From budding blossoms to now withered petals, the tulips are nearing their end as they always do. Thankfully, my blossom, buds, and pomegranate (at least I think they are pomegranates) dress will not. I had to wear this dress all day so I chose this dress for its easy wear, comfortability, and classic look. One that I knew could last me all day. . . . from early morning street walking to evening fireworks to wrap up the end of Tulip Time.
I have been sitting on this lovely yellow print for some time now and decided to settle on a classic shirtwaist pattern. I ended up choosing a Lutterloh pattern I had made use of before because I wanted an easy project and to show you that these Lutterloh patterns can be used in many different ways. Really, these patterns are templates with endless possibility. It is so easy to change out the sleeves, alter the collar, adjust the skirt, and so on. A nice feature about these Lutterloh patterns is that the pieces are all interchangeable for easy play once scaled out.
To set this one apart, I used a button arrangement that I admired for a long time, buttons in groups of pairs all the way down. To do this one, you need an even amount of buttons and for this project I did. How lucky was I? I wanted to use green buttons here to pop against the overwhelmingly yellow-ness of the print and to play with the hints of pink, brown, and olive green throughout. Really, this print just sings spring and summer. This particular frock buttons all the way down with functional, hand worked button holes with a hook and thread loop at the waist. Another feature to set this attempt apart was the straight short sleeve. Originally, I chose a unique puffed sleeve. For this look, I also lengthened and narrowed the skirt for a more 30s look and line.
Overall, I am quite pleased with this look, it turned out a lot better than I thought to be honest. If you look closely, the pattern of the print does not line up but I think it adds to its character that it is a 40s dress where you simply make do. . . .
Another great feature about this dress is that I did tincker with the collar a little bit to make it more suitable for my detachable collar collection. I can wear with this dress many of my vintage collars to change up its look as much as I like. I have a feeling that this will be a go-to dress for travel and general wear. A great everyday piece for sure.
For this look in particular, I chose to wear it with green gloves and simple tie shoes. A large straw hat went with this look although had I known it was going to be so windy I would have gone with another . . . I was able to keep it in place with a hat pin and some barrettes. It was not as warm as I was hoping but thankfully I had taken with me a green wool sweater that even matched my gloves to boot! Since it is Tulip Time, I wore my little wooden shoe necklace and some red beads. A little fun fact about red beads, they are very Dutch. Red beads were considered to ward off evil spirits and bad health. In the 19th century, red beads were commonly worn by children to keep them healthy. For this look, my hair turned out great! I could not even believe it! It never turns out this good. So, to keep it looking nice I shot it with hairspray (extra strength) and secured it with an invisible hairnet. My hair managed to stay like this all day, even with the wind.
