OK, I lied. I could not just leave my dress in the closet without shooting photos of it. I am always paranoid that I would get a stain on it, or accidentally tear it, that it wont be on the record anymore. So when I wore the dress this weekend, I asked my husband to bring his camera and we dropped by the old Niles downtown. It was the perfect place for my 50s dress — old train station, old buildings with tons of antique shops. I got lots of “I love your dress, I wish people dress more like you these days!”, or “I remember my mother used to get dressed up and go out like this, and now I am in my jeans and Tshirt!”, I love those compliments!
So here’s the dress, it is made from a linen+rayon blend from fabric.com, very drapy and a perfect print for this mood. It was quite wrinkle free as well, but doesnt recover from needles too well. I got lazy and did not want to deal with the complicated button holes, so I just hammered 6 shiny black snap buttons on the front, whichs works well with the fabric!
I am not sure where that bustline seam is suppose to fall. It currently hits right below my nipple area, which looks fine, but I wonder if it is suppose to be below my bust. I love the necklines though! There’s just something really elegant about a big curvy and round neckline! I was worried about the pleating and volume of the skirt making me look too dwarf in this dress. However, it turned out perfect, I feel just right with plenty of fabric and gathering underneath that skirt! Perhaps when you are going for the 50s look, you are not suppose to look THAT slender!
I got those red pumps from a vintage etsy sale. I didnt do too much make up for this shot, and just curled my hair, as I still have the “real” photoshoot for this coming in a few weeks. (The occasional bright red lips are post-photoshop make up by my husband, since I dont own a bright red lipstick!) I think it sorta works, but I will take one of your suggestions for hair&makeup for the next photoshoot!
The site for this photoshoot is awesome, I think it is a perfect place for an engagement photoshoot! I love the green diner train, the bright red engine head, the old train station littered with old things, and the lack of people. We were suppose to stop by for only 10 minutes to grab some quick photos, but we got distracted by the cool stuff in the antique shop and the discovery of the train station, that we ended up staying an hour! If you live in the bay area, I lightly recommend going to niles downtown as it is loaded with fun!
I love this dress so very much, I wish I can wear it every day & everything. I wish I lived in the 50s, when everyone dressed to the nines, everyday!
September 7th, 2010 at 9:11 pm
Awww…you look glamorousishlygorgeous! Beautiful dress! I can’t wait to see it! The photos are looking really great. Kuddos to the photographer!
September 7th, 2010 at 9:29 pm
That is really a beautifull dress and it fits you wonderfull! I’m jealous, a lot.
and the pictures are amazing too…
September 7th, 2010 at 10:25 pm
sooo cute! i love the dress and the photos! your husband did a great job:)
September 7th, 2010 at 11:23 pm
You’re soooo pretty!
Beautiful pictures and dress. That place looks awesome!
September 7th, 2010 at 11:44 pm
great photo shoot, the dress looks beautiful
September 8th, 2010 at 1:56 am
wow! you look gorgeous, perfect dress, perfect site, perfect photos:)
September 8th, 2010 at 2:21 am
Wonderful dress and you look so pretty in it. Great pictures in this setting, very nice! Oh and by the way, the bright red lips look very lovely on you, so maybe it is time for some red lipstick after all 😉
September 13th, 2010 at 10:27 am
😀 yes! i think i shall buy one 😀
September 8th, 2010 at 8:26 am
Lovely! Great shots too.
September 8th, 2010 at 10:22 am
You know, you can dress this way every day. Of course people might think you are strange or in costume, but maybe, just maybe if we all started dressing up to go out we can elevate our current sense of fashion and style and move away from the ‘jeans/T shirt/gym clothes’ look to something more sophisticated. (I say this as I sit here dressed in a T shirt and gym shorts as I just returned from a trip to the vet..but I excuse this with the desire to not have cat fur all over my nice clothes).
September 13th, 2010 at 10:26 am
hahha, i could!! but i am one of those people who is a little shy with public eyes, especially at work! maybe ill push it little by little 🙂
August 15th, 2011 at 3:58 am
it would be such a good idea to go back to wearing such beautiful dresses! I’m so tired of skirts being barely longer than belts and jeggings. I want to be able to wear something more elegant every day without having the whole world look funny at me.
August 16th, 2011 at 4:23 pm
Seriously! I dont want the extra attention but i love wearing those elegant dresses. But im glad glamour seem t be back 🙂 maybe soon the suburban would catch on…
September 8th, 2010 at 12:29 pm
Ooo I am so glad you made this!!! It looks so great on you. I am going to try it for my birthday dress!!
September 8th, 2010 at 7:02 pm
You carried it off so well, Jue. I didn’t realize that it was supposed to look costum-y. It looks so natural on you =) Love the red shoes!
September 9th, 2010 at 6:58 am
What a beautiful dress! Love the photos!
September 13th, 2010 at 11:06 am
Oh my goodness… what a beautiful dress! I love your photo session, too!
September 17th, 2010 at 3:56 am
Adorable dress and beautiful pictures! Love it!
October 16th, 2010 at 10:20 pm
[…] pushing to make a new coat for this year. I really wanted to make a coat that would go with my 50s inspired dresses, which means it would flare out to accommodate the large skirt. Also, I really wanted to […]
November 30th, 2010 at 9:47 pm
[…] Love? Well, I really wanted to make a qipao afterwards. I had some scrape fabric left over from my 50s dress — I bought a whole 4 yards since it was only a dollar something per yard, and a qipao doesnt […]
February 1st, 2011 at 10:24 pm
I love your dress!!
I think the style really suits you well. So glam!
What was the pattern you used?
February 2nd, 2011 at 10:18 am
thanks! 🙂 i used vogue 2960: http://voguepatterns.mccall.com/v2960-products-8312.php?page_id=850
it is a lovely pattern!