The Library Dress

You know how some project ideas evolve verrrry gradually, stewing and brewing in your brain until finally IT'S TIME? Well, here's a long-coveted item whose time has finally come.

Several years ago, a friend and I saw a picture in a knitting magazine that stopped us in our tracks. It wasn't because of the knitted cardigan the model was wearing--no, what really grabbed our attention was the dress she had on under that sweater.  It had gorgeous books all over it! We went crazy over that dress, so much so that my friend called the magazine publisher to find out where they got it.

Turned out, the dress was a 2007 J. Crew design that had quite a cult following. A quick eBay search found it easily fetching $300 or more.  Yikes! There went my dream of owning this literary confection. But actually, once I got a full view of the dress sans cardigan, I had second thoughts anyway.

I'm soooo not a fan of that waist-less shape. Maybe someone could rock it, but it would be super unflattering on me. So the library dress slipped to the back of my mind for a long time.  But then I found this.

 

Library fabric! In all the beautiful rich colors I love! I resisted it for a while, but I kept thinking about it, and once again I got obsessed with the idea of a library dress, so I caved. And now, this weekend? This project is ON, baby.

No doubt many of you recognize this as the Truffle dress from The Colette Sewing Handbook. Ignore the ruffle, because that's not happening. I hadn't given Truffle a second glance, really, until I saw this sleek and ruffle-free version. And when I spotted the way Rochelle styled her Truffle with tights and a belt, I knew I could make this dress work for me.

Library dress, you will finally be mine!

Comments

[Rochelle New]

Oh my gosh I LOVE that book fabric!! Can't wait to see how your Truffle version turns out! :)

[Maria]

What a gorgeous dress that will be! I want one!

[Dusty]

I like your fabric better.