TV Style/Review: Dresscue Me

I'm not sure how I stumbled across Dresscue Me - it's pretty deep cable (channel 286 on directv) and at first glance, it doesn't seem to fit with the other shows on Planet Green. A vintage fashion reality show on the same network as Whale Wars and various renovation shows?

But Dresscue Me establishes its place in the Planet Green ethos early on in the episode, Shareen Mitchell, owner and designer for Shareen Vintage, is doing a collection of upcycled "bat-wing tops" (a phrase that is repeated endlessly), made from those crinkly Indian-print skirts everyone wore in the 90s. To fill the order, Shareen and an assistant visit this mountain of discarded clothing:

This scene really illustrates the green aspect of vintage dressing and the finished product shows how creativity can help eliminate all that wasted clothing.

Not my style, but I know a lot of girls who would love it.

The time we spend in the shop make up the best parts of the episode. Shareen Mitchell, whose LA-ness made my eyes roll a bit, is nevertheless very talented at matching the girl to the dress. The dress try-on parts of the episode really won me over.

Shareen Vintage has its celebrity clients (Nylon tells me that Kirsten Dunst shops there) and I was so excited to see Cat Deeley on my TV! I do miss her in between SYTYCD seasons. There's a charming dress try-on sequence with lots of Cat laughing joyously and ooo-ing over the fab dresses. We even get to see her try on a dress she wore on the show last season!

The other client highlighted in the episode was a gal who was going to be in a wedding party. Shareen finds a GORGEOUS 50s seafoam-green wiggle dress that the girl loves. Shareen Vintage alters the dress and when the girl comes to pick it up, she brings her friend...who ruins everything. It's interesting to watch the girl deflate as her friend stares at the dress and dismisses it as "...wedding-y." She tries several other dresses that the friend dislikes and Shareen diagnoses the problem: "Do you wear vintage?" "No." And it all makes sense - to a lot of people, wearing vintage will always look either overdone or costume. Sometimes it's hard out there for a vintage-loving girl (she ended up looking cute in a tropical floral dress).

 Unfortunately, the reality show construct just can't help itself and we're treated to a few "Shareen is the fashion boss from hell" scenes before the fashion line launch party. I wish this trope would go away: everyone gets stressed at their job, especially when they have a big event or project. Just because this person's job is in fashion does not automatically make them Miranda Priestley!

Beside that nod to reality tv, Dresscue Me is an enjoyable way to spend a half hour in the afternoon. More vintage dress fashion show, please!

New Dress Sunday

My new fall/winter dress is done!  (Mostly)

The Grandma Carole Pose - all the 50s/60s-era pictures of her and her sisters show them standing like this, all in a row.

It's taken me so long to complete that I had to wear it today, even though I've not finished the belt. I found some old fabric-covered buckle kits on Etsy and I'm excited to have a ladylike, perfectly-matched belt for this dress.  I just haven't had the time to finish it yet!

The dress pattern itself wasn't terribly complicated - it was all the details that took so long. The pattern I have is made for a gal about a size and a half smaller than me, but I was actually excited to learn about pattern grading.  The article I found most useful was from Threads Magazine - it has a good reference picture for cut lines and a chart with common "spread" amounts. 


This is the first time I've made a muslin, also.  For the most part, I've just done a pin-fitting with the pattern pieces and for simple modern patterns, that's fine.  However, since I had to grade this pattern and transfer the pieces onto muslin anyway, I thought I'd give it a shot.  I was glad I did, because the waistline needed to be let out more and the bust needed taken in (those 50s girls with their tiny waists and big busts!).  Also, the sleeves ended closer to the shoulder than I wanted, so I was able to adjust that and make them into a longer cap sleeve.

The pattern had no instructions for a lining, so I just made a second dress out of lining and attached it at the neckline interfacing.  It ended up working and made the dress feel "finished".  Other time-consuming, but ultimately good things I did: twill tape at the neckline to help the notch lay flat, hand-stitched the hem and the arm openings, and "hand-picked" the side zipper for an added vintage touch. 

The wool gabardine is just the right weight for fall - it's heavy enough to be warm, but it's not so heavy that I couldn't wear this into spring.  I ordered too much, so I might make a skirt with the leftover.  Overall, I'm really happy with this dress - I think it's lovely and I'm proud of myself for learning a few new things in order to make it!