Buy/leave? Vintage dress for the holidays?

harmonica

I'm at Goodwill and tried on this dress. I really like the colour and could remove the puffy sleeves if they are too much.

How is the fit? Too snug around mid section? Sleeves or sleeveless?

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7 years ago

Urgent

15 replies

Latest reply was from Ginger

Traci

Veteran

I like the dress. Fun color! I really want to like the sleeves because I think the puff is fun, but I think the dress would be improved greatly if they were removed.

7 years ago

El Cee

Veteran

The color of the dress is exquisite, as is the sweetheart neckline. But yeah... the puffy sleeves are dated and, to me, somewhat distracting. I wonder what the dress would look like with cap sleeves or completely sleeveless. Would the alterations even be worth it?

7 years ago

Anonymous

I like the color!

7 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Pretty dress and how fun for the holiday! What footwear would you put on with it? I think the fit is good. I am not sure about the sleeves; it would depend...

7 years ago

Ginger

Veteran

The fit and color are gorgeous. It's the length of the sleeves that really date it. I'm not a fan of sleeveless (for me), so I would get it and have the sleeves altered. Just shortening them would make a big difference. Re-cutting entirely is also an option. A tailor can do a lot with them since there's a good bit of material.

7 years ago

chadya

Veteran

nice color

is it really worth the cost to have the sleeves removed and reworked?

so many sales in the stores ATM, but that's how I roll
would only consider resell if it worked in the store.

7 years ago

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I vote leave. Too long in the upper torso. Gorgeous colour on you though.

7 years ago

harmonica

Veteran

Thank you, all!

The dress was on sale (20$) and I bought it before I saw Angie's comment. Now I'm a bit confused of what I should do. Maybe I'll just put it in the experiment box and see how it turns out. I'm thinking sleeve and torso alteration. What do you think?

Traci: Agree, I really want to like the sleeves, but something is not quite right.
zoiechic: I love the colour, too!
Suz: I was thinking dark blue block heel pumps or blue suede pumps.
Ginger: I wish I was your neighbor! Your sewing skills are amazing. What alterations do you think would update the sleeves, besides shortening? I'm afraid that just shortening would make it a bit twee. What do you think of a shorter straight or cap sleeve, about 2 inches above the elbow?
chadya: I absolutely see your point, because it would probably be easier to find a dress in a regular store. However, I find it part of the

fun to make second hand/ vintage items to work well. And I have a sweet spot for vintage pieces because they are unique and sentimental (I love the searching process in second hand and thrift stores). Many items are also very well made, not like some fast fashion products.
Angie: I trust your sharp eye. I wonder if alterations could fix that? There are darts in the back that could be removed to make the dress move more freely around the torso without becoming shapeless.

7 years ago

Ginger

Veteran

The gathering in the sleeve head means that if it's just shortened, it probably needs to be gathered back into a band. (I would do it narrower than the present one.) Cap sleeves are VERY short so you can't have one just above the elbow, but a true cap sleeve would be a good look. Simple set-in sleeves are good; I think a little bit of puff is more on-trend for now. Or for variation, tulip sleeves are fun.

http://www.historyworld.co.uk/.....1=&l2=
http://sewmanyseams.blogspot.c.....orial.html

7 years ago

harmonica

Veteran

I like the tulip sleeves!

7 years ago

VioletMyra

Active Member

Is the puff in the sleeve formed by two small pleats? I want to remove the sleeve hem bands and shorten the sleeves to just above the elbow bend, and, remove the front casing and tie also.
Best wishes for the makeover of this garment. I'm excitedly looking forward to seeing your new dress.

7 years ago

Vix

Veteran

Hi Harmonica --

Fun dress for the holidays -- looks really good on you! I think you could wear it as-is now to make sure it's not stuck in alteration land, then experiment.

I like the idea of sleeveless with that style, but you might also try a length that I call "arm midi" haha. It's about 3/4 of the way down the upper arm. I personally find that with a more robust bustline that can work really well -- better than right above the elbow bend.

Other than that, I found it was totally trial/error to get the right length with a given dress. It's so dependent on limb proportion etc -- so just find a tailor with a little pinning patience!

7 years ago

harmonica

Veteran

Thanks, ecteacher0000 and Vix!
I went to a local seamstress who is really into redesign. She's skilled and an an adorable person and we discussed the alterations.

She'll make tulip sleeves if there is enough fabric. I hope so! If not, she'll make the sleeves shorter and narrow the band. With this solution, the puff will be kept (ca "arm midi" length ;-)). Simple set-in sleeves did seem a bit dull. If I get tired of the shorter puff sleeves, I can always have them altered to cap sleeves later.

We removed the darts and the dress seemed to flow better around my torso.

I'm eager to see how it turns out. Her schedule was pretty full, but she'll try to finish the work in a weeks time.

7 years ago

Joy

Veteran

Yay for a lovely vintage dress. I'm glad your seamstress will work with you on making the sleeves more modern. Gorgeous color.

7 years ago

Ginger

Veteran

That's wonderful! It sounds like you found the perfect person to work some magic with this dress. I hope the tulip sleeves work!

7 years ago

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