DIY: inspired by Alexander McQueen

(yet another overdue DIY post)

i receive a ton of email every day, maybe half of which are all related to fashion.  anyway, i remember receiving one about nail polish trends sometime in June.  one of the girls featured there was Drew Barrymore.  anyway, the nail color article was interesting enough, but what really caught my attention was Drew's Alexander McQueen dress:

i don't really go anywhere so I'd never really get a chance to wear something like this.  and even if i did have an event to attend, chances are that the McQueen brand people wouldn't be willing to just lend me this dress.  but i loved it so much that i knew i had just one option: DIY!!!

i've had this lace dress lying around for months.  one of my last purchases before i started Project 365.  i bought it at an ukay-ukay near BIR Intramuros for Php 50.  Btw, the owner of the place was Ilocano and they played Ilocano music in the store.  the ukay was also very decent--spacious, clean, well-ventilated. aaanyway, i bought it because i saw some potential in it.  i especially loved the crochet detail on the neckline.

however i try to pretend not to care what everyone else thinks about me, i'm still an insecure girl.  and whenever i'd try the dress on (after washing in boiling water and detergent, mind you), my ate cla would always say "yuck" or something along that line of thought.  so i knew i needed to do something to try to elicit a more favorable or at least neutral response from the people who would be seen with me while wearing it.

i decided to try to make my version of the McQueen dress.  first I carefully cut out the lining (too lazy to rip the seams), making sure not to snip the stitches so the dress would remain intact.

then i prepared a dye bath--using 4 packets of black Venus dye this time.  i figured it wouldn't matter so much if it was in a small basin. in the event that there would be unevenness in the color, it would look like the intended result, much like the intricately designed lace of the original dress.

unfortunately, i learned through this experience that color fastness is something better achieved, not just with quality dye, but also with a proper process.  but since i had neither, i ended up with gray lace.  the only thing that did turn black enough was the crochet trim on the neckline and at the hem of the dress.

i tried to see what it would look like with yellow fabric underneath, but gray doesn't make the color pop out as much.  so i decided to just use the crochet trim instead.  i had 1 1/4 yards yellow cotton voile lying around at home (i often have fabric-buying urges)--also one of my last purchases before Project 365--so i didn't even need to buy that.  i cut out a simple pattern for the bodice using a hybrid of the lining (which was more loose) and my bias dress pattern from FIP (more fit).  since cotton voile is pretty sheer, i used up all my fabric to make two layers (i'd suggest at least 1 1/2 yards next time, especially since bias uses up more fabric).  

with the help of my trusty portable Brother sewing machine (which we got several years ago from credit card points), i was able to make this top:

it's definitely one of my favorites :) it's dressy but i can also wear it with jeans.  i can belt it, tuck it in, or leave it as is. DIY rules!!!