Thursday, November 17, 2011

DIY Doily Dress

I have been meaning to post this all week... except I never remember to take photos of the finished garment when I'm actually wearing it out! I am really happy with how this dress turned out as not all my own designs do... 
My first idea came from my cousins blog when I saw the cut up doily she had left over from some christmas decorations she had made. I thought, hey that looks like a purpose built neck line for a top or dress... 
I rummaged through my little pile of doilies and found this one

I snipped out the centre..

rummaged through my stash of fabric and decided this lilac organza would fit the bill.

I am "borrowing" my mums dressmaking dummy and I tell you it makes designing/fitting clothes a breeze! 

I literally took the length of fabric - about 1.5 meters and chopped it in half pinned it to each side of the doily with a few gathers on each boob and one in the centre back. Pinned the side seems loosely and it was ready to be sewn.. 

Here it is before i had sewn it, I decided after to cut it just above the knee. I didn't even hem it... probably will have to at some point though!

Here it is, worn with a tan leather belt and some peep toes. 

I really like the scooping back too :)

I wore it out on Friday night, Matt and I had a very rare night out at a Christmas party and it's definitely a party dress...  Now I just need to find a few more occasions to wear it too, and work on the hang over it gave me!
xox


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24 comments:

  1. Cirque Du BebeNovember 22, 2011 at 5:27 PM

    OMG beautiful! Great colour on you. Wow! You should put this on burdastyle.com

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  2. AnonymousNovember 22, 2011 at 8:49 PM

    Thats awesome Hols! I want a dressmaker's dummy!!

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  3. smilieNovember 22, 2011 at 9:56 PM

    What a beautiful neckline the doilies made. One of my favourite Holly Made things so far.

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  4. Lover of VintageNovember 22, 2011 at 11:22 PM

    Gorgeous Holly! Great idea and it looks fantastic on, love it!

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  5. AdyNovember 23, 2011 at 1:29 PM

    Gosh - you're so clever! It's a beautiful dress and I absolutely love the doily neckline.

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  6. AnonymousNovember 23, 2011 at 1:51 PM

    Amazingly clever, and I LOVE the style!
    ... now I'm off to find a doily like it for a dress for me...
    xx

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  7. Lucent ImageryNovember 23, 2011 at 1:52 PM

    This is beautiful. I just love the colours and style. You look gorgeous!

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  8. Seaweed and RaineNovember 23, 2011 at 2:04 PM

    Oh my goodness!!! That is so hot! You look a million $$$ in it. Well done. Love the ingenuity behind the design. Totally works.

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  9. Kathryn MitchellNovember 23, 2011 at 2:32 PM

    Gosh this is beautiful! The lilac organza is just *perfect*

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  10. AnonymousNovember 23, 2011 at 2:37 PM

    Wow, What an AMAZING dress!!! Oh to be so talented, well done. Looks great on you!

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  11. rockmelonNovember 23, 2011 at 2:59 PM

    simple and sensational, congrats on your new outfit.

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  12. Christina LowryNovember 23, 2011 at 3:01 PM

    It's gorgeous! So feminine and clever! :)

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  13. KirstenNovember 23, 2011 at 3:30 PM

    Ooooh, it's lovely! And I have dressmaker dummy envy (no sewing mother here).

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  14. Michelle WalkerNovember 23, 2011 at 3:57 PM

    Ooo that's a bit cute!! lovely doily use and not "Doily Splat" at all.
    Mxoxo

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  15. AnonymousNovember 23, 2011 at 4:31 PM

    ooh, that is so pretty and very clever of you :)

    x

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  16. NotchkaNovember 23, 2011 at 5:00 PM

    A-mazin :)

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  17. hootnzNovember 23, 2011 at 5:41 PM

    Gorgeous idea with the doilies... it looks lovely on you :)

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  18. YanaNovember 23, 2011 at 7:45 PM

    aww, so beautiful! very good idea and so easy to make too :) btw, i have the same problem with taking photos, always seem to forget to take them the first time :)

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  19. MarttaNovember 23, 2011 at 8:54 PM

    Clever idea! Such a lovely dress. Been loving all the various ideas how to use old doilies and your is definitely one of the clever and classy ones.

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  20. Kelly @ Polkadot LaneNovember 23, 2011 at 11:49 PM

    So, so beautiful! Such a gorgeous neckline.

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  21. AnonymousNovember 24, 2011 at 12:15 AM

    looks gorgeous go you!

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  22. MeganNovember 24, 2011 at 8:51 AM

    Amazing! You make it look so easy and it turned out so beautifully. You are one talented lady!

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  23. CatNovember 30, 2011 at 12:15 PM

    This is totally and utterly amazing so beautiful and inspirational - I'm running into my stash now to see what I can find

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  24. Mika @ Blue and the GirlDecember 7, 2011 at 7:57 PM

    I love this - beautiful neckline! Inspiring!

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