I Like Pigeons Because Nobody Else Does

About a year ago I was in the hair salon in San Diego and picked up one of those vapid magazines one always finds in those places and began to page through it. I came to this picture of Madonna.

and simultaneously hyperventilated and soiled my drawers. That had to be the most exquisite garment I’d ever seen and I really reallyneeded to have it. I later found out that it was designed by a woman who calls herself L’Wren Scott and that Nicole “Plasticine” Kidman also wore it at some awards shindig:

L’Wren Scott is an American designer from Los Angeles and if you think that dress doesn’t demonstrate her ability to channel cool, then maybe the fact that her beau is Mick Jagger might. Honestly, the woman is gorgeous, dates the king of cool and can design clothing like this.

This dress is severe and odd. I realize that. But it just did something to me and I instantly fell in love with it. It’s a good thing I can sew because instead of paying $1621 (that’s reduced from $2895)I got it for about $50 and twelve hours’ labor. Meet my version of the Headmistress Wool Dress, School Marm from Outer Space, by Melody McFarland:

I didn’t try to make an exact copy of the original. I figured if I was ripping off someone else’s creation, the least I could do was craft it as it was represented in my mind. I did not have a picture of it in front of me while making it, but rather tried to rely on memory and see how things worked out. I studied the pictures for a few days and then made both the collar and cuffs without looking. I compared the two after completion and found that my collar is thicker and the cuffs are thinner. That’s fine with me. I think it still carries the same look and I am thrilled with the results.  In fact, our director at work said to me today “I like your dress. It looks very Italian.”  Looks Italian? Really, people. When we’re talking chic, is there a greater pinnacle than either Parisian or Italian? Not in my book. She couldn’t have come up with a better compliment.

The original has some intricate detailing that I just wasn’t prepared to duplicate. The back is zippered and vented, like mine, but has plackets of buttons. I won’t make another one of these until this is threadbare, but hopefully by that time my skills will be such that I’ll be able to do a more accurate copy. I can’t imagine something like this looking dated.

There are a couple of things that bug me. The collar doesn’t lie as flat as it should (probably why it’s so narrow on the original), the sleeves could have stood to be a bit narrower and the lining could be a little neater but I am really happy with the fit and most everything else.

Follow the widget on the right to see the full review at Patternreview.com.