A Birthday Outing

This dress has been in pieces for months.  It was originally meant for a mid-year Sew Weekly challenge, but something else must have come up because I folded the pieces with the pattern tissue and put it aside.

I have been wondering what happened to all of my pins for a couple of months – turns out, they were with this dress – whoops!  [From past experience I can tell you that it is a very bad habit to leave pins in fabric because after time they may rust - the same goes for brooches, so make sure to remove them from garments before storing.]

I ended up shortening the skirt and sleeve length.  I also raised the cutout of the back bodice so no special undergarments are needed.  Although, I did have to add two ribbon and snap bra wranglers.  The weight of the cuffs create a bit of pull through the shoulders and make the neckline want to slide off my shoulders - the loops help to keep everything in place. 

The dress was finished just in time for my birthday.

I spent the day with mom at the De Young Museum, enjoying the Rudolf Nureyev: A Life in Dance exhibit looking at pretty silk tulle and images of dancers.  

One of my favorite details was a scalloped edge on a few of the tutus.  Having worked with tulle in the past, I cannot imagine what a pain in the behind it must be to cut a scalloped edge that matches back to another layer of scalloped edge tulle!

The one thing that really surprised me was the quality.  The incredible fabrics and exquisite details are amazing and look more fashion house than costume shop.  

I cannot imagine there are more than a handful of dance companies in existence, if any, that use silk tulle and silk velvet these days.  What is even more amazing is that I spotted very few tears or repairs on the costumes.    

Oh, to be a ballerina and get to flounce around in a tutu!  Although the broken toes and bunions and pain cannot be fun - I will just admire the incredible athletes from afar!  I suppose those girls deserve some beautiful costumes to wear considering all of the sweat and tears that go into a single performance.

Dress:  Made by me, Simplicity 5876

Scarf:  Made by me

Earrings:  Shadows