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A purple silk blouse

I love all shades of purple. Lavender, violet, plum, true purple. I love them all. So my friend knew I would love a piece of purple silk from his mothers stash. I was so grateful and I knew I needed to make it into something special. This blouse was cut out in the last hours of 2020. It took quite a while to find a pattern that I could fit on the available fabric. Finally, I found Simplicity 1316. I cut out a size 14. I was worried that it would be too small, so I used a 3/8 inch seam allowance throughout instead of 5/8 inch. Well, that was a mistake. It turned out too big, so I had to redo each seam. That made this project take longer then it should have. But in the end, it turned out great. To finish it off, I bought a purple crystal floral button at Hobby Lobby. A bit of elastic and I had a perfect closure for the neckline.

For this fancy vintage look, I paired the blouse with a skirt I made 2 years before. I think I made it for Christmas 2018. It was made from Simplicity 8250. It was made from a black curtain from the thrift store, believe it or not. The tee shirt I made to wear with the skirt sadly turned out too small. I was new to stretch fabrics and the fabric wasn't quite stretchy enough.  Repurposing fabrics from the thrift store is too fun. I think the skirt looks fabulous. I used horsehair braid on the hem. It really helped give it some fullness. This is a stiff but flexible trim, used to give body and stiffness to the hem. It is woven, almost like one of those finger traps. It's an interesting sewing notion, seen in many formal gowns even today. 

I wore my Splendette 1950's style purple potion earrings, necklace, and bangle. My black clutch isn't vintage, no older then the 1990s, I would say. It's made of weird metal pieces attached together, almost like scales. My true vintage Whiting and Davis mesh bags are made in a similar technique. I wore black sheer hose and my trusty character shoes to finish the ensemble. I felt like I needed to find a cocktail party to attend. So chic.

Also, I styled the blouse in a casual, modern way. Because let's face it, when am I going to go to a party? I wore dark straight jeans, with a teal blue/green thrift store cardigan. My cute purple tassel earrings added a nice touch. A possibly handpainted purse I also found at the thrift store matched perfectly, and finished the outfit with flair. It's perfect for shopping or maybe a movie with girlfriends.

I love that I can style even a fancy silk blouse for everyday wear. I don't often wear silk or silky type fabrics. My cold intolerence means that it often feels too chilly for me. We'll see how much wear I can get from it. But I do love it.

Yours in hard work, creativity, and a dash of pixie dust,

Sarah

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