Friends, this outfit makes me so happy. I would say that 95% of that happiness comes from the skirt being SO FLUFFY.
Top: Heavy rose pink cotton from stash, Vogue 5542 (Ebay)
Skirt: Heavy cotton/upholstery tulip fabric, via Mama Grand; Advance 8781
Crinoline: $25 from Dethrose Vintage at the Randolph Street Market
I know it's Springtime in Chicago when the tulips appear. Mayor Daley was serious in his attempts to beautify the city and so all of the flower beds on Michigan Avenue are filled to the brim with blooming tulips. It is simply intoxicating seeing all those colors as you walk down the street!
I know it's Springtime in Chicago when the tulips appear. Mayor Daley was serious in his attempts to beautify the city and so all of the flower beds on Michigan Avenue are filled to the brim with blooming tulips. It is simply intoxicating seeing all those colors as you walk down the street!
When Mama Grand passed along this tulip fabric to me, Michigan Avenue sprang to mind. I knew it would be perfect for this challenge, but I didn't know if I wanted to make a dress or a skirt. I just wanted to show off the border print as best as possible. It ended up that I had exactly enough fabric for the Advance skirt, and since I hadn't used this pattern yet, it worked out perfectly.
The pink cotton was also in my stash. I had originally set it aside to be used as a lining for a Simplicity skirt pattern, but since that pattern had yet to make it to the cutting table, I thought perhaps this challenge was a little more pressing. It also matched the skirt, which made it all the more difficult to resist.
I love stash busting - it might just be one of my favorite things.
We were able to take these pictures on the little flowerbed islands in the middle of the street. Cars were rushing past us the whole time, and one even honked at us. I forgot my New Year's resolution of no street fighting for a moment and yelled at him. *Sigh* I really am trying, I swear.
Looking north on Michigan Avenue. Hello, Hancock Building!
Facing south on Michigan - you can just see a corner of the Wrigley Building rightthere.
Rob wanted another photo of me sniffing the flowers, but as I leaned over, a bus drove by and my skirt flew up in the air - thus the awkward pose below. I hope the passengers on the bus liked my crinoline!
A close up of the skirt. I love how the pleats turned out in the end, though the side seams are a bit wonky due to trying to fit around the pleats. I was willing to accept that the pleats wouldn't be perfect on the sides as long as they looked good in the front and the back. The skirt also started out seven inches longer, but I chopped that off in order to have the skirt hem and crinoline hem be somewhat even.
The top was just a mess. I was hoping that I could throw it together quickly, but it ended up taking four hours on its own. I am not good at resizing vintage patterns, I'll just put that out there. I think this top was originally meant to be loose, so when I added the extra inches to take it from a 34" bust to my 37 1/2", it became even more loose. It was swimming on my dress form.
I had to tear out the front princess seams three times. Finally, I decided to bring the front of the bodice in by adding a pleat a la Sorbetto. This took care of the huge amount of fabric in the front, and then I went back to tackling the princess seams. I managed to finally line everything up near its necessary location, and though the princess seams are still off, they match and I am happy with that. Once I had the blouse fit through the front and the sides, I realized that this was supposed to be a loose blouse and I had managed to take away all the wiggle room. Boom! Add buttons to the back a la Sencha and we are set to go. I also used the Coletterie's tips for bias trim for the neckline and armholes.
The buttons are peachy in color and are 1" wide. I love the look they create!
My photographer wanted a picture of me crossing the street. Here I am posing in the street.
Apparently, that was not what he wanted - he wanted me to walk normal. This is me pretending to walk normal but really it looks like I am throwing a tantrum or something. I might have been running to get out of the way of cars. Or to yell at that guy. Or that's just how I walk, which I hope isn't the case because wow, I look silly.
Since it's been a bit chilly lately, I paired the ensemble with my long green cardigan, which matches perfectly with the leaves in the skirt. Yay for not having closet orphans!
Running around a city in heels is hard. Few people can do it well, and I am not one of those people.
But alas, no rest for the wicked - someone was DETERMINED to get a picture of me wearing an apron and holding a vacuum cleaner. He would not let it drop. At all. It was getting pretty annoying, but finally, I gave in.
His direction: "look like you just won a unicorn made of puppies."
"We are so fresh and so clean clean."
Feminism: 1960
Feminism: Present Day
Yep. He got his picture, but I got mine too, AND I got a martini. So there.
He did get me back, though...
The ceiling, from my point of view, for the rest of the day. That martini was a whopper.
Thanks for reading all, and I hope you are having some sunshine and flowers where you are!
