10.28.2019

Rob Was Gone For Five Days So I Made A Five Hour Dress.

Rob Was Gone For Five Days So I Made A Five Hour Dress. | oonaballoona by marcy harriell

GREAT TITLE RIGHT?!!!! Last week, Rob was away for five days, which in Casa Harriell Time (CHT) is ALMOST FIVE YEARS, and, as previously evidenced when we are apart, questionable decisions were made.

Rob Was Gone For Five Days So I Made A Five Hour Dress. | oonaballoona by marcy harriell

For Rob, it's doing things like demolishing and renovating our bathroom single-handedly (this turned out to be a very good thing in the end; Rob: I love the bathroom). For me, it's turning the house into a tornado of fabric and slam sewing through anything within reach.

Rob Was Gone For Five Days So I Made A Five Hour Dress. | oonaballoona by marcy harriell

This was one of those slam sews, a dress made in about 5 hours, which at the end of the day, for a dress of this level, is just silly. It was worn that very evening, to perform with the Loser's Lounge. We have a ridiculously good time at those concerts! But when my ladies asked me how I was upon arrival, I had to say-- nay, HOLLER: 
I DID NOT LIVE A BALANCED LIFE TODAY. 

There were a lot of new faces there, and therefore new peeps learning I make my own stuff, and therefore new requests for stuff of their own, which I happily dodged as much as possible. Though one gorgeously talented lady did correctly guess how much a dress like this might cost...she gave me PAUSE, y'all!! 


I digress. The dress. The slam sewn dress. She doesn't stop at the waist, as the belt might suggest. I elongated my self-drafted strapless "bustier" pattern to stop at mid-hip, then attached a paneled skirt. 


To keep her up, I made a second bustier pattern as drafted, and threw rigilene boning on those seams. Now, if I hadn't been POSSESSED, I would have realized that having a waist edge underneath a dress without a waist seam would get uncomfortable, which it did. Should have made the lining as long as the bodice, but you know, I elongated my pattern directly on the fabric, because poor choices.


I didn't have an appropriate invisible zipper, of course I didn't, I didn't plan this out AT ALL, so I used an exposed gold zip. She buckles a litte just under the waist--but never you mind that, JUST NEVER YOU MIND, because she's not long for this world in her current state! 

Which is why you're getting these slightly blurry, back alley pictures of this dress (another intriguing decision, as my photographer was gone). Evidence that she existed as such!


My first instinct for this fabric, which hails from @fabricsusainc, was to go for an autumnal maxi skirt, and after her virgin outing proved vexing, I believe that's just what I'll do. Time for some surgery. Though I'll grieve losing that print placement on the bodice portion! Print placement took about 3 out of the 5 hours of stitching!

I know, I know, shhhhhhhhhh. Nothing is safe in my handmade closet. I might salvage the bodice portion for a two-set, though!

Rob Was Gone For Five Days So I Made A Five Hour Dress. | oonaballoona by marcy harriell

If you wanted this look, you could use the bodice portion of Simplicity 8456 (it's really the same look, my pattern just fits my tatas better šŸ˜) and attach a half, or full, circle skirt at mid-hip. You'd simply use your mid-hip measurement for the "waist" measurement, and if you don't want to do the math, put those digits in any number of circle skirt apps to get your skirt pattern (I love By Hand London's online calculator.)

By the way, I have LOVED reading your comments on my jacket giveaway post, both here and on Instagram!! I haven't replied, as I'm keeping the area clean for pulling a name later today. I'll close off entries at noon 10/28 EDT (that's today as of the writing of this post) and pull a name out of a hat this evening. It'll probably be announced on Instagram before the blog, but I will put the winner up here as well (and you don't have to be on IG to win, though you do get an extra chance if you follow & comment there as well--again, before noon!)

Okay cheerio then! I don't know what's got that phrase in my head, but when you start with a post title like this, might as well FINISH STRONG.

35 comments:

  1. Great work Marcy! I wouldn't know where to begin handling a print that size! I also wanted to know how you keep the hounds off your back when they find out that you sew! I don't even mention it around strangers.....if they not asking you to make something for them, they bugging the hell out of you about doing alterations! How do you manage to retain your poise and sanity? LOL! Some people even try to make you seem selfish for not sharing your skills and ability!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, so this is where the men of leisure hang out. Wondered what all had happened to you since all of your time is, well, yours. Are you watching old movies, taking long walks, sew-sew-sewin'-up-a-storm?? Making another hoodie (grey cashmere with a hematite bead at the end of each of hood strings)? Surely you've been up to something or other. Your far flung fan base, and autograph hounds alike, are in a quandary as to your next act, and which stage door they should squat at. At least here, you're in Oona's 'hood, and it's raucously joyous, and likely to lift your spirits enough to make you even...wait for it....wait for it....blog again!

      Delete
    2. I'm living each day to the fullest! I'm also going to revive my blog since my life is totally mine!

      Delete
    3. Music to more ears than you realize! Revel in your freedoms, express all within, and keep those illustrations in your blog (you have amazing skills conveying an idea with no wasted lines).

      Sign me,
      One of you rabid fans

      Delete
    4. Okay so this is one of my favorite comments conversation EVER. @scorpioninblue, I wholeheartedly agree with @testosterone and hope you return to blogging!

      In order to keep your life yours, here's a trick I haven't tried yet: when a person asks you to sew something, pretend they asked you HOW to sew that "something," and then proceed to tell them, in detail, every step. A sewist from the Maryland ASG chapter told me she stumbled onto this trick when she misheard an ask from a co-worker, and it worked like a charm. Co-worker's eyes got big and they pretty much backed off after hearing all the work involved!

      Delete
    5. I can't wait to try this! Any thoughts on how to handle those who hand you 10 yards of fabric - after telling them that I don't see for others? I was totally blindsided in front of other people. The fabric still sits in a bag under my sewing table. I have NO intention of ever touching it.

      Delete
  2. Marcy, I have to say I love this dress and will be sad to see her "go under the knife/shears". The only thing I would change is the zipper. I dislike this particular zipper application.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. well, my mom convinced me! Indeed I might change the zip, she's sparkly gold close up but not as interesting from a few feet away.

      Delete
  3. Your dress is GORGEOUS! So sorry it's not working for you. I think what I like best about it though is the fabric - those HUGE flowers. [leaves to go searching for 3 ft wide flowers]

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lynn, you would LOVE these flowers. You might try looking up the fabric store I tagged, I think they have an online presence!

      Delete
  4. Oh it's gorgeous!!! But comfort above all else!!! In shoes AND clothes, AMEN SISTER!!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. wow! I love the flower print on you. Fabulous placement on the bodice, I hope you manage to salvage that when you do the alterations.

    ReplyDelete
  6. It's a beautiful dress but more impressive is the time it took to create. You wear it well too. Well done.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Glad I'm not the only one who has to dodge requests for custom clothes from people who don't understand how much they truly cost. Glad there's at least ONE non-sewing person out there who does though haha.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Beautiful!! Just work with the zipper and fix other issues from the inside. Love the large flowers!! This one is a winner!

    ReplyDelete
  9. The bodice placement was perfect. Gorgeous fabric. But for me, a five hour dress would actually take me the full five days!

    ReplyDelete
  10. You know you could just add a binding to cover the edge of the bustier to help with the edge OR you can cut it up and make it something new. I'm sure cutting will win out in the end!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It might win someday... but for now I'm listening to my mom ;) so, the edge itself isn't the problem, it bunches a bit at the waist! I'm going to tack it down along the princess seams, I think.

      Delete
  11. What an amazing dress, love the fabric, the print placement and the pattern! Really impressed by the pictures too, you did a great job as they show the dress in all her glory!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. thank you! A little self timer and a little privacy go a long way ;)

      Delete
  12. What a beautiful dress! Such gorgeous fabric! Great job! Wonderful creation!
    Bravo

    ReplyDelete
  13. It's beautiful and you are beautiful in it!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Not on other social media, but when I read this article (UK), I thought of you:
    https://spitalfieldslife.com/2019/11/19/the-wax-sellers-of-wentworth-st-x/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh what a great read—I wish I had known about Wentworth St when I was in England!!!!!

      Delete

i thankya truly for taking the time to comment, i love a good conversation-- and hope you know my thanks are always implied, if not always written!