The Marge Simpson Pendrell

Facts:

Fabric: 1/2 yard navy satin, chartreuse silk scrap – both free

Pattern:  Sewaholic Pendrell Blouse

Year: 2012

Notions: thread

Time to complete: 4 hours

First worn: June 14, 2012

Wear again: Definitely!

Total Price: $0

Friends, let’s not kid ourselves: there is only one woman on the planet who can rock the exact same outfit for 23 years and have it still be in style:

image found via Wikipedia :)

The practical, colorful flats.  The strapless sheath dress in a lovely shade of green.  The coral beaded necklace that goes with everything.  And that hair!  Who doesn’t love blue beehives?

When I first saw this challenge, I was overwhelmed by the number of TV characters that I would love to emulate in my closet.  I then decided to check out my fabric stash to see what was available.  I definitely had enough fabric to make a cropped Amy Pond jacket, but it’s summer here in Chicago and I just don’t want to touch anything that’s going to make me warmer than I already am.  I stumbled on these two larger scraps of chartreuse silk and navy satin.  There was not enough of either to make a complete top, but together, they could be something special.  Chartreuse and blue – where have I seen that combo before??  And boom – the Marge Simpson Pendrell was born.

Sadly, there was not enough fabric left over to make sleeves – I think the top would look much better if these were added, but if I get desperate, I can throw on a tan jacket for the office.  Overall, I love how it came together – though I am curious if this counts as color blocking?  Am I actually on trend here?  Because that would be a first for me.

The pattern is a breeze, of course.  I am in love with all of the Sewaholic patterns – they fit so well, I only need to make a few adjustments, and the instructions are easy to follow.  I used French seams the whole way around so all of the pesky fraying issues were solved early on. The only issue I had with this blouse was ironing.  Did you know that you should not iron over fray check?  It turns plastic-y.  That’s what I get for not looking where I was cutting and cutting a hole in the back side panel when trimming seam allowances.  Luckily it’s hidden under my arm, and I managed to interface the hole closed.  Did you also know that you can color white interfacing with blue Crayola markers?  I made lots of mistakes in a 1″ space but it turned okay in the end … I think.  I haven’t washed this yet and that might be an interesting adventure.

In order to channel my inner Marge, I added a plastic necklace that I picked up at an Antique Fair years ago.  Very Springfield chic, I think :)

Have a great weekend all!