reparation dress

This dress was given to me by a woman I worked for in NYC. I was the beneficiary of her annual closet cleaning. A major haul that I toted away in Prada gift bags and with higher hopes than anything therein merited. Despite the disappointment, I did score this mysterious little blue silk dress that I have never worn. Truthfully, I didn't leave the apartment in it this time, either.


dress XXXI

I did it. I wore a dress every day in May. I did not drink more sparkling wine than usual, I never once donned a hat, I cheated by wandering around in my undies for the better part of many days until I finally put on a dress, I developed an ironing habit and honed a reckless method of laundering nice things with complete disregard for the washing instructions. On the whole, I felt pretty well-received. The project was mostly about stepping out of a comfort zone. It remains to be seen if I am any more likely to sing karaoke than when this whole thing began.

M by Madge

I tried this dress on three years ago in H&M on Broadway in Soho. It was part of a line designed by Madonna- 'M by Madonna.' It didn't fit well enough to justify spending $68 on it. I walked away from it. Thursday I encountered this dress at a garage sale in Bloomingdale Hills outside of Chicago. I tried it on in the laundry room of the woman throwing the sale, then bought it for $7. I have been eating a greasy pain au chocolat while typing and it now bears several faint grease stains in the 'between my legs' region.


dress XXX

happy funeral dress

I was invited to a happy funeral recently and found this dress perfectly suited to the occasion. I picked it up at a Chelsea flea years ago. I love this dress. I cannot breath deeply while wearing it. Great for scuba training.


dress XXIX

equestrian tie-dye

I dress for utility when I visit home. I found this tie-dye tank dress could be easily modified for an evening horseride. I threw on a ratty pair of dad's lycra tights (lots more where those came from), a down vest, and waterproof equestrian boots. According to mom, both mom and dad almost died on the ride. I would agree with this assessment, though it is a difficult thing to gauge accurately- almost dying. Mom took the picture. Surprisingly, I am not ashamed of this look. Being home shuts off my shame radar entirely. It has something to do with Dad's affinity for spandex.


dress XXVIII

pajamas

I cheated. I wore my yoga pant jumpsuit all day and decided to wear a dress to bed to make up for it. I am just barely keeping the dream alive. Here I am at 6:30AM in the hotel bathroom of Indian Lakes Resort and Spa. The dress in question was another 99 cent purchase. It came as a set with a matching snap cardigan.


dress XXVII

purple with polka dots

This dress is a work in progress. I wore it to Foat Design with unhemmed sleeves (they used to be long and I hacked them off that morning) and unhemmed length of skirt. I consulted both Kaja and Ellie, the new summer intern, on my best prospects for the dress. We all agreed on a nearly sleeveless ruffle in place of the short sleeves. I will get around to this task eventually. We were contemplating whether or not the material necessitated a finished hem. I later sucked up half the skirt in an industrial car vac and proved definitively that it is subject to fraying.


dress XXVI

black wrap

Memorial Day sale at Savers!! I am wholly amused by Savers culture. 50% off sale days are the best examples. Just the sheer notion that Savers relies on its primary demographic having nothing better to do on a national holiday is telling. I show up as the doors open. Savvy. This black wrap dress was originally marked $14.99. I got it for $7.50. It will be a work staple.


dress XXV

dressing down

A super casual Sunday. Chuck Taylor's will effectively dress down anything. This little patriotic sweater is an H&M piece bought secondhand. I love it. It makes me want to go boating. I saw Star Trek instead. It was everything I hoped it would be.


dress XXIV

night gown

I think this dress is pajamas. I bought it on my trip to Mankato in March. $8 from the vintage rack at the local Salvation Army. I did not try it on but convinced myself that if it didn't fit me, it would fit one of my sisters. The dress doesn't fit anyone. I sewed some lace binding tape into the side seams to tie in the back, hoping to cinch it in and give it some shape. I also cut an inch or so out of the shoulder straps on either side. The top is puffy and gives the illusion of a bust. This feels unnatural to me. I cut the top layer off the skirt to avoid feeling like a snach of cotton candy.
Hollah.


dress XXIII

diagonal stripe sheath

I wore this dress for about an hour. On days that I work, it is hard to muster the energy to slip into a dress before changing into a work dress. Mostly because my dress selection has dwindled to a mix of those that need serious tweaking and those that seem too formal to busybody around in. The very notion of a dress being too formal is an idea I am trying to overcome. I bought this BCBG dress at a flea market in Chelsea two years ago. The vendor sold his dresses for $15 each or 2 for $20. I opted for two. He was flamboyant and stylish, which fooled me into thinking that all of his dresses were cool. I have come to realize that the biggest hang-up with wearing certain dresses is not wanting to wash them or iron them afterwards. The last time I washed this dress, I tried to OxiClean it to remove imagined pit stains and the color in the dark blue stripes was completely stripped, leaving behind cream-colored stripes. I refuse to pay more to launder a garment than I paid to obtain it. Conversely, I am happy to pay more to reheel a pair of Payless shoes than to buy a new cheap pair of shoes. It's complicated.


dress XXII

poutrage dress

I was being pouty today and got even by wearing the same dress as the day before. That will show them. It occurred to me as I walked down Hennepin Avenue with my sunglasses on and my lips pursed in a little knot that my bra and undies might be completely visible in the glare of the afternoon sun.


dress XXI

dress for a heat wave

Mid-nineties in Minneapolis! Every year when it gets really hot for the first time I interrogate everyone I encounter regarding whether or not they like the heat. I guess I just want to know who's on my side. I hate the heat. Because I sweat a lot. Life is a pain in the ass when you are always sweating. This dress is a black linen GAP dress that I found for 99 cents. Consequently, I expect nothing of it. I was elated to discover it is a perfect bike riding dress. Improbable but true. The slit up the back is long enough to facilitate biking while the entire dress is lengthy enough to prevent full exposure.


dress XX

shroom dress

My parents sent me a box of morels that they found in a very secret place in Black River Falls. The box arrived unexpectedly in the mail yesterday (note bubble wrap). My dad has only one level of engagement in any activity- fanaticism. He is now a morel fanatic. There is no stopping him. He filled an old Gatorade bottle with water, froze it, centralized it in a box full of wide wale bubble wrap, then carefully laid a dozen giant morels inside and shipped it off to me. Morels sauteed in butter for lunch, after which I might as well call it a day.


dress XIX

blue poly II

I have owned this dress for 3 years. The hem has nearly come undone. If I were to jump up and down a few times, it would unravel completely. I found it for $3 at the Senior Citizens' secondhand shop in Black River Falls. Everything there has a slight essence of 'someone may have died wearing this.' I was in the company of my little sister at the time. I had just moved from NYC and the notion that I could buy a dress for $3 was unreal to me. I did not hesitate, despite the prospect of death. We are not great shopping partners. We encourage each other to buy everything.


dress XVIII

blue poly I

I found this blue polyester dress with pleated skirt at the Rose Bowl Flea in Pasadena. It takes place on the 2nd Sunday of every month. There is a bloody mary bar among the concessions. I highly recommend it. A bloody mary helps eliminate indecision. You will simply buy more things. I bought the dress at a dress vendor that carried hundreds of dresses between $8 and $12 dollars. About 90% of them polyester. I don't have a problem with vintage polyester. From an eco-friendly standpoint, the damage is already done. Nothing is easier to care for than polyester. Just remember not to melt it with a hot iron.


dress XVII

anime frock

This cheap cotton dress only caught my eye because its delicate double straps are intriguing and the print has an element of fantasia about it. There is occasional gold paint in the print. I've only had it a year and have repaired its straps twice. Saturday was 40 degrees, so I wore it with jeans (not shown). It looked super dorky. That's part of this whole dress project. Forcing a comfort level with things I wouldn't ordinarily wear. Like walking into Home Depot in a dress and trying to convince myself people aren't staring at the girl in heels looking for casters and a putty knife. Be cool.


dress XVI

black frills

I don't consider this dress fancy because it cost me $10. The vibe of it is definitely festive and dressed up. It has a loose, flouncy fit that encourages twirling and/or standing on a windswept corner and hoping the entire outfit doesn't end up over your head. It is Ann Taylor Loft from Savers. I shortened the straps to boost the top of it and completely spaced on the fact that it would boost the entire hemline as well. I hate wearing short things. I made up for it by not leaving my apartment.


dress XV

sunshine dress

An Urban Outfitters clearance dress. This piece of shit dress falls apart every time I wash it. I get out my white thread and needle and tack it back together for another wear and try like hell not to spill anything on it. A dress this reminiscent of sunshine is like wearing happiness. Definitely a case of tough love.


dress XIV

collegiate wrap

Converse One Star via Target. I found this at the secret Target on 10th Ave. $10 but I was desperate. Heading to Foat design and still sporting yesterday's trapeze dress. The secret Target is about 5 blocks out of the way. High pressure shopping- must find dress and change in the car! Qualified success. The longer I wear it, the more I like it.


dress XIII

trapeze dress

This Nine West superwide trapeze dress was a Savers find. It is one size too big but wonderfully drapey and soft. I will attempt to gift this dress to either of my sisters when I see them next.


dress XII

deja vu dress

I often pull on the same exact thing I was wearing the previous day. Sometimes this lasts the span of 3-4 days. I have not permitted myself this luxury during dress month until today. The rewear. A staple of a recently adopted philosophy: don't make everything more difficult than it has to be. Hence, I bear a striking resemblance to yesterday. A little worse for wear.

This dress was a $2.99 purchase at Goodwill in Eau Claire, WI. The shoes $3.99 at the same store. It is a cheap poly/rayon Target dress that looks and feels like cotton. I fear it is in a constant state of becoming completely covered in pilly growths. I hope I am wrong about this.


dress XI

sundae dress

Celebrating the world's smallest sundae!
red shoes = cherry


dress X

satin shift

This fits like a bag so I deliberately wore it after work on a day when the entire duration of on time would be approx. two hours. I bought it at Forever 21 for $19 on sale and will definitely wear it as a maternity dress in years to come.


dress IX

black knit dress

This black knit dress is something I occasionally wear to work. I also wore it to my desk job on Halloween because it went well with the fake tarantula I sewed into my fishnet stockings. It has a plunging neckline that makes it difficult to wear. I'm certain I offended my good friend by showing my would-be cleavage throughout an Easter brunch two years ago. An offense tempered by pineapple upside-down cake martinis.


dress VIII

barn dress

dress VII

vintage shift

I found this rather dowdy vintage shift dress at the Salvation Army for $3.99 and the belt for 99 cents. The bold scarf print is very seventies, as is the bag-like shape. I will be making some significant alterations to the dress before wearing it again.


dress VI

party dress

There is a secret Target overstock store in downtown Minneapolis. It is in the basement of the Salvation Army Thrift Store on 10th Avenue. I found this perfect party dress there for $8. I added ties to the side of the dress to cinch it in the back. I have never received so many compliments on a dress. Everyone should check out the secret Target. There is no dressing room so you have to pull on everything over your clothes. Dress light.


dress V

combo dress

I bought this dress to practice my tailoring skills a year ago. It is meant to look like a skirt and top. Don't be fooled. It is all one piece. No built in undies. I did a poor job of taking in the entire top half of it and now mask my handiwork with a gold belt. The gold belt was a $2 buy at the Salvation Army on 38th and Nicollet. It is so fragile. I treat it like a living creature. Note the transformer shoes. They will be a staple this month.


dress IV

wrap dress

I dream of some day owning a Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress. Check them out. Last fall, Diane von Furstenberg fashioned a brilliant blue wrap dress with a golden yellow feather print. During its residence in the window of a nearby boutique, I was obsessed with whether or not I needed that dress. After Christmas, when the store boasted sales of 50-80% off via a giant vinyl banner, I still could not bring myself to set foot inside. Someday I will own a DVF wrap dress. Until then, this Express clearance rack 93% modal, 3% spandex one will have to do. Its saving grace is that the fabric has not yet begun to pill. Also, I have no problem undertaking reckless projects while wearing it, hence my bleeding toe.


dress III

work dress

This black dress is from Paris. A cheap shop in Paris akin to Forever 21. That being said, it has lasted 10 years. It is polyester. I have worn it too many times to count because of my requisite black work attire. Very popular service industry hue in NYC and beyond.


dress II

dress myself month

This May I am wearing dresses all month long. It is unclear exactly how this is going to play out but I have been hording cheap, imperfect dresses for the occasion. I fully anticipate a few consecutive days of my black polyester standby somewhere around May 20th but until then, I'm taking it one day at a time. Feel free to join me. I am secretly hoping to accomplish all of these things:

-Inexpertly tailor several dresses that need help.

-Wear high heels more often and for no reason. Jamie does this and I have always admired her for it. She actually wears heels against all reason.

-Throw on a hat every once in a while.

-Drink more sparkling wine.

This dress is a Guess brand cotton sun dress with a denim vibe. $7.99 at Savers. The tag was ripped out. I only know it is Guess brand because it is impressed on the metal hardware. Not that I care, but it is a comfort to know it isn't from one of the more disposable clothing chains. It was missing a button so one strap was useless. An easy fix that validates my entire button collection. I did something I am usually too scared to do at Savers- tried it on in the dressing room. Now I'm just waiting for H1N1 Influenza to take hold.


dress I