Wednesday, January 2, 2013

A Birthday Outing



This dress has been in pieces for months.  It was originally meant for a mid-year Sew Weekly challenge, but something else must have come up because I folded the pieces with the pattern tissue and put it aside.


I have been wondering what happened to all of my pins for a couple of months – turns out, they were with this dress – whoops!  [From past experience I can tell you that it is a very bad habit to leave pins in fabric because after time they may rust - the same goes for brooches, so make sure to remove them from garments before storing.]


I ended up shortening the skirt and sleeve length.  I also raised the cutout of the back bodice so no special undergarments are needed.  Although, I did have to add two ribbon and snap bra wranglers.  The weight of the cuffs create a bit of pull through the shoulders and make the neckline want to slide off my shoulders - the loops help to keep everything in place. 


The dress was finished just in time for my birthday.


I spent the day with mom at the De Young Museum, enjoying the Rudolf Nureyev: A Life in Dance exhibit looking at pretty silk tulle and images of dancers.  


One of my favorite details was a scalloped edge on a few of the tutus.  Having worked with tulle in the past, I cannot imagine what a pain in the behind it must be to cut a scalloped edge that matches back to another layer of scalloped edge tulle!


The one thing that really surprised me was the quality.  The incredible fabrics and exquisite details are amazing and look more fashion house than costume shop.  


I cannot imagine there are more than a handful of dance companies in existence, if any, that use silk tulle and silk velvet these days.  What is even more amazing is that I spotted very few tears or repairs on the costumes.    


Oh, to be a ballerina and get to flounce around in a tutu!  Although the broken toes and bunions and pain cannot be fun - I will just admire the incredible athletes from afar!  I suppose those girls deserve some beautiful costumes to wear considering all of the sweat and tears that go into a single performance.


Dress:  Made by me, Simplicity 5876
Scarf:  Made by me
Earrings:  Shadows

15 comments:

  1. Lovely! I would love to see the exhibit at the DeYoung--alas, probably not possible. Happy Birthday!

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  2. I love this dress! It's an unusual look for you, and it works really well. The exhibit sounds fantastic.

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  3. Love the dress. I have this pattern and never thought of using a large graphic print to make it up. Thanks for the inspiration.

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  4. I'm seeing a '70s geometric design int his fabric - definitely a departure for you but stunning. Lovely dress pattern, I like the cuff detail.

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  5. How gorgeous is that!? I absolutely love that you used a vintage inspired pattern with a geometric print fabric choice to come up with a truly trendy 'maxi' dress. You are just beautiful in the dress.

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  6. I love the palette of this elegant dress. It's very cool, refined, serene and redolent of some of Picasso's work from his blue period.

    ♥ Jessica

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  7. This is a very pretty dress! I purchased this pattern and love seeing it sewn up.
    On a totally unrelated subject,I've been reading your blog for some time, so I noticed when someone posted a pattern to We Sew Retro today that the lady in the cover art is your vintage pattern doppelganger.
    http://wesewretro.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/inspiration2.jpg

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  8. Your dress is so very lovely.Such a nice adaptation of a very formal gown.

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  9. Love this funky but elegant look on you! I like the way the squares on the bodice front look almost like pockets.

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  10. Happy Birthday! What a beautiful dress! I love the colours of the fabric and they look great on you.

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  11. Love your dress....Wow! It looks modern and vintage all at the same time. I hope you had a wonderful Birthday! What pattern did you use for the scarf?

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    1. Thanks Kelly! The scarf is my own pattern. I just made a simple crochet grid in a long rectangle and then made a ruffle all around the edges. To make it more interesting, I randomly added beads as I was crocheting.

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    2. That's beautiful, thanks for sharing... :)

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  12. Beautiful!

    Years ago (pre-sewing hobby) I worked for American Ballet Theatre. The costumes were indeed breathtaking. Costumes are exquisitely made because you can't have trim or beads flying off mid fouette. As I recall they cost several thousand dollars each. Toe shoes cost $120+ a pair (that was over 10 years ago) and lasted for a single performance.

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  13. I am pink with envy! Beautiful dress - love the pattern and the colors! I wish I could find that Simplicity pattern, but alas, they are almost non-existent.

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