I am a woman of few words this month, it seems.  Quite frankly I am OK with that for the moment.  Despite the constant stream of events that kept me away from the keyboard, I made time for my Trusty Pfaff. 

And so, just under the wire, here is July.  Pretty swanky, right?  I would really love this dress if I saw a picture of someone else in it . . . but I am not yet sold on wearing it myself.  What with the low neckline, and tight skirt, and inability to take wide strides, I just don't know.  I'll admit it - I like to hide in gathered skirts and folds of fabric.  Fine.  Now you know.  (As if it were a surprise.)

Maybe I'll wear July around the house to do chores just to get use to how it feels to be restricted at the knees.  And waist.  And hips.  Perhaps then, and only then, will I feel comfortable enough to wear this dress out in public.  Of course, I reserve the right to wear a coat for the duration.

And . . . we have fabric!  Pictured here, with the most expensive tape measure of all time (a souvenir from from the V&A Museum in London during the height of the American financial crisis (ouch!)), we have a beautiful black, red, and silver woven silk.  Lucky me, I got this $28/yard fabric for half the price.  Yahoo! 

I must have been in a super finicky mood about this silly dress as evidenced by the three separate shopping trips to find something I liked.  I was looking for dressy, but not prom-my.  I also wanted some stiffness for structure.  I had no idea what color scheme I wanted. 

I think this geometrical pattern will work nicely.  In fact this was the only fabric I grabbed and walked around the store with on any of those fabric store excursions.  I am not always a fan of red and black together.  They are both so bold, but I think it works for the dress design.  And, added bonus,  I am already the proud owner of two pair of red heels, so I have shoe options at the outset.  

In related news, I think July may be the last fancy dress for a while.  "More Go-To Dresses!" is my new motto.

Starting in August. 

(Maybe ending in August.)

To DotMC Shareholders and Supporters:

Thus far our gain in net worth for the first two quarters of 2011 is open to interpretation.  From a purely financial standpoint the fiscally unsound decision to cease the sale of pretty dresses has proven disastrous.  Thankfully we remain unconvinced that making money is in our best interest.  We are, however, unanimously in support of maintaining a balance between the monthly design/manufacture of dresses and of having free evenings and weekends to do other things.  That being said, on a more metaphorical level, our worth has grown exponentially in the past 6 months because we are in good spirits and enjoying time away from the sewing machine.

Our numbers are notably in the red due to our complete disregard for profit. Despite fiscal shortcomings, we remain pleased with the work being produced and with the new direction DotMC has taken i.e. blog format.   Lack of income has not deterred the production of pretty dresses.  In fact, the work produced in the last 6 months arguably outshines products from the quarter prior.  Perhaps the time afforded to read books rather than balance them has increased levels creativity.

In an attempt at full disclosure and because we like pie charts, and incidentally, pie, we present visuals to illustrate DotMC's growth and development in the last two quarters.

Colors.  2010 proved to be the year of jewel-tones and our research department projected more of the same in 2011.  Bucking all expectations of theme and palettes, the range of colors this year has been surprising, to put it mildly.  Inconsistency is proving to be the only constant this year.  We are not sure what color schemes to expect in the coming 6 months, although trending patterns point to blue. 

Skirts.  DotMC has long taken a pro Full-Skirt stance despite vocal opposition from certain parties.   When we shook the numbers down, we found that the majority of our output for the last 2 ½ years has favored the fitted skirt.  This realization was obviously a shock, but the numbers do not lie.  We have plans to form a committee with the sole purpose of fostering an improved alignment between our stated skirt preference and our designs.

Print vs. Solid.  We have noted a departure from majority-solid colored dresses in the last two quarters which is at odds with the trends of the previous two years.  Contrary to long-term projections, 2011 is proving to be print-strong.  This may or may not be indicative of things to come.

Sleeves.  Perhaps the most controversial issue has been the ongoing sleeve-or-no-sleeve debate.  Much was made of the May decision to add sleeves after the dress was completed.  It is safe to say that 2011 will be an interesting year with regard to sleeves. Only halfway through the year, we have watched as the number of dresses with sleeves doubled.  Notably, ¾ length and long sleeves have yet to make an appearance on any DotMC dress.  We assure you that we are diligently working on the matter.

Miscellany.  As we move forward with our anti-business model for 2011, we have initiated the tracking of DotMC progress in entirely new ways.  The following diagrams are intended solely for informational purposes.

Indicators project that this will be a year of development and maturity at DotMC in every way, profit margins excepting.  Bows and ruffles seem to be on their way out while slimmer silhouettes are making more consistent appearances,  Whether these changes are temporary or permanent remains to be seen.  

Thank you for your continued commitment and support as we usher in our 3rd quarter of DotMC 3.0. 

Elizabeth Cowin
President and Founder
Dress of the Month Club

July?  Oh who knows.  But after the whole NYC dress debacle, I think the inspiration behind this month may just have to be S-E-X-X-Y.  Unfortunately for me this is a territory that I am not too familiar with.  Which is why most of my dresses can safely be described as "cute".

I like sweet florals and flowy full skirts and indiscernible cleavage, but I guess sometimes it's A-OK to shake things up a bit.  So this month I am going to try something a little tighter and a little lower cut.  The plan is to wear this dress to a September wedding in Brooklyn.  Hopefully the plan is also to wear this dress unselfconsciously and comfortably to a September wedding in Brooklyn. For July, the true test will be how I wear the finished product, not just turning scraps of fabric into a finished project.  We'll.  Just.  See.

I have an incomplete picture of this dress in my head.  Thus an incomplete sketch.  I am thinking deep V, front and back.  I like the idea of a longer skirt, but that could change.  I also kinda want a belt, but that might change too.  I need to find the perfect fabric first!  I can't even settle on a color scheme.  I can promise that there will be piping.  I do love piping.

Well, this should be an adventure.

Well, well, well.  What did the postman bring me today?  Oh, I don't know!  Just a card that looks like a book about dresses, that's all.  Nothing but a few of my absolute favorite things all folded into one paper envelope! 

You see, if there is one thing I like, it's a pretty dress.  If there are two things I like, it's getting stuff in the mail.  If there are four things I like, it's macaroni and cheese.  (But I get ahead of myself.)  If there are three things I like it's old books.  (You see where this is going?) 

But this, friends, this(!) is not an old book.  It's a card that looks like an old book.  (Not just any old book mind you - a book about a lady and her many dresses.)  Because if there are five things I like it's fantastic stationary!  Also, if there are six things I like, it's things that look like other things.  (Not to be confused with people dressed like other things, which is terrifying.)

This lovely surprise came from the even lovelier Jillian . . . and if there is one thing I LOVE it's Jillian.  Thanks for making my day Jillian.  And thank you for not sending me macaroni and cheese.

Aside:  Jillian did once send me two quiches in the mail.  East Coast to West.  And they were delicious.  True Story!

May Dress!  Now with sleeves! 

P.S. Haircut alert!

Done!  And boy am I tired.  Too tired, fortunately for you, to brag about how this dress looks exactly like I pictured or how beautiful it turned out.  I love this dress! 

Is it peacocky enough? I hope Carolyn approves.  One month until her sunny San Diego wedding, which makes me one month ahead of the game. 

STATS

Needles Broken:                     0
Spools of Thread Used:        1         

COST

Fabric                     $13.23
Lining Fabric         $12.49
Accent Fabric        $13.32
Thread                    $  3.69
Needles                 $  2.99
Zipper                     $       0 (in the stash)
TOTAL                    $45.72

TIME 
7.33 hours

SOUNDTRACK
Rhapsody in Blue – Gershwin Gershwin

Yes, yes, I could stay up until midnight to get this dress done under my own deadline.  But that just isn't how Dress of the Month Club rolls.  It's stress free around these parts.  Not like in college when I stayed up all night before a Milton final reading the entirety of Paradise Lost.  (Oops.)  Also since I make these rules I can totally break them.  Like whenever I want. 

So, I have decided to give myself another day to finish up the June Dress.  Just one.  That's all I need.  In my defense, the secret project I have been working on (and am nearly finished with) involves making three (three!) dresses.  It's not like I have been sitting around trying to get into critically acclaimed and highly recommended television shows like Friday Night Lights or anything.  I've been working.  Plus (and I've said it before) I do what I want!

When not sewing, I will admit to spending a lot of time looking at shoes on the Internets.  Pro tip:  If you are going to make a dress with which you want to match the shoes, pick out the shoes first.  Matching shoes to a dress is nearly impossible.  It's been Blue Shoe City at my house lately.

Check out the latest.  I haven't compared the colors yet, so cross your fingers!