That is right a REAL DRESS!!!
Okay, I am so excited about having made a real dress. It is scary to think about these bigger projects when you see the yardage they require. Then, if you think about making a "muslin" and your local store has muslin for (egads) 6.00 a yard, that is an extra 36.00, or so, for your project. Quel Spendy, darling.
Wait, all my books say sewing is THRIFTY.. and that becomes a 90.00 dress at the CHEAPEST. ( granted.. I have seen many a multi thousand dollar garment in my styling days, so I will admit that properly executed dresses of good material for 90.00 are pretty cheap. Comparatively. But Apparently, I am pretty cheap... Comparatively.) I do hate living up to the bitter part of my "nom de blog" (unless we are discussing coffee or chocolate or deliciously snarky sarcasm about brainless celebrities and political figures, of course) so I discovered a way to work out a new pattern on the Super Cheap and if you are careful, you can wear your muslin as the playdress version.
This is made from a 2 dollar vintage thrift store sheet and thrifted buttons too. (Frugal is such an ugly word.. let's say Resourceful and Clever.)
It is nice because I did have to practice (read: install it, lament, re-pin it on the ironing board with 3 times the pins, and reinstall ) to get the box pleated skirt even close to right. If I made this for evening, out of something Fancy, I would not pin, but would hand baste each pleat to get them Perfect. I would also tack each pleat to a pinboard in order to do that. It is a lot of skirt (1 hour 45 minutes to hand hem) and the pins pull loose when you hit the machine to baste it, because of the weight.
So as much as I would hate to admit to being practical ( Puh-leeze!), I am so excited that I found a way to make a 5 yard dress for 2.25. I may even start buying ugly sheets just because they are cheaper than muslin.
At least until the fabric fairies start leaving me yardage under my pillow. ( Can you believe the spiteful 'lil sprites wrecked my photo like this? just because I was going to do the Woodland Cribs for ya'll.)
31 comments:
for a moment there, i thought you were smoking a doobie.
i love it! great work. i want a frock!!!
It's darling, Scarlett. I didn't know muslin was so expensive but I'm notoriously bad at doing money related mathematics.
I don't understand why the 'fug critics' hate leggings so much. You make me want to get some.
Hi - I found your blog today looking at Flicker. Congratulations on your adorable outfits and great looking blog. I feel your pain about the price of fabric, using a vintage sheet was a great idea.
I used to sew all the time but now I mostly make jewelry and blog.
I love your idea of refashioning vintage patterns. Best wishes from chilly Minnesota.
Hee... I adore shewing with sheets! :D Dress is darling... as are you!
Bethany, your skillz astound me (mainly because I don't have any, but whatevs...)love the dress!
CUTE dress! I would totally wear that.
I love it, though I was confused at first, you are advocating wearing the muslin? Play Dress as in negligee? Sheer stuff that muslin, best in the bedroom. Then I got clear. Don't worry, it take a while for me sometimes. Those button holes? Beautiful. The box pleats? Works of freakin' art. You rule.
I adore the dress!! your pleats are practically perfect in ever way! :) As always, your photos are so lovely!!! And i hear my stack of hoarded thrifted floral sheets caaaaaaaalling me.....
Dang, you sew really well.
I'm embarrassed of my own lousy skills but I suppose it takes practice before I end up something as lovely as your dress. Good score on the fabric by the way.
great dress, great photos!
that dress is amazing on you. the end.
More and more I just want to be like you! That dress looks great. You did a fantastic job.
Muslin shouldn't be more than three or four dollars a yard, though even at that price it can be prohibitive. I think the only way to do it is to buy bolts of it wholesale.
However, I think using old sheets is brilliant! I never see any in the thrift shops that I would actually want to wear though, must be because you and all these other lucky bloggers out there got them first.
I'm kicking myself now because I had this ten year old duvet cover that was ripping and had been retired. I couldn't think of a thing to do with it because I'm not fond of the color and the fabric was pretty worn out anyway, but it would have been perfect to use for mock ups. Sheesh. Now I know what to do with things like that.
This is great! When I saw the pictures, I thought for sure that you were going to say that the fabric cost even more than the $90 estimate. Wow. It is so much more relaxing to sew seams when you aren't thinking about how much it would cost to fix a huge mistake. Your pleats rock.
What a beautiful dress! I really love the collar.
Hooray for thrifted sheets!
Do people stop you on the street to ask where you get your lovely clothes?
How Clever and Resourceful you are!
Snappy, too.
Adorable photos and what a fabulous dress! Bravo!
Love it. Seriously. And the footless tights? I was rockin them when I was a young mom. (ok, 30's mom) I love how it turned out and how you look in it. I'd love to be slim enough to pull it off, so I could ride my pink cruiser bike around town and look darling, like you!
excellent idea to use thrift store sheets and you can then use the dress at home -- it looks to be alovely summer frock...
it's divine!
maybe muslin is worth the effort after all..
Hello, I followed a link to you from somewhere...I don't know now because I was much too distracted by your cuteness :D I love your box pleats and that your have rocks in your garden that say 'happily - ever - after' And thank you for reminding me that I have a half sewn sheet dress somewhere that would be perfect for spring!
This is gorgeous! Just gorgeous! I especially like it with the green tights and shoes - what an eye for fashion you have!
All that and brains, too. You're quite a gal! :)
The dress is amazing.. The sheet idea is ingenious! And, the location of your pics! You could have a lovely largely sought after catalog at your fingertips....As your photos look like shots for an out of the box incredibly wonderful clothing shop....You are darling!xxo,Vanessa...
Love your photo shoots! I really like how you layer the dress with your leggings...so cute!
that is the cutest and you are very Resourseful, ma'am! I just don't know how you sewing people do it! you lost me at ironing board... wha?
Can't wait to see the next installment.
Wow, that dress turned out great! It surely doesn't resemble a sheet anymore. Remember, I only saw it in pieces, when you were lamenting the box pleats. (This is Alex's mom by the way...)
Absolutely darling!!!
Post a Comment