Sound + Vision cosplay

Guys, I'm so excited about today's post I hardly know how to start but here goes.  I have found such admiration and inspiration in that odd eyed most glorious man, David Bowie... his embodiment of confidence and badass-ery has hugely influenced the type of person I am today.  When I heard about his passing I scarcely knew what to do with myself.  I could never begin to compare myself to him, but he is exactly one of those people that paved the way to be who you want to be; be who you love, no matter what others may think.  It's that kind of thinking that has always resonated with me, and shaped me in to the person I am.

I immediately went to Max and we both agreed we just had to do a David Bowie Sew Geeky.  We took to the interwebs and asked our best bloggy friends to join in in sewing with us, whenever they want, to honor the Man Who Fell to Earth (I'm not gonna lie, there's probably going to be more puns.  Sorry not sorry ;-)  So today, I'm offering up one of my two David Bowie inspired outfits, my Sound and Vision dress.  

Sound and Vision is by far my favorite David Bowie song.  If you're unfamiliar with it, the lyrics are basically:  "Blue, Blue, electric blue, that's the color of my room where I will live..."  I've always loved it because just the thought of having this ultra bright, blue room where I could just sit in it, and be blissfully silent, bursting with creative visions, excites me...and calms me all at the same time.  It speaks to my core as an artist and fills me up.  I could listen to it aaaaallll day long!  And I knew straight away that had to realize it into a dress for me.

I painstakingly fought in my head over what the dress should look like... I went through countless hours on Pinterest and on Etsy, well, really just searching everywhere for the right pattern.  Y'know, that elusive perfect pattern, hahaha.  After about a week of looking, I stumbled upon Maven Pattern's most recent pattern, the French Dart Shift.  (affiliate link)

Guys, that collar was/is  e v e r y t h i n g!!!  I can't begin to tell you how much I adore the idea of hiding my face into my own mini Sound and Vision "walls"... It makes me feel like I'm hiding away and I'm not going to lie, it immediately made me think about this character from one of my favorite video games, Final Fantasy X.  Auron, anyone?!  Yeah, that pattern quickly invoked that  "I must have it" feeling inside of me, so I searched the around to see what others had made from the pattern.  Thing is guys, I hadn't realized it right away at the time, but that pattern is brand spanking new!  Didn't matter, I was certain it was "the one."

I did something I don't always make time for and that was sewing up a mock version, a muslin, if you're savvy.  That was a pretty smart move because after taking the muslin apart after fitting, it was the catalyst for me drafting out the color-blocked version of the pattern that I then improved pieced directly on top of those quartered out pieces.  I had a vision in mind for some of the pattern parts but for about 70% of it I just winged it!  The fabrics are all Kona Cottons from Fabric Depot and also this ultra fabulous geometric gemstone fabric designed by Alison Glass.  I literally did a happy dance after I finished sewing together all of my blocked off pieces and found that they matched the muslin perfectly!  After almost 7 years sewing I'm finally getting the hang of it, hahahhahahah ;-)  

The pattern itself goes together so smoothly, for starters, NO ZIPPERS OR BUTTONS!  HIGH FIVES!, and it doesn't have a million little pieces which can just so refreshing sometimes, am I right?!  I made the size 14 with cap sleeves (it alternatively has long and medium sleeve options too) and it fits really well.  I love the way the pockets are sewn in.  Yeah, they're inseam pockets but I personally had never seen the technique of there being a bit more fabric on top of the seam allowance before and it's great because it makes them sturdier, not prone to drooping from the weight of what you carry.  Since I don't carry purses, sturdy pockets are sort of a slice of fried gold. 

 I chose to wear the collar up for the most part, but it can be rolled down to and looks just as lovely.

It makes me feel like the Ice King from Adventure Time,I love that!  

I wanted to do something bold with my makeup that would be a proper homage so I went with doing a tribal look and I straightened my hair!  We went out to Trader Joes after that to do some grocery shopping and it was mildly amusing to walk around with Akira strapped to my chest while I perused the frozen section with my fun blue makeup!  Ha!  That is just how I ROLL, PEOPLE!

And oh!  One more thing!  Wait, two more things!  One:  the incomparable Celina from Petit a Petit and Family sewed along as well!  Her images and handmades are a true source of inspiration for me and I promise it will be awesome.  I can't wait to hop over and see all it myself!

 Max and I still have more stuff that we are going to be sharing too, so be on the look out for new stuff or sign up to my mailing list so you don't miss a beat!  So tell me what you think and tell me your David Bowie inspiration stories!  I'd love to hear them!

hugs + stitches + many many smooches,

Kat