So in my "Flower Wower" post I talk about Unique Vintage and how they recreated some of Barbie's Iconic looks and then I proceeded to do the same thing. Well lets talk about someone else inspired by Barbie, Mochino.
I first watched this runway show when I was in college and prepping for my own runway show. As an avid Barbie fan I was OBSESSED with this collection (and still am) if only I could afford these pieces! Talk about my dream closet.
Well anyways last year my cousin was getting married, and you know I wasn't going to miss that for the world! Also it meant I needed a new dress,now last year was a real emotional roller coaster for me. Coming off of a bad breakup, quitting my job, being physically ill and as a result of all that more than a little depressed (understandably right?) I like to go shopping when I'm sad, even if I can't afford to buy things I like to look at things. Well I was looking at Zenni Optical (glasses, I can never have enough glasses) and I saw the most beautiful pink cat eye frames and I had to have them!
What's wonderful about Zenni is they have a lot of customization options as far as lenses go. And I was so excited to find out that not only did they offer transition lenses, but pink was a color option!
PINK on PINK that was too much for me to handle and all I could think is, "If I buy these then I can get a pink Barbie dress to wear to the wedding!" OH Man am I a weirdo or what?! Well I bought them and I love them, and if you follow me on Instagram you'll notice that I've been sporting them all Spring!
Glasses Check, Dress uh oh, we ran into a snag, are there any pink dresses with the Barbie Logo? No, no where to be found is the the dress of my dreams.
Once I get an idea in my head its very hard to get it out of my head. Plan be, make a dress out of Barbie fabric. So I search the internet, do you think I can find Pink fabric with the Barbie logo? NO! Of course I can't, I did find licensed Barbie fabric but it was blue or had like ballerinas on it or something or other. Anyways I wasn't crazy about it. I even checked Spoonflower ( a website where people can upload their own prints and have them put on fabric.) Still nothing.
In a last ditch effort I went to M&L Fabric, a local fabric shop where I often find gems. They didn't have a print that said Barbie, but they had this wonderful fabric covered in her face, and the print was BIG, LOUD! Not what I wanted but comparable. I Bought sooo much, took it home and got designing.
I eventually settled on this 1940's inspired design, I had also bought a hot pink taffeta to make a belt, and a bunch of organza for the flounce but didn't end up using them. I would say the hardest part of the dress was making sure none of the faces ended upside down! This was a really easy pattern to draft, really easy to sew. I lined the whole thing with a soft pink, just for kicks. I went to a local vintage shop in Orange Circle called Elsewhere Vintage, I was originally looking for a buckle as I had planned to make my own belt. I just couldn't find one that spoke to me, so I ended up just purchasing the black patent leather one. That was such a good decision I thing the black brings the whole look together in a good way. I also bought a pink parasol but decided not to use it for this shoot which was fine, I don't think I needed it.
I had a lot of fun at the wedding, it was easily in my top 10 best weddings, and having attended an Obscene amount, that says something. And it was fun wearing this dress which continues to be a favorite of mine!
That's it for today folks, if you don't follow me on Instagram you really are missing out. I post lots of behind the scenes stuff getting ready for these. Also if you get the chance, browse my shop a little and purchase yourself something nice. Every little bit helps, until next time! (Photo gallery below)