Project 6 : The Serena Dress

The inspiration for that dress comes from two different directions.

First, I had this beautiful fabric that my friend Carole brought back from India (along with the fabric of The India Dress -Project 3). While beautiful, this fabric, which is very light and very fragile, is hard to sew. It slides a lot under the machine's foot, modifying the shape of the project all the time.

Secondly, I must confess that I watch the TV show Gossip Girl (for those who don't know, it is an American soap where extremely rich teenagers use New York as a playground for their mischiefs and manipulations). Rather than for the most of the time upsetting characters, I watch it (or "pretend to watch it") for the high end fashion and stylist work that is put in each and every scene. The clothes are coming directly from the last runway shows and are beautifully accessorized. One of the main characters, Serena, has a tendency to wear boho dresses, very airy and intricated at the same time.

The combination of those two facts made me try something very adventurous: I made a dress without using a pattern. Keeping the Serena style in mind, I listened to my fabric, cutting it the less possible and using the existing length and combination of patterns in the best way I could.

It results in a maxi dress, with a double layer to correct for the transparency, elastic bands at the waist (which were challenging!) and an altar top. I didn't fix the straps, so I can wear them in different ways, according to the mood. I like the way the dress floats when I walk. The top is very naked, but I guess it will be wearable during summers (maybe not British summers though) and holidays. Unless I dare wearing it the way it shows on the top picture: with wellies and a blazer!