DATE:May 5, 2008 9:20:00 AM People will pay serious money for this hun. You are a talented seamstress and a wonderful person. I love it. I'd totally buy it if I had money to spare. Unfortunately as it is I buy everything on rewards points. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marjie DATE:May 5, 2008 9:39:00 AM I see your pockets; it reminds me of seeing something in my paper this weekend mentioning one Claire McCardell of Baltimore, creator of the "American Look" in dresses, complete with very large pockets, usually topstitched. Of course, I thought of you when I saw it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Miss Kitty DATE:May 5, 2008 10:09:00 AM An excellent idea for the funds! And a gorgeous dress, too, BTW. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lisa DATE:May 5, 2008 10:48:00 AM Great idea! I like Kiva, too, because the money is given as a loan to people who are starting or upgrading third world businesses. The recipient pays you back, and you can keep it, or reloan to someone else. I love that concept of paying it forward.

And I love that dress. Alas, it wouldn't fit me. Maybe I'll bid, just to get it. Maybe you should put DaD in the title, so we can search for it. :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:May 5, 2008 11:13:00 AM On second thought, "Wiggle Dress" might also apply to the fact that one has to "wiggle" into them. (You know, the jumping and shaking and smoothing required as the dress goes up over your hips?) Just a thought :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

badmommy DATE:May 5, 2008 12:48:00 PM Love this dress! Unfortunately that much brown on me is Not a Good Idea. Waiting to see what else we might benefit from the Great Closet Reshuffle. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:May 5, 2008 2:44:00 PM Aw man! I'm too little for this dress!

Great idea though! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:May 5, 2008 5:11:00 PM Aw man- this dress is too small in the chest! The hips I would have to take in. I love brown. i love wiggle dresses...maybe a crash diet...

Butterick has some new '47 repro sundresses out. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sue DATE:May 5, 2008 5:16:00 PM What a great way to clean out your closet! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

CatMacGregor DATE:May 5, 2008 6:18:00 PM I'm not to great in brown but what about the turquoise shantung hostess coat - gonna post that? 8 )

I think if I wore a corset I might fit. 8 P ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Robin DATE:May 5, 2008 6:37:00 PM What a great dress and a great cause, too bag it wouldn't fit me in the hips (I have a lot to wiggle there). This looks like something that "Joan Holloway" would wear (and wear well) on Mad Men (new season starts in July!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

enc DATE:May 5, 2008 6:40:00 PM If only I could fit into this. Alas, I'd have to wear falsies to fill it out. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

oracle DATE:May 6, 2008 5:48:00 AM Thanks for pointing us to what's happening to so many women in the Congo. It's also great to hear that something can be, and is being, done to help, and that the women who are treated at this facility may find some positive experience after the horror that they have gone through. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Laura DATE:May 6, 2008 7:11:00 AM Drat1 I've been looking for a brown dress for the 'overlap' seasons, and it would fit me - except for the neck-to-waist length! (I'm very long waisted, and that's one of the main reasons I began to sew.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Eirlys DATE:May 6, 2008 7:25:00 AM Thanks for signposting that Congo story. The hospital sees 200 rape victims a month so maybe we should all get selling our old dresses. You know, maybe if you go for a Wear-a-Dress Day in September we could drum up sponsorship for some such worthy cause? Or is that taking it all too far? Keep it simple, huh? Just a thought...

Great style dress, Erin, but it's not for me: I'm too inverted-triangle-slash-ruler (all the angles of your standard school geometry set, basically) and generally uncurvaceous for it to work on me, but I'll admire it from afar. I like the button details.

Glad to see that you've already got 6 bids, and with 6 whole days to go! Could you maybe add your charitable intentions to the description? - just in case people don't find it via the blog. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

yoshi3329 DATE:May 6, 2008 2:45:00 PM usually I dislike the color brown but for some reason this dress seems to make it work!

http://adlynmorrison.blogspot.com/ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kate in England DATE:May 6, 2008 3:53:00 PM I'm not entirely sure what a hostess coat is, but because of your description, I'm curious to know whether it looks anything like my mother's wedding dress...

Nice tabs! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

wundermary DATE:May 7, 2008 8:45:00 AM Oh, this is lovely! You did a very nice job. Maybe you aught to wear it out to lunch before you let it go! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

wundermary DATE:May 7, 2008 8:45:00 AM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:May 7, 2008 9:37:00 AM A hostess coat (or gown) is an at-home garment that's not as flimsy as a peignoir nor as utilitarian as a bathrobe. I think the style was started by Madam DuBarry (or some French noblewoman, anyway) who wanted to be comfortable while entertaining away from the rigors and protocol of court. Then, it was called a Robe de Chambre. They are soft, sensual garments that are still fairly covered up. You could make phone calls in them, dress your hair, plan menus, or receive visitors. Most importantly, you didn't have to wear the restrictive foundation garments other styles from those earlier eras required. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Seriously, I am cornering the market on shirtdresses DATE: 8:07 AM ----- BODY:

I could barely make out the line drawing on this, and the seller said she had no clue whether or not it was complete ... and I bought it anyway. It's a sickness, right?

I am a sucker for these Butterick Four-Yard-Line patterns, though. I love the football reference in something marketed exclusively to women (and supposedly thrifty women at that!) but I liked the open collar with the front band and the full skirt a little more. I think this one will be fun to make.

I'm seriously considering making this shirtdress in a solid color, even. Wouldn't that be a switch? I just can't decide WHICH color. Pale blue and green are too hospitally; yellow shows too much dirt; black is too boring to sew, ditto white; red a little much for all that skirt ... I'm bored with pink lately, and orange would just be insane (not that I'm against insane, usually). I don't like brown in summer, and I never wear beige (or purple) if I can help it. What am I forgetting? Ooh, maybe a deep blue?

Labels: Butterick_2628, ebay, shirtdress, shirtwaist

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Emilie DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:23:00 AM What about an apple green? You know, something vibrant. Or maybe the colour f the first leafs? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Leigh DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:26:00 AM Maybe turquiose with coral accents? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

PhantomMinuet DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:28:00 AM Aqua or pale coral might be nice. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

PhantomMinuet DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:29:00 AM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

The Rotund DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:35:00 AM I think a nice apple or kelly green would be awesome. Alternately, a rich magenta (magenta isn't QUITE pink...) or a hot teal. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:40:00 AM a slubby taupe/grey, with the front facing and collar topstitched in bright magenta or bright turquoise, and with that color used for the pockets as well [maybe even the neck facing] ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

BeckyW DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:46:00 AM Do the dress in a solid color and do the front band and collar in another solid with an obi style belt matching the collar and band color. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kate DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:53:00 AM Obviously deep, royal, Gator Blue. With the tiniest bit of orange piping. That's what I'd do... :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Katie Alender DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:58:00 AM Or a summery sort of nautical blue, perhaps. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dusty Penguin DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:13:00 AM I'd do some shade of purple/lavender or a rose shade. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:16:00 AM Well, if this is a color campaign of sorts, I'm throwing my hat in the ring with Anonymous' idea of gray/taupe with bright accents. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

cindy DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:17:00 AM there are some good suggestions! I like kelly green! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julia DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:38:00 AM RED ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

tea DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:38:00 AM I was about to say grass green, but apple is pretty close to that, too.

Also, I know you said solid, but now I'm thinking ticking stripes. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nora DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:40:00 AM I like a bright, solid kelly green lately too...or what about a solid color with some texture, like a broderie anglaise? And, it looks like it's a pure dirndl bottom (i.e. straight hem), so you might ALSO consider making it in a border print. And I think it would look marvellous in seersucker!

Oh, and I think maybe it is a little bit of a sickness, since you ask. Thanks for spreading your germs around to all of us, jeez. :^) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Luck(x8) DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:44:00 AM I have to second the motion for an intense spring-like kelly green. Failing that, a bright coral sounds nice—a little of the insanity of orange to make the pink more exciting! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kristen DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:08:00 AM grey ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Summerset DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:11:00 AM Hmmm. I just made a solid red linen shirt dress with a big full skirt. I posted it a few weeks back with the SWAP 2008 posts, but it will show up again this week in the final photo shoot post.

I vote for green! Bright, grassy green! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Toby Wollin DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:16:00 AM Burgundy. I'd go for burgundy. With a pink cardi..or, if you can find it, one of those preppy Faire Isle ones in burgundy with all the stitchwork in pink. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:26:00 AM I agree with the kelly green - but I'd add white piping to the collar/placket/belt/sleeves to break up all that green. Or do the same thing but with a royal/nautical blue instead of the kelly green. So crisp and summery! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ellie Finlay DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:27:00 AM Peach or subtle gold.

I'm with Nora. I immediately thought of seersucker. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

DivaJean DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:32:00 AM My thought is dove grey with bright turquoise piping and collar.Think how nice it would look with turquoise sandals!

OR White with apple green piping, collar and belt. Fresh! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:32:00 AM I want to know why not orange? I made and orange wool dress this winter. And yellow looks so pretty on brunettes. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

scormeny DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:52:00 AM This spring's color seems to be a really saturated turquoise, almost just this side of teal. It's lovely and a bit eye-popping, and puts me in mind of a refreshing take on robin's egg blue. So, I vote for turquoise. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Deirdre DATE:Apr 8, 2008 11:34:00 AM Olive green tafetta. where did I see a prom dress in that color recently? on this blog?

anyhow, totally lovely combination, the drab and the shine. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

fabricgirl DATE:Apr 8, 2008 11:52:00 AM You've not cornered the market - I have 56 shirtwaist patterns ranging from the 30s through the early 60s! However, I've none of those '4 Yard Line' ones - does this mean that I need to keep collecting?
My color suggestion is a light grey with a yellow or orange accent. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

RachelMM DATE:Apr 8, 2008 12:28:00 PM What about a nice shade of coral and you could use a contrast fabric for the center placket and collar. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Apr 8, 2008 12:40:00 PM DAMN you, Erin. You know FULL WELL the Butterick 2241 pattern I made such a fuss about searching for is part of the "4 Yard" line. WHY must you torture me when I was just beginning to heal?

I wrote to the lady at cemetarian.com, asking her to email the person who bought it that I'd pay TOP DOLLAR just to get it safe in my arms. So far, no answer. Clearly, we need to prepare a petition to open her records, to confront the buyer with a court order to release the pattern. Little 2241's rightful home is with ME! Only I know how to nurture it; off-white with red top stitching, red belt and shoes. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

1912 Suffragette DATE:Apr 8, 2008 1:20:00 PM It's a pity you don't like purple - a fresh spring lilac or lavender or light periwinkle would be awesome, especially with white piping, black piping or medium gray accents. Although the apple green or a pistachio would be cool (pun intended), too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

colour by number DATE:Apr 8, 2008 1:51:00 PM I have been thinking of kelly green. The color reminds me of the preppy period in high school when it was always accompanied with the whale grosgrain ribbon! Have any in your stash? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kc DATE:Apr 8, 2008 1:55:00 PM soft yellow w/grey accents! or kelly green w/yellow hand stitching detail. my new shirtdress is in pale violet. i usually shun all forms of purple but am very pleased w/it. you rock. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 8, 2008 3:05:00 PM Hmmm. Just one solid color? I was thinking maybe a white "blouse" with a red or navy "skirt." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Verity DATE:Apr 8, 2008 3:15:00 PM Very pale fresh dove grey with white accents. Iknow it can be schoolmistressy but it is also very crisp looking...and you can wear red shoes.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Myra DATE:Apr 8, 2008 3:46:00 PM Turquoise or caribbean blue with white rick rack on any accent area (pocket or collar edge). By the way, at Super Walmart, the coolest, a brown camoflage with butterflies. I am thinking a-line skirt with white or ecru eyelet on the hem. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Apr 8, 2008 5:23:00 PM << dove grey with white accents is also very crisp looking...and you can wear red shoes >>

THEN I AM ALL FOR THIS! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

L DATE:Apr 8, 2008 6:19:00 PM Dove grey is nice idea but I do love me some yellow in the springtime. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

notsocrafty.com DATE:Apr 8, 2008 6:37:00 PM I like the idea of bright green or a deep bright blue. Love this shirt dress pattern. I would feel so Audrey Hepburn in it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

annie DATE:Apr 8, 2008 7:39:00 PM Coral or Aqua are good choices, but what about navy with a yellow belt (or a kelly green or orange belt)- apparently navy and super-brights are the spring colors this year. Plus, you can always do white or red accents.

Grey with yellow accents would be cute, too

Loving the pattern! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 8, 2008 8:04:00 PM I vote Kelly Green, BRIGHT blue, or khaki green. I think the khaki would make it nice and utilitarian. Also, really large pockets would look pretty funky. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sara DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:15:00 PM What about metallics? Silver or bronze? Then you can still wear the red shoes... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:25:00 PM moss, cherry or brick red ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Apr 8, 2008 9:44:00 PM << Silver or bronze? Then you can still wear the red shoes >>

The Red Shoes (fabulous movie, BTW) would go well with almost anything...except maybe the greens; too Christmasy. Also, pinks might be problematic. But the blues, yellows, oranges, navy, neutrals, autuminal tones...BRING THEM ON! We're not afraid. Don't know about periwinkle. Rust red could work with violet, but I don't know about my favorite crimson red.

I feel better now. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 8, 2008 10:07:00 PM I thought the 4 Yard Line referred to the amount of yardage to make most sizes in 45" fabric.

Or am I missing something - like maybe a sense of irony or something? I'm not sure a pattern company would to send a subliminal message to the average dating American male at the time that these were 4th and Down kind of dresses if you know what I mean.

Confused.

PS - Love your blog and I totally see this in a lovely white and dove stripped sea sucker as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Random Steph DATE:Apr 8, 2008 11:07:00 PM Navy. I think you should go with navy. I totally need something navy myself. It is an in color this spring, but I think it's also very classic.

Love the blog! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

/anne... DATE:Apr 8, 2008 11:49:00 PM I bought some sheer slubby inky navy linen/nylon blend to make a similar shirtdress a few months ago; it will need lining, but the subtle texture adds some interest, particularly with a skirt that full.

I can also imagine a deep forest green, with crochet buttons. I've just acquired Interweave's boook on making heirloom buttons, and they're a perfect match for shirt dresses! Now I'm trying to figure out what to use the ruffly flower ones on the cover of the book for, as I've fallen in love with them. It used to be fabric first, design to suit - now it's buttons first! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

nonsequitania DATE:Apr 9, 2008 2:33:00 AM Why on earth not a nice big wallop of red?!.. I suppose it might make a person's eyes feel too hot in the summer.
My favourite full-skirted dress is black with a cheerfully off-centre, asymmetrical band of electric (and I mean electric) blue at the hem. Swoosh! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Canuck DATE:Apr 9, 2008 6:15:00 AM Love dresses. Love this blog :).
Don't think a full skirted shirt dress would do me any good - I'm so fruity I'm pear-shaped...
A solid, you say? Go for that beigy green (taupe? khaki?), you can dress it up with red acessories or subdue with brown. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dilly DATE:Apr 9, 2008 6:49:00 AM I'm currently making a shirtdress in greeny turquoise, and I am intending to use big orange buttons, so that's my suggestion... (I say making, by which I mean I've cut out the pattern). My second choice would be electric blue.

Although I think a good idea would be to make dresses in each of the colours above... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dilly DATE:Apr 9, 2008 6:49:00 AM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Libby DATE:Apr 9, 2008 9:10:00 AM Yes Erin, it's official, you're a bit touched. Make these instead and put yourself to bed, Girl! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Crystal DATE:Apr 9, 2008 9:27:00 AM I think a bright turquoise seersucker would be lovely for summer. You could throw in a yellow belt when you really want to pop. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Maddy DATE:Apr 9, 2008 9:28:00 AM Ooooh, peacock or teal would be PERFECT. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kim p. DATE:Apr 9, 2008 11:00:00 AM Pale lavender immediately sprang to mind. Or perhaps a paler version of black raspberry. And there are so many beautiful shades of green-blue, that I'm sure you could find something that didn't look institutional. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Apr 9, 2008 12:41:00 PM Myra - thanks to your psotI went to Wal Mart and got the khaki butterfly camoflauge. I am going to make a dress out of it for work. I have to work the Military Retiree Appreciation Day. I'm either go to use that or some bright green camo with black skulls from the Debi Mumm collection at JoAnns. Either way I am going to make a dress out of each.Thanks again Myra for pointing me toward that fabric. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Apr 9, 2008 12:53:00 PM I am voting for any pastel with taupe/gray or vice versa.

Or the navy/white/red accents thing.

yeah, I got some preppy genes in me.

@cookie, ask Janet at Lanetz Living and Jen at Mom's patterns too. Those ladies are very resourceful when it comes to finding patterns. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Apr 9, 2008 1:31:00 PM << cookie, ask Janet at Lanetz Living and Jen at Mom's patterns too. Those ladies are very resourceful when it comes to finding patterns. >>

Merci : ) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 9, 2008 1:45:00 PM I dreamed about this dress last night. Apparently my subconscience wants you to do it in a blue chambray with red piping/buttons. Not something my conscience mind probably would have come up with, but I have to admit that it looked pretty cute! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nadine DATE:Apr 9, 2008 2:42:00 PM Just expose yourself to solid-colour fabrics, and choose the one which sings to you. Might be blood-orange, mustard, burgundy, rose, extra-dark red, navy . . . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jessica Pigza DATE:Apr 25, 2008 1:56:00 PM Your mention of football references in something marketed for women reminds me of baseball puns I recently saw in a Worl War II-era knitting magazine called Minerva (it's at New York Public Library, where I work). The introduction to a series of knitted stocking patterns (in V. 63, 1941) promises: "22 Hits, No Runs, No Errors"! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: But *this* one has a zipper! DATE: 6:53 AM ----- BODY:

Even though I now probably have enough shirtwaist patterns to paper my sewing room with them (not that I *would*, but I could), this one caught my eye ... it has a zipper! A center-front zipper, which you hardly ever see on non-athletic clothing any more.

If I made this I'd do it in some kind of fine black lawn with one of those fancy rhinestone zippers. Which reminds me: I really need to do a big online notions/zippers/etc. order: what sites do you all recommend? I should compile a list ...

And speaking of lists, yes, this marks the second Friday that has been bereft of linktasticness, but my wifi connection while traveling has been a bit ... unreliable. And linktasticity needs, above all, reliable internet, so I can follow all those links to their stunning conclusions. But keep those links coming; the next one is likely to be overwhelming. You'll need to set aside a whole morning just to click them all ...

(Oh, and in this picture, don't you think Flowered Dress has just said something completely inane to Green Dress? I think so, too, but I can't decide what it was. If you know, leave a comment, please!)

Labels: ebay, McCalls_4118, shirtdress, shirtwaist

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

robin DATE:Apr 4, 2008 7:10:00 AM i love the riri zippers with the colored teeth--though still haven't found the right project for one. maybe this would be it.

http://www.zipperstop.com/id34.htm ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Myra DATE:Apr 4, 2008 7:29:00 AM I love this one, too. My problem is full skirts are too much fabric for me, my legs are thin, body is sometimes normal, but after being pregnant 6 times in 5.5 years (we have 1 adopted, 3 biological living and 3 miscarriages), it is not back down to a normal waist and I am 5'1". I look better in a slightly gathered A-line in a thinner fabric, which is ok since we live in south central Texas (our high was 90 on Tuesday). By the way, you could paper your room: scan the photos and use the printed version, but it might be messy. You could make a large picture/wallhanging instead! Myra ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Apr 4, 2008 7:40:00 AM If you're compiling a list of favorite places for notions/zippers/etc., please post it! Your site is wonderful (and a bad influence - I have a vintage pattern that I just finished cutting up last night and will be sewing into a dress in the next week), but those of us who live without easy access to fabric stores would completely appreciate a list of places to go online. ~e ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Stephanie DATE:Apr 4, 2008 7:46:00 AM I've been stocking up at:
http://www.homesew.com/
(cheaper stuff)

http://www.mjtrim.com/
(fancier stuff) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:08:00 AM Flowered dress lady says, "Well I LIKE the way the breeze blows up the fuller skirt, so put that in your pipe and smoke it!" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin Elizabeth DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:10:00 AM Dear Erin,
Please leave some patterns out there for the rest of us. Thank you,
-Erin ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Vixx DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:34:00 AM Flowered Dress Says: Yes Esmerelda we ARE going to "National Notions" before lunch!

She then pokes green dress in eyes with raised fingers in a 3 stooges move.

Yello dress in background is leaving the scene to take the streetcar home and avoid Flowered Dress' abuse. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:39:00 AM Flowered dress: "your eybrows are to dark." Green dress is gettign ready to burn flowered dress to a crisp with her hot stare. (I love green dress's dress, especially the sleeves.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

What-I-Found DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:40:00 AM Miss Flowered Dress;
"Really, Wearing only one glove is going to become huge. Huge, I tell you!" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Allison DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:46:00 AM Flowered Dress: "Well, you may have the better sleeves, but at least *my* hair is still intact. What happened to your hat?" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

k. DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:59:00 AM I'm fairly certain Flowered Dress is midway through her interpretation of "I'm a Little Teapot."

Do post the notions links! Us knitwear designers can use 'em, too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

colour by number DATE:Apr 4, 2008 9:05:00 AM Flower dress to the green dress, "tomorrow maybe a little less severe with your eyebrow pencil...like mine"(Ha!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jennifer DATE:Apr 4, 2008 9:10:00 AM Flowered dress: "I find that if I stir my coffee with the tip of my finger, I can burn an extra five calories!"

Though I don't think that trumps the little teapot comment. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Allison DATE:Apr 4, 2008 9:14:00 AM And here I thought that she was imparting the secrets of how to hide pockets in the extra fullness of her skirt (which explains where her other glove is, too). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

xstpenguin DATE:Apr 4, 2008 9:44:00 AM Miss FD "I don't want to alarm you, but I think I can see a grey hair." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

geogrrl DATE:Apr 4, 2008 10:24:00 AM Totally different. I LOVE this one. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Stevy DATE:Apr 4, 2008 10:58:00 AM Judging by the way FloweredDress is pointing coyly upwards, I think she's just asked GreenDress what she thinks that cloud is thinking.

For the fifth time in six minutes. And two of those were the same cloud. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Beth H DATE:Apr 4, 2008 11:03:00 AM FloweredDress: My de-ah, if you had only secured your hat--a pin right the-ah--you might not have lost the front half. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

PhantomMinuet DATE:Apr 4, 2008 11:19:00 AM Flowered dress: Wheee! I'm so tipsy that I have to prop my chin up with my hand, or my head falls down. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Melanie DATE:Apr 4, 2008 11:39:00 AM Flower Dress...and then we put our right legs in, and then we took our right legs out, and then we shook them all about. I think it's called the 'Hodey Podey...'

Green Dress"Hokey Pokey, you simpleton" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 4, 2008 11:43:00 AM Flower girl to green girl: "*Love* your dress. . . where'd you get the pattern?" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Apr 4, 2008 11:47:00 AM Flowered Dress is saying, "No, no. It's the easiest procedure in the world! See, no scars!" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

daisyfairbanks DATE:Apr 4, 2008 11:56:00 AM "Sometimes I put my fingers under my arms. And then I SMELL them. Like THIS!" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

wundermary DATE:Apr 4, 2008 12:48:00 PM Flowered dress is a few syllables into a catty remark about green dress' recent chin implant. Yellow dress is hurriedly exiting to avoid being rumpled in the cat fight that will surely follow. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

'nora DATE:Apr 4, 2008 1:00:00 PM For zippers and stuff I hear good things about http://www.zipperstop.com/ though I haven't shopped with them myself.

Venus Ribbon (http://www.venusribbon.com/) is grosgrain heaven. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

thebookof DATE:Apr 4, 2008 1:08:00 PM whatever flowered dress is saying to green dress, orange dress has turned away and is trying desperately not to laugh. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Apr 4, 2008 1:12:00 PM Speaking of zippers, I had success putting a hidden zipper up the front of a fitted vintage suit that was just THAT much too small. Since I had to cover the existing button holes, I put fancy beaded frog closures over them, running up and down both sides of the zipper. It looked really sharp.

Then I outgrew it again. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

katana DATE:Apr 4, 2008 1:32:00 PM Flowers: "I can tell John likes me so much."

Green, thinking, I saw him snogging yellow just before you walked in. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marnie DATE:Apr 4, 2008 2:13:00 PM Obviously, flower dress just said, "Why yes, the subject of youth in Asia is very important, that's why I always tell my children to eat all their broccoli." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Apr 4, 2008 2:22:00 PM oo! oo! I like this one too. But I just shot the budget again at Lanetz so I have to be good for awhile.

"zipper"? You all speak such strange words. I think you mean non-separable slide fastener. :-)

So just exactly how did it come to be called a zipper anyway? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Apr 4, 2008 2:37:00 PM How the slide clasp became thezipper: http://www.apparelsearch.com/zipper_history.htm ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Deirdre DATE:Apr 4, 2008 2:51:00 PM "Those squirrels over there are talking about me. I love melted chocolate." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 4, 2008 2:59:00 PM For notions try Atlanta Thread Supply. They have a great selection of thread and the prices on zippers are great.

Janet from Alabama ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Canuck DATE:Apr 4, 2008 4:55:00 PM She said: "Puffy sleeves are so over, you know". ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Apr 4, 2008 5:07:00 PM It's also possible, of course, that Green Dress is a drag queen (notice all the eyebrow pencil) and Flowered Dress is handing out pointers. ("Now, when you lead your walk with the chin, like this, it looks SUPER feminine.") Yellow Dress off in the background is another drag queen, practicing her walk before they head out to the clubs. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Elle DATE:Apr 4, 2008 5:30:00 PM Flowered dress, a widdow three times over, is giving relationship advice to aqua dress who is having a bit of trouble with her philandering husband.

"If you add just a wee bit of arsenic to the icing sugar, he'll never taste it. Honest."

Yellow dress is an undercover FBI agent who has been assigned to the "Case of the Blue Dress Murders". She is speaking into one of those newfangled microphones that she finds to be a cumbersome but necessary accessory. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 4, 2008 5:36:00 PM Flowered dress is Italian. Green dress has just made a disparaging remark about "garlic-eaters." Flowered dress is making a hand-to-chin gesture well-known to Italians as green dress looks on condescendingly. Yellow dress has her hand on her heart, saying a little prayer for both of them.

Cammy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 4, 2008 5:45:00 PM Actually, yellow dress has just turned away in shame, realizing she should never have introduced her new friend from charm school to her old friend from the neighborhood.

Cammy ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gidget Bananas DATE:Apr 4, 2008 6:05:00 PM Oooh, make the straight-skirted version but with short sleeves. Or if you don't like that style for yourself -- make it for me! ;-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 4, 2008 7:10:00 PM Flowered: Darling, this is the most FANTASTIC news-
Sleeves: Oh yeah?
Yellow: Good god in heaven, please don't let them push each other out into the great big void of whiteness! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

monquee DATE:Apr 4, 2008 8:10:00 PM online store - www.fabricdepot.com

they are having a special - 30% off online purchases.

Good Notions Selection ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

RachelMM DATE:Apr 4, 2008 9:11:00 PM "Honey, I don't think you plucked your eye-brows evenly." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Evalyn DATE:Apr 4, 2008 9:11:00 PM "Emerald, I see that you and Goldie are both having back troubles again," said Flora. "Let me give you one of these wonderful pills my doctor perscribed for me. For nerves, you know, but after a couple, you won't care. Now where did I put them? I just know there's a pocket in this dress somewhere. (Giggle) Maybe I should have taken just one." ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Apr 4, 2008 10:07:00 PM Thanks for the info Theresa!

OMG you all are so funny.
This is way better than i can has a cheezburger! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 4, 2008 11:23:00 PM Flower Dress is singing " I'm too sexy for my shirt-dress"
Yellow Dress turns in disgust " oh please! " ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 5, 2008 2:04:00 AM Flowered dress: If I tilt my head just so, and swish my skirt back with a gloved hand, I can tune in Lawrence Welk and his Orchestra. With my eyes closed, I even see the bubbles from the bubble machine. Can you hear it too? They're playing a polka!

Green dress is thinking: How did yellow dress get away? Oh No! I think she's about to throw up!

Saidee ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Purl Buttons DATE:Apr 5, 2008 6:12:00 AM Flower Dress: I think the shoes look GREAT with my dress, flowers and all. Besides, who are YOU to talk, you magic markered one of your eyebrows higher than the other. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 5, 2008 6:53:00 AM Green is wondering if Flower even notices the missing glove. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Maddy DATE:Apr 5, 2008 10:18:00 AM Oooh, I just LOVE front zipper wiggle dresses, but have yet to make or buy one. They are a tad bit daring for me. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Maddy DATE:Apr 5, 2008 10:27:00 AM Oh, and Mrs. FD is obviously jealous of Mrs. GD's sleeves, so she is trying to hurt her feelings by commenting on her absent hat. You know the type. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Libby DATE:Apr 5, 2008 10:29:00 AM I like this odd-ball little eBay store called birdcishop56
I found it doing a zipper search but ended up spending a bunch of time looking through their quirky, seemingly random, off the wall, and delightfully cheap trims and notions. Now I have a huge bag full of inspiration. Check it out.

Flower dress (quoting Oscar Wilde) "They're wearing the chins quite high this year."
Green dress: "Oh, give me a break!" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Mika DATE:Apr 5, 2008 12:41:00 PM LOVE vintage patterns, and your site is always awesome for inspiration!

For notions, I buy 99% of mine through an online coop, I do have a retail license too though when I need to do MAJOR purchasing! LOL! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

phyllis DATE:Apr 5, 2008 6:22:00 PM Zipperstop is on Ebay and they have everything you could ever want in zippers (Riri, rhinestone). Although I have to warn you that cotton lawn is a thin fabric and it will need to be reinforced if you want to use a rhinestone zipper, they're pretty heavy. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 6, 2008 7:38:00 AM Flowered dress: "No really, the hair was sticking straight out of her nose!"

Green dress is thinking: "She is one to talk!"

YD is turned away to do a quick booger check. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Pratishtha Durga DATE:Apr 6, 2008 9:33:00 AM I love it that you actually managed to give a story to the picture!

Here goes: Flowered dress to green dress. "Honey, is your boyfriend still two-timing you with yellow dress?" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 6, 2008 7:35:00 PM I'm sorry, I just can't get past how green dress's wasp waist makes her hips look like towel hooks. Flower dress has no room to point fingers, though.
And thanks for all the info on zippers; I had no idea all these options existed online!

Dawn ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jenlyn DATE:Apr 7, 2008 12:40:00 PM FD to GD: Can you believe her? Using the same pattern as us and wearing it to the same party?

GD: Really, the nerve.

YD: (thought bubble) They're just jealous that I have the best assets of both their dresses: sleeves and full skirt. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

KC DATE:Apr 7, 2008 10:20:00 PM Sigh! I just wish you were named Several Dresses A Day. I love reading your posts! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 8, 2008 4:14:00 PM Double sigh....I agree with you KC, I wish too it was Several Dresses A Day. I love the dresse, they are so intoxicatngly feminine and pretty....I would love to own them all (planning midnight raid of Erin's stash). If only time machines could take us back ....sigh. I love it all. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Stripes and Pockets Forever DATE: 7:53 AM ----- BODY:

Frequent link-sender to the blog Robin is making a little room in her closet by listing some dresses on eBay, including this wonderful 1940s stripey dress. Robin thinks it may have been a candy-striper's uniform ... but it could certainly have a new life at work or play, no sponge baths required. Think of it with little navy wedge shoes ... It's B36/W26.5.

I love these 1940s striped outfits -- they're so precise! And that center-front zipper is just perfect. This is a no-nonsense, get-it-done dress, but it can still have fun.

I think Robin has the right idea, too. If you're not wearing something, you should set it loose into the world to be free and be loved by someone who will wear it. (Which reminds me, I should REALLY do a purge of my own over the next month or so. Especially of shoes!)

Labels: 1940s, ebay, pockets, stripes

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

the_lazymilliner DATE:Mar 31, 2008 8:14:00 AM I looooove this dress. I would lose to wear it. I'm afraid it's going to be out of my price range, so I'm going to have sew something just like it. Sigh. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Toby Wollin DATE:Mar 31, 2008 8:14:00 AM ooo, too fancy for a candy striper - look at all those decorative buttons. Just a great dress - sigh, my waistline left THAT particular station about 20 years ago, so I can't take advantage, unfortunately. But a great inspiration piece. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

nuranar DATE:Mar 31, 2008 8:22:00 AM Wow, that is NICE! It's not a work dress at all; the front zipper and the length make it a variation of the house coat or hostess gown. The gathered puff sleeves, curved front yokes, extensive gathering, and even the high-waisted impression, all look straight out of the late 1930s to me. Maybe 1939. It certainly isn't a wartime dress - way too much fabric! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 31, 2008 8:32:00 AM I wish it was my size, I would buy it in a heartbeat!

Linda ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Viviene DATE:Mar 31, 2008 8:48:00 AM Gorgeous dress! Now please correct me if I'm wrong but did I see purge and shoes in the same sentence!

Simply make it a point to wear a different pair of shoes each day. Then there's no need to purge the shoes!

Years ago I made a bet with some co-workers that I could wear a different pair of shoes for a month. I won the bet handily and wore different shoes for 45 days in a row. My nickname henceforth was Imelda Marcos LOL. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Eirlys DATE:Mar 31, 2008 8:59:00 AM What tidy pattern-matching there!

I was just staring very closely at a Kaffe Fassett shirting's quilt yesterday: lots and lots of square boxes, of three different sizes, each made up of 4 triangles of striped shirting. They were extremely sloppily matched in comparison - though the end result was still startlingly beautiful. I guess when you use hundreds of well-chosen fabrics in a glorious arrangement you can break some other rules. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Joni DATE:Mar 31, 2008 9:27:00 AM Just thinking about matching those stripes together is making my head swim. I think I need to go lay down for a little while... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Mar 31, 2008 9:32:00 AM I love the miters! This dress rules. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nora DATE:Mar 31, 2008 9:43:00 AM Amazing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Mar 31, 2008 9:53:00 AM I too could not squeeze into that dress...oh but how I wish I could! It's amazing. Purge -shoes????? What size? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lisa DATE:Mar 31, 2008 9:59:00 AM That dress is adorable! Definitely not candy striper though, cause candy stripers usually wore jumpers with white button front shirts underneath, and the neckline on this one wouldn't have been appropriate. It's not utilitarian enough. But man it's cute! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Deb Newton DATE:Mar 31, 2008 10:08:00 AM THIS is STRIPE STYLE at itS VERY best!!!! Is there a link Erin? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 31, 2008 10:11:00 AM Take a look at the book Decorative Dressmaking by Sue Thompson for some more wonderful ideas like this ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cathy DATE:Mar 31, 2008 10:35:00 AM Deb Newton-click the picture. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 31, 2008 10:49:00 AM This dress is beautiful. I have absolutely no idea how to go about matching patterns on fabric, but this is making me want to try it. Amazing, amazing details.

-EClaire ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Mar 31, 2008 11:56:00 AM I need to do a shoe purge too. Beat up looking shoes are a no-no. I just hate parting with a comfy pair of shoes - but some just have to go.
heavy sigh. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Eirlys DATE:Mar 31, 2008 11:57:00 AM If you click on the photo, Deb, the link to eBay should pop right up. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Pamela DATE:Mar 31, 2008 12:01:00 PM I just adore this dress! I would agree with other posters that it is more likely to be late 30s because of the incredible sweep of the skirt.

There is nothing which speaks more to the onset of warm weather than cool, crisp, laundered stripes. This dress has details which are new to me, such as the mitered midriff continuing down the front the skirt. I also like the horizontally striped yokes combined with the horizontally striped sleeves. Such inspiration!

It reminds me I need to reclaim my 70s striped and mitered Giorgio di Sant Angelo skirt from my daughter!! Why are clothes not made today with such precise attention to detail? Thanks for the eye candy! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

wundermary DATE:Mar 31, 2008 12:58:00 PM Stripes with perfect miters: check. Pockets: check. Perfect little gathers: check. Set-in sleeve: check. Zipper and buttons? Check!
This dress is the checklist for an A project in home ec. and if a person were to receive a spongebath from someone wearing it, they would be stunned into submission. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

anthrokeight DATE:Mar 31, 2008 1:11:00 PM That's a really lovely dress. Want, desire, want. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gwen DATE:Mar 31, 2008 1:16:00 PM Erin,
I’ve been enjoying your blog for almost a year – I’m sorry that I’ve done more lurking than commenting to let you that I’m part of your regular audience. In any event, I recently got an “Excellent Blog” award, and an obligation to pass it on to other excellent blogs. Yours was one of the first that came to mind! If you would like to accept it, you can find it here:
http://afterthedress.blogspot.com/2008/03/rated.html
Take care,
Gwen ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sugardale DATE:Mar 31, 2008 5:50:00 PM Oh man! I just love it when stripes (plaids, dots, houndstooth, . . .) match up perfectly. It's all about taking time and paying attention to detail. Imagine if the stripes were just slightly off. Ruined I tell you, ruined! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

QueensSewer DATE:Mar 31, 2008 9:13:00 PM When I was 13, I wanted to be a candy striper just for the dress. What's not to love? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kagitsune DATE:Apr 1, 2008 12:44:00 AM OMG, Shoes?? 8D

xD In all seriousness, what size do you wear? I always love your shoe-related posts... you have a great sense of style there. ^^ If you wear US size 9's, I might be interested in what you "purge" from your closet. xD

About the dress: Well, I admit that at first I didn't like the shaping (especially near the bust/shoulders), but then you made me imagine it with those navy blue shoes, maybe a nice little hat... I can say I appreciate this dress for it's beauty and craftsmanship, now! ^^ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 1, 2008 1:04:00 AM The dress, OH, the dress ... the matched stripes ... the gathers under the bust ... the midriff... the full skirt...

Oh, oh, ooooh.........

SWOON!

CMC ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kak Khaty DATE:Apr 1, 2008 2:57:00 AM ...inspirational...
that's my waistline 25yrs ago. thought of making something loose. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

robin DATE:Apr 1, 2008 7:32:00 AM you know, i never somehow got past the red and white stripes to realize that of course it's earlier than the 40s. it's just got such a huge full skirt, too, that i was imagining it creeping out of the 30s slim silhouette into a more 40s-50s fullness. I think Nuranar is absolutely right...except for one thing that still doesn't jibe for a hostess dress...the dress isn't homemade, and has a stencil (just a few letters) on the inside collar facing, like it was a garment that would end up in a hospital or military laundry. that's also what threw me. -robin ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

robin DATE:Apr 1, 2008 7:41:00 AM that's just one of about 11 vintage dresses we're setting loose in the world this week, fyi. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Meg DATE:Apr 1, 2008 5:10:00 PM She has the figure for it! She must have some seriously great clothes if this is a cast-off. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy Bea Miller DATE:Apr 2, 2008 2:28:00 PM Cute dress! I see it with red or natural straw wedge lace up shoes. And a big matching hat and bag.

If you are serious about purging your closets please give us DAD readers a chance to purchase your cast-offs? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Apr 2, 2008 3:49:00 PM Great dress! Red and white stripes never go out of style! Especially when they are displayed in this kind of fashion! I saw some similar dresses on http://www.monstervintage.com/
This style is eternally classic! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Rainbow Warrior DATE: 8:14 AM ----- BODY:

Robin sent me this eBay listing this morning (click on the image to visit the auction page) and ... well, I don't even have to tell you, do I? You could go out loaded for BEAR in this dress. Cell phone, iPod, paper and pencil, wallet, business cards, breath mints, five lipsticks ... and that's just the red pocket in the front!

And, yes, I realize it's a bit extreme, but sometimes you need to be extreme to make a point. Or to carry all your stuff. And is it any more extreme than this?

I could fit my SON in that bag. And he's EIGHT. (And he doesn't go anywhere without his Nintendo DS, so the bag would also play tinny Japanese videogame music.) In fact, I almost expect a bunch of clowns to start extricating themselves from that handbag. (The last one out toots a little horn, and looks suspiciously like Tom Cruise.) Also, that bag costs more than many people's houses, while the dress is at only $26 right now!

Now, I know I carry too much stuff around with me (the four issues of New Scientist is not negotiable, though maybe I could clean out some receipts and lollipops) but the alternative is being bored out of my mind when the inevitable delays occur. Maybe I should take up meditation?

Labels: ebay, handbags, pockets

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

FaerieLady DATE:Mar 25, 2008 8:46:00 AM That dress is gorgeous... but I have to wonder about anyone who wants to carry a bag big enough to stash a body in! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marjie DATE:Mar 25, 2008 8:56:00 AM My diaper bag for: 3 kids plus extra shirts because you know little boys pollute themselves way too much plus crayons and coloring books plus a camera (35mm SLR) plus my wallet wasn't as big as that red thing. Plus, it had cute little bears and duckies on it, so at least everyone knew I wasn't toting spare body parts! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Stephanie DATE:Mar 25, 2008 8:58:00 AM It actually looks like she might, in fact, BE smuggling Erin's son. Look at how fiercely she's clutching the thing--her veins popping from the strain of something very heavy. Either that, or she's so undernourished that the bag is completely empty and it's just that hard to lift.

Anyway, fantastic dress. Mental note to self: try buying unprinted fabrics so I can make things like this. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Toby Wollin DATE:Mar 25, 2008 8:59:00 AM That dress is the female version of this: http://www.duluthtrading.com/search/searchresults/85388.aspx?feature=Product_3&kw=skills
A vest that has morphed from a toolbelt. Rather than carry hammer, nails, measuring tape et al. on the hips - you wear the entire rig. Actually, the dress is better. As for Katy Holmes and her luggage-cum-steamer trunk, all I can think of is that scene from "Marry Poppins" where Julie Andrews reaches her arm down up to the armpit into her Gladstone bag and hauls out a floor lamp. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lisa Simeone DATE:Mar 25, 2008 9:10:00 AM OMG, I thought that was Anna Wintour until I clicked on the picture! Scary gaunt. And scary big bag. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Secret Lentil Clothing DATE:Mar 25, 2008 9:31:00 AM meditation? heck no, go to chiropractic school. everyone who carried these bags will be lined up at your door, slumped to one side. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

steelebjm DATE:Mar 25, 2008 9:38:00 AM I have problems finding my cell phone or keys in the smallest of bags...good thing she has assistants to do everything for her! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ladygrande (Texas Marie) DATE:Mar 25, 2008 9:52:00 AM That dress is awesome. Perfect secretarial dress. Pocket for pencils and pens; pocket for dictation tablet; pocket for small scissors; pocket for tissues, etc.

But I'd keep those back pockets (if real) empty. Would not be comfortable for sitting.

Also -- great dress for teachers!
The dresses in the 1950's were so great. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ladygrande (Texas Marie) DATE:Mar 25, 2008 9:55:00 AM P.S.

And I forgot to mention Rick Rack Rules!

Those large bags contribute to all kinds of back problems, too. Cause we tend to fill them up! I'm so out of fashion --- I still try to use small purses for my good stuff, and a rolling bag for all the other necessaries in day-to-day work/living. Much less stressful on these old bones. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Mar 25, 2008 9:56:00 AM I like a big handbag - you never know when you need towhip out your divorce degree, birth certificate or complete change of clothes...but that is rediculous. The dress - fantastic! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Thoughts on Life and Millinery. DATE:Mar 25, 2008 10:06:00 AM "Rainbows and Ric Rack"

Great title for a book don't you think? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dana DATE:Mar 25, 2008 10:15:00 AM Haha! I love your commentary on Katie Holmes' bag-- that thing is out of control. This one made me laugh out loud. Great post! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen DATE:Mar 25, 2008 10:25:00 AM Crikey...give me the dress! That bag is just ridiculous. Who wouldn't like to know what's in there? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

RachelMM DATE:Mar 25, 2008 10:45:00 AM Now THAT is an amazing dress! Is anyone going to make one???? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julie The Vintage Goddess DATE:Mar 25, 2008 11:17:00 AM Anna Wintour scares me too, glad that is Katie....she is just not so fierce...

I almost expect a bunch of clowns to start extricating themselves from that handbag. (The last one out toots a little horn, and looks suspiciously like Tom Cruise.)

hahahahahahaha
Thanks for the morning giggle.

I do have to say that until The Boy (16) was about 6 or 7 I too carried a bag you could hide a human in. There was just so crap I had to lug around. Now I go out of the house with just a few things in my pockets. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Canine Diamond DATE:Mar 25, 2008 12:02:00 PM Holy Hannah--my vintage Samsonite luggage is smaller than that bag.

I think that might be the ultimate kindergarten-teacher first-day-of-school dress (I mean that in a good way). It has pockets. It could have pockets all the way around if you copied it and made it that way. You could keep lollipops and novelty erasers in those pockets to hand out to your students. It sort of looks like one of those things of watercolor paints. Little kids would love it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cookie DATE:Mar 25, 2008 12:03:00 PM Erin, I beg of you not to stash so much stuff on your person. If you ever fall off a bridge or a boat, you will sink like a stone, and that would be TRAGIC! Cause of Death: Deep Pockets. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Mary Sue DATE:Mar 25, 2008 12:24:00 PM Glory Lord Almighty, I think when I get a minute or thousand, I need to make a dress like that.

I might even buy the fabric this weekend.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julia DATE:Mar 25, 2008 1:27:00 PM Knitting, you should take up knitting. I believe knitting needles and several jumbo skeins of yarn will fit nicely in that adorable dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Whitestone DATE:Mar 25, 2008 1:46:00 PM http://revel217.blogspot.com/2008/02/from-famine-to-feast.html
Read my blog post about today's huge handbags. I like your photo better than the one I purloined off the net. LOL
Whitestone ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Costume & Retro Kellie DATE:Mar 25, 2008 2:07:00 PM I've been following your blog for the better part of a year and finally had to jump in ! That dress is outrageous! Thanks for always posting such fun and interesting stuff! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

baylibrarian DATE:Mar 25, 2008 2:22:00 PM I read your last sentence, "Maybe I should take up meditation?" as "Maybe I should take medication?"

Anyway, I say both, 'cause these day one needs a whole bagful of tricks to survive, ya know? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tracy DATE:Mar 25, 2008 2:28:00 PM I agree with Julia...take up knitting, its mediative and you could end up with some cute socks or a killer cardigan!!

OK you gotta help me out here, this dress reminded me of something. Last Sept. you purchased 200 yards of ric rack and taunted us with a secret project. Did I miss it??? What did you make with all that ric rack??? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

xstpenguin DATE:Mar 25, 2008 3:10:00 PM 'Nother vote for the taking up of knitting. You like cardigans, you could knit cardigans. And working from an unseen ball of wool hidden in a pocket - great idea. Just be careful of the pins when you sit down, maybe consider learning to knit with circular instead of usual type.

I tend to carry my life when I go out, so I have my 'handbag' type bag with things like keys, money, ID, medicines, water, emergency snack, tissues... and the overspill (!) in my large shopping bag. That would be umbrella, lunch, jumper and possibly actual shopping.

I miss going out :-(

She's not very big KH-C is she? Maybe that thing isn't as big as we imagine. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julie DATE:Mar 25, 2008 3:19:00 PM Oh, My! That dress looks like the modern version of the multi-pocketed garb favored by the intrepid Victorian lady Egyptologist, Amelia Peabody, created by the intrepid contemporary Egyptologist and mystery author from Chicago, Elizabeth Peters.

We, like Peabody, could always be ready for any exigency, from rampaging pseudo-mummies to tomb robbers with questionable hygiene habits. All it needs is an umbrella to complete the outfit. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lisa Simeone DATE:Mar 25, 2008 3:27:00 PM Dare we say it? Is not that bag merely an expression of . . . conspicuous consumption? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

suzanne DATE:Mar 25, 2008 4:18:00 PM Tracy,

You can see one thing Erin did with rickrack here:

http://www.craftzine-digital.com/craft/vol06/?pg=121&search=erin+mckean&u1=texterity&cookies=1 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Melissa A. DATE:Mar 25, 2008 8:17:00 PM That dress is really cute.

I usually carry a book, some knitting and an mp3 player to keep me amused, or try to. One time I was on the way home from work on the bus, there was an accident on one of the 2 bridges and I was stuck there for an hour. My MP3 player died and I had nothing else to do, so I walked home. Good times.

But yeah, that purse is insane. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Mar 25, 2008 8:27:00 PM Very interesting dress
Hilarious post
Lesson learned:
Carry at least a book or magazine at all times for the inevitable delays instead of torturing people with Jedi mind tricks.

(My Insight and a Mini Cooper would fit into that purse) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 26, 2008 1:38:00 AM I'm thinking a dress like that is the perfect way to use those quilting fabrics that are too expensive to make a whole dress out of.
/Monika ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 27, 2008 7:01:00 AM Public meditation--NOT a good idea. I once fell asleep on the train during meditation and woke up at the end of the line missing my bag and shoes. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

robin DATE:Mar 27, 2008 7:35:00 AM erin, you are a woman after my own heart--4 issues (at least) of new scientist! good thing the damn mag is so skinny. I unsubscribed b/c i got annoyed they kept using models swathed in tulle to illustrate every feature on astronomy, yet i have to visit the website a few times a week.

even after i unsubscribed i think i still carried around multiple issues for months just to get caught up. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Canuck DATE:Mar 27, 2008 7:52:00 AM What an amazingly ridiculous bag - do designers think everybody has an assistant standing by to hold onto it? If you need both hands, it's too heavy to slip on your wrist - you'd have to put it on the floor? clamped between your legs? If you go somewhere to have a cuppa, it won't even fit on the back of your chair. This must be that special breed of "walking" bags. It's about the only thing you can look good at when you carry it.
All my aunties say you should NEVER set your purse on the floor, it means your money will run away!!
LOVE the dress! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

cindy b DATE:Mar 27, 2008 9:06:00 AM Sock knitting. You can fit it in a pocket, and waiting is no longer a chore...you HOPE you get to wait. As for the woman leaning on the "mantle", there was a time in the 60's when plastic everything was all the rage....furniture, clothes, you name it. Now I'm not saying it's practical, but maybe she's leaning against a clear plastic mantle/wall, and the other lady is in the other room. Or better yet, they are in a glass house! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 28, 2008 2:26:00 AM i thought it was vic beckham. free katie!

jenn ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sheryl Wong DATE:Mar 28, 2008 9:37:00 PM oh, love the dress! the colors are fabulous! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Aye, Kalumba! DATE: 8:04 AM ----- BODY:

Ebay seller laluthan has, by some arcane process, not only managed to turn up tons of the (discontinued) Liberty twill, but also has some of my favorite, favorite patterns available right now, including the "Kalumba" print, above.

So far, I've bought this in orange (twice), green/lavender (once), blue (in silk! I can't bear to cut into it!), and now, the brown/teal here.

The first time I bought some Kalumba (orange #1) I made it into a very simple and comfortable A-line skirt. Unfortunately, I endowed it with insufficient pockets, which FILLS me with remorse every time I pull it out of the closet. (I was so young then, so unworldly! I thought all I needed was my ID, twenty bucks, and a lip balm!) Now that I'm older and wiser and carry too many personal electronic devices, I need more pockets, so I plan to make MORE Kalumba skirts. Maybe I'll even make one in each colorway, and wear them all the time, like Diana Vreeland wearing the same Balenciaga shift dress (but in different fabrics) every day.

I recommend laluthan highly -- her stuff is gorgeous, comes quickly, and she's very good about shipping overseas (fast, too!). And last time I ordered from her she threw in a little scrap of blue twill Kalumba, just because ... which is going to make a perfect waistband facing on one of these skirts.

And thank you all, so much, for your sympathetic comments on yesterday's post. Dad never did quite figure out exactly what "that blog thing" was for, but now I think he probably gets it. Obviously, the blog is "for" proving how kind people on the internet can be; I consider it now established beyond all doubt.

Labels: ebay, Liberty

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Toby Wollin DATE:Mar 13, 2008 8:42:00 AM Ah, an ID, twenty dollars and a lipbalm...now that's the simple life!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

xstpenguin DATE:Mar 13, 2008 8:46:00 AM Having the strength to care about fabric and pockets. Now there is Life with a capital L. I'm glad you are there Living it!

And those silly people at Liberty thought nobody sews. Humph. One in every colour - yay! Please do. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tea DATE:Mar 13, 2008 9:18:00 AM I'll bet your father is very proud of you. I, too, am sorry for your loss. From your description and the photos, your dad seems like he was a bunch of fun. He certainly did a good job raising a bright and talented daughter. It's rough; in the past few years I've lost a number of family members, and it's never easy.

It's good to take solace in things that inspire you and make you feel energized about life (like Kalumba!)

And you are absolutely right—the Internet is for connecting us to the other wonderful people that we might not necessarily know about just from brushing past them in the grocery store. It feels good to know that humanity is a lot more *human* and kind than some cynical media sources would otherwise have us believe. In fact, I think that might very well be a major reason people blog. So that, instead of being told what to think or being told how others will react or how the masses view things, we can reach out individually and cut to the root of things and not feel so alone in our perceptions of the world or our love of dresses or fabrics or books or other esoteric predilections or what have you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sarah DATE:Mar 13, 2008 10:09:00 AM I would like to echo Tea's sentiments exactly. I am so incredibly thankful for the "blog thing." How else could we have been introduced to your dad and be able to offer a prayer on your behalf. Thanks again, Erin, for sharing a difficult time with all of us and allowing us to send some comfort as best we can over the internet. I was in tears when I read yesterday's post, my heart was so full of grief and sympathy. (Then blogger erased my post!)

I was struck at how the blogs I read have become an incredible community for me and a world-wide one at that. It has allowed me to connect with people who are interested in things I've never heard of; it has broadened my horizons and kept me from feeling isolated and different because I am not your typical suburban mom with three kids. This blog, of course, is most inspiring! I am currently working on three shirtdresses. I don't think I would have made that my spring sewing under any other circumstance...I usually just whip up some capris and button-downs. But dresses! Pretty dresses! And I won't have to think about how to put an outfit together! Yay!

Too bad I don't have $50 laying around or one might be in a Liberty print...that Tana lawn is gorgeous. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Mar 13, 2008 10:56:00 AM For some reason none of my computers showed yesterday's blog until today. What you wrote was beautiful and touching. I am so sorry for your loss. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Eirlys DATE:Mar 13, 2008 3:29:00 PM Glad to see you're straight back in the saddle. Atta girl, Erin!

EBay is great fun. Before I tried it, I imagined it was like the Parable of the Good Samaritan - minus the Good Samaritan. But in fifty or so transactions I've not had a single instance of daylight robbery. Well, maybe some quite minor deceit, maybe. Just once or twice. But goods not arriving? That never happened. And frequently the kindness of people has surprised and heartened me. One time, a parcel of unordered scraps of yummy Liberty lawn arrived unordered as the seller (who'd I'd bought fabric from a couple of times) had guessed rightly from my eBay handle that I make patchwork. Touching!

Most of the fabric sellers I've bought through understate the quantity of fabric that they're selling you, so you have a warm, pleasing sense of having got something for nothing (they're not stupid - you'll come back, right?).

Then again, there's often a thrift-store randomness in what you find available, but that's true of the 'real' shops too.

I'd echo your recommendation of Laluthan. Katsfabrics is also very good for Liberty lawn - not sure about her postage overseas, though, so you'd have to check that out. She has a really tempting system whereby you can stick things on the slate and pay at month-end. Dangerous! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

katie DATE:Mar 13, 2008 11:38:00 PM Oh Dear heart,

I am so sorry for your loss of your dad. Peace to you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Mar 14, 2008 12:04:00 AM Yeah for great blogs! (I mean yours, of course.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 14, 2008 1:42:00 AM You and your family have been in my thoughts and prayers all day. Thank you for sharing what you did...Be Not
Afraid is such a powerful hymn...may you find comfort in knowing your dad is seeing the face of God...
Dena ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kishisland DATE:Mar 14, 2008 3:29:00 AM It's 1:00 a.m., I just finished going through hundreds of unread emails because I have been away helping my dad take care of my mother, who is 84, just out of the hospital and unable to care for herself for the first time in her long, full, life.

I should be getting ready for the Pattern Review West Cost Weekend, but I HAD to take a quick peek at your blog before packing.

Oh, just your title, "the first dress and the last dress" stopped my breath for a moment. Your dad was so young! I am so sorry for your loss now and for all the keen losses you'll feel in the future without him.

I agree with others about the special kinship of this medium: I appreciate so much the courageous sharing of you who have blogs and your generosity in offering the rest of us a place to respond and share too.

Be very gentle with yourself as you go through this time and take good care.

Jan ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

enc DATE:Mar 14, 2008 9:16:00 AM This is such beautiful fabric, I can see why I'd want to buy it up and never use it for anything. I love it, too!

Once again, that post down below made me cry, and I'm very sorry about your dad.

If I could hug you from here, I would. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: I think I'll move to Australia. DATE: 8:03 AM ----- BODY:

Lesley sent me the link to this dress, on Ebay Australia. I love Ebay Australia; even though the shipping can get ridiculous. I think I just like answering the question "Where did you get THAT?" by saying "Australia!"

(My favorite geek t-shirt comes from Australia, now that I think about it ...)

This dress is up to about AU$27, and is about B33/W30. And here's what it looks like full view:

This is such a perfect spring-y Easter-y dress. And I really want some spring-y, Easter-y weather so I can wear something like this ... the weather was warm (50 degrees!) where I was the past few days so now I am all about the shirtdresses (even though I'm back in Chicago where it's freezing again). Expect numbers 4 and 5 in the series shortly.

Of course if I DID move to Australia, I'd be settling in for winter now. Hmmm. Maybe I'll stay in Chicago ...

Labels: Australia, ebay

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Caremel DATE:Mar 6, 2008 8:29:00 AM When I see dresses like that I want to have a 24-inch waist so badly. That is so pretty that it makes me sad. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julia DATE:Mar 6, 2008 9:35:00 AM Holy Cow Erin, that's a Jonathan Logan, it's probably silk, he didn't make junk. It's just gorgeous, though the look would be easy to achieve with the right cool fabric... if you have enough patterns to cobble it together. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Etiquettely Correct DATE:Mar 6, 2008 9:50:00 AM Its so pretty! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Amy B. DATE:Mar 6, 2008 10:14:00 AM Your post title has me wanting to call you Alexander and wish you an improved day. ;)

Beautiful dress. I love the pleats in the skirt. Those have to be more flattering than a plain gather. Sigh. I want an Easter dress. My girls get new dresses, but I don't have time to sew one for me, too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Mar 6, 2008 10:19:00 AM Oh, yay, Amy! I was hoping someone would get the reference. :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy Bea Miller DATE:Mar 6, 2008 10:26:00 AM It's lovely! But despite the spring color and style, aren't those holly leaves? I guess without the red berries they are not really Christmas theme; after all, they exist year round. Why can't they be Spring theme as well?

(But perhaps they are not holly leaves, in which case just ignore my ramblings please!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Summerset DATE:Mar 6, 2008 10:43:00 AM Hmm. I love the dress, but what is that print? It looks like a Rorschat ink blot test to me. Or maybe it *is* an ink blot test? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Adaora A. DATE:Mar 6, 2008 11:14:00 AM My God!

High shipping prices be dammned. I want that dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 6, 2008 11:25:00 AM I love Ebay Australia; even though the shipping can get ridiculous.

Unfortunately it works both ways. I love Ebay US (and various other US online shops) but shipping can also be ridiculous. Want two metres of fabrics?; that'll be $30 shipping thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy DATE:Mar 6, 2008 11:50:00 AM How beautiful! The splotches look like paintball splaters to me. What a cool print!

That apple t-shirt is amazing. But $31.22 plus shipping? Wow.

Speaking of weather, too bad you aren't in NC, where it is nice and warm at 65 degrees! Ah, spring will spring upon Chicago soon! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Mar 6, 2008 12:10:00 PM Warm here is SC too - but Rain tommorrow. I love, love, love that dress - but my linebacker shoulders won't fit. I will console myself with the pretty Bob Mackie silk trapeze dress in yellow, black and white (Stein Mart on sale $25!!!!) that I bought on my lunch break. Rain be damned I am wearing it tommorrow -- if it fits - to lazy to try one. if not my BFF is going to buy it from me. Sorry, rambling -love the dress today, the pleats, the color, POCKET - gorgeous color and fabric. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ladygrande DATE:Mar 6, 2008 12:10:00 PM You didn't mention the pockets, Erin. Go back and check them out!

Texas Marie ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 6, 2008 3:25:00 PM Please come! We'd love to have you in the land of Oz... although then I'd have to share eBay Australia so perhaps the US is best for you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rose Red DATE:Mar 6, 2008 4:23:00 PM If you did move to Australia, a temp of 50 F would be about the coldest it gets! (in Sydney anyway, where I live!)

So you could wear your dresses very comfortably all year round... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 6, 2008 6:42:00 PM Amy B beat me to the punch... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

phoenix DATE:Mar 6, 2008 8:15:00 PM Soo pretty! And yes, spring-y Easter-y! Are those pockets that I see?? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

RachelMM DATE:Mar 6, 2008 10:17:00 PM Wow! That is an incredible dress! And the fabric does look like it has little silk-like slub texture in it. It's very inspiring and I want one!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 6, 2008 10:40:00 PM Nancy Bea, they could be holly leaves. After all, Christmas comes at the height of summer in Australia.
I like Aussy sewing magazines, because I'm so slow in getting my projects done, my "seasons" often match theirs! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 6, 2008 11:29:00 PM I second Rose Red's comment. If you move to the right part of Aus (say, Darwin), it'll be at least 80 degrees all year round. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 7, 2008 4:27:00 AM Love the dress, it would have been perfect for today in Adelaide, South Australia - 39C, we've had a week of over 34C temperatures with another week forcast. It's 9:00pm at night and still 34.5C, so winter seems a long way off at the moment. Yvonne ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marissa DATE:Mar 12, 2008 9:37:00 PM That is a beautiful dress! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 14, 2008 1:15:00 PM This is a serious question. How do you figure waist of 30 when the author has 12 inches for the waist? It's so beautiful...if it was a 30 it would fit me. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Mar 14, 2008 2:02:00 PM whoops, you're right -- I read "31 cm" as "30 inches" ... but it's 24 inches. Tiny! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Mar 14, 2008 4:59:00 PM Thanks Erin for writing me back! 12 inch waist ...tiny teenager body, oh the days. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: In Which I Answer Some Random Questions DATE: 9:28 AM ----- BODY:

It's been some time since I answered in a general way some of the common questions that are emailed to me, so maybe it's time to do so again ...

The #1 question I seem to get lately is not so much a question, but a request for me to make people stuff. I wish I could, really, but being able to sew well for other people is a special gift and requires vast reserves of time and patience, neither of which I have. At all. So, while I sympathize with your desire for the prom dress, wedding gown, or shirtwaist of your dreams, you must make those dreams a reality in some other way.

Probably question #2 is "How big is your closet?" to which the answer is, "Not big enough!" Heh. I do make a LOT of dresses, but I tend to rotate them in and out of service and keep the things I can't POSSIBLY give away (fewer than you'd think) in big plastic tubs. Also, I'm a klutz so it's the rare dress that avoids life-ending ketchup or ink stains for more than a year or so.

Question #3 tends to be "Will you link to me?" I'd like to, I'd really like to (okay, not the skeevy spam-farming fake-watch-selling people, you KNOW who you ARE) but right now I'm idly contemplating a site redesign and waiting on that to mess with my links, since changing all that is going to be a huge horrible PITA. Any suggestions for the redesign would not be taken amiss. (Oh, and if you are asking me to link to your latest me-too "fashionista"-type site that has NOTHING to do with dresses or vintage but is instead all crappy overpriced handbags, celebrity sunglasses, and embellished jeans: who do you think you're fooling? Either you've never read this site AT ALL, or your reading comprehension has been adversely affected by the Giant Freakin' Logos unevenly distributed about your person. Ahem.)

Question #4 seems to be "Would you like to participate in our banner ad campaign?" to which the answer is also "No, thank you." I only want to run ads on this site that are for small businesses who support home sewing or sell vintage fashion. This means I've turned down dunnohowmany jeans companies (Again: what is it with the jeans people and READING COMPREHENSION?), major diet companies, financial services companies, etc.

Question #5 is "Will there be more Secret Lives?" Answer: yes. Soon. I promise.

I'm assuming the question that will be most often asked in the comments on this post is "WHERE can I get that pattern up at the top of the entry?", so I'm heading it off at the pass by saying that it's on eBay right now (from Rita at Chez Cemetarian). Feel free to click through and visit it!

Labels: Butterick_6541, buttons, ebay, questions

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 29, 2008 10:07:00 AM Wow! What a great dress! I'm thinking black and white--mostly black, with the scallopy part white. Black buttons on the white, and maybe pipe the scallops in black and white houndstooth...

Monique in TX ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Stephanie DATE:Jan 29, 2008 10:39:00 AM Reading this strongly affirms the warm, safe, creative feelings I get when I visit your site; I am so pleased to read Crazy Banner Carnival will not be stopping through Dress A Day. Hurrays! Wish I could offer redesign inspirations, but I think I'll just stick to what I'm good at...and it's not web design. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen ~ MOMSPatterns DATE:Jan 29, 2008 10:43:00 AM Must have been the YEAR for swirls of scallops! I have a skirt pattern that's really similar, but alas, is incomplete. But for eye candy purposes:

http://www.practiceboard.com/?7952399 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Luck(x8) DATE:Jan 29, 2008 10:56:00 AM It's funny, I just saw this pattern made up over in the *New Vintage Wardrobe* flickr group.

So lovely! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 29, 2008 11:38:00 AM I like this dress, but I think the scallops would be tricky to keep flat. I can just see them curling upwards, unless a person did the same trick with the facing as is done with shirt under-collars - make them ever so slightly smaller and ease them into the dress body pieces. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 29, 2008 12:06:00 PM Oooh! It's a WRAP dress, a back-to-front button closing. So those scallops aren't eased into anything, they are the "edge" of the dress.

Goodness, gracious.

CMC ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kristen DATE:Jan 29, 2008 12:15:00 PM ooohhhh, it's lovely. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Andrea R DATE:Jan 29, 2008 12:54:00 PM By redesign and changing links, do you mean a switch of blogging platforms? That I have experience in. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jessica DATE:Jan 29, 2008 1:10:00 PM That is lovely. I imagine that dress made with long sleeves done in a fabric suitable for fall/winter. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 29, 2008 1:35:00 PM Re: #2, how big is your closet--
My aunt was a genius seamstress (in the 50's she worked for a knock-off shop, where her job was to buy designer dresses, open them up, make patterns from the pieces [!] then SEW THEM BACK TOGETHER and return them!) and she picked a particular dress style (maybe 50's? my vintage interests run 19th century, so I'm not sure)--fitted bodice with a squared neckline coming to a point usually with a bit of lace tucked in, full skirt, in floral print. I never saw her in any other style. In her attic she had racks and racks of these dresses in garment bags, preserved for the future, in larger and larger sizes as the years went on.
It was kind of scary. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Mimi Jackson DATE:Jan 29, 2008 1:40:00 PM FYI

When you get the "Can you make me a..." question, you can always refer them to an organization like the Association of Sewing and Design Professionals (formerly PACC), for a referral to someone in their area, or to a site like mine, www.findadressmaker.com. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

nancy in portland DATE:Jan 29, 2008 1:58:00 PM i just love your site... not having a site myself i imagine that it would be frustrating to get all those requests... but when i read that you were going to answer questions... i thought it would be serious dress questions... do you ever get those? that would be interesting. and if you are going to change... i hope the content doesn't change. and a request? no more adds that flash...don't know about anyone else, but i find it very annoying... its the only criticism i can find here. i really love your blog. the writing is excellent. the content is excellent. and in particular ... the secret lives of dresses. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cathy DATE:Jan 29, 2008 2:04:00 PM Luck: If "so lovely" is a link, it's not working for me, and I'd love to go there. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Luck(x8) DATE:Jan 29, 2008 2:22:00 PM Ah, it was supposed to be a link. I'm not sure what I did wrong.
Here's the full link for the photo:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nikkishell/329766779/in/pool-newvintagewardrobe ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

julia DATE:Jan 29, 2008 2:37:00 PM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

julia DATE:Jan 29, 2008 2:37:00 PM Erin, I love your site and refer people to it often. Your self-imposed guidelines on banners and linking keeps it focused and makes it easy for visitors to know if they'll enjoy the site as much as I do. Redesign, if you must - just don't change too much! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Karen DATE:Jan 29, 2008 3:20:00 PM Hi Erin, may I suggest a FAQ link somewhere prominant on your site? It could link to this post, plus the post about the sewing machine buying, and whatever other wonderful advice you've given us but I've forgotten how to find.

P.S. I love your blog, I read it every day, I am totally inspired to sew non-stop (dang day job gets in the way though). Also whenever I pull out my tape measure, I feel like a member of a super-cool-kid secret sewing club. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 29, 2008 4:23:00 PM Erin: If you change, please keep it as easy to navigate as it currently is. Not being very computer savvy, I enjoy visiting your blog and the ease I can move around. I also trust your instinct about the companies that do ads or links (or whatever they are on the side) to be of mutual interest. I wish all of their sites were as easy to navigate as yours but I find a few of them more difficult. You were actually my first bookmark and I visit every day, even though I rarely comment.

Today's dress though is my kind of lovely. I adore scallops - down the front, sleeve hems, skirt hems, necklines, applique hems. I think they are sleekly feminine without the chatter and clatter of lace, ruffles, ribbons (which are good in their place, but it's not mine). Thanks for the tip. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marie DATE:Jan 29, 2008 4:29:00 PM That's a cool dress today, I must say. The question I most ask MYSELF when seeing these pictures is "how do we put these dresses on/do them up?". That is the problem with making your own patterns (like I do) - you don't get to find out the best ways to do the closures and fastenings and all those bits and pieces that normally come in the instructions. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

CEMETARIAN We Dig Memories DATE:Jan 29, 2008 4:54:00 PM LOL.I think this dress required a "dresser" to get in it. It starts to button at the neck in back and swirls around to the front..........I'm sure she could get help getting out of it.....but getting into it was another matter. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Terry DATE:Jan 29, 2008 10:03:00 PM Hey Erin, Great post! Can you link to my celeb blue jeans site? They are embellished with the sunglasses that Angelina Jolie wore at her handbag expo. I'll send over the html for you to start running the banner ad soon!

SF,
Terry ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

What-I-Found DATE:Jan 29, 2008 10:37:00 PM As long as I'm dreaming that the Scallop Dress would ever fit, I can dream that I'd have a personal maid around to help me in and out of it! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

bani DATE:Jan 30, 2008 4:36:00 AM That pattern is pretty fabulous, and would actually be very commercial, wouldn't it? Surprised no-one has ready-to-weared it/something like it.

Oh, and the blogging world is crazy, isn't it? So many people who apparently can't read seem to be writing. I think one should make a graph of it. The smaller the blogger's reading comprehension -> the more anxious to write ("write", i.e. post pics of sunglasses) -> the more popular the blog. Odd. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lucitebox DATE:Jan 30, 2008 8:48:00 AM I love this dress! I have blouses from the 40s that button up the back and it does seem I need a dresser to get into them. (Ugh! That third button from the top!) I would love this on the right person in sunny yellow and on me in electric turquoise blue with red accessories. (I'm channeling the 80s)

I think the FAQ suggestion is a great idea. You could just not answer any of the requests.

What about a guide or directory of statewide sewists for hire that you could link to? (Of course, you'd probably have put a clause in there about not being responsible for their work.) I hired a seamstress blind through a classified ad in high school. The results were not so good, to say the least. But, I figure that there have to be people who do sew and want to make money doing it for others. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lydia DATE:Jan 30, 2008 8:52:00 AM Man, I had that pattern once, but it was in a size 32 bust (as this one is) and I was too lazy to grade it.

*sigh*

It's a beautiful dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Xstpenguin DATE:Jan 30, 2008 9:11:00 AM Site redesign suggestion... change the pink to green. :D You could see that one coming, couldn't you!?

I think an Advice link is a must, we need to be able to access the Fabric Buying Rules more easily!

Cheers,
AJ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca DATE:Jan 30, 2008 10:52:00 AM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca DATE:Jan 30, 2008 10:52:00 AM gasp! this dress!! i almost fainted. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

M. DATE:Jan 30, 2008 4:01:00 PM First one in a long time that made me say "I want!" Love the scalloping. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Still thinking about shirtdresses .... DATE: 8:25 AM ----- BODY:

I've made three shirtdresses/shirtwaists so far and I have to tell you: it's NOT ENOUGH. I have three more patterns lined up and just bought this one, too (from The Sisters Five on eBay).

A few things: making a shirtdress takes roughly TWICE as long as it takes me to make a dress that doesn't have thirteen buttons and buttonholes. It's not a four-hour task to make a dress any more; it's a lot like eight. Or possibly ten. And, no matter how many buttons I buy when they're on sale, I either don't have the right color, or, if I have the right color, they're not the right size, OR, if I have the right color & size, I am short THREE. (One or two, I could fake, but THREE is really impossible.) But despite all this, I am committed (or is that, I should be committed? Different "committed") to doing more of them. Like this one, which caught my eye with that fabulous color green, but kept it for the stripes (with that jaunty half-turned-up collar). I seem to have purchased quite a bit of striped fabric lately and the thought of matching them all ... is not a good thought. Thus the raglan sleeves, yay!

Oh, and for interfacing, especially of light cottons, I've been using silk organza, instead of any fusible stuff. You can buy it cheap at Dharma Trading, and it really works well. Nice and crisp without being crisp-y; sewing it in isn't too onerous, and it never bubbles the way cheap fusible can. I bought some Shirt-Tailor interfacing but it was just WAY too stiff for me. I only use the organza to interface the collar and the front buttonhole/button facings; I baste it in just inside the foldlines of the front facings and then zigzag over both the fabric and the organza to finish the raw edge -- and it's worked out nicely, so far!

Eventually I will have pictures of the three I've made, I promise.

Labels: ebay, shirtdress, shirtwaist

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Allison DATE:Jan 24, 2008 8:53:00 AM silk organza for the interfacing, hmm? I've a question for you about that: do you wash it before, or just steam shrink? Do you dry clean your shirtwaists, or machine wash? I'm a pretty anti-dry clean kind of gal, as long as I can get away with it, but I've worried about using silk organza losing some crispness if I'm going to machine wash the garment. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Jan 24, 2008 9:07:00 AM I wash both the organza and my fabric (which is usually cotton, anyway) in the hottest water possible (sometimes twice, if I'm worried) and dry on high as well, so that I can machine-wash with impunity later.

I also steam the organza interfacing pieces with my iron, too, just to be safe ... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gaile DATE:Jan 24, 2008 10:08:00 AM Awesome tip about the silk organza. I am dying to see your dresses!! I just got a set of 4 patterns on ebay myself, and am wondering what fabrics to use so they'll be cute without looking dowdy, so yours will be great to see!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sarah DATE:Jan 24, 2008 11:11:00 AM Quit teasing us Erin! Post the pictures! Post the pictures! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julia DATE:Jan 24, 2008 11:23:00 AM Two words for you: covered buttons. Hey, it worked for our moms and grandma's - oh and I've heard about the organza interfacing, but didn't have a good source, thanks. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 24, 2008 11:45:00 AM Careful about the green dress. I recently found some fabulous green cotton sateen which I lovingly crafted into a shirdress...only to find I looked like a fancy girl scout.
I recut it into pajamas which actually, I get to wear more often. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Calico DATE:Jan 24, 2008 12:50:00 PM Ooh, I look forward to seeing the pictures of the shirtwaists. I just bought a couple patterns myself and I'm ridiculously excited/intimidated to start. I made a blouse last week, so I don't think I'm biting off too much more than I can chew -- but nevermind interfacing problems, I always pick the wrong weight of fabric. Do you think you could suggest fabrics suitable for shirtwaists? Thanks so much... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

angldst DATE:Jan 24, 2008 2:47:00 PM I have a bolt of black fusible interfacing that I'm slowly using up in projects of this&that, but for my husband's shirts (and shirtwaist dresses, & blouses, etc), where the fabric is of medium weight cotton or wool, I actually use a cotton muslin for interfacing. It works a treat (I baste it in place) and I can starch the hell out of the resulting collars/cuffs, if desired. :) I've used silk organza in the past, it's very helpful for lighter fabrics that still need crisp shaping and where I don't want the interlining/facing 'showing through'. :)

-d ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

mamafrog DATE:Jan 24, 2008 3:43:00 PM If you're short three buttons or so, just use what you have from the bottom up and put a few different, fancy, decorative ones at the top toward the neckline, or vice versa, even! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lucy tartan DATE:Jan 24, 2008 4:02:00 PM Organza's good but if you have fusible to use up, it can be washed & preshrunk in hot water before cutting without the adhesive coming off. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jenny DATE:Jan 24, 2008 5:07:00 PM I love your dresses and your blog! By the way, you had mentioned Liberty of London fabric....I'm here to tell you that there's a better cheaper place to purchase it at:
http://www.knittingjenny.com/liberty.htm
!!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

enc DATE:Jan 24, 2008 5:47:00 PM These are really nice incarnations of the shirtdress. I like the idea the raglan sleeves free you from having to match stripes. Plus, what a ripe opportunity for piping (that's what I think is going on with the green dress)!

I hope you have fun with this pattern. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

jessica DATE:Jan 24, 2008 8:30:00 PM Hi, I just discovered this blog and I am just tickled pink. You see, I've had a thing for shirtdresses for a while now, and it's so gratifying to see that I'm not alone. I've yet to complete one, although I've purchased a few vintage patterns. I'm REALLY looking forward to seeing the pictures of you, namely because I don't (who does?) look like those ladies in the pattern illustrations. What does the thing look like on a real person? I'm dying to know. Thanks, and so glad I found you! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Miss Kitty DATE:Jan 24, 2008 9:33:00 PM Ohhhhh...such awesomeness. [sigh] I will be sending my Mom this link. I think she has a pattern very similar to yours in the pic, from around the same time period. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Jan 24, 2008 10:11:00 PM I have purchased silk organza from Dharma too. Just don't buy their thread; they sell coated quilting thread as regular thread. It will gunk up your tension discs if you try to machine sew with it. And yes they know and no they have no intention of changing because they say I am the only person who has a problem with it.

Yay! Raglan sleeves. Cool pattern. Can't wait to see what you make with it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

/anne... DATE:Jan 24, 2008 11:01:00 PM I've been obsessing about shirt dresses for some time now; which is odd, because I haven't worn a dress in years. For a long time, I was too fat - separates looked so much better on me - but now I've lost weight, whenever I try on a dress I feel _naked_. After years of skirt/top/cardiganorjacket, I feel like I'm in my underwear - not enough layers!

I'm planning a full-skirted gorgeousness in indigo fine linen/nylon with a navy silk sash around the waist, and a slinky sheath number with a tab front (less buttonholes!), maybe in navy, maybe in bright blue. Then again, there's always black...

Re buttons - I just bought the Heirloom Buttons book; some of them would look wonderful down the front of a simple gauzy full-skirted summer shirt dress. The metal ring ones were invented to survive turn-of-the-20thC washing techniques (boiling and wringers).
They might take ages to make, but they could be portable if you commute. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Duchess DATE:Jan 25, 2008 12:37:00 AM Hi Erin,

I don't comment very often, but I wanted to let you know that I had a dream about shirt dresses last night. I'm not sure what it means, but it has to be good, right?

I can't wait to see the photos of your dresses. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Daphne DATE:Jan 26, 2008 4:25:00 PM I LOVE SHIRTDRESSES.

Sorry, I just need to be super clear. I had two, bright red and kelley green, bought at the thrift store back when I was a bigger size, and eventually had to release them. For some time I was bereft of shirtdresses. I bought a pattern here and there but as you said, it's a lot of time, an ever-shrinking commodity. And then last weekend: shopping: no pants fit out of 10 pairs. Whatever, because then I happened upon an Anne Taylor "olive brown" shirtdress. I would probably have gone bride-at-a-wedding-gown-sale crazy if necessary for this dress. I jumped up and down in the fitting room for joy over a $40 new dress... then it turned out to be only $20. I left the store in disbelief, but had to return & spent another hour or so combing the racks for another just the same in more colors (or the same color, whatever, I could just wear the same dress day in and day out, right? Different accessories, maybe embellish it?)--none. I did find another shirtdress that's just a bit more fussy, and we all know shirtdresses should not be fussy! Oddly, the second has pockets, even though the fabric is a sheer-ish cream color, and the first, though fully lined and a deep "breen", does not. I do not really care. I have two shirtdresses again and I am strongly considering logging off to paw through my patterns and immediately begin a homemade third.

I think you and some of your readers may be the rare individuals who can appreciate the happiness of this story. Of course I wore the first, less-fussy dress to work right away and received several compliments. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

D DATE:Jan 26, 2008 10:46:00 PM Love your blog!

I'm just wondering about that banner on the front of the pattern envelope - what is a "proportioned shirtdress"? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Jan 27, 2008 8:38:00 AM A "proportioned" dress is one where they make allowances for short- and long-waisted people, and include three different bodice pieces to make fitting easier.

I always think I'm short enough for the short-waisted and I'm always wrong. I'm only about an inch too short-waisted for "regular" bodice lengths, and the short-waisted proportioned dress is about 2 or even 3 inches shorter. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

CC DATE:Jan 27, 2008 9:56:00 AM found this http://www.crybabysboutique.com/product_info.php/cPath/93/products_id/771 and am thinking a fall shirtwaist with bronzy/brown accessories ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

D DATE:Jan 28, 2008 12:47:00 AM Thanks for the info! I love vintage patterns but I've never seen that. Wow - three bodice pieces! I'll have to keep an eye out for those. I have a 15" BWL, so I'm sure the short would fit me, unless the short is too long.
Thanks!
D ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca DATE:Jan 30, 2008 10:48:00 AM i love love the shirtdresses! unfortunately, the waistline finds my love laughable..... oh well, good for the morivation to keep on my 'making good choices' not a diet diet. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Surprise! DATE: 10:06 AM ----- BODY:

Remember that pattern I posted yesterday? The shirtwaist? Well, I bought it Friday and yesterday I got a package in the mail ... I was sure it was my shirtwaist ...

But when I opened the package, I found this, instead:

Simplicity 4093

I emailed Jody at My Kids Drawers right away, and, well, she is a *really* nice eBay seller. She apologized, said she'd send out the right pattern right away, and told me to keep this one! That's how you do customer service, folks. (You might want to check out what she's got listed now, there are quite a few nice patterns, and on sale, too!)

In fact, I've had more good transactions buying patterns on eBay than just about anything else ... patterns seem to attract nice people. (Unlike the guy I bought a Swatch from, who, when I refused to pay an additional -- and highly illegal -- "Paypal fee," decided it would be fun to smash the watch with a hammer before he sent it to me.)

The serendipitous thing, of course, is that I would have never given this pattern a second glance, but now that it's in my hot little hands I can see all sorts of lives for it. It only takes two yards of 50" fabric ...

(If you want a copy of this pattern for your very own, there are at least two copies of it on eBay right now, plus a really nice one from Michelle at Patterns from the Past, too)

Labels: ebay, Simplicity_4903, surprises

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Canine Diamond DATE:Jan 15, 2008 10:37:00 AM Sometimes you need a good ultra-plain design like that so you can use some kind of outrageously patterned material. Those Sixties ones really aren't my thing but I could see it in the right fabric. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

selvedge DATE:Jan 15, 2008 11:01:00 AM Erin, THIS is the pattern for the Brown Roses fabric.

Use the bandana print for the shirtwaist.

As I read yesterday's posts and comments, I laughed, because I was wearing, a blue cotton shirtwaist bought.. at Target. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

knitgirl DATE:Jan 15, 2008 11:12:00 AM Yes, I agree with selvedge! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 15, 2008 11:17:00 AM you have taken the words right out of my mouth!!! the minute i saw the new pattern it leapt out saying brown roses, brown roses! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

propriatrix DATE:Jan 15, 2008 12:09:00 PM yeah for great ebay sellers! geez, I hope you filed a SNAD against the Swatch-smasher ! And yes, what they said up there about the brown roses and stuff. ( I don't like shirtwaists on me at all...on me they look like a potato sack missing a couple of potatoes....prolly has to do with being elf-shaped and short) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Linda A-Z DATE:Jan 15, 2008 12:23:00 PM This pattern makes me think of Mrs. Brady, which made me think of Marcia Brady and the cool dress from last year. Happy New Year all! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

enc DATE:Jan 15, 2008 12:38:00 PM What if you took the pink version's neckline and added a peter pan collar? That might make it more "you" than it is now . . . cute is it is. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 15, 2008 2:21:00 PM Selvedge beat me to it, too! You MUST make this one in the brown roses fabric. Absolutely. The ebay pattern gods have spoken! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

AK DATE:Jan 15, 2008 7:39:00 PM Hi there,
I found your site from the bloggie awards, where I was randomly chosen as a panelist, just wanted you to know I was very impressed by the site and chose yours as one in 5 out of about 20/30 for best art and craft blog. I've got you bookmarked and will keep checking in!

Good luck,
Annie-Kate ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

alilizbeth DATE:Jan 15, 2008 7:41:00 PM Breaking my lurking silence to jump on the bandwagon - this is absolutely the dress for the brown roses. They're best friends. With velvet piping on the (broader) neckline and a one-inch wide brown velvet tie.

The black bandanna fabric is much more shirt-waisty. Can't wait to see them! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lorrwill DATE:Jan 15, 2008 11:25:00 PM I wish I could say what you said about eBay. Sadly, I have had the exact opposite. :-( ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Meg DATE:Jan 16, 2008 12:57:00 AM What luck!! I like this one even better than the shirtwaist! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marissa Fischer DATE:Jan 17, 2008 12:30:00 AM Oh what a great freebie. I have to say I'm in love, I just found your blog trying to figure out how someone found their way onto my site and I got here. Bookmarked forever! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

jen DATE:Jan 21, 2008 8:07:00 PM i'm with you, so far all my pattern purchases on eBay have been great - i haven't had quite the same positive customer serivce experience buying clothes though. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

love.boxes DATE:Jan 25, 2008 6:39:00 PM love the pattern. gorgeous lines. :) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Femme Fatale DATE: 7:51 AM ----- BODY:

Did anyone's New Year's resolutions start off with "1. Become femme fatale"? If so, this is the pattern for you. The jacket alone would drive a good man to a life of crime, right? (And notice that all of the women in the illustration are wearing the same shoes, standard issue in femme-fatale boot camp. In fact, at femme-fatale boot camp, you sleep in four-inch heels. It builds (lack of) character.)

Sadly, my resolutions are all of the mundane kind ("achieve world domination, clean out hall closet") so this dress isn't for me. (I think, for world domination AND cleaning out the closet, you need sleeves, or else how can you roll them up to get started?)

If you do buy and make this, I would suggest staying away from black-and-red as a color combination; it's a bit cliché, fatale-ly speaking. Why not try a very deep, almost poisonous green, with a chartreuse-yellow lining to the collar? Daring and absinthe-ish, no? Or maybe a leonine gold-yellow, with a deep chocolate lining (good for brunettes). And why not two shades of pink, pale and hot? For blondes, I'd do that deep cobalt lined with a sky (or Carolina) blue. With your sapphires, of course. (Which you acquired in a slightly underhanded way. But don't worry, it's not your fault the bank went under. How were you to know that darling Mr. Wilkins was so unstable?)

If you, like me, think being a femme fatale is too much trouble, perhaps you should consider this dress instead. Much more practical.

Thanks to Jen (at MOMsPatterns, who got it from Julie at Damn Good Vintage ...) for the link! Click on the image to visit the eBay auction (and to see a much bigger picture).

Labels: Advance_52, ebay

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 10, 2008 8:20:00 AM OMG, I LOVE this pattern! And while my resolution was not to be a femme fatale, I do try to live according to the bombshell code. But, unfortunately, my saphires are missing--I think the boyfriend pawned them. So no blue dress for me. --Karen ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Canine Diamond DATE:Jan 10, 2008 8:24:00 AM Oh, I don't know-- I think that one might come in handy for the world domination part. (Not the closet cleaning part, though.) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Libby DATE:Jan 10, 2008 9:19:00 AM Well, I wouldn't be so sure about that practical dress. You should see the bustier and garters Ms. Tall is wearing...and Ms. Short *knows* it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jonquil DATE:Jan 10, 2008 9:22:00 AM Oh, my God, the portrait collar! ::dies::

The femme fatale should take a tip from Grace Kelly: ice blue. No need to tip your hand too early. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julie The Vintage Goddess DATE:Jan 10, 2008 9:43:00 AM >>>"1. Become femme fatale"? <<<

Why yes, that was my resolution. All part of my evil plan to take over the world. So glad I found that pattern. Off to bid and put my plan in motion......

Muhwahahahahahahahaha
~cackles in an evil, but sexy voice~ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kristen DATE:Jan 10, 2008 10:54:00 AM we all know we would have much more occasion to wear the practical dress, and yet here we all are, desperately trying to think of SOME reason why we must have the coat, and some place we REALLY WOULD wear it. :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Becky O. DATE:Jan 10, 2008 10:56:00 AM Me thinks the dress made from this would spark a killer secret lives post : )

F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Toby Wollin DATE:Jan 10, 2008 11:21:00 AM What??? Not "World Peace"? Heavens. But, to paraphrase "Charlotte's Web" - that is "some dress". Being short, I could never ever wear that dress -- I'll have to find some other way to achieve world domination (Ming the Merciless?). That's a dress that I think you'd have to be at least 5'6" to wear gracefully - 5'8" would be better. But, an outstanding dress, nonetheless. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

mj DATE:Jan 10, 2008 12:22:00 PM Next year, I swear, that will be my new year's resolution. I don't know how it passed me by this time. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 10, 2008 12:27:00 PM I have no idea where I would wear it but I have the perfect sapphire blue fabric for that dress.......and at 5'9" could probably make it work......alas it would be covered in babyspit before world domination could be complete ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 10, 2008 1:09:00 PM LOVE THIS!! The skirt treatment at center back is fabulous...I so like the 2-tone aspects of the whole ensemble and your riffs on the possibilities, Erin. I just made a pieced coat with 2 reds as the repeat and 9 other solid colors--all the same cotton jacquard--and the combinations were all so delightful as I put them together. I loved them all, but the surprising ones were brown with the reds, and I smiled a lot over the ochre/olive-y fabric with red.

Too fun!

saidee ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca DATE:Jan 10, 2008 2:24:00 PM amazing! the collar on this dress is WOW WOW ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

AmeliaB DATE:Jan 10, 2008 3:06:00 PM I love that dress! I'm very short so maybe I could wear it with killer heels? I don't know I'd just start to take over the world when I would fall on my heels and break a nail (GASP!). :-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kate DATE:Jan 10, 2008 3:35:00 PM So the answer to "where would I wear it?" is "Anywhere! Everywhere! To the grocery store, darlings!"

I once borrowed a pirate coat for a student film. The man who owned it had had it for many years ... but had never found a place to wear it. To me, that's the definition of pitiful: I own glam, but I keep it permanently stashed in the closet.

*sigh*

This week, I am stitching floor-length and ankle-length heavy wool skirts (ruffled, etc.) so that I can meet my New Year's hope of NO MORE PANTS. Gr, pants. Pants kill my inner diva. Unless they're plaid, or pink leopard - both of which I own - but they don't travel to the office very well..... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Suzy DATE:Jan 10, 2008 3:53:00 PM Color combo: Grey - the swirling London fog bank type, so thick you want to cut it,and the snap - why brilliant purple - to go with the tanzanite and diamond necklace the last "genteleman friend" gave you.

This is the dress you wear the day after you win the lottery, to walk into work (where the mgr has been stealing your ideas for years) drop off your written resignation! No words to explain - the dress says it all. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kai Jones DATE:Jan 10, 2008 4:46:00 PM But they're not the same shoes. In fact, the lady in the red/black combo isn't even wearing two of the same shoes! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sharon DATE:Jan 10, 2008 5:27:00 PM Oh now, its all about proportions. I'm five feet and I just bet you I could wear this dress. And where, you ask? Why to dinner with my husband at the local restaurant. I'm already notorious for wearing nothing but dresses and heels. I wore flats with a sparkly party dress to a Christmas party in town and my dear lesbian friend saw me and said oh my god, you are wearing flats with a dress -- alert the media!

Went to a neighborhood party this summer wearing a killer halter top full skirt (built in bra) brown and white floral new but vintage looking party dress with eyeliner and mascara and 4 inch platform heels. Of course virtually everyone else had on shorts or jeans. My dear neighbor, who was there in her normal Hawaiian shirt and birkenstock sandals, called me over and said hey, that is some dress. I said well, when I go to a party, I wear a party dress!

She said, well, I don't.

She's quite wonderful and lovely, but too old to retrain, I'm afraid.

Live large wherever you are, and who cares what the neighbors think, is my motto.

Like when I bought my mink and my mamma said honey, where are you going to wear it?

I said, to Kmart, Safeway, and the gas station, where else?

Ok enough about me. I so totally covet that pattern. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Jan 10, 2008 5:57:00 PM I too would wear it everywhere...even to work!
I too wear heels exclusively. I am rewriting my New Year's resolutions. 1.) Become a femme fatale. 2). Refer back to number 1. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tracey DATE:Jan 10, 2008 9:08:00 PM Oh, I don't know. In this dress, you can probably stamp your 4-inch heel clad foot and DEMAND someone else clean your hall closet. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kate in England DATE:Jan 11, 2008 4:50:00 AM Oh, if only it were possible to be both a) a femme fatale and b) comfortable. I know that's not very femmefataley, but hey, it's my life.

My Sindy doll (like Barbie only not quite so thin?), the brunette one (I had a blonde one but I cut all her hair off), had a gold lame cape with chocolate brown lining - Erin, were you secretly designing dolls' clothes back in the 70s? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cat DATE:Jan 11, 2008 3:03:00 PM Ooh! The coat is simply screaming to be made in gold and black - a really luscious gold taffeta and black velvet lining. All silk of course. A true femme fatale settles for nothing less. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy Bea DATE:Jan 13, 2008 5:10:00 PM "...it builds lack of character." You are SO FUNNY! Great post. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

bettyninja DATE:Jan 17, 2008 9:42:00 AM I love big dramatic collars. this is a fabulous pattern ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sharon DATE:Jan 17, 2008 11:27:00 AM UPdate UPDATE! After I saw this I went to ebay and marked it to watch. It sold yesterday for ---

wait for it now ----

$300!!! Yes, three HUNDRED dollars.

Through a fierce bidding war between two brand new ebayers.

Lawd a mercy, it takes all kinds. I mean, I love the dress, but...

I think I'd find something new similar (not hard to do) and futz with the pattern. ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Little Match Girl DATE: 7:35 AM ----- BODY:

Julie (of Damn Good Vintage sent me a link to this amazing dress ... I'm just showing you the fabric, because that's what I'm coveting. (It's listed by Capricorn Vintage, click on the image to check out the actual dress part of this dress.)

My list of "fabric I'm gonna make when I have a spare minute (and figure out how)" is getting really unmanageably long. I mean there's these matches, and then there's the little pies, and the robots of many descriptions, and then there's all the alphabet-y, font-y things I want to make, and the gingko ... and on and on. And I haven't gotten any further than buying this book on fabric design in Photoshop. (It looks good. I haven't read beyond the Introduction. Oh, and I found this mysterious plug-in, too, but at 600 Euros I'm not buying it any time soon.)

What fabric designs have you been searching for?

[Oh, and edited to add: the 2008 Bloggies award nominating ends this Friday ... if you enjoy this blog, might you consider nominating it? I have no idea what category suits best ... maybe "topical blog"? (Although "topical blog" sounds like some kind of blog ointment, for when your blog has a rash!)]

Labels: ebay, fabric, textile design

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Toby Wollin DATE:Jan 7, 2008 8:27:00 AM AAARRRGH! I was just at the Bloggies and it's just too convoluted for me - where can I just write in, "Best Fashion Sewing Blog"? Gad. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Cassie DATE:Jan 7, 2008 9:05:00 AM Cough cough dresses cough cough? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tea DATE:Jan 7, 2008 9:17:00 AM Wowza. That dress is amazing. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Libby DATE:Jan 7, 2008 9:27:00 AM I have a friend who is a fabric designer for a bedding company (dream job, or what??)
Anyway, she uses these Photoshop programs at work. What I don't get is how you turn them into actual fabric if you're just and obsessed amateur. I'd love to know if you do.

Oh, and Erin, I think you *need* that dress...everything about it is damn-fabulous. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

1912 Suffragette DATE:Jan 7, 2008 9:28:00 AM I think you definitely belong in the "Best Art or Craft" AND in the "Best Writing" categories. What do others say? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy Bea DATE:Jan 7, 2008 9:33:00 AM Wow, what a dress! I love its style, and the quaintness of the matching neck tie. But matches? Perhaps it was made for a member of the Tobacco Industry. (I'm backing away slowly with fingers in "cross" position!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dat One Splatted Mag DATE:Jan 7, 2008 9:54:00 AM Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match!

I personally have been looking for peep fabric, you know, the disgusting sugar-coated marshmallows. I think it must come out of hiding near Eastertide. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sarah DATE:Jan 7, 2008 10:08:00 AM Help--which category to nominate you under?? I think I may just nominate you under a few I think fit: Topical, writing, arts and crafts (although I wrinkle my nose when I think that dressmaking is a "craft" like making pom poms or woven trivets out of those big fabric bands or salt dough snowmen--I think I've been around kids too long!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ladygrande DATE:Jan 7, 2008 10:34:00 AM That "match-stick" dress is wonderful! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lucitebox DATE:Jan 7, 2008 10:56:00 AM Hi Erin,
Consider yourself nominated by me!

What an amazing dress! I'm so glad it's not my size because I know I'd be going nuts trying to win it and crying when I didn't win it. I LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 7, 2008 11:01:00 AM I nominated you in topical. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

DivaJean DATE:Jan 7, 2008 11:32:00 AM I love the dress! It is perfect for some female character on the show Madmen to wear! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julie The Vintage Goddess DATE:Jan 7, 2008 12:42:00 PM Ha!
I bring all the best fabric to the yard. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nora DATE:Jan 7, 2008 12:57:00 PM How bout a fabric with jars of topical ointment? Just kidding, matches are WAY better. In fact, I think it would be a cute wedding outfit, with the matching tie for the fella, and RED shoes! So much more interesting than ye olde white gown.

Oh and you bet I'm nominating you - I'll do topical, too, to concentrate you in one category. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Joni DATE:Jan 7, 2008 2:52:00 PM I think that Joe Ohio
would approve of that dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

dawnee DATE:Jan 7, 2008 3:58:00 PM I am desperately seeking some sort of typewriter themed fabric. We are doing "Thoroughly Modern Millie" and I think it would be a hoot for the stenog tap dance number; like maybe a pinstripe where the stripes are actually typewriter keys. That would be fabulous! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Jan 7, 2008 6:19:00 PM I _almost_ bid on it...only it went way out of my price range. I would have worn it with my matchstick-print coat, which is a totally different scale (huge, pop-art size print)...i've seen cigarette-print dresses from both the 40s and the 70s, but haven't committed to either.
-robin ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Altissima DATE:Jan 7, 2008 9:07:00 PM I did my bloggies nominations earlier this week. It didn't occur to me to nominate you under "topical" - that's for blogs who don't fit into other categories. --"Fashion" and "Arts and Crafts" seemed the obvious choices to me!
I also nominated you under "best Writing". ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anan DATE:Jan 8, 2008 7:28:00 PM I'm looking for cake fabric, bike fabric, clock fabric, and Luther Rose fabric.

Wouldn't it be awesome to sew time???!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

erin DATE:Jan 18, 2008 10:01:00 AM I am a textile designer, [under the title assistant designer] at a western wear company.

i suggest using Illustrator for creating repeats. I found Photoshop to be a nightmare.

my real question is: how do you jump form being a corporate CAD artist to having your own fabric line?

-erin ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Possibly A New Obsession DATE: 8:52 AM ----- BODY:

Flight back was fine; empty plane, plenty with me to read, and my only disappointment was that the in-flight movie, advertised as "Ocean's Thirteen" (I love a good -- or even a bad -- heist movie) was, in fact, "Hairspray" -- which, fine, nice dresses. But. Whoa. I am sooooo jetlagged -- woke up at 5 this morning, feeling as if it were noon. Ulp.

But I have managed, at least, to open my mail to find this pattern, which I ordered before I left (from eBay seller Treasure from Galilee Shore):

Vogue 5380

If you look at view D you can see those are FRENCH CUFFS. And on view A, yes, that is a bias placket. This is a serious dress, requiring much contemplation and selfless dedication. And serious interfacing, which I'm not much for using, but this needs it, the good stuff.

Needless to say, if I can master this pattern I might make this one over and over, forever. This dress never goes out of style (not that 'going out of style' is something I usually consider, but ...) and it fits with my cardigan-and-penny-loafer lifestyle.

I'm pretty set on the full-skirted version (for better inclusion of pockets) but the perfectly coordinated woman in fuchsia is very, very tempting. She has fuchsia shoes; *I* have fuchsia shoes (and four yards of fuchsia shantung) ... I don't have the hat, although I do have pink eyeglasses. Think that will do?

Labels: ebay, shirtdress, Vogue_5380

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Barbara Prime DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:10:00 AM I love this pattern. Something I would definitely make myself, and bother to wear. I don't have many dresses, and only one I would wear regularly - yes, I could hear your gasp of horror from here :)

I may have to keep an eye out for a copy in my size. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

dawn224 DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:32:00 AM This always makes me think of the awesome costuming in "Down With Love" I wish I dressed like that - as I lay here in my Old Navy and Yoga pants. Sigh. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

k. DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:46:00 AM I don't have the hat

...but you probably know a knitter or two who would be willing to knit and felt a lovely matching cloche for you.

Just sayin'. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tea DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:49:00 AM Yes! I vote for fuchsia. Even tough I'm usually drawn to full skirts, she does look awfully splendid in that pink. Good enough, even, to make me reconsider my whole outlook on the thin lines of narrow skirts. You might even have enough fabric left over to make a hat. Maybe not the same hat, but a hat nonetheless. With winter nipping at us so fiercely, it would be nice to have the warmth of silk on your head.

...and: Pink eyeglasses! I am very jealous. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Linda A-Z DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:50:00 AM Erin,

You should make it in the pink for one of those days you are channelling Professor Umbridge. Everyone needs to be evil once in a while!

Linda ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lydia DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:52:00 AM Living in Kansas, I've pretty much given up on anything fuller than an A-line for daily wear. The world does not need to see my underwear, thanks.

So yes, I fully support an attempt of View C. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

beangirl DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:56:00 AM OK, so on a recent trip someone was extolling the virtues of some substance that cures jet lag. It's a suppliment that you get at healthfood/nutrition-type stores and you take it when you're ready to go to bed. Supposedly (based on this rather obscure recommendation) it knocks you out and resets your clock.

Wouldn't it be ever so helpful if I could remember what this stuff was called?? Starts with an "M". Maybe someone will know. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:59:00 AM Beangirl -- I'm pretty sure you mean melatonin. Which I should try. I think I bought a bottle once but by the time I flew overseas again it had expired. Oops.

K -- hmm. A felted hat you say? :-)

My cures so far: reading email (ineffective); Diet Coke (not as effective as you would think); eating remainder of packet of Milk Choc Hob Nobs (before they 'go stale'; completely counterproductive). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

knitgirl DATE:Nov 30, 2007 9:59:00 AM beangirl: it's melatonin. I have never tried it, tho. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 30, 2007 10:00:00 AM Melatonin. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

john DATE:Nov 30, 2007 10:04:00 AM hey, if you can make the dress you can make the hat ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Xstpenguin DATE:Nov 30, 2007 10:27:00 AM There is a risk you could end up channelling your inner Lady Penelope (thunderbirds are Go!) and I hate pink (but you knew that, right) however... SYTLE! And the possibility to make a matching hat. Nothing to lose.

Only thing I'm not sure about with that style is the possibility that the button placket would buckle unattractively below the belt when you sit down. Especially if it has the good interfacing.

French cuffs - cufflinks! My Mum has a great collection of cufflinks, even a pair with little clocks on, so to complete the outfit you need a pair of pink robot cufflinks. :-)

Cheers,
AJ ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

yarnivore DATE:Nov 30, 2007 11:09:00 AM Speaking of your "cardigan lifestyle" -- have you ever posted a roundup of places to look for fitted cardigans?

There's currently a nice one at J.Crew, though I'm finding it very irritating that it's (I think) $86. Grr. The one I bought was on deep discount, and thus justifiable.

I'd love more sources! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 30, 2007 11:45:00 AM I made a dress very similar to view A for my mother when I was in high school (early 60s). I think it was Butterick (sp?) tho. She wore only house dresses and was very uncomfortable the first time she wore jeans around the house a few years later. I'm not sure if I would welcome women wearing house dresses today, but the women did look nice in their dresses doing their housework.
I saw "Hairspray" on Thanksgiving day when I went to my sister's house. One thing I liked and remembered from h.s. was the pleated skirt where the fabric was pleated so one color was on top and when you walked the other came into view (it was yellow and black in the movie). I always wanted one in my day that was turqoise blue with a lavender color "peaking through" but I could never afford them back then.
Linda ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 30, 2007 11:46:00 AM hmm I don't know the pink version looks a bit to much like a flight attendant's outfit for my taste (or perhaps it's just because you were talking about planes, got me thinking about them...)

Yarnivore: I'm gonna reccoment thrift stores (that's the only plce I shop basically) but they often have a good selection of both dresses and cardigans, and will always be affordable. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Erin DATE:Nov 30, 2007 11:49:00 AM Yarnivore -- I am a huge fan of Land's End for cardigans, but, be aware I order a PETITE S or XS -- they run BIG.

I like them because the Petite is exactly the right length shoulder to hip, and because they usually go on clearance to $19 at the end of each season. And they wash well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tea DATE:Nov 30, 2007 12:10:00 PM I have a stupid question related to the fuchsia silk: what is the difference between shantung and dupioni? I get the impression that shantung is softer/dupioni stiffer. Is that right? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Val DATE:Nov 30, 2007 1:11:00 PM I'd really like to see fuchsia girl switch shoes with teal girl. Fuchsia and deep peacock blue would look fabulous together! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julia DATE:Nov 30, 2007 2:34:00 PM You have fuscia shantung? What the hell are you waiting for? Time's a wastin'. Trust the interfacing. This really is a fab dress, every view. No hat, go with a wide headband. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

rosiecakes DATE:Nov 30, 2007 2:43:00 PM Fantastic pattern and I love the idea of the fuschia shantung. Although I did read 'pink eyeglasses' as 'pink eyeLASHES' at first, which I also thought would be great, if a small step further along the colour-scheme-outfit path than I would be willing to take. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Joni DATE:Nov 30, 2007 2:47:00 PM Also, how on earth do you pronounce 'dupioni'? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Emily DATE:Nov 30, 2007 2:54:00 PM I have a fitted cardigan made by the brand "Tweeds". It claims to be made of shetland wool and has the hairy yet springy yet soft texture that commercial shetland knitting yarn has. The yarns used all seem to be normal shetland sheep colors (yay!), and it has a zipper. Usually I hate zippers on sweaters, but they did a very interesting neckline treatment that keeps the zipper properly stable without destroying the stretch. It appears to be a k1 p1 ribbed hem to fully enclose all the edge stitches for the neckline and front edge. The body of the sweater is knit in something that appears to be shaker rib crossed with a waffle stitch.

All the details of this sweater scream "expensive". I have had *no* luck finding anything more about the brand online, so I intend to knit myself a clone of it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Theresa DATE:Nov 30, 2007 3:33:00 PM Isn't it pronounced Doo pea own ee?
I was immediately drawn to the fuschia dress. I love how full dresses look on OTHER women and I prefer how I look and feel in wiggle dresses. I am sure we could find you a hat pattern. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

baylibrarian DATE:Nov 30, 2007 4:21:00 PM Previous commenters are right on, I want to see it the straight skirt; I had a pumpkin colored "Villager" dress similar to this that I wore to death.

The headband and the peacock colored shoes are working for me. If you really want a hat, I blush to tell you that during the Jackie Kennedy era we made matching pillbox hats thus: cut off the bottom of a plastic clorox jug to the depth you wish for your pillbox and cover it to match the dress. I had more than one of these, and with pink glasses and the fushia dress--you gotta make it. Re: jet lag--dis you consider...sleep?? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

enc DATE:Nov 30, 2007 4:33:00 PM Oh, it'll do alright.

I can't wait to see it when it's done! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

patsijean DATE:Nov 30, 2007 4:50:00 PM Fuschia shoes, fuschia dress (use good interfacing, not stiff), pink eyeglasses, and a Clorox/pillbox fuschia hat???? Wonderful. This pattern reminds me so much of the pattern I once had. I made it until the tissue fell apart, I loved it so much. Wish I still had it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gidget Bananas DATE:Nov 30, 2007 5:47:00 PM Shirtwaist dresses rule! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

john DATE:Nov 30, 2007 6:23:00 PM do-pea-oh-knee ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

oracle DATE:Nov 30, 2007 6:44:00 PM I say, full skirt in fuchsia.

The Clorox pillbox hat sounds fun! Just make sure to rinse all the chorine away before you work with it!

I'd make View A, myself. I love the plaid version. I think for me, I'd make it in plaid; maybe in a nice warm teal, like that one. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

oracle DATE:Nov 30, 2007 6:57:00 PM Is a shirtwaist dress just a shirtwaist with a skirt attached? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Chicago Sarah DATE:Dec 1, 2007 1:26:00 PM Go go with the fuchsia! :) Can't wait to see it. And that's a very cool pattern- good find ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

corny DATE:Dec 1, 2007 3:15:00 PM Pink eyeglasses would be a great addition to the fushia dress but you could make the hat as well. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sarah DATE:Dec 1, 2007 4:00:00 PM Emily:

I was a huge consumer of Tweeds clothes when I was in college 15 years ago--I absolutely loved their sweaters. But I think they went out of business a long time ago. Sad...
I personally can't stand Land's End's clothes anymore. Once they got bought out by Sears, their vanity sizing got out of hand and their quality went out the door. Shame... So I also would like to know where to find nice wool cardigans.

Erin: Fuchsia all the way--yes! yes! Be brave, interfacing just takes a little more time, that's all. And it makes those plackets turn out so nice.

Melatonin works great if you want to speed up the process of becoming un-jet-lagged--and you don't have any other health issues. You can buy 1 mg tabs you let dissolve under your tongue--take one when you would usually start to feel sleepy. Worked like a charm for me when I came home from Taiwan. Kicked the jet lag in less than 2 days. Just my two cents. Happy sleeping. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Marguerite DATE:Dec 2, 2007 5:41:00 PM Cardigans...Appleseeds has a cable shetland cardigan in some great colors. It's very warm so you North country gals will like it. try the on line catalog. Also, Erin, I love the dress here. I bought two different 60's shirtwaists and was dreaming of a nice madras one...a nice oxford cloth one and maybe even a seersucker one for old times sake.
Marguerite ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Thoughts on Life and Millinery. DATE:Dec 2, 2007 5:44:00 PM The clorox hat has me going...somebody make one and send a picture of the beast to Erin to post. It would totally make my day. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Dec 2, 2007 8:03:00 PM All the moms wore version A of this dress when I was a girl, and this is exactly what I have been looking for. I LOVE the blouse with the turned up cuff!! I will have to start a hunt for this pattern in my size(repeat after me hahahahahahaha). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

cindy b DATE:Dec 2, 2007 8:04:00 PM And I'm not really anonymous. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

oracle DATE:Dec 2, 2007 10:36:00 PM I was seeking reassurance that a shirtdress basically is just a shirtwaist with a skirt attached, because I have Vogue 3015, a blouse pattern from the same era as today's Vogue 5380 dress. But on my pattern, "Vogue" is typeset in large black italic face across the top. It also says "Basic Proportioned Blouses", which are for "short, average and tall figure heights". It offers long sleeves and 3/4 sleeves, both of which may have French cuffs (but I'm not sure what those are!) And above-elbow sleeves with a rolled-up cuff, and sleeveless. One of its collar options is of the style on the 5380 dress. The blouses don't have the placket, though, and they only have French darts (no vertical ones), but that's easy enough to fix. All I'd have to do is add a skirt ... but my Size 12 is for B32, and I need at least B34 for the upper chest and then an FBA to go with it, so. But, still. adding a skirt should be the easy part! I've always loved the 3015 pattern, and it's great seeing the 5380 dress version! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sinead DATE:Dec 7, 2007 4:05:00 AM ooh ooh ooh I have this pattern! I was going to make D but I forgot about it. Might have to dig it out. And face my fear of buttonholes... ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Back Again DATE: 9:43 AM ----- BODY:

I'm back from Las Vegas, where I did not buy ANY fabric whatsoever. Not an inch, much less an ell. I was discouraged from attempting any explorations after my unsavory experience walking from the In-N-Out Burger back to the Strip ... let's just say that I have a new appreciation for the wonders of zoning. (But an In-N-Out burger is worth any number of two-mile walks past assorted 'gentlemen's clubs'.)

Anyway, even though I didn't buy any fabric, I did manage to buy the pattern above, from eBay seller nateesh. Isn't it pretty? Square necklines with underbust gathers will get me every time.

In other clothing-related news: a TSA employee at O'Hare complimented my new camouflage-print skirt. Which totally made up for the "subcontractor" at the Las Vegas airport who not only ARGUED with people and made them beg for bins for the conveyor belt, but also DROPPED my laptop into a bin after deigning to give me one for it. (Yes, I complained. So I'm probably on a no-fly list now.)

I'm hoping to announce two fun Dress-A-Day-related projects this week. They're exciting! And geeky! Look out!

Labels: ebay, Vogue_8917

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julie DATE:Nov 13, 2007 10:35:00 AM Welcome back!
hat is one purty dress pattern.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 13, 2007 10:44:00 AM Waiting with bated breath for the DaD announcements. A "secret lives" book? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

barbie2be DATE:Nov 13, 2007 10:55:00 AM that dress is darling! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

twollin DATE:Nov 13, 2007 11:28:00 AM When I went to Las Vegas the first time, got off the plane and saw the one armed bandits in the departure area between me and my baggage, I definitely knew I was "not in Kansas" - when I saw the "signs" on top of the taxis that was number two..and then being approached on the street by the guys giving out little slips of paper with addresses and phone numbers. The funniest part was that this was during the "Circus Circus" period when Las Vegas was trying to bill itself as a "family resort". ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

zimmersarmy DATE:Nov 13, 2007 12:39:00 PM I love this pattern! And wait with bated breath for the project annoucements.

Does anybody know of a similar dress pattern for a young girl (say five years?)

-Janet ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

tammyo DATE:Nov 13, 2007 1:25:00 PM the bodice is similar to current simplicity pattern #3676 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 13, 2007 2:09:00 PM When you have to wear a uniform that makes even the most lovely of women look like someones large matronly grandmother you start to notice how great all of the people flying look. As a TSA employee one of my favorite things to do is fashion watch. Some people wear the most incredible clothing when they travel!! I especially love travelers from out of the region, they always have something new and innovative that just has not hit locally. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kristen DATE:Nov 13, 2007 2:25:00 PM what a perfect pattern! Yay! tuesday is so much better now! ;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 13, 2007 6:30:00 PM Thanks for the new word: "ell." Even though we do not have the same taste in clothing, I love your blog for the language. Thanks for keeping that bar held high! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Karen DATE:Nov 13, 2007 7:56:00 PM Yay, I've been missing the posts. Also my comments haven't been showing up, I don't know what I'm doing.

I'm excited about the project, is it for you or for us? I've internally and secretly responded to a few of your unofficial assignments. I LOVE exciting and geegy! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

this vignette DATE:Nov 13, 2007 8:50:00 PM I can never quite picture what a dress will really look like. Those strangely contorted vintage drawings make me think I need a corset and scoliosis to look like that!

http://thisvignette.typepad.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 13, 2007 11:53:00 PM Oh, the modern drawings aren't any better - they make me think I need a funhouse mirror to look like that...
/monika ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

meara DATE:Nov 14, 2007 1:12:00 AM Yeah, I just flew out of Vegas a week ago, they were really useless at security--lines were incomprehensible (and we were told ot go places that didn't work), bins were non-existent, no one seemed to know how to work the machines....you know I travel a lot, and that was the worst I've seen in a LONG time. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Valerie DATE:Nov 14, 2007 1:23:00 AM In-N-Out is tasty but the experience of ordering and waiting to get the food is on par with the second level of hell. No exaggeration whatsoever. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 14, 2007 8:40:00 AM In-N-Out Burger is the best! My first stop when visiting CA,NV or AZ.

In the future we'll probably have to get permission to fly unless the airlines have more clout than TSA/Homeland Security. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 14, 2007 10:05:00 AM Exciting and geeky!!! Bring them on! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

cindy b DATE:Nov 14, 2007 4:41:00 PM Eh. Tommy's in LA is better than In-N-Out Burger, in my humble opinion. Love the pattern! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Crystal DATE:Nov 14, 2007 8:54:00 PM Oh, I want that pattern!! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Solve This Puzzle DATE: 8:11 AM ----- BODY:

Héloïse sent me a link to this eBay auction -- the picture is not of the best, but really, do you need to know any more than "1950's crossword-themed dress?" before you start mousing around for the "Bid" button?

It's 36-26(ulp)-39, and the bidding right now is about $25.

As you know, I already am the proud possessor of a crossword-themed dress, but I'm keeping an eye out for more crossword fabric -- the tournament does last three days, after all.

I can't tell if the buttons are little squares or not, but it looks as if they are. And it has pockets, to hold your pencils! What more could you ask?

Click on the image to visit the auction, as usual.

Labels: crosswords, ebay

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

George DATE:Nov 7, 2007 8:49:00 AM Has anyone ever seen Scrabble-themed clothing or fabric? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Missy DATE:Nov 7, 2007 9:24:00 AM and it's corduroy...it's darling! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kim p. DATE:Nov 7, 2007 9:32:00 AM Fun! Who would have thought "wiggle dress" and "crossword theme" could occur in the same heading?! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 7, 2007 10:36:00 AM george,

I thought I had seen it some time, somewhere, but can't locate any Scrabble fabric right now. I did, however, see Scrabble human-sized benches:

http://freshome.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/scrabble_furniture_1.jpg

And a Scrabble quilt:
http://www.pixelquilt.com/wenlew/Pics/ScrabbleQuilt.gif ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gail DATE:Nov 7, 2007 12:38:00 PM Erin, did you ever see the Threads article where the three seamstresses were supposed to imagine they were going to a Scrabble thing and had to make an outfit to match that could also be changed into an evening outfit? hard to explain, but it is in a back issue of Threads magazine and might give you some sewing ideas. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 7, 2007 6:37:00 PM i believe they are square buttons. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy Bea DATE:Nov 7, 2007 9:10:00 PM I'm sure you saw this scrabble theme fabric bag?

http://mysite.verizon.net/kevanddi/index.html

Maybe the bag manufacturers would divulge their fabric source if you asked nicely! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Nov 8, 2007 7:19:00 AM My ds has a scrabble-themed tie. Looks just like the board with some tiles on it. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Katy DATE:Nov 9, 2007 3:17:00 PM Not sure if you are a Vans girl, but these are cute and on sale! http://shop.nordstrom.com/S/2956094/0~2376788~6002242~6007715~6008488?mediumthumbnail=Y&origin=category&searchtype=&pbo=6008488&P=1 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

cheriezel DATE:Nov 17, 2007 12:34:00 PM "kim p. said...
Fun! Who would have thought "wiggle dress" and "crossword theme" could occur in the same heading?!"

Actually I love what you call 'Stunt Dresses' and also did a vintage Vogue dress out of the crossword puzzle fabric last year (about the same time as yours but I never knew about it). AND it's a wiggle dress... I forget which pattern # it's from. http://www.flickr.com/photos/cheriezel/2040370895/ ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: All Paquin Bulletin DATE: 7:45 AM ----- BODY:

Has anyone seen this pattern? I mean, for sale, out in the wild? Mary P. was outbid -- sniped, really -- by just a smidgen when this was up for auction last week and she's been mourning it ever since. Leave a comment or drop an email if you have one you're willing to sell/trade.

I know it's hard to tell from the picture -- and while we're here, can I just rant about sellers who show teeny-tiny pictures of patterns? A hint: if you can hold the actual object up to the computer screen, you can run the photo of it FULL SIZE, people -- but it looks amazing. I'd love for Mary P. to find a copy so she can make it and send me the picture.

And in a fit of selflessness (because now you're all going to outbid me!) may I remind everyone again about eBay's Favorite Search feature? When a search comes up empty, save it, and then eBay will email you when your holy grail shows up again. At the very least, getting a dozen emails from eBay every day will test your desire for whatever the item is -- I've canceled more than a few saved searches when I realized that my annoyance at dealing with the email was more than my desire for the item. (You can also get eBay searches through RSS, but I haven't done that yet. Probably should!) Saved searches are most useful when you save a very detailed search -- looking for a pair of shoes or a pattern in a particular size, fabric in a particular color -- so that you don't waste time looking at pages of stuff that's not quite right.

In fact, I think being able to do Boolean or regex searching is an indispensable skill in the post-eBay, post-Google age. I might just have to go volunteer to teach a couple how-to-search sessions at my son's school ... although probably not using eBay as an example!

Labels: ebay, Paquin, Vogue_1136

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

robin DATE:Oct 19, 2007 8:39:00 AM i hate to be a pain in the ass, but isn't EVERY auction lost, lost by just a smidgen? It's the nature of the auction system that if you lose you always lose by a tiny amount (unless two other bidders take over in a bidding war).

that always kills me when I hear "I lost it by only fifty cents!", when the person who outbid you could have put a bid in for $50 over yours for all you know...

that said, i always put in a few bucks over my highest bid just to avoid that 'oh if i had only gone higher' feeling--so if someone outbids me, it's for much more than i would have been comfortable with. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kirsty DATE:Oct 19, 2007 8:47:00 AM That's an interesting pattern.
The button detail is very similar to a vintage Vogue Couturier pattern I have, which does not reveal just which couturier is might be (or when it was designed).
there's a photo here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kaby/1546392390/
(I'm afraid it's another too-small one, due to me wanting to put some fabric in the shot too! I'm sorry!)
Other than the buttons it's actually quite different, and I'd guess mine is maybe a little older, so I'm clutching at straws here. Still, any info would be appreciated! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Emily DATE:Oct 19, 2007 9:52:00 AM As a newish sewer, I have a question that I am not sure if you have addressed in previous posts.
Are seam allowances included in vintage patterns? I recently came into a collection of 11 patterns from the 40s and 50s and quite frankly, I can't tell from the instruction sheets. Some of the patterns are printed and some are not.
Is this a dumb question? I feel like I should know!!
And that pattern is stunning, by the way - I would LOVE to have that dress...in heavy raspberry silk twill with cut glass buttons. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

woodsywoman DATE:Oct 19, 2007 10:50:00 AM That pattern is killer! Similar to a 50s Frank Starr Original that I have in kelly green matte satin.

I sell patterns on Ebay occasionally. Full-size photos will a) be downsized automatically if using Ebay's photo hosting or b) if self-hosting, take so much time to load that bidders may bail before seeing them. I include a 400-pixel-wide shot of the pattern front and a zoomed-in shot of the back-view line art on back.

My peeve is pattern sellers who don't include the pattern number or the bust measurement in the title, thereby rendering it nearly impossible to find without poring over pages of listings. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

vespabelle DATE:Oct 19, 2007 11:27:00 AM The shape is similar to a Vintage Vogue (tm) that I have. I think it's out of print though (and can't find it on the vintage vogue website! argh!). Similar deep v neck, but no buttons! It might not be too hard to make it button up the front (or at least look like it buttons up the front! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gail DATE:Oct 19, 2007 1:39:00 PM Emily, to answer you about seam allowances, I would need to know who made the pattern and look it up in my reference books on 40's and 50's patterns. Back then the pattern companies were going out of their way to try to out-do each other in inovations. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 19, 2007 1:59:00 PM I found at least one copy for sale in the wild -- $225 US, bust size 30. (Oy!!!)

Vogue Patterns # 1136, printed 1951, if that helps with your searches.

http://www.rubylane.com/shops/toinettea/item/pat2262

Happy Hunting,
CMC ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

harthad DATE:Oct 19, 2007 3:38:00 PM Emily, I have a lot of vintage patterns, and I've yet to run across one that didn't actually state the seam allowance somewhere on the instruction sheet, although you may have to hunt for it; might be in the miscellaneous stuff at the very beginning, or in the layouts. Most of my 1930's patterns are 3/8, but by the time you hit the mid to late 40's 5/8 is pretty standard. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 19, 2007 7:38:00 PM $225?! For a pattern? That's just a wee bit out of line! Even for a rare one. You can buy a pretty fabulous DRESS from that era in great condition for that price. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Modified Librarian DATE:Oct 20, 2007 9:05:00 AM Oh Lordy! What a fabulous Saturday find. Now I'm lusting after that little black full-skirted delight too. I sincerely hope that Mary finds her heart's desire, because it is 100% luscious. I am hereby addicted to this blog, being a librarian who has for months been deliberating if she can get away with wearing her "other closet" to work. The rustle of crinoline in the library would be a joy forever. It's fun to see the younger set (well heavens, I'm only 31) gawk when I step out in a full-skirted dress with a smart little jacket and hat. Great conversation starters, and I love when the little old ladies (and some little old men too) make a fuss over me and my clothes. Whee! Now I have more patterns and ideas to hunt and stalk and try to cobble together. Thanks for this blog!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 20, 2007 11:31:00 PM This is for the modified librarian and all the others who commented about the posted dress - I have seen this dress on ebay twice - the first time it was $75.00 and the second time I was sniped the last 2 seconds as Erin stated and the winner got it for a little over $36 which I think is a lot. I am almost 56 and have kind of lost some of my waistlline, but I LOVE this dress - I think it is the most beautiful one I have ever seen. I live in Alaska and don't know where I would ever wear it but I WANT it!! Someday I hope to find the pattern. When/if I do I am more than willing to share it with anyone who loves it too.
Mary ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

mamafrog DATE:Oct 23, 2007 6:27:00 PM I think it's a design from the House of Paquin--here's a link to Wiki's article on her

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeanne_Paquin

Don't know if this will help in research to find the pattern? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

saidee DATE:Oct 26, 2007 2:47:00 AM Well, let no good deed go unpunished. I had the--I thought--brilliant idea of checking the Vintage Pattern Lending Library for this pattern and, hours later, with breaks for dinner, part of a TV show, conversations with family members and cats, trying to order 3 patterns, including the one from a Spanish haute couture house that can be made into 125 different garments, (had one enough lives and time), I have given up. On ordering for myself, and on finding a copy of this pattern, though I was convinced early on that it wasn't there. Sigh.

I love this concept, and I know the work to keep this site going must be daunting: I would never attempt it. Copying patterns to preserve them and to share them is indeed a tremendous service.

I just wish the site were easier to navigate. I was never sure whether I had seen all the patterns in a particular category. I will definitely be back to purchase copies of some of the patterns I saw...and I know I will see many more wonderful things while I am searching for them!

And this Paquin dress IS stunning! It reminds me of a vintage vogue? Itself? I'm not sure. Love it and that 'New Look.' ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Thinking about Prom, or Holiday? DATE: 7:52 AM ----- BODY:

I know, I know, it's early for prom, but a lot of kids have winter formals and suchlike, yes? This is just such a great dress for a formal dance, especially for younger women who crave sophistication (c'mon, we were all there once). This is an easy way to get it without being kitten dressed as cougar, if you know what I mean. The sweetheart neckline and sweet full skirt can be dressed up or down pretty easily. Add a fakey tiara and long gloves to the narrow-skirted version and you are Holly Golightly; make the full-skirted one in pink and you are Sandra Dee. (I personally would avoid the brocade version for the under-30 set, but hey, if brocade makes you happy, go for it.)

The full-skirted version would be just lovely in a pale yellow organza. Go nuts and sprinkle the bottom third of the skirt with heat-set rhinestones. You only live once ...

This listing ends today, I think, so jump if you want it. Click on the image to visit the eBay auction.

Labels: ebay, McCalls_6571, prom

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 15, 2007 9:08:00 AM I've had this pattern a few years and thought the black number was cocktail ready rather than prom queen. Does one get too old for sweetheart necklines? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Thoughts on Life and Millinery. DATE:Oct 15, 2007 11:39:00 AM Our local paper reported that girls were buy cocktail lenght dresses for home coming balls this year. Too hard to dance in full length dress they are saying.

I have great hopes for this group of young women. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Wendy DATE:Oct 15, 2007 1:47:00 PM It's lovely that they want to dance, but most of their dresses seem to end only a few inches after their rear ends do.

I would attempt to make friends with any young lady self-respecting enough to wear a dress this sophisticated. Delightful! I'd make the full skirt in a two-color ombre silk, with the darker bit around the waist -- perhaps black silk, then a gentle fade to charcoal gray, then dove white! The top would be solid black silk. Gorgeous. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

mamafrog DATE:Oct 15, 2007 5:19:00 PM All I need is a Barbie doll figure or a set of really good undergarments to wear things like this again! With LOTS of Spandex and elastic! The young have it so easy, they don't have to go to such extremes to be lovely in dresses like these. Sigh. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

La BellaDonna DATE:Oct 15, 2007 6:08:00 PM One is never too old for a sweetheart neckline, which is infinitely becoming!

If the sun or misfortune has been unkind (since age alone these days is not sufficient reason for damaged skin), then it's sometimes not a bad idea to have a sheer or semi-sheer bodice up to the neck, such as chiffon or lace, but I for one don't believe that age alone is sufficient reason to not wear it.

And I myself sport an Anita Blake-style scar just below the collarbone which I didn't have last year, and I still wear necklines where it shows. I'm not thrilled about the scar, but it's there, and I trust that the general effect of the neckline is enough to distract from the scar. And if not, too bad; the viewer can concentrate on the rest of the dress instead! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

iopine DATE:Oct 15, 2007 6:35:00 PM This post has been removed by the author. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

iopine DATE:Oct 15, 2007 6:37:00 PM I love it so much, I think I'll dump my fiancée and marry this dress.

There are no laws against that kind of cross-platform marriage, are there? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Wendy DATE:Oct 15, 2007 8:24:00 PM iopine:

What if you combine the two and make a sweet, slightly-longer wedding dress version of the full-skirted one?

Then you can have both! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 15, 2007 8:40:00 PM oh so beautiful.......i love your blog but at 8 months preggers i get so depressed at what i can't wear!!!!!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

LibChicAZ DATE:Oct 15, 2007 8:45:00 PM Wendy - the dress you describe sounds gorgeous! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kendall DATE:Oct 16, 2007 1:23:00 AM My homecoming dress my sophomore year (4 years ago) had a cut very similar to the full skirted version, but I absolutely love the cocktail length black number in the middle. It is definitely more like what I would want to wear nowadays. So stunning! And yes, prom is becoming much less formal than it used to be (for both my junior and senior prom I wore dresses that were about mid-shin). ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gidget Bananas DATE:Oct 17, 2007 1:28:00 AM Hi Erin! I have a lot to say about prom dresses, and I said it here

Yellow organdy with rhinestones. I can only wish . . . ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dani in NC DATE:Oct 20, 2007 12:02:00 AM There is a burgeoning trend around here: 13-year-olds having semi-formal birthday parties, usually in church fellowship halls. My daughter attended one and we had a heck of a time finding a dress that didn't make her look like a hoochie. This full-skirted pattern would have been perfect. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

karin DATE:Oct 20, 2007 3:02:00 AM love the dress to the right! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Everything Must Go! DATE: 8:35 AM ----- BODY:

Friend-of-the-blog Nora is doing a little pattern divestiture on eBay -- you can check out her listings here.

Now you all know I have nothing but love for the professional pattern-sellers, but I have to admit that my heart quickens when someone tells me that they're selling off some of their "collection". I think it's because, rightly or wrongly, I figure that they are selling off things regretfully, only because they need some space, and that regret is because what they're selling is freakin' awesome. (Which seems to be true in Nora's case -- nice pattern up above, what?)

This belief of mine is carried to a ridiculous extreme when I think about estate sales -- I mean, c'mon, this is stuff people DIED holding on to! It must be incredibly great! And no matter how many times I go to a sale that consists only of wash-and-wear polyester 1970s housedresses, archival issues of TV Guide ("Who's the Boss?" always seems to feature prominently), and ABSOLUTELY NO FABRIC OR PATTERNS even though "sewing machine" is listed in the ad, I keep believing.

[Of course, I am SO EVIL -- so evil, that if I ask about patterns and the estate sale runner is dumb enough to tell me that they threw them out, so sorry, I always say "Oh, that's too bad -- you know, some of those patterns go for $30 each, or more!" Even if I *know* they probably tossed a box of 80s-puff sleeved monstrosities. Such cavalier behavior on their part must be *punished*.)

But back to this pattern. Boy, I love that yoke! I'd make this in a charcoal gray with red buttons and wear it with a red belt (but not red shoes). So cute!

Labels: ebay, Vogue_7910

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nora DATE:Oct 3, 2007 9:52:00 AM Hey Erin, thanks for the link! I'm really into gray with red lately too.

You're right about how hard it is to get rid of stuff. In fact, as I was describing the patterns I realized all over again why I got them in the first place!

But most of them are ones that I just know for one reason or another I'm not going to make up (usually because they don't honestly suit my body type or my unglamourous lifestyle). So I'd really rather someone else get to sew them, and wear them - that's what they're for! (And if they want to share the joy they can post the finished product on the Sew Retro blog.)

By the way all, I have a few more to put up, including some (mostly mens') knitting patterns from the 40s. The pictures are awesome, and goodness knows mens' fashions don't change that much. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 3, 2007 10:29:00 AM but why would you pass up a perfectly good excuse to wear red shoes!? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

angldst DATE:Oct 3, 2007 11:02:00 AM Thanks for this heads up. Nora, one of your skirt patterns has just been bought up and is going into a good home. I've been wanting that pattern (or similar) for months now, and I'm planning on making it up soon after it arrives to wear it with a little fitted satin jacket to a late October wedding. :) I'm eyeing up a couple of the other patterns. I sew mostly early forties and mid fifties styles.

Possibly with red shoes. ;)

-d ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

dorotheasclosetvintage DATE:Oct 3, 2007 11:42:00 AM I love red shoes! But agreed, matching to a belt is too Garanimal-esque. Better as a surprise with none to little worn otherwise. Red, that is.

I think one of the reasons I love doing what I do so very much is just what you mentioned, Erin, about estate sales & the contents within. The clothing (and more recently, a few patterns) I find when called in are things that meant something to someone, so much so they often hauled it from home to home....city to city, state to state. I bought an estate last summer that belonged to a woman who moved here to the midwest nearly 15 years ago, from NYC....and she had closets, boxes and drawers FULL of clothing from the 60s & 70s! Some with tags, many duplicates. The best part was a huge box of hand knit sweaters she had made herself with her own label "DEENA Hand Knits"....lovingly created, cardigans pinned down along plackets, folded neatly and stored for years....never worn.

The people dealing with her estate thought I wouldn't want them because they were hand made! They had planned to throw them out, no less. I was glad to get to save them.....

Estate sales and calls for me always have a tinge of sadness about them, but in the end at least the things someone loved enough to hold onto end up being in the hands of someone else willing to love them again.

Ang ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

vespabelle DATE:Oct 3, 2007 1:43:00 PM I was at an estate sale last weekend where there were a whole bunch of patterns (1940s-1970s) for a QUARTER each. Sadly, most of them were not my size but I bought some of the more inspiring ones including some that'll fit my daughter in 7 or 8 years! and an original Calvin Klein jeans pattern (I have the kids version of this as well!) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

knitgirl DATE:Oct 3, 2007 1:45:00 PM Am I the only one out there who doesn't like red shoes? My dad bought me a pair of red patent leather Capezios when I was 2 while my mother was in the hospital having one of my brothers. Mom was expecting him to buy the normal 1960's toddler saddle shoes, quelle surprise! I love the picture of me in those shoes, but now, just don't like red period. I do like grey with just a little bit of pink, though. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sue DATE:Oct 3, 2007 2:33:00 PM guilt-tripping someone for getting rid of what are actually puffy-sleeved 80s sewing patterns: priceless

for everything else, there's... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

jacqui DATE:Oct 4, 2007 6:19:00 AM Hi, A sweet friend of mine on Flickr said that you might be interested in about a thousand pictures of mine that I just uploaded to my Flickr account a couple of days ago. My Mother and Grandmother were fashion designers, they are the object of study on an ebay discussion thread this week, also there's some chat about them going on on the Vintage fashion Guild forum, this is because my Mom has been diagnosed with inoperable widespread cancer and I posted some requests for prayers. The link to my Flickr photo site is here; http://www.flickr.com/photos/67723735@N00/ and the link to the discussion thread that you might find interesting because I've posted some stories about their design history, is here; http://forums.ebay.com/db1/thread.jspa?forumID=92&threadID=1000568373. Love you site, I'm excited about it. Big Friendly Hugs, Jacqui http://jacqui.livejournal.com OH and Mom = Jeannette Alexander and Granny = Peggy Hunt ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

twollin DATE:Oct 4, 2007 8:16:00 AM Erin - I don't know if anyone else has had this experience, but when my mom died and I was put in charge of the "cleaning out", I got a guy to do the estate sale, not realizing that he had a "specialty". Since I was doing this all over the phone, I did not realize until I got there and it was all over that all he had sold was furniture and collectibles - all the patterns, fabric, etc. was not seen as important or interesting or worth anything. So, I had to do the whole job all over again in order to try and clean out my parents' house. So, that is something people might want to remember - sometimes people have specialties or only want to deal with certain types of estate stuff. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Julie The Zaftig Goddess DATE:Oct 6, 2007 12:50:00 AM >>>>and ABSOLUTELY NO FABRIC OR PATTERNS even though "sewing machine" is listed in the ad, I keep believing. <<<<<

~sigh~
That is the story of my life Erin, always the sewing machine and never the patterns. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Oct 9, 2007 10:41:00 AM I loved your response to the evil estate sale people who toss patterns! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

minya, warrior seamstress DATE:Oct 13, 2007 1:46:00 PM But my roommate CJ & I love the 80s puff-sleeved mostrosities. Especially with big collars, V-waists, and full skirts. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

vespabelle DATE:Oct 16, 2007 12:37:00 PM I was at an estate sale a few weeks ago (where I found a devine hat!) that had lots and lots of fabulous patterns (1930s-1980s) each for $.25! I bought "only" an armfull (and two vogue knitting books) because the patterns were much much too small. I bought a few for inspiration and some Vogue Teen patterns for my daughter (who can wear them in, oh, another seven to eight years!) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: I Just Don't Know DATE: 8:37 AM ----- BODY:

I've had this site, OurThreads.com, open in my browser for a week, trying to decide whether to blog about it.

The pros:

it's a site that promotes swapping of clothes as well as buying/selling

it lets users donate the money they make from their closets to the charitable cause of their choice

the interface looks pretty nice

The cons:

sites like this are only as good as their user base, and their user base right now (although they all seem like very nice people!) isn't very large

it's only slightly less trouble to take pictures and list items on a site like this as it is for eBay, and eBay would probably net you more money

there were only 19 dresses listed when I last checked.

Anyway, I'm not sold yet. I think what would really make this site work is a something like Amazon's "Resell Your Books" feature. Sign up a few big online clothing retailers (GAP.com, Amazon, Bluefly, Overstock.com, Zappos, etc.), and get them to let OurThreads.com users upload their purchase histories. Match people who have similar sizes/purchase histories, and then alert them to each other and see if they want to trade.

They could also let you (with a widget/bookmarklet) "shop" on other, non-partner sites and mark things you've bought, which would add that thing automatically to your "closet".

For every person who says "eeeew ... used clothes?" there will be two who will buy that extra sweater if they know they can sell or swap it in a few months for something new-to-them.

Having people upload their own stuff is so old-web, and too much work. Make it passive, or nearly passive, and you're more than halfway there. A really useful site would know/figure out (with my permission) what I've already bought, and then would ping me when people who have similar tastes mark the stuff THEY already bought with a "willing to trade/sell" marker.

So I pose the questions to you, my dear readers. Would you use a site like OurThreads.com, as it is now? Would you take pictures of your stuff, describe it, put it up on this site, and then field requests to trade a pair of barely-worn GAP grass-green ballet flats for your barely-worn grass-green cardigan? (Not that I have a pair of shoes like that gathering dust in MY closet ...) I'm not sure I would. But I'd sign up for a passive, automatic-info-gathering clothing-swap site in a heartbeat ...

(And while I'm talking about advances in shopping tech -- someone has finally implemented my dream of a shop-by-color application. It's here at Yahoo! Shopping. Of course, in my dream it was by Pantone, but hey. You take what you can get. Now do you see why my pitch for a shopping-by-color service got third place in the Web 1.0 pitch contest at Wikimania 2006? Vindication is suh-weet.)

Labels: commerce, ebay, startups, yahoo

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Elsewhere DATE:Sep 25, 2007 8:57:00 AM FYI -- eBay is also about to unveil a whole new search feature that also includes a "shop by color" option.
The whole thing has some good points and some bad points. I think you can still check it out by looking for a link near the top of your screen that says "Sneak Peek: See what's changing on eBay" ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kimmer DATE:Sep 25, 2007 9:13:00 AM Etsy also has a "shop by color" feature. It's cool and fun, but I'm not sold on its usefulness. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jennifer DATE:Sep 25, 2007 9:25:00 AM I took a look, and I'm not impressed. There are no plus-size items for sale or trade, and I'm not interested in paying $30 for a kitschy T-shirt. I would be much more likely to use eBay, or consign/donate my own clothing. It's an interesting idea, but unless more people join the site it's a dud... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Holly Gab DATE:Sep 25, 2007 10:02:00 AM I'm inclined to agree with Jennifer. It's a dud site even if the users seem earnest and interested.

I'm not sure this would be a viable way for me to sell clothing which is what I do for a living. I sell vintage, but if I were just clearing out my closet, this sure seems like a lot of work to me.

If I had a spendy contemporary designer label to sell, I'd be inclined to sell it on eBay or just drop it for consignment rather than list it on this startup. After all, who's shopping this site?

Perhaps this would be a good tool to use to network to sell more similar stuff (say, certain sizes and designers that you could sell to a couple of people or a shop.)

If I had something I was looking for specifically, I might buy on the site. There's a pair of shoes I have that I'd love to buy again, but I'd have to be able to save a search (like you can on eBay) and be notified when those particular shoes in my size become available. (Hello, needle in haystack. Are you out there?)

I do think matching aesthetics and tastes would be a great way to browse closets. I'm not sure how one accomplishes that, though.

Some of my friends hold clothing swap parties. They bring whatever they don't want for trade with other friends. That seems like a fun thing to do. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Laura DATE:Sep 25, 2007 11:40:00 AM Interesting, it's rather like bookmooch, but for clothes. Obviously you need a large and diverse user base for this to work really well. There's a swap group on flickr that is quite active, though the demographics tend toward the young and small. I have seen a lot more swap parties and reuse things happening in my area, so there is interest.

I don't know whether someone like the Gap really wants to be involved in something like this - wouldn't they much rather sell you something new? Maybe a brand that has a 'green' approach might be interested. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Chi-Wai DATE:Sep 25, 2007 12:00:00 PM Hi,

Don't think it will succeed mainly because as has been commented already, Ebay is expanding functionalities and people will not use every niche blog out there.

Rarther than getting big retail players in the picture, it would be more clever (and cheaper) to write a Facebook application that would use Facebook's existing Network.
Google is also opening up its data for applications btw.

Cheers
Chi-Wai
chi-wai.com ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Brian Finn DATE:Sep 25, 2007 12:23:00 PM Hi, dressaday:

I'm one of the co-founders of OURthreads and read your post with interest. We are nice people and appreciate you noticing.

Your comments, and those of your readers, are very interesting and have provided some great feedback for us. When we created OURthreads we were trying to create a place where people could go to realize value for items they owned (whether they designed them or just didn't like the style any more).

Our goal has been to create a community that is friendly, personal, and easy to navigate. Whether we succeed in the end will be up to our users. Admittedly, we are small and don't have much of a marketing budget to extend our reach just yet.

In any event, thanks for taking a look and we look forward to the comments (especially those that are critical). They make us better. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gail DATE:Sep 25, 2007 12:46:00 PM Nobody wants my old clothes! Even I don't want them as I wear my stuff out and since half of it is homesewn and plus sized, I don't think there is a market for my old rags. I'm hard to fit in the best of times and I'm amazed that people can buy stuff on line and it will fit them! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

MadeByAmanda DATE:Sep 25, 2007 1:22:00 PM I don't know, the idea sounds interesting to me. I have had awful luck with E-bay and have sworn it off, and it would be nice to make a little money off of the things that I have but don't wear. The problem, of course, is user base. But how will they ever get one if no one signs up? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

MadeByAmanda DATE:Sep 25, 2007 1:28:00 PM Having looked at it, the thing I find most annoying is that when you look at an item and then push "back", you have to enter your search all over again. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Melis DATE:Sep 25, 2007 1:33:00 PM I would rather buy or sell stuff than trade it, and there's not enough people there to make it worth my while. I'm getting ready to sell some of my clothes on the livejournal group inbetweenies, where it's all for sizes 12-18. I've bought clothes on there before too. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Susan Marie DATE:Sep 25, 2007 1:43:00 PM I like the idea of it, but I'm not sold on the actual site yet. I will have to check back in a while to see if the user base has grown. Until then, I will continue to free-shop in my sister's voluminous closet! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Adrienne DATE:Sep 25, 2007 2:59:00 PM I would rather make my own clothes that fit my immenseness and compliment my less than youthful skintones with totally inappropriate for my age prints and ruffles. I would be interested though in the unusual sweater that is fitted and pretty, without the bag, sag and typical birhouses on them.

I'd look, but probably not buy.

As well; I give my discharged items in good shape to charity. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy Bea DATE:Sep 25, 2007 6:53:00 PM I took a quick look, and it just wouldn't work for me. I could see a lot of other folks getting into it, seems like a nice group running it, but the prices are generally too high and the choices too limited for my tastes. I'd rather spend an hour browsing the local church resale shop than navigating and clicking on this site. The real time thrift shop gives you an additional free perk: the thrill of the hunt! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lupinbunny DATE:Sep 26, 2007 4:14:00 AM I think the big 'plus' for requiring users to photograph their own actual item (rather than being able to 'tag' it off the website they bought it) is that you can see exactly what kind of condition it is in and, once you get to high-ish end brands, whether it is genuine. I'm a member of a forum that has a lot of clothing swaps go on, and discrepencies between users understanding of 'as new', or what can be done to a garment when it is 'worn once' are the cause of a bit of angst. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 26, 2007 5:09:00 AM I'd rather buy and sell my stuff at Specialist Auctions. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dusty Penguin DATE:Sep 26, 2007 7:22:00 AM Clothing/shoe sizes on OurThreads need to be obvious on the first page you see. I don't want to have to click 3-4 times to find the size then realize I was wasting time looking in a closet where nothing fits. Was I missing something? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jayne DATE:Sep 27, 2007 3:21:00 AM I know what you mean! So many websites that are good ideas just never seem to take off.

But hey if it's a free service, it can't hurt to give it a go. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 28, 2007 7:28:00 AM USED CLOTHES??? YES YES YES
I shop thrift stores for practically all my clothes. What you see is what you get--it's been washed and worn so it if still looks great you know there will be no surprises after YOU wash and wear it. I routinely buy Liz Claiborne, Ann Taylor and other brands that make it such fun to go in a thrift store--it's just like a treasure hunt. And kids clothing there is GREAT. All those brands it kills you for your kid to grow out of--painless when you get it for a few bucks....

just say YES to used clothing!! ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: I Don't Know What You People Are Thinking DATE: 8:50 AM ----- BODY:

Seriously. Holly at LuciteBox Vintage has had this up as a Buy-It-Now on eBay for like, a week now and it's STILL THERE. I was looking at my list of to-be-blogged topics and thought "There's no way that dress is still up," but when I went to check, it was. Sheesh! What is up? Is everyone still getting back from Labor Day vacation? Are you still trying to get that last week of wear out of your summer sandals? Does everyone have the horrific head cold I came down with?

I mean, check out the back:

That alone should have made you hit that handy "Buy It Now" button.

Anyway, it's navy, B36/W26, and just plain gorgeous, and pretty affordable at $74.

Everyone should have a very structured dark dress for the days where you Mean Business. This is a brook-no-nonsense, take-no-prisoners dress. I have one that is black crepe and insanely severe; but it can go from lady-scientist to hardcore-vamp with a change of shoes and a slash of red lipstick. This is one of those dresses, and believe me, once you have a dress like this you feel a renewed sense of confidence. It's like having a $100 bill in your pocket, an unmetered parking space, a new pair of kickass shoes, and a fantastic idea, all at once. Even when you're not wearing it. Just having it in your closet, ready to pull out in case of emergency, is enough.

So why is this one still available? I don't know. I am going to have to fall back on my traditional there's-no-good-explanation explanation: sunspots.

Labels: ebay, neiman_marcus, vintage

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca Spang DATE:Sep 18, 2007 9:39:00 AM The dress IS gorgeous, and there MAY be sunspot activity, but there could be other explanations. Such as: it's navy, which can be tricky to match. It should fit me in the waist but I might have to take in the bust--and that would be difficult, given how structured it is. And, finally, buying vintage on-line strikes me as an inherently risky venture. For all the glories of a well-wielded tape measure, it's still important to TRY IT ON. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 18, 2007 9:42:00 AM Aaaaack! The neck is choking me! Give me a pair of scissors now! Phew. Relief. I feel better now. Oops. I ruined a vintage dress. Now I have a real story to tell when I sell in on eBay, just like that mom who sold an ordinary baseball for a gazillion dollars. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ladygrande DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:04:00 AM Well, darn! I was that size in 1964. Not now! If I was, that dress would be mine. Can't talk my girls into it either - they like casual. Don't forget - it needs a little hat!

Marie ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

WendyB DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:04:00 AM Lovely! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kim p. DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:06:00 AM For me, too many dark stars aligned: the navy star, the 26-inch-waist star, and the choking-collar star. And, for some reason, it makes me think this is exactly what a severe schoolmarm at David Copperfield's school would have worn! Sorry! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

ita DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:14:00 AM *Maybe* we're thinking that we have a closet full of unworn dresses this blog has *forced* us to buy, and are trying to behave. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nora DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:26:00 AM I guess you can take the girl out of the library, but not the library out of the girl, because I love it. I love the structured top and all the leg room underneath (so you can really kick ass in it).

Sadly it's a mite (and by mite, I mean 3-4") too small for me. Too bad, because I've got several pairs of shoes I could wear with such a dress now (red slides, wine patent pumps, and brown curved-heel boots...) And how great would it look with these tights I'm coveting:
http://www.sock-dreams.com/_shop/pages/socks_detail_ProductID_352.php ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Sarah DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:31:00 AM When I first saw it--I thought,"School marm", too!! Eesh...much too severe, too tiny waisted, choking neckline. But I'm sure there is a one-of-a-kind gal who can fill this dress and knock off a great look...somewhere out there. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:42:00 AM I would have a hard time getting into it. I would need emergency lipsuction to remove, well, half of my bust, 6 inches from my waist, the hips would work (I am smaller on bottom than on top), and I have lots of shoes I could wear, and I never adverse to an excuse to buy another pair...*grins*

Linda ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tracy DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:54:00 AM I adore this dress, EXCEPT the collar. I've been toying with buying it myself, but then there's that collar again. If only it was a simple round neck. I have the "most" perfect Aurora Borealis choker with matching cuff to good with it a simple neckline....sigh

If I could see/touch this dress and know that I could remove the collar then yeah, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

kathyg DATE:Sep 18, 2007 10:58:00 AM Lovely dress, but oh...to have a 26" waist..in my dreams! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Miss Kitty DATE:Sep 18, 2007 11:03:00 AM It's so gorgeous...and I'm still too big. %^$@#$%@^!!!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jora DATE:Sep 18, 2007 11:18:00 AM My heart just skipped a beat for this dress. Alas, it's just not working for me size-wise. It is quite inspiring though. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 18, 2007 11:22:00 AM Tiny waist + relatively large bust + choker collar = very hard for most of us to fit into. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Tea DATE:Sep 18, 2007 11:26:00 AM I would like to find the pattern for this dress because I would un-choke the neck, make the waist bigger and the bust smaller, and have the perfect winter dress to make again and again. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Lady Be Good DATE:Sep 18, 2007 12:21:00 PM For my part, although I love the structure and color of the dress, I take issue with superfluous fabric flaps. I can't figure out why this seems 'superfluous' to me, and not "devinely detailed", but it does. Oh yea... and its too small;) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

woodsywoman DATE:Sep 18, 2007 12:47:00 PM I'm no novice when it comes to hitting the BIN button or taking a leap of tape-measured faith in terms of vintage fabulosity. And fabulous this is. Problem is, I already have a few of these Fierce Fraulein dresses and far too few occasions that call for them. You're right about the instant confidence they impart. I pull mine out whenever I need to strike fear in the heart of an underling or convince a client that I really am much more experienced than I look. I see the dress is gone now; may the buyer enjoy her new-found powers of intimidation! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Mami Castaneda DATE:Sep 18, 2007 2:55:00 PM This is EXACTLY the kind of dress I would buy - exactly - except for the fact that I don't fit into it. In fact, I am on the plus-side of plus-size, so the one on ebay is a no-go. Then again, give me a pattern to adjust and I'd make mine in a heart-beat. I've gotten GOOD at adjusting looks for petite women into curvy-friendly numbers! :-)

I love your blog. Thanks! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

lsaspacey DATE:Sep 18, 2007 3:16:00 PM Apparently all it needed was you dear, because it is now GONE. Congrats! You are the word of wisdom and the remedy to sunspots. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 18, 2007 3:18:00 PM yep I'm joining the if only my waist was a 26 I would now own that dress crew, perhaps there is a pattern for the larger around of us who still would like to own an "I Mean Business" dress. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kristen DATE:Sep 18, 2007 4:05:00 PM perfect dress for the perfect measurements. if only i could have "pregnant boobs" without the belly that goes with it, i might have the right measurements. (that sounds like i'm pregnant. i'm not, i'm just SAYING) :) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

angldst DATE:Sep 18, 2007 4:49:00 PM Darn, that dress would fit me, I'd look good innit, and I'd find shoes on the rack 'o d00m on the back of my bedroom door for it. Sadly, I clicky, and someone else has gotten there before me & snapped it up. *cry*.

Oh, well. There will be other dresses, oh yes.

-d ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Minya, Warrior Seamstress DATE:Sep 18, 2007 6:20:00 PM I'm not sure I understand "very structured" as it applies to dresses. Can someone explain? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Adrienne DATE:Sep 18, 2007 7:25:00 PM Like it - modest, pretty and only a bit short for my taste; have no money and too much fat. I have to learn to cut out the beenies and weenies so I can make one for myself... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Scarlett DATE:Sep 18, 2007 7:53:00 PM Minya, I interpret "structured" as just that - made with fabrics that stand up, crisp straight lines, and lots of very...buttoned-up and defined details. A pencil skirt = very structured, a peasant skirt = totally not. If I can picture it holding up without a person in it, that's VERY structured. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Dusty Penguin DATE:Sep 18, 2007 8:06:00 PM I could never get into it either, but I really like it. I, too, have reservations about the collar. It seems to sit too high and the collar itself looks too small for the dress. I'd like the round neck idea with a vintage crocheted lace detachable collar. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Gail DATE:Sep 18, 2007 8:14:00 PM I didn't like it on sight, but now with the other comments I realize why. Way too tight neck! I don't understand the front flap thingy either, I mean what is it? That plus I'm also a Plus size. Glad someone found it and gave it a home. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

ambika DATE:Sep 18, 2007 8:54:00 PM I love it. It's the 26 inch waist that would have stopped me from buying it.

The front panel is so nautical, which is so me. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 18, 2007 9:21:00 PM The mere sight of that neckline is making me claustrophobic. Let me out! Let me out!
Rita ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 18, 2007 9:53:00 PM i'm thinking damn i wish that was a few sizes bigger! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Help I need a user name! DATE:Sep 18, 2007 11:35:00 PM My first thought, upon seeing the first picture, was "Now izz the time on Shhprockkits ven vee dahhhnce!"

The back is, indeed, stunning; alas, I, too, would have to cut the neck out. I can't stand things touching my neck. Even necklaces. (((shudder))) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Defrost Indoors DATE:Sep 19, 2007 12:25:00 AM I agree, it's great except for the collar. By gum, though, you'd feel ten feet tall and bulletproof in that one!

For something a bit more festive (and easy to breathe in), check out this piece:

http://tinyurl.com/2v3wga ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 19, 2007 6:05:00 AM Wh is the collar tight? We wear turtlenecks, and we let FAR TOO MUCH OUT these days concerning our breasts anyway - espcially the over 35 crowd and up who do not realize their'buddies' just do nt look good anymore, anyway!

Beautify America; COVER! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jillian DATE:Sep 19, 2007 9:52:00 AM Wow, this is such a beautiful dress. I love all of the auctions. Thanks for the recommendation. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

;-) Gloom Pussy DATE:Sep 19, 2007 10:42:00 AM always a pleasure to see the adorable Holly Lucitebox featured! and you are so right about the Ida-Lupino-aspect of the authoritative energy that dress inspires.... ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

andapanda-rlf DATE:Sep 19, 2007 2:42:00 PM Holly Lucitebox has a real flair for style. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 19, 2007 4:17:00 PM it's NAVY
and $74 ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kathleen DATE:Sep 20, 2007 6:43:00 PM When I grow up, I want to be just like you. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 20, 2007 10:27:00 PM Can I say it's ugly? Becuase I think it is. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

dianabobar DATE:Sep 21, 2007 1:59:00 AM love the waist part! amazing! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Robinson DATE:Sep 21, 2007 9:05:00 PM Eh? 35 and up? Sorry, but I know many a woman, 35 and up, who can still pull off a tasteful decollete. Give me a break... 35 and up. Sheesh. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Nancy Bea DATE:Sep 22, 2007 7:57:00 AM Great dress, yes, but that neck has me choking just looking at it. Would definitely need to try it on before dropping $75.

You made me aware that I really need a severe scary dress dress in my closet, though,for confidence building through wardrobe building! ;-) ----- -------- AUTHOR: Erin TITLE: Be Afraid! DATE: 8:18 AM ----- BODY:

Oh, yes, for nefarious reasons of my own I have purchased TWO HUNDRED YARDS of rick-rack trim (from Threadart, on eBay).

Why? Well, that's for me to know, and you to find out, as the elementary-school kids say. Let's just say that if it works it will be dreadful and exhilarating in equal amounts. I hope.

If you turn up your computer speakers you'll be able to hear my evil-genius cackling.

Don't worry, though. I have no plans to blow up the moon. At this time.

Labels: ebay, nefarious_plans

----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 11, 2007 8:30:00 AM All that rickrack reminds of the rickrack stripes that used to show up on my dresses when I was small. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 11, 2007 8:47:00 AM "Are you thinking what I am thinking, Pinky?"

Linda ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Kate DATE:Sep 11, 2007 9:02:00 AM Oh! I just loooooooooooove rick rack. Did you know you can make great sleeves of it by tacking together the peaks, row after row? That's if you enjoy hand stitching.

Reminds me of a mustard colored circular Mexican skirt I used to have when I was a kid with rows and rows of rick rack (sigh)!
K Q:-) ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 11, 2007 9:49:00 AM Sheesh, in that color combo I sure hope this is going to be a costume! Clown? Mrs. Crayola? Rainbow Brite? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Ladygrande DATE:Sep 11, 2007 10:07:00 AM Well, I know what I'd do with all that wonderful rick rack - don't you just love that name - rick rack? ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 11, 2007 10:13:00 AM I LOVE rick rack. Absolutely adore it. I've been known to buy things--clothing, pillows, etc.--just because they were decorated with rick rack. So have fun with it. But remember to use your powers only for good, Erin! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Little Bitsys DATE:Sep 11, 2007 10:19:00 AM Hi there, love your blog, scary there are other people like me out there. I bought 30 yards of POM POMS on eBay recently, eek. Brown. And when it arrived, it smelled, yuk. And it was kind of funky, nothing I could use on clothing. And the poms were attached to the trim with wire, it was bizarre. Oh well, live and learn. LOVE your rick rack!!! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Canine Diamond DATE:Sep 11, 2007 10:22:00 AM I just saw an eBay listing for a rather un-PC-named item called a "squaw apron". I think they were referring to the Southwestern-style colored trim. Anyway, it was a full-circle tie-on overskirt kind of thing with a big ruffle and loads of colored rick-rack trim. It was gorgeous. I didn't buy it since it was just a Fifties gathered skirt without the back seam closed, but I did swipe the picture for future reference. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Rebecca DATE:Sep 11, 2007 11:08:00 AM Erin, you are indeed a fount of every blessing.
I have rolls of rick-rack in my sewing closet. I've used a mere fraction of the stuff and was just thinking that I'd better include its distribution in my will so the children wouldn't fight over it. Then along comes your, as usual, excellent example.
I await your dreadful exhilaratingness with bated breath. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jonquil DATE:Sep 11, 2007 11:41:00 AM My guess: You're making a circle skirt of NOTHING BUT RICKRACK. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

TransplantedOkie DATE:Sep 11, 2007 12:21:00 PM Please give me a call should you need a minion to help with your evil-genius plans! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Scarlett DATE:Sep 11, 2007 12:32:00 PM Well, I would do scalloped hems on everything I owned until the end of time, if I had 200 yards of rick-rack, but presumably you're doing something a little more in-depth than that. ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Jen ~ MOMSPatterns DATE:Sep 11, 2007 12:57:00 PM You got tired of piecing together silver gum wrappers to MAKE rick rack so you just bought some.

That's MY guess.. lol ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR:

Anonymous DATE:Sep 11, 2007 12:58:00 PM Squaw skirts, as they were called in the 50s, were quite popular and often had a matching top. The sets were called patio sets. And yes, they were almost always decorated with rick-rack! ----- COMMENT: AUTHOR: