Tuesday, July 24, 2012

Next Up in VoNBBS: The Evening Dress




I’m gearing up to a big Vogue’s New Book for Better Sewing project: the Evening Gown. This is Vogue Pattern 7631. I plan on doing a series of posts this week about the pattern and the supporting text in VoNBBS, but let’s start with fabric, glorious fabric.


First let me confess: I’ve come to a decision that may be unpopular. I want to make the pattern tea length, rather than floor length. Shocking, I know. The thing is, with the fabric I found, I could only envision myself wearing it in a shorter length.

Are you ready? The fabric is this amazing embroidered illusion. It’s white with black floral motifs on top.


The underlaying fabric will be white silk taffeta, and the collar will be a crisp Swiss cotton organdy.


As you can imagine, the financial investment in these fine fabrics was not insignificant. Hence, I cannot stand the idea of making a floor length dress that won’t get worn.

But! To stay true to the VoNBBS vision, however, I also purchased some very festive Halloween fabrics from JoAnn to make this dress again in the fall. You see, Rosie and I are going to be witches this year and a full-length gown in purple organza flocked with black velvet spiderwebs (yes, that’s right) seems just the ticket. More to come on that later.

But for now, I’m just putting my intentions out there into the vast depths of the internet. I’ve already traced off the bodice pattern pieces and I’ll be making a muslin, hopefully later today. I plan to wear my underbust corset with this dress, so the fitting will be a little different than usual.

More to come tomorrow! Yay, VoNBBS!





52 comments:

  1. Oh my goodness, that illusion fabric is so beautiful. I would be scared to cut into something as lovely as that!

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  2. Exciting!! Can't wait to see the Halloween fabric, as well.

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  3. Oh, my gosh!!!! I cannot wait-that dress is going to be amazing in a tea length! Why do those vintage pattern designs seem so much more elegant??

    Mary Lou in Centra NY

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  4. I am baffled that Vogue isn't currently sponsoring all of your purchases for VoNBBS projects. I mean, the humanity! of buying your own fabric!

    I smell a partnership.

    I mean, how great would that be? A lavish budget to get the most decadent fabrics imaginable for an evening gown to shame all other evening gowns, and then an arrangement to get invited to some fancy red carpet event.

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  5. I don't know why a tea length version would be unpopular! I can't remember the last time I had occasion to wear a full length gown.

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  6. Whoop! Looks exciting and can't wait to see your process as you sew this.

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  7. Well ain't that fabric beautiful? Just as you predicted I feel like there's something to the spirit of an evening gown that would be missing in a tea length gown. It just doesn't have the drama that a longer skirt does. Either way I am very excited to see the dress progress and I am sure it will be more than lovely!

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  8. I agree, the fabric lends itself much better to tea-length than to floor-length. Most modern occasions, as well, lend themselves better to dresses that aren't sweeping the floor.

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  9. Yay! I was wondering if you'd given up the project!

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  10. The fabric is beautiful. Where did you get it from?

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  11. I'm sure you will have everyone and their dog weighing in on this, but I love that you're going to go tea length. It will be STUNNING and totally wearable. A perfect combo.

    By the way, my dog Jack agrees with me on this. ;)

    Dayl

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  12. Oh the return of vonbbs!! This is such exciting news!! I can't wait to see how it turns out in that beautiful fabric...

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  13. A tea length would be beautiful. You can still keep a vintage feel to the dress.

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  14. Breath. Taking. Fabric!! It will look gorgeous at tea length. I think you're right on the money. And I cannot wait to see purple with spiders for Hallowe'en- can you make me one too?!!

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  15. After your last post, I had been wondering if you'd have time to go back to where it all began! Looking forward to reading all about it :)

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  16. Exciting! I look forward to seeing this dress and the festive Halloween one. Also I appreciated seeing a preview of your book - exactly what I needed to help decide to buy it!

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  17. Oooooh! The fabric is perfect for this dress, and I love tea length!

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  18. I'm so excited that you've returned to VoNBBS!

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  19. So now it's Tea length do you have to go to Afternoon Tea at the Ritz. The Halloween will also be perfect for shopping at Wal-Mart.... preferably afternoons.

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  20. Frankly i'm so excited about this project, i don't care what length of dress you make; it's going to be lovely whatever length - the fabric is divine.

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  21. Ooh! Gorgeous pattern and fabric! More pics! Send swatches! And though a long dress would be breathtaking, there is nothing more tragic than a lovely dress going unused...so yay for tea length!

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  22. Oh godness you will be stunning in that dress! I think you made the right descision to cut the length.

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  23. So so so beautiful! Tea length is perfect as who wears floor length gowns anymore?

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  24. That fabric is beautiful! I think a tea-length gown will be stunning. I also can't wait to see your Halloween version!

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  25. That's gonna be brilliant as a tea length; it would be a waste to make it floor length cause the scallops would get lost :) Seriously delicious fabric!

    Your Halloween costumes sound awesome too! :)

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  26. I can't wait to see it. Tea length will be beautiful!

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  27. If anyone has a problem with the your choice of length, maybe they should make their own floor length dress. I love your fabric choice, do you have plans to wear it somewhere special?

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  28. Oh, I am SO excited to see the Halloween version! I think the tea length version will be perfect in the fabric you have... there are few occasions to wear a full length gown nowadays!

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  29. A tea length gown would be fabulous. So much more wearable and quite frankly unless you are making the gown for a special occasion it would be a waste to not wear it.

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  30. Oh this will keep me busy while I wait for your book to arrive. :) I am very excited to see this project. I want to see the Halloween version too. Hey Girl, you are sew fabulous!

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  31. How exciting that you are making this dress to fit your corseted figure! When you see photos of New Look dresses from the late 1940's the models were all corseted when measured for the gowns the same as in Victorian times, can't wait to see the results!

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  32. I think the tea length will be perfect. But a Halloween version will be even better! I can't wait to see it.

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  33. Not to diminish the beauty of your fabrics and what I'm sure will be a knock-out of a dress... but I can't wait to see your halloween version!!

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  34. tea length might play well with your retro persona

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  35. That fabric is GLORIOUS. I don't think it would read as well in a floor-length version.

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  36. wow, beautiful fabric! I can't wait to follow along... and a Halloween costume is a great idea to make something that you might not wear otherwise...(I would have NOTHING to wear a floor length to, sadly). Hmmmm...

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  37. To be honest with you, the floor length is quite obsolete today. From the practical point of view, tea length is much more wearable. Adding the time and they money you spend on your dress, you should show it off more often, isn't it? :)

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  38. Can't wait to see your progress! Exciting!

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  39. Gorgeous fabric! I think I audibly gasped when I saw it. Which is not so good when I'm trying to sneakily read your blog while at work.

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  40. As others have commented, that fabric would not work so well in a full-length gown. Really, I think the only place tea-length doesn't work is on a red carpet where the camera's at a high angle, and most of us don't have to worry about that. ;)

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  41. The fabric is absolutely georgeous and I look forward to reading about your progress. However, I think it would in fact work just as well with a floor length dress. Also, the fabric is so special that I don't think the tea length would make it any more wearable. It will still be a formal dress, whatever length you do, so why not go all the way and make a true evening gown? Every now and them there comes an occasion for which one needs something special. When that happens, you'll be glad you have it. I think it would be spectacular full length. But however you proceed, I'm sure it will be wonderful and I will read about your progress eagerly.

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  42. The fabric is lovely, and I think a length dress would be much more wearable - with that huge collar it might be a bit much if it reached the floor. I'm looking forward to seeing it coming along!

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  43. Love the fabric! And yes to tea length, wearable is important if you've invested in fabric and time!

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  44. Yay, the VoNBBS evening dress! Well I guess everybody wants some vicarious Scarlett O'Hara action with the uber long version. But, your project, your choice. Can't wait to see both versions though. You'll look fab, differently, in both.

    Meg.

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  45. It's lovely to see you return to this book. It doesn't offend me in the slightest that you're going for tea length. How many of us have chance to wear floor-length gowns these days? If you're spending that amount of money, you want to be able to wear the thing! Fabrics look gorgeous.

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  46. I love the idea of tea length! It's a far better option for short gals like myself ;)

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  47. Wonderful! I love everything; the length, the fabric, the halloween version. This is going to be so much fun to read!

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  48. Beautiful fabric! I totally agree... you need to make it a dress that you'll want to wear, and nothing less.

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  49. I think I know the spiderweb fabric you are talking about. Many years ago I made an over-skirt out of it to wear over some jewel tone silk skirts. I always got many comments and compliments from it. (I also made an over-skirt from a sheer covered in metallic stars. That one had a handkerchief hem.)

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  50. Last time I wore a floor length gown to a charity ball, I got trapped in the escalator of the hotel ballroom - and they had to cut me out! Sadly it is no longer floor length, and a sage lesson that we do floor length so infrequently these days that it never occurred to me to pick it up off the floor! There's definitely an art to wearing it, but it does feel lovely if the occassion is right. Anyway, I'm sure tea length will be just as useful, and that scallopped edge is divine!
    On another note, is anyone else having misgivings about that double collar? I have to admit this is my least favourite of the VNBBS patterns, and good detective work for spotting its actually a late 40s design. I just worry that the width of that collar might not be a flattering proportion, maybe muslin it and see what you think?

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  51. Tea length sounds perfect! I can't wait to see it.

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Thanks for your comments; I read each and every one! xo Gertie

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