Polkadots and Spinning Tops

Hi Everyone and a big welcome to my new followers and readers. Thanks for all your lovely comments about my pink polyester dress worn on Friday.   

Firstly, I want to show you what I did in the weekend - I went with Dear H and Dear D to the lovely town of Lawrence for the St Patrick's Day Parade and market and met the delightful Vanessa and Warren from Two Squirrels.  YAY!!

Left: Vintage home-made blue and green rose dress from 1950s, found at a garage sale in Sawyers Bay.
Worn with vintage du Barry shoes, Presbyterian Support Shop, $1
Green satin sash from a dress bought at Recycle Boutique
Vintage bangles and necklace

I was so happy to finally meet Vanessa and Warren, having been a fan of their lovely blog for ages, and they were both every bit as kind and friendly as they seem on their blog.  Their stall was gorgeous and yes I did buy a couple of things which I will share another time.  

The much needed rain held off long enough so we could all enjoy watching the parade of bicycles, vintage cars and tractors and meander up and down the main street looking at the various stalls. I bought some Ginger Marmalade and Cherry Preserve.  My family enjoyed ice creams and candy floss and looking at stalls with books.  

Lawrence is a small town which rose in importance and size during the gold rush of the 1860's when gold was discovered at Gabriel's Gully nearby.  There are lots of heritage buildings and although it was very overcast and not the best light for taking photos, here is a small collage to show you:

Bottom left Methodist Church Book Sale - old organ used as a book display,
right, old wooden building now in private ownership and sadly neglected
Right top: old building painted in great purple colours, bottom, Fantail bird
made from scrap iron

Do you remember those vintage cotton frocks I found at ReStore?  My original post is Here.  Well, over the last few weeks, when time permits I have been sitting with my trusty Husqy and refashioning one of them.  As the dress has princess seams on the front and the back, and some of the sewing was crooked and seams puckered I decided to take the whole dress apart, I can tell you, my stitch ripper has never done so much work!

Here is it on the first wearing on Tuesday: 

Vintage cotton dress - refashioned by me, found at ReStore for $7
worn with grey cardigan from Recycle Boutique
White glass beads, Trademe
Belt and shoes both retail

For my sewing/refashioning followers I can report that overall I am quite happy with the fit - the original dress was probably for a modern size 18 - so I did have to make quite a few adjustments. Luckily when I put a seam down the front the fitting across the bust improved dramatically.  Also to assist with the sizing I put a zip in the back - previously it was a "pull-over-your-head-dress".  However,  I have not got the fit right so the top 10 cms of the neckline and zip sticks out across the shoulders.  Thats why I am wearing a cardigan to keep the top of the back flat.  As it does not have sleeves I have made it so I can get a long sleeved top underneath which will mean that the dress can be worn in winter as well.  I think it will be a good match with tights and boots.  However, for the time being the dress is now on the fixer upper pile on the back of the couch!

So, how about you, have you got an item of clothing you have been determined to wear, even if its not the best fit?  Do you use a cardigan to conceal a neckline, or a belt to pull in a baggy waist?