'Blousy' Excuse.

This post has been a long time comin'. I started formulating the idea for it a few months ago when I came across a shirt in the clearance section of Deb that just screamed to be mine. I loved the color, the lacy fabric and the flowy sleeves, but it was two sizes too big.

Not to mention it belonged to the family of 'too-short to be a dress and too-long to be a shirt'. Most commonly paired with leggings in a failed attempt at modesty. (I hate that..)

Here is what it looked like to begin with.
(Notice the difference lighting can make. This was taken in the morning.)

 

I decided it was definitely worth a few dollars and took it home with me to eventually alter into something more flattering. But one thing led to another, and the days turned into weeks before I was able to unearth it from under all of the husband's ripped pants in my 'to-mend' pile. (The tally of patches sewn to date would astound you.)

I started by removing the elastic portion at the bottom and finishing off the seam with a rolled edge. I wanted to keep both the lace and lining edges separate, but someone (who obviously needs to be fired) at the factory sewed them together at the side seams, so I had to roll them together.

Which meant that it didn't lay as nicely as I would have liked, but I was too lazy to unpick the whole darn thing.

I figured the easiest way to add shape would be to sew an elastic to the underside of the fabric, so that it would come in at the waistline and flow away naturally. That would take care of extra bulk and cause a flattering gathered effect. Unfortunately, I underestimated the elastic I had on hand. It was much too flimsy and made the fabric pucker funny.

Then I had an epiphany and realized that the elastic bottom portion I had removed would work perfectly to add a waistline right under the bust. Which ended up looking a little somethin' like this: (Photo taken mid-day.)

 

I thought I was finished until I put it on and noticed that though the extra fullness in front housed the 'girls' quite nicely, the added fullness in back made me look like the next Quasimodo. It wasn't pretty.

Not to mention that the elastic was of poor quality and didn't cinch my waist tightly enough. Over-all, it was a complete do-over.

So I unpicked everything, again, and set off to find fabric to make a sash. I knew I needed to add a waistline, but I didn't think a belt matched the feminine feel I was looking for. I had also come to the conclusion that sewing in a waistline was futile due to the gathering required. Not to mention how extremely difficult (and painful!) trying to use your own body as a dress form is.

I ended up choosing a pink satin that was just a tad lighter than the shirt itself. I thought black would be too harsh, and white wasn't what I was looking for, so I stayed on the mono-chromatic side of things.

And I am super-pleased with how it turned out.
(Photo taken at night. Artificial light is horrible.)

The sash allows me to choose how tightly I want to tie it and where I want it to sit without being permanently attached. It also prevents mr. hunchie-back from returning, which I am very grateful for.

So it's finally finished. I'm wearing it presently. And it's an adorable blouse if I do say so myself. Notice how I avoided using the term 'blouse' until the very end. This is attributed to the flack I've received formerly for the use of the word.

There I was, a few months back, minding my own business updating my status about a 'blouse' that I had recently purchased, and I was bombarded with a slew of hateful comments surrounding the word.

Not only was I referred to as an 'old lady' for wearing them, I was also accused of having a 'scary, OCD, pink, frilly, blousy mind'.

It was a virtual smack-down of epic proportions, I tell you. (Refer to August 26th on my timeline for a full review.) And I'm still not quite sure how I deserved such treatment..

However, revenge was oh-so-sweet when a few months later the perpetrator was told she looked like a boy for wearing her beloved t-shirts. I bet wearing a 'blouse' doesn't sound so horrible now, does it little missy?..