A 1950's Sunshiny Summer Photo-Shoot

With all the winter drabness we've had lately in all its current muddy meltiness, I decided to share some sunny and fun photos from the photo-shoot we did this past summer. A busy fall full of projects and adventures delayed the editing, and other photo-shoots soon took precedence.

 

This photo was actually quite painful to accomplish as I had sprained my left ankle playing Ultimate Frisbee (a truly splendid game! :) ) a few weeks before, which delayed the photo-shoot by several weeks and left me with a still somewhat sore and weak ankle for the shoot.

We've had this old blue bicycle for years and I've always loved it. After seeing a few vintage photos that included bikes, I knew I had to do a photo-shoot in a 1950's dress riding it, and what better choice than a dress that matched perfectly and fairly shouts "summer holiday" in every aspect. I had such a hard time narrowing down the photos, and deciding which to do in nostalgic black and white, and which in vivid color.

 I had way too much fun playing with filters to make photos look vintage! :D

I really enjoyed experimenting with subtle complementary fabric trim for this project, and though it's several years old it still holds its place as one of my favorite 1950's dresses and has become my traditional Easter Sunday dress.

 

Photo credit goes to my obliging and talented brother.

1930's Evening Gown and Glorious Fall Foliage

When the unique opportunity to create a 1930's evening gown presented itself in the form of a vintage themed wedding of two very dear friends, I couldn't resist delving into the Haslam system of dress cutting for the first time!

Oh the excitement of planning and looking for the perfect fabric...

And then reality dawned once again... after all, who can expect there to be smooth sailing when learning a new technique... and why oh, WHY did I think a complicated formal gown was the best first project to choose?!

5 mock-ups, 4 weeks, and 65 sewing hours later...

I decided it was worth the hair pulling and aggravation.

Just before the first snowfall, and with nearly the last bit of fall foliage, I snuck in a quick photo shoot. The mixture of vibrant and dull colors made the perfect backdrop and I was ecstatic with how well my first attempt at finger waves turned out (at least on one side ;) :P) I think some hair spray would have tamed it sufficiently had I a working bottle on hand. :D

The diamond creates the shaping for the bodice, so there was no need for darts, which tickled me silly! :D Although the process to get it to do so was extensive and exasperating at times!

Our fist location didn't have nearly as much "fall" as we wished, but I still really like how the photos came out in this spot! Being on the upper slope of the hill from the camera made me look a little taller and give the more classic 30's vibe... I'm pretty sure the illustrators of the decade thought legs were a good 2 feet longer than humanly probable! :D

See my little bee "friend"? He must have thought I was a lone flower amongst the grassy fields. After quickly snapping this photo my brother moved him to a nearby dandelion.

Another favorite detail was the strap design, starting at the armscye seam in the front and crossing over in the back to form the edge of the v-neck.

 

The long row of fabric buttons and loops down the back were yet another favorite design aspect. I was pleased with how well it worked in function as well as design.

We spotted a new location across the yard with some delightful foliage remaining and had to snap a few more photos there. I'm so glad we did, though I was frigid and shivering by this point. 

My brother caught me waving my arms and laughing as I tried to warm up and relax so I wouldn't look stiff and icy for the photos. :D

 

I just love how the red dress looks framed by the yellow, orange, and brown of the leaves and brush.

I'm definitely planning to use the Haslam system again, but first I need to work out what is off about my base "sloper" draft to insure proper fit in future. Even just in book #15 there are several more styles I would love to make!

1950's Brown Silk Cocktail Dress

 

A few years ago while scrolling through Pinterest I stumbled across a picture of a yellow 1950's cocktail dress, and immediately knew I wanted to create a dress inspired by it.

I had bought brown silk for $5/yd. when Joann's was discontinuing it, and it sat in my stash awaiting the perfect project.

 

We were hosting a "Spring" themed ball and I desperately wanted to make the dress for the event... "but brown isn't spring!" I said, to which a witty family-member replied something to the like of, "yes it is, spring is muddy". So I jumped on the idea of letting my dress be "mud and butterflies" and found the most delightful blue butterflies and ribbon to accent the look.

Despite having to draft/drape nearly every aspect of this dress, it went surprisingly smoothly! I did my first (And so far only) hand pick-stitched zipper, and I love the results! Much less obvious than machine top-stitching! :)

Though I completed this outfit 3 years ago, I failed to take photos. *face-palm*

After the first wear, I made a few adjustments, and for a recent ball, I seized the opportunity to pull it from my wardrobe and finally photograph it!

My brother obligingly photographed for me, yielding to my whims of artistic, dramatic, whimsical, and practical by turn. Much laughter accompanied the process, and I'm delighted with the shots we obtained.

Below are a few artsy and dramatic outtakes.

Vintage mystery film pose.

 

My Brother and I waltzing at the ball. :)