I'm a lover of stripes - the nautical kind, the ones on zebras, even the ones on TV when a station doesn't come in - I'm all in, all the time. When this dress popped into my mailbox, I immediately loved because of those fun stripes!
"Hey Mariss - this dress comes to you straight outta my closet. I've worn it out - literally and physically. There are even holes to show for it. I figured you could use this in your collection because it seems like the fixes aren't that intense, but I'm just over it. This dress has had its time with me and needs to move on. Take good care - look forward to seeing what you do."
It's super cute as is, fun, 80s-esque, but had a bunch of holes on the seams, like what Casey was mentioning.
I figured I could keep the dress intact and just repair (which is totally a great idea) but I decided to use those holes to my advantage.
I started by pulling the threads that had ripped which made a fun gathered bit of material. Obviously I take pleasure in the little games I can play when I'm sewing, so bear with me :) I took scissors, snipped the thread, and pulled it completely out because this little hole was going to turn into one big one!!
I removed the top stripe of crimson and had a new one shoulder piece that I was getting very excited about!
I pinned down the edges to form a new seam and also took the piece in a few inches on both sides. Taking in a bit of material under the sleeve made the arm area a more fitted and pretty much guaranteed that I wouldn't pull a Nancy Grace from Dancing with the Stars snafu because I don't have an alleged "petal" underneath my dress hiding the chestal area.
Once everything was pinned, the dress got stitched right up and became the party frock to wear to meet up with friends in town from NY. I just got back from seeing them and now I get to have a fake de ja vu moment, seeing them again!!
I saw LGC, freshly back from her Hawaiian honeymoon...
I saw an awesomely bold striped chair that needed a little love...
I saw my gals and had a little catch up time...
And I saw RM to which we decided a photo just like the one we took in Vegas needed to happen again.
PS, all the dudes were in red plaid button downs. No joke, it looked like a holiday catalog from the Gap. I just wish I had photographic evidence of all the gentlemen in their garb!!
Thank you Casey for sending me such a fun piece to work on! I L.O.V.E, loved it!! Plus the compliments (even one from the doorman) were very satisfying!!
