Wedding Guest

Image from TVPStore on Etsy.

    I'm going to a wedding in June and have been toying with the idea of making my outfit. I have been without my sewing machine for the last month and it has made me eager to dive into a complicated project with a high-stakes fabric. The dress code is cocktail. Right now, there are three ideas in the running:

1. The Vintage Look

     I recently purchased the sewing pattern at the top of this post. It's a Vogue pattern that was released in 1971 and designed by Italian designer Alberto Fabiani.  I love the full sleeves and that voluminous cape-like thing in the back. I wasn't able to find my exact size, this pattern is probably 1-2 sizes too large, so I'll have to take it in a little. (As an aside, I wish Vogue made their vintage designer collaborations available for purchase. Currently, you have to hunt down old versions through Etsy or eBay, and I'd bet they still have them in their archives. Maybe it comes down to a contractual and/or IP issue and they legally cannot? On the other hand, Vogue doesn't even make their current patterns available via pdf so it could be a lack of tech savvy and vision.)

     What I am thinking, with this dress, is to keep the shape the same but make it a short, mini dress, that I wear with towering velvet heels or maybe over-the-knee boots. I love it in white with a bejeweled neckline (although that would likely rule it out to wear to a wedding) but otherwise am picturing a brocade fabric, something with a luxurious texture or maybe metallic threads running throughout.