Downton Abbey Inspired: The Lady Mary Lace Cut Out Dress

Again, this dress, like the last, is inspired by Lady Mary's Dress in the picture below (middle one):

As you can see below, it is much the same pattern as The Lady Mary/Anna Dress with a few important changes. The buttons, metallic this time, are higher and closer up. The sleeves are not pouffed at the top, but I just did two simple pleats at the bottom of each sleeve. Also, the skirt is much fuller than the last one. The most significant difference is the black lace at the shoulders. This continues to the back and delivers sort of a more formal "cut-out" effect. It is reminiscent of the lace on Lady Mary's original striped dress, but more modern looking.

I almost feel like this dress is a blend of the three sisters. It is the basic style of Mary's dress, but more of a color Edith would wear (it is a bit more of a reddish tan than the picture shows), and the sleeves remind me of Sybil for some reason.

Here you can see a close up of the lace. I cut it with the diagonal line going up and out to the tips of the shoulders to widen the shoulders a bit optically, and also to appear reminiscent of a lace collar without the bulk of an actual collar.

These are three of a box of metallic antique buttons I was given.

Here you can see the two simple pleats in the sleeves that I mentioned. 

Notice the lace at the top of the back. (The picture makes it look crooked, but it's not.)

This dress has the same side zipper as before, but I added belt loops this time. I am thinking about adding them to the other dress as well, but I'm kinda lazy. 

Downton Abbey Inspired: The Lady Mary/Anna Dress

I love Downton Abbey...except for the third season's Christmas Special (no spoiler alerts from me!!!)... Anyways, I'm not here to discuss my frustrations with greedy actors (ahem...). I'm here to discuss how I love the clothes from that show, and to show my personal offerings of such.

Here is the first dress that inspired me (The one in the middle that Lady Mary is wearing). I really like how the costume designers dress her in Coco Chanel stripes. It really helps allude to the fact that young women in this era were spurning the over-blown Victorian gaudiness and confines of the corset and going for a simpler, classier look. The shocking rebellion started by Coco, of course...

I don't have quite that same striped pattern, but I have a couple others. The first one I used is this sort of grey and white:

That's why I called it the Lady Mary/Anna Dress, because it is Lady Mary's style, but the color and only three buttons seems a bit more Anna's fare. The collar is also higher and very conservative, which also seems a bit Anna than Mary. Obviously, it is must shorter than Mary's--just above the knee, compared with the Victorian ankle length--but I think it looks cuter, shorter. I also dropped the waistline a bit because my natural waist is high enough. Notice also the low hip profile.

I used the same basic pattern as for The Sound of Music Curtain Dress, which was just my modification of Burdastyle.com's Coffee Date Dress. I further modified it by squaring off the neckline and cutting the bodice into two panels so one could have stripes vertical, and one horizontal. Then, I elongated the pattern of sleeve that I'd been using from the "Chanel Inspired" dresses.

From the back.

I don't have the same lace in white that Mary's dress requires for the collar, so I just cut a doily in half.

Mary's sleeves aren't puffed, but I did it just for fun.

Again with the very short side zipper. (It bothers me that the bodice lines don't match up with the skirt, but...they couldn't once I put in darts on the bodice because darting automatically makes stripes a little diagonal.)

Escape hatch!

The other half of the doily, I finagled to piece in the front as a collar.

If you look closely, you can see that to keep the facing down, I sewed the top white stripe with white thread. You can't really see it, and that's the point.

These are the back skirt pleats. I didn't dart the skirt. Yes, it's lazy, but also with the side zipper being so short, I didn't want to develop claustrophobia getting into this dress, so I left them as pleats.

You can see the front pleats better from the side. It's kind of a weird profile having the pleats undarted, I know, but it looks better on a person. I just didn't have time to take a picture of me in it. 

Maybe one day.

I hemmed it by hand. Can you see my stitches? Nope. They are truly blind stitches, thanks to the white stripes!

The back side of the hem shows how I stitched it.

I debated over sewing a stripe of black onto the dress itself the way the original is, but then just opted for a patent leather belt. The silver buckle helps modernize the look.

The side.

The end!

Basic Travel Advice

This is just really basic travel advice that I've realized first-hand the past couple of years.

1. When they say to be at the airport two hours in advance of an international flight, they ain't kidding. Especially if it's a big airport, because chances are, you will have to walk for several minutes to get to the desk to check in and sometimes airports can be disorienting. (Plus, they never post clocks.)

2. Always travel with just a carry-on and a backpack/purse if at all possible. You will save money from having to check a bag--yes, I realize that most international flights allow a free checked bag, but just because you can, doesn't mean you should.

        a. Traveling lighter makes you more jet-set. You can just get off the plane and go. Especially if you are taking a subway and then walking to your destination, you will appreciate traveling light.

        b. Airports can't lose your luggage if all your stuff is with you.

        c. It's less to worry about and you can focus on having a good time.

        d. "But I'm a girl and need a bunch of stuff." No, you don't. I'm a girl and I do it all the time. I have a post coming called "Pack This, Not This" to help you do this. It's totally doable; it just takes planning. I even packed like this for my honeymoon and had enough different outfits for two weeks, plus lingerie.

3. If your trip is to somewhere like Asia or parts of South America where you can buy lots of inexpensive gifts, then and only then travel with a checked bag. Make sure to put something in it on the way there, though. Foreign countries hate to see you come in with an empty checked bag, because they think you are coming for purely commercial gain and not paying export taxes. One thing I do is to pack things that I don't want anymore like clothes, pillows, stuffed animals. . .anything that takes up room. Then I just leave that stuff in the foreign country and then store my carry on inside it until I start buying gifts. Another option is to buy your checked bag in the country you visit; however, why spend money when you don't have to?

 4. When you book your flight and you can't afford first-class, pick your seat(s) as far back in the plane as you can. Most people with crying babies will pick seats near the front. Sometimes, there are even empty seats back there and you can spread out a little. If you are concerned about not getting your food in time, then request a special food option when you book your flight. I have been known to request "low sodium" just so I could get my food fast and have the rest of the time to sleep. This isn't good advice if you have a super-short layover or are rushed to get off the plane as soon as you land.

5. If you happen to get a layover in another country or a city you've never experienced, see if you can book a really long layover (6+ hours). Only do this if you can check ahead of time to see if there is easy transportation from the airport into whatever town is nearby. I have seen Taipei, Doha (Qatar), Hong Kong, Lost Angeles, and Honolulu this way. It's like a mini-vacation, and you don't have to spend money on a hotel! Plus, you get another stamp on your passport if it's another country. Some airports even have packages you can buy where someone takes you around sight-seeing for a fee and gets you back before your flight (I've never done that, though, because I'm cheap). I like to book these on the way back from a trip, because it gives me something to look forward to on the way home from a vacation.

6. This may offend people who don't drink, but it's a really easy and cheap way not to get sick. When you travel to a underdeveloped or developing country, hit up the Duty Free before you leave the airport, and buy a shot-size bottle and a bigger bottle of vodka. When you go out during the day, keep the little bottle in your purse or pocket and take a small swig before each meal. When you get back to your hotel, fill it back up with the bigger bottle. When I have done this, I don't get sick; when I don't do this, I get sick. I've also had doctors prescribe me antibiotics before a trip, but vodka works better for some reason.

7. Check cheaptickets.com and priceline.com for the cheapest ticket, then go to the airline's website that has the lowest fare and see if the ticket is even cheaper on the airline's actual site. This doesn't always work, but I have saved a few hundred dollars this way, every once in awhile.

8. Most travelers know this, but in case you don't: Plane tickets cost the most if you fly out on a weekend. Tuesdays and Thursdays are low fare days. Whether you are flying in or out, try to book on these days, but also play around with various days of the week to come up with the cheapest fare. Also, when actually buying a ticket, you will find that tickets are usually cheaper to purchase on a Tuesday or Wednesday. Monday/Thursday is getting into the weekend and airlines know most people shop for tickets on the weekends.

9. When watching a ticket and all of a sudden it seems to be really low, you should buy it. Airline companies will jack it up the next day once they see people are interested. If no one buys it, it may stay the same or maybe even drop, but that's too big a gamble to risk if you find a good price.

10. If you are a white woman and/or in a group of women, don't even think about traveling to a Muslim country unless you book through a tour group. Yes, it seems less experienced to book a tour, but. . .there is no point in proving your traveling prowess if you end up dead. I'm just being honest. Book through a local tour group, not a British or American group. They are smaller, way cheaper, and know how to deal with their own culture first-hand. Check the news before you start planning to school yourself on any possible tensions beforehand.

11. Bother to read about the culture you visit before you go. So many Americans make us all look bad because they don't care how they dress or speak. Listen, People, not everywhere is America! Look up appropriate gestures, eye contact, and dress. Show some respect! If a culture hates to see women's shoulders, guess what, you're not going to teach them all a lesson by wearing a tank top. Don't be an idiot abroad!

12. Pack one or two protein bars. You never know when you will have to miss a meal.

13. Pack a couple dryer sheets. You aren't guaranteed to have access to a laundry facility, and dryer sheets will help freshen a slightly sweaty jacket better than nothing at all. Febreeze is liquid and impractical for travel. Think of others around you and don't be a gross traveling hippie hobo.

Okay, that's all for now!

Chanel Inspired: Lace Shimmer Dress

I actually made this dress last weekend, but this is the first chance I've had to post it. A poor lady at work is having some health issues, so I've been working a little more to help cover her. That's why I haven't been sewing all week. (Plus, Valentine's Day kind of takes your attention elsewhere. . .)

This dress is kind of bridging the gap between the Chanel stuff and the Downton Abbey stuff I have in my head (because it is so lacey).

Notice the sleeves are different. I just capped them off on this one to try something different. All I did was fold my original sleeve pattern in half and fold the fabric over along the hemline instead of sewing an actual hem. In other words, the sleeves are double thick because they are folded over at the hemline. Sorry, I was being lazy. . .and also this fabric is super stretchy and I didn't want to have to fool with hemming it.

If you can see in this close-up, I layered this see-through lace over a metallic-y fabric (the same metallic I used for the Nude Shimmer Dress).

Here is the back.

It goes really well with that top from the Flashdance Dress.

For some reason, I keep seeing women wearing lace dresses with jean jackets in magazines. . .so this must be in style! Good for me. . .

Chanel Inspired: Nude Shimmer Dress

I actually have had this dress in the back of my head ever since I received all this fabric. Apparently, someone along the line was planning on going into business making underwear or lingerie, because there was a bunch of this filmy, slip-like material in hot pink, purple, light blue, and just yards upon yards of this nude colored fabric. Since this fabric is probably intended to make undergarments, I made sure to put a double layer underneath the top layer you see pictured so it wouldn't be see-through.

I finally decided to make the dress after going to Forever 21 and finding that light pink, nude colors are really in style--especially when coupled with metalics. After watching that Chanel video, though, the dress really started to take it's shape in my mind.

To make the pattern, I simply traced my basic pattern I've been using for the longer part of my 2fer dresses and then drew a slightly curvy line down the middles of the front and the back pieces (to make the silver panels). I used the same sleeve pattern from the other dresses and the bow pattern from the Nautical Dress.

Originally, I had planned to put the silver underneath a layer of the nude so it would shine through; however, the nude is not as sheer as I'd thought. In order to actually see any shininess, the silver would have to stand on its own. That's when I got the idea to do these long panels, which also help in an optical illusion to make the wearer look thinner. . .or at least, that's what I hear.

I put the same slimming panels in the back.

I continued the same bow motif from the Nautical Dress to keep the collection coherent.

Also, the same sleeves and the same band along the bottom.

Chanel Inspired: Flashdance Dress

It's not really Flashdance, but. . .you can wear it off the shoulder if you want. That's why I called it that.

Here's the back.

Finally, I remembered to put the sleeve pattern on. Also, if you look closely at the front longer part, you can see that I raised the collar. I taped a piece of paper on instead of redrawing the entire thing.

On this one, I made the two parts as separates so they could be worn a variety of ways. I'm thinking this is going to be my "Go-To" dress for this reason. This pink jersey is kind of see-through, so I made it double-layered.

This dress could easily be worn to work. It doesn't have to be worn off the shoulder.

The back.

It can be worn for a party.

Or to the library. 

Or add a jacket and wear to work!

Chanel Inspired: The Coco Dress

I think this one is my favorite. When my husband saw it, he said, "Innovative." The clean lines on this one are especially reminiscent of the classic "Chanel Jacket." 

When I was going through my jersey fabric, I came across some white stuff that was quilted. Perfect for a Chanel inspired dress! Unfortunately, the white fabric was three times the thickness of the black, so I would have to do something to make sure the white fabric didn't overpower the black.

I don't know if you can tell it, but if you look at the edges of the bolero pattern, you will see they are folded up. This is because I laid it flat when I cut out the white fabric and folded it up when I cut the black. The way I got around the thickness problem was to cut the entire bolero portion out of black and white and then fold the white fabric up over the black. I forgot to put the sleeve pattern on here again. Also, I raised the front collar on the longer dress portion, but forgot to picture it here.

You can see the quilted-ness of the white fabric here.

Same pouffed sleeves.

I had to put darts in the back because it stuck out way too much in the back without them.

Here you can see that the entire top part is both black and white.