My friends, we're ending the year on an unexpected success: I made a dress. A for real, wearable dress.

I've had "learning to sew" on my to-do list for years, due to a generous gift from a former coworker, but having no idea how to turn on, let alone thread a sewing machine, is a big hurdle. Especially because I know me - the show and tell of someone showing me how to use the machine was always going to be far superior than reading instructions or watching a video.

So, fast forward and I manage to convince my friend to venture into DC. And after a few false starts and learning to wind a bobbin and such, I decided to do that thing you never do: jump into a project way too advanced for you (god forbid I just like, make a pillow case or something). For years I'd been watching Annika Victoria on YouTube, and the way she explains things is just so damn logical. It makes almost every project seem manageable. So I took my theory from this video on copying a dress, and decided to make a version of an Urban Outfitters dress I bought over the summer. Because while I knew that the skirt layers might be moderately difficult, the bodice shape was simple and easily transferred to paper.

And then, impressing even myself, I was SUCH AN ADULT, and made the pattern, a full mock up, and then pre-washed AND IRONED the final fabric. That I so graciously received from my sorority sister when she was in the Democratic Republic of Congo. And nearing the finish line I also decided last minute to put in a side zipper (slightly shoddily by hand, we won't discuss the work I need to do on my back stitch). I'm too impatient to wait for the season it's intended for, so please excuse the slightly formal styling. My final plan is to wear this with sandals in a super casual way, but hey, at least it admirably performs double duty?

Also, no, before you ask there aren't any pockets in this dress but let's not ask for the moon and stars ok? Double layers of gathered skirt that I cut into to insert a zipper was as much as my heart could take. The original didn't have pockets either LMAO.

Well everyone, it's just about that time of the year, and I'm ready to declare the 2019 Wardrobe Resolution over! It hasn't been a rousing success, hell, as you can see below Fall was kind of a disaster, but it's an experiment and I'm just doing what I can in hopes that by helping myself I can help others.

So, Fall. My mini clothing method of capturing pictures broke down a bit here, so please excuse me that not everything is capture in all it's glory, lol.

Fall 2019 Purchases:
1. White Button Down (American Vintage/YOOX)
2. Neutral Shirt Dress (Matches)
3. Plaid Jacket (H&M)
4. Duster (Anthropologie)
5. Cashmere/Wool Sweater (Everlane)
6. Hoodie (Marine Layer)
7. Cardigan (Madewell)
8. Houndstooth Blazer (Uniqlo)
9. Houndstooth Wide Leg Pants (Uniqlo)
10-11. Wide Leg Pants (Uniqlo)
12. Black Sleeveless Romper (Abercrombie)
13. Stretchy Crop Top (Abercrombie)
14. Scorpio Tee (Meghan Tonjes)
15. Striped Turtleneck (Marine Layer)
16. 3/4 Zip (Topshop)
17. Crew Neck Sweater (Madewell)
18. Boucle Wool Coat (Ganni)
19. Puffer Jacket (Uniqlo)
20. Orange Sweater (Mission Edit)
21.-22. Leggings and Sports Bra (Beatz per Minute)

Basics/Thrifted:
1. Black Wide Legs Pants (Vince, Poshmark)*
2. Gray Boyfriend Cardigan (Vince, Poshmark)
3. Black Double Breasted Blazer (Pendleton, Poshmark)
4. Khaki/Olive Green Trench Coat (London Fog, Poshmark)
5. Skinny Jeans (Everlane)**

Formal:
1. Red Gown (ASOS)

*These arrived too small and my attempts to alter them to fit didn't work and just made me feel bad about my body. So they have been retired to scraps/future projects cause I fucked around with the seams too much to re-sell.
**I wouldn't usually put these in the Basics category, but I lost another pair of Madewell jeans to a thigh rip/hole, so here we are.  

To be honest I don't have a good reason for Fall. Yeah, birthday and "treat yo self", but that's not a super good reason/excuse and I admit that. Ultimately I have accepted that I'm an emotional/bored shopper. I'm working on switching out the hobby/impulse with something healthier and that costs less money, but it's an imperfect process. I asked on Instagram what people did when they wanted to get out of the house but had no specific destination or activity in mind, and didn't get any responses. I think it's a quick fix for a lot of us, and finding better coping mechanisms is hard. It just is.

Annual Round Up: 2019 Wardrobe Additions.
 

Looking at the hard data, I bought 87 pieces in 2019. The most popular categories were Shirts/Tops, Jackets/Blazers, and a tie between Sweaters and Workout Wear. I feel like in a slightly changing style year, this could be worse, but it could always - always - be better. I want to learn to buy less. Or I guess keep less, because the reality that you don't see is that I shop a lot, I browse and buy a lot, but keep a relatively small portion of that. I've gotten down the part where if I don't love it I don't keep it, but I've got to work on the next step, which is a combination of do I need it (which is a toughy because the answer in most situations will be no) and does it add something unique to my wardrobe as a whole.

Next up, digging deeper into the data, I discovered the following:


92% of the pieces I bought this year were new. There are some more stats I shared over on my Instagram, but I think this is the place where I could really do better in 2020. I tend to do well at scoping for deals and the online second hand market isn't actually always the best price-wise if you're able and willing to be patient. At least not at my clothing size. But, in light of the current information we have on hand about the environmental impact of fashion, I'd like to really bring up my second hand numbers, maybe to at least 25%? I'd love to aim for 50% but I'm also trying to be reasonable with a new goal so we'll see. 

If I were to give myself an overall grade for 2019 I'd say C/C+. Not because of any calculations, but just feel. I was mediocre at sticking to my goals and made more justifications than I'd like when I wanted to add a new item that was over and above what my initial count for the season was supposed to be. I do think wrapping Second Hand/Thrifted and Basics into their own category was a good decision though, so I'll have to have a little think about how I want my resolutions to evolve to support both feelings.

You know, I love Christmas and I still went in to this event a little concerned it would be underwhelming. Instead my friends and I were treated to an actual wonderland of lights and cheer and even with a few lines here and there (mostly drink related to be honest) it was amazing. And worth every penny - especially if you buy the 9:30pm "happy hour" tickets like we did. I'm going to post more pictures and videos over on my Instagram, so consider this more of an intro to Enchant Christmas DC!

And so the crown drama continues! I don't really want to stretch this into a fourth post just about painting/aging, which means you're all probably going to be stuck with more pictures than words and I'm sorry in advance if that's confusing.

First up - priming! I was worried the primer I already had on hand, being brown, would mess with the "glow" of the gems so I picked up one in white from the same brand. A couple of thin coats in the alley next to my apartment building (and a round of masking tape goo removal with a cotton bud and isopropyl alcohol) later, and we were good to go!


Here is where I'm going in with a round of  "do what I say, not what I do". Later on in this post you'll see the crown resting on parchment paper, and that was BY FAR the better plan. Trust me. Because the next step is to start painting everything gold (paint available here - thanks kind reviewer for the swatches!) and if you're like me and vaguely impatient then the parchment paper will keep you from mucking everything up. Oh, and I almost forgot an important step! The glass gems along the side were still clear post priming, but before beginning the gold I took some random green nail polish (I think Essie?) painted each one, and then applied a clear polish topper. I prefer this method because the end effect is still translucent and matched the orange stones pretty well. 


I started with a small sponge tipped applicator, but no go, I couldn't get into all the nooks and crannies (and there are so, so many). I was finally relegated to using your typical synthetic brush, and just going at it. In the end it took 2-3 coats of gold to get it evenly coated, and I probably could have been even more meticulous if I wanted.


The last steps are kind of... ephemeral and artistic, so do what you will until you get an end result that you like. First up is aging - take a dry, natural haired brush, dip it in dark brown/black paint, stipple it directly on the crown  and immediately wipe most of it away. This creates a realistic "grime" and makes the final piece more authentic (I think Punished Props Academy has a good example of this in their Elder Scroll video).


After that I went in with some Rub 'n Buff, but I think incorrectly? I applied with a brush in small areas and then took a washcloth and buffed at the areas. But in pictures I've seen since then, of other people using it, it looks like they're applying and buffing at the same time using a microfiber towel? Shrug. I'd probably recommend more research in that department.

After the Rub 'n Buff was applied I kind of felt like it overwhelmed the aging, so I went in again with another super light layer of the dark brown paint and honestly? I kind of think the final result looks great and I'm still a little shocked about it.


I've got some tentative plans for how to make this actually wearable, the one downfall of it being mostly hot glue and slightly too big is that it doesn't want to stay on my head independently, but there you go! A kind of screen accurate take on High Queen Margo's crown [pats self on back].

Next steps include choosing an outfit and then an eye patch, since the second depends on the first. Wish me luck and I'll make sure to keep you all updated!

Don't miss out! You can find the other parts of this series below:

• Part I
• Part II