MMmmmm.... faille....

Faille isn't used a lot anymore, but it used to be.  I LOVE it.  Imagine grosgrain ribbon as a fabric- that's faille.  I found this faille beauty not long ago.

Not only is it made of faille, but it has some badass style lines, forming a "v" from the princess seams on the front bodice, and another at the back waist from the shoulder darts.

And as if that weren't sufficient, it has upward horizontal pleats across the back hemline that slope diagonally up the front.  KILLER!

Return of the Killer Cherry Dress!

So, as I was posting about my last Betsey Johnson find, another one was lurking.  Another brain message and another stop at a resale store in an adjacent neighborhood, here it is:

  

  

The fabric is a burnout, and the slip is missing, but that's nothing I can't remedy with my admittedly obsessive collection of vintage slips.  It's a 30's-inspired bias-cut design, so it accommodates my curves nicely. What are the odds of finding another Betsey Johnson Cherry dress?!  And, it brought friends....

 I'm a sucker for novelty prints.  This appears to be handmade, right down to the mismatched vintage buttons.  If the fabric is a reprint, it's a damn good one- border prints are really uncommon these days.  It took me a minute to see that these are closed umbrellas dripping with rain (or blood, whatever...).  The waistband is a coordinating print of tiny umbrellas and raindrops.

And then there's this...

 Some things make you quit breathing when you find them- asphyxiation by fabulousness.  This is one of those things.  It's all handmade, with couture-quality stitching, no joke.  The major seams are done by machine, and all of the interior finishing- blind-stitched hems, finished edges, are all done by hand and done very well.  Someone either had this made professionally or was very adept at sewing themselves. There are even bound buttonholes and covered buttons. 

 The details on the design itself are great, a split bubble skirt, the knot at the hem, a cropped bolero.  The sketchy vines of yellow roses on sateen gorgeous!  They don't make fabric like this anymore... I wish they did!

More vintagey goodness is on the way!

Moral: Impulse Shopping is Your Friend

Sometimes, when I don't buy something I've been wanting, I think I'm being good.  The truth of the matter is that I'm deceiving myself.  I may be behaving, but it's bad for me.  It's a setup for torture.   Let me tell you a little story.
Once upon a time, I found a Betsey Johnson knit dress with a print of big, fat, hot pink cherries.  I wasn't sure about the material, if I wanted a retro-inspired dress made out of comfy knit like a t-shirt.  I wasn't sure how I felt about the cherries being hot pink.  I didn't know if I'd wear it, with it's slight a-line cut.  I put it on hold, waited too long, went back, and it was gone.
As I waited, I decided I neeeeeded it.  I spent the next few years sporadically combing eBay, as well as resale shops locally and while traveling.  Another case of reverse-buyer's remorse; I constantly kept an eye out for it.
http://youtu.be/s-Xl17B-Z0A
Then, one fateful day, I came across another.

The cherry dress and I now live happily ever after.  That's the story of how I came to own a Betsey Johnson pink cherry dress.  Now if only I could keep my antenna up and work some good juju on the Trashy Diva "Anna" dress in their green Ming print.  I recently let one get away from me... the search continues...