This year the theme for Melbourne Malanka (Ukrainian New Years Eve Ball) was 'Carnival', like the circus or fun fair.
Originally I was feeling flowy vibe for Malanka, I wanted something that would just drift across the room on the faintest of breezes. But then the theme for Malanka was announced & I also realised that I'd have to deal with sewing a lot of chiffon & possibly some draping. Truth be told it all got to hard & I just wasn't that inspired. Then, whilst reading 'The Golden Age of Couture', I happened across this Richard Avedon photo;
This dress was designed by Givenchy for Dior for SS 1955. I wanted that dress. PLUS it was in a photo with elephants. Clearly that means it can be worn to a Carnival themed event, right?! Anyway, I couldn't get this dress out of my mind & I started to think that I was sure I'd seen a pattern for it before, then I found Vogue 2720.
I decided to make the dress in a bright red fabric. Strangely, despite red being my favourite colour, I've never owned a red dress, so I figured it was about time. I couldn't decide on the lining though, so I bought some more of the facing fabric, except it was in black. Then I decided it would be fun to just make the dress reversible. So I did. Then I went a little overboard & made the sash reversible too. THEN, I thought since the theme was Carnival & there are heaps of places at the carnivals (like the hall of mirrors) that are all about visual illusions, why not change it around halfway through the night. I did & it was hilarious. I got SO many looks & double takes. The people I came with (about 7 of us went together) totally freaked because they knew I hadn't brought a second dress with me. It was so much fun.
Here are some photos from the night (taken by my brother-in-law);
I had to make a few alterations to make the dress work I'll be posting details on them later this week on my blog. I've also posted a few more pictures there.