It has been a long, overcast winter in Portland, Oregon and just when it seemed as though the weather was about to turn for the warmer, it unexpectedly snowed. March broke records for rainfall and April is proving to be an absolute tease. I admit that I knew was I was in for when I moved to the Pacific Northwest from California, but a girl can only so patient. Bring on spring. Real spring. As in almost summer. In Portland, summer is the big pay off and every sunny day is consciously admired and appreciated. Oh, summer . . .
Summer in Portland is long bike rides, late night patios, movies in the park, cold local micro-brews on tap, backyard vegetable gardens, winter amnesia, and lots of roses. The roses are highly visible and tangible evidence that summer has not only arrived but has settled in for a while. Every Portlander I know waits out nine months of clouds for those three glorious months of summer. I don’t think it’s coincidence that we also spend about nine months taking leisurely, damp walks through heavily pruned, thorny, naked rosebushes in anticipation of three months of beautiful blooms. It just goes to show that we, the residence of “Rose City”, are an optimistic lot.
As spring is just now beginning to show her sunshiny face, my dress was the only thing rosy in my neighborhood’s rose garden. I had to hunt out patches of sun for photos and nearly froze (slight hyperbole) without my jacket. Just for the record, my sunglasses were for function, not fashion and that is proof enough for me that rosebuds and globs of sunscreen are in my future.
Summer in Portland is long bike rides, late night patios, movies in the park, cold local micro-brews on tap, backyard vegetable gardens, winter amnesia, and lots of roses. The roses are highly visible and tangible evidence that summer has not only arrived but has settled in for a while. Every Portlander I know waits out nine months of clouds for those three glorious months of summer. I don’t think it’s coincidence that we also spend about nine months taking leisurely, damp walks through heavily pruned, thorny, naked rosebushes in anticipation of three months of beautiful blooms. It just goes to show that we, the residence of “Rose City”, are an optimistic lot.
As spring is just now beginning to show her sunshiny face, my dress was the only thing rosy in my neighborhood’s rose garden. I had to hunt out patches of sun for photos and nearly froze (slight hyperbole) without my jacket. Just for the record, my sunglasses were for function, not fashion and that is proof enough for me that rosebuds and globs of sunscreen are in my future.
My mom bought this fabric for me as a gift when I first moved to Portland, so it is especially fitting that it was used it for this week’s theme. Regarding the dress pattern, I can’t say I am a huge fan of elastic waistbands, and I made this one a little too loose. It kind of floats around me and the little tie I made doesn’t really fix that. I might take it in, or maybe find a wide black belt to wear with this dress. The print is so busy that a solid colored belt would probably be a nice touch. In other news: This dress has pockets. I love that!
THE FACTS
THE FACTS
- Fabric: Super slinky, floral satin.
- Pattern: Simplicity 2360.
- Year: Contemporary.
- Notions: Thread & elastic.
- Time to complete: 4-5 hours
- First worn: Last week for photos in the park.
- Wear again? Yes. But perhaps belted.
- Total price: $0
This dress was featured at The Sew Weekly as part of this week's Local Color challenge. Consider it my homage to fair Portland.
Photos courtesy of Kirsten Collins.
Photos courtesy of Kirsten Collins.
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