My Watermelon Dress

On my last post I mentioned that I made 1 1/2 dresses in one day.  I started and finished the pink dress, and finished this one.  When I look at this dress the first word that comes to my mind is watermelon, thus the name of this post.  Although this dress has daisies on it, the green and melon color draws my attention first.

 This pattern is a Simplicity 7629 from 1968.  There isn't one distinct view I followed.  I did not use a bow or neck ruffle but I did add a lace trim around the skirt.  For a 32 1/2'' bust the final dress ended up pretty big on me.  I'm starting to think I'm giving my petite frame too much credit.

Something about this dress makes me feel like a kid.  I'm not sure if I should give credit to the silhouette, the ruffled hem, the fact that it's a bit loose, or the bright colors.  No matter what the reason is, I love the outcome and the way I feel when wearing it.  It is really exciting to recognize that I love each project more than the last, and that I am wearing them more than I ever have!  (I've worn this dress 3 times in the last 2 weeks or so!)

My Pink Dream Dress (And Pattern)

Whenever I picture myself wearing dresses I've made, for some reason they are always pink, floral print, or covered in lace, bows or ribbon.  Rarely thus far has this dream been a reality.  I made this dress with the mind to put all the things I have dreamed of into it. I am in love with this dress, my friends.  It even matches my favorite pair of shoes.

My dream dress was made from a vintage Simplicity 7955 sewing pattern from the 1960s.  I used view 3, but decorated the final product quite a bit.  The dress was so simple to construct. No, really.  I made this and half of another dress (post coming soon) in one day!

I am in love with how basic this pattern is.  It makes a great fitting dress and leaves room to the imagination on how to dress it up be it with ribbon, lace, bows, fringe, fake flowers, rhinestones, or anything else you can think up! 

Please forgive the creases, but I took these pictures after a day's wear.  Ignoring that it needs to be pressed, lets move our attention to the lace details!  They are, in my opinion, what really makes this dress so cute.  I weaved a peach colored ribbon in and out of the lace then sewed two stripes down the front.  But you probably didn't even notice the best part because I haven't shown a close up:

I added cute tiny bows at the top of both strips of lace!  When I look at clothes, I first notice the shape and color, but I fall in love with the details.  I wanted to put all of my favorite details (bows, lace, ribbon, floral, and pink) into one fantastic dress.  May I say mission accomplished? 

Because I have worn this dress so many times, I am planning many variations but I keep going back to the idea of a white lace version with  a turquoise lining peeking through. Possibly a giant turquoise bow on the bust?  Thoughts?

A Small Paint Job Makes A Huge Difference

Here is yet another small glimpse into my room post-makeover!  It is this close to being finished.  But it's not so I don't think I will show it off yet.  Hang in there, friends.  I want it done too!

Last weekend I went to an estate sale and bought this organizer for $1.50.  It's cute as is, but I saw more potential in it.  When I first saw it I pictured it on my vanity full of vintage stationery.  The only thing I needed to do was paint it a color that matched my room.  Any guesses as to what color that could be..?

Pink!

Now all I need are cute sparkly pens to go in the front spaces with my sparkly earbuds.

A High Collar And Upcoming Plans

Now would be a magnificent time to mention how I have thrown myself into quite the sewing frenzy.  Today was the start of spring break, and I have big plans.  What are these plans, you ask?  To sew one garment a day.  I have always been a speedy seamstress in my year and a half career and want to take complete advantage of this by pushing my abilities.  I need to because I really want to participate in a Me-Made-May,  meaning I only wear articles of clothing that I have made for the entire month.  I definitely do not have enough pieces to do that. 

If I want a month's wardrobe I will need separates to optimize the amount of outfits I will be able to wear.  I figure this challenge will not only push my sewing capabilities, but also my style.  I might be forced to mix patterns and colors I wouldn't dare before just for the sake of not repeating outfits!  This is a golden opportunity that should not be wasted.

Anyhoo, back to this project.  It is a shirt from Simplicity 5563 (view 3).  

I would have never used this pattern if it weren't for Mad Men.  It would have been one I bought simply because I am a vintage pattern hoarder.  This style of collar is one I shy away from because it is so stinkin' tall!  It scared me a bit. But the women rock these collars in Mad Men.  They look amazing!  So, I simply had to have one too.  Fortunately that didn't come at a big price at all.  I paid $0.50 for the pattern and this fabric was given to me.  

The collar for this pattern actually was quite the beast.  I have no comprehension why but it was inches larger than it was meant to be.  As in 6 inches larger. The dumb thing overlapped itself in the back when the pattern and instructions show the ends not even touching!  It was an easy enough fix, but it was time consuming.  

Have I mentioned that it buttons up the back?

I adore shirts that button from behind. They look classy and are a fun way to mix things up. (anyone out there as obsessed with reverse buttons as I am? No?)

 I am really excited about my project going through this week and I already have two more pieces ready for posting!  

My One Day Project

My most recent project (I started this afternoon and finished an hour ago) was a vintage Simplicity 4213, view 2.  I made my shirt in a vintage floral rayon which was a bit of a problem being that this particular fabric was very thin, and it was exceptionally stretchy.  It is a bit shorter than most modern styles but that is just fine with me since I plan on almost always wearing it with high waisted skirts.  The darts that make the waist fitted will definitely come in handy so I wont have a lot of extra fabric hanging over the bands of my skirts!  If I were to remake this pattern I would probably use one long zipper in the back of the shirt rather than have a smaller one on the side seam underneath my left arm.  Because the waist is so fitted even with the zipper undone, I have to be careful when pulling the shirt over my shoulders.  Overall, I really like this pattern and I love that it is such a fast project. The fact that the pattern was $1 and the fabric was free doesn't hurt either! I do plan on revisiting this soon, but I might try view 4 next.

Waist Training

While I've been away from blogging I bought a 20" CS426 corset from Orchard Corset! I purchased it with the full intention to waist train, which is basically wearing a corset daily to train my floating ribs to move, making my waist smaller. (Please forgive all of my pictures being bathroom and bedroom mirror selfies, I hadn't planned for a post.)

When I wear my corset visibly I get quite a few questions:

     •Can you breathe? Yes, I can most definitely breathe. 

     •Does it hurt? Nope! It was uncomfortable the first few times I wore it, especially at school when I would sit still for a long period of time. I would be so excited between classes to sit up and stretch my back. Now I sometimes forget I'm wearing it!

     •Is it dangerous? Not if you train correctly! Do your research first! I have heard comments about how a corset will displace your organs. Your organs will move more during a pregnancy than when waist training. Again, it will not hurt your body if you do research. 

     •Why would you do that to your body? Because I like it! Corseting helps me earn a vintage figure instantly. After a long period of time waist training my natural, uncorseted waist can shrink. I get a lot of people that look at me with disapproving stares. My proportions are pretty stinking exaggerated and extreme in person but I love the way it looks, even though many don't. It corrects my posture and makes me feel confident. Corseting makes me happy!

     •How small is your waist?  Naturally without a corset my waist is 25 inches. When I wear a corset I usually wear it tightened to 23 or 22.5 inches externally. Just a couple inches makes a massive difference. Over time I will close my corset and buy an 18 inch!

Tea

Over a cup of tea I would tell you...

Life is crazy. I haven't gone without posting this long since I started blogging! I haven't been doing a lot of things I love, actually. I have not finished one painting since school started. I haven't sewn a vintage dress in what feels like an eternity (but good news, missed readers, I have some projects underway!).  The majority of this year has been spent lazy and uninspired, which makes me want to cry! I have even been wearing jeans. 

Luckily, the vintage fairies paid me a visit while I was sleeping and punched me in the face with inspiration. I have finally begun dressing up again, I cleaned my room and picked up restyling it again, I watched the first half of Mad Men season one last night, I dusted off my neglected sewing machine and used it. And you know what? Simple things like these make me happy. And I always need to make time for them.

I'm not saying this ol' blog will be updated daily (as nice as that'd be). But I will do my best to post regularly. Thank you to any readers that have miraculously not given up on me!