Not a reference to the Ottoman Empire (as fabulous as that is) or footstools, but silk ottoman. I bought this fabric from Tessuti and have had it in my stash for a little while. It was part of the online purchase I made when I bought the material for Archie’s boardies, and it is divine, with a pique effect that makes cutting on the grain a dream – in fact it didn’t feel like I was cutting anything.
I didn’t have a lot of fabric to play with (as usual) but having decided that next year is going to be the year of the dress, I settled on a simple shift style. I used a pattern bought at the Fabric Cave – Vogue 1576.
All the garments in this pattern are fully reversible – by adding a second layer inside. Needless to say I didn’t do this with my dress – imagine all that thickness!
This is a really basic shift with no darts, closures or embellishments. I added pockets and ditched the neck facings in favour of a bias treatment. Having tried it on, I decided to get up pre-dawn and remove the pockets because they just added too much bulk. I felt a tad sad about this, but my hips looked ridiculous. I also decided that it needed a belt so I had a rummage and found this really nice Armani belt that Mark bought me somewhere exotic a few years ago, and decided that it went well enough, although it does raise the hemline a bit.
Now I’ve decided that it’s a bit short so I will be going home tonight and adding a false hem.
I am really pleased that I decided on the bias neck finish rather than facings. It sits really well and took out some of the thickness at the neck.
What is the large white object I hear you ask (ok, you didn’t ask, but I’m telling you anyway)? Well, it is a sculpture called “Marble bun” by Rodney Glick, and is in our sculpture park at work. I feel a bit ambivalent about it, I can see it from my office window and thought it was quite ugly, but up close it’s quite a bit more interesting. I wouldn’t mind a piece of fabric with this pattern in it!
The details
Fabric is a silk ottoman from Tessuti, Sydney
Pattern is Vogue 1576
Shoes are Guglielmo Rotta
Setting is the Marble Bun in our sculpture park at work