My first vintage crush

OMG gorgeous fifties dress

I’ve talked before about how vintage styles mostly don’t really do it for me. Either I don’t have the right figure (40s and 50s) or I don’t like the style (20s and 60s. For that matter, 70s and 80s, too. Yes, I know I just cut out a VERY 70s sundress. I am attempting to pass beyond my prejudices). However, some of my favourite blogs are by vintage fashionistas (Gertie’s being the biggest, of course), so I kind of get pulled along for the ride. And I like a lot of what I see, even if I can’t picture myself actually wearing much of it.

But, the other day I stumbled from Gertie’s blog onto the Blue Gardenia, and there I found… this gorgeous thing.

This is officially my first Vintage Crush.

Look at that waist line (down-up-down)! Look at that back detail! Look at that interesting front seaming. Look at that…

Price tag. Ulp.

Folks, I am never going to own this pattern. Even if it were in my size (it’s a 40″ bust… I’m a 33″. I could probably make it for my husband, but I don’t think he’d appreciate it…) it’s listed at $125. Yowza. I haven’t managed to justify spending $20 on a Colette pattern yet (and believe me, I slaver over Ceylon and the Lady Grey almost daily).

But oh, do I want to knock it off.  I can’t even begin to imagine how except perhaps by draping, and I haven’t got a dress form (much less one fitted to my particular body). While I read a lot about pattern-drafting and like to think I could theoretically do it, in practice, I rarely have. Never for something complex.)

It even makes me love the French darts, and I hate French darts. Also, for the record, I’ve yet to sew myself a real skirt, much less a real dress, much less a crazy fancy fitted dress with complex seaming like this.

Alright, I’m going to whimper to myself for a bit now. We spent most of the day gallivanting (it’s one of the first truly nice weekends we’ve had yet this year) and now I have to clean the house (which is a catastrophe due to my past few days’ intensive sewing) and all that responsible stuff, to likely no sewing today. Poop.