It is, in fact, all about the dress...

May 11, 2010 9:28 AM

Where can I buy a dress similar to this?

I love the vintage dress linked above. I've searched for something similar on etsy, modcloth, and numerous other vintage (and non-vintage) websites with no luck. I am a modern size 10-12. I would even be willing to consider buying similar fabric and attempting to make it myself, although my sewing skills are extremely limited.

Any ideas for finding a dress (or fabric) like this?

posted by somanyamys to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (14 answers total)

Check Anthropologie. I don't know that they have anything like that, but it seems like a possibility.
posted by amro at 9:33 AM on May 11, 2010

Best answer: You could try posting a request on Etsy Alchemy -- I've had good luck with custom-made items I've commissioned through Alchemy, and the prices tend to be ridiculously reasonable. This would be a very simple dress for any tolerably competent seamstress to make if you can get hold of a 3-4 yards of a suitable border print fabric.
posted by stuck on an island at 9:43 AM on May 11, 2010 [1 favorite]

Modcloth definitely!
posted by Tarumba at 9:44 AM on May 11, 2010

Agreed on Modcloth! First place I checked:

Here
Here
Here
Here

None are an exact match, but definitely along the same lines.
posted by Lizsterr at 9:48 AM on May 11, 2010

Maybe: Vintagetrends
posted by Tarumba at 9:49 AM on May 11, 2010

Other places to check:

Free People
Ruche
Cutiemus

I hope you're able to find something similar to what you want!
posted by shesbookish at 9:59 AM on May 11, 2010 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Hi gang. Just to clarify, I've checked modcloth and vintagetrends but the ones that seem to capture the spirit of the original (for me) are out of stock/not my size. However, I will keep my eyes open.

Etsy Alchemy is a GREAT idea, if I can find the right fabric.

Ruche and Cutiemus are new to me -- thanks, and any other suggestions are much appreciated.
posted by somanyamys at 10:07 AM on May 11, 2010

The author of the blog has contact information on that page...did you try emailing her? Maybe she can help.
posted by geekchic at 11:05 AM on May 11, 2010

Best answer: Ebay! I think this dress is a close pick, and it is only $15.
posted by YessieLynn at 1:08 PM on May 11, 2010 [1 favorite]

Sorry its $26 got confused with another one I saw on there
posted by YessieLynn at 1:08 PM on May 11, 2010

Ebay has an excellent supply of vintage clothing dealers - the difficulty lies in narrowing down your search so you're not up all night searching. I'd search a varying combination of terms under the women's vintage heading: "folk," "peasant," "puff sleeves," "70s," "floral."

Those dresses (floral trim, cinched waist, lightly pleated skirt) are really easy to find if you know where to look.
posted by zoomorphic at 7:45 PM on May 11, 2010

Best answer: That dress looks like it would be incredibly easy to make, as long as you could find the fabric. You could probably find a vintage pattern on Ebay, but I don't think you would need one necessarily.

The fabric will be tough though! Gorgeous Fabrics has some nice blouse weights, that might work. Fabric.com also has a huge selection. Now that I think about it, you might be able to find the fabric on Ebay too.
posted by apricot at 8:04 PM on May 11, 2010

Best answer: I'm not much of a sewer either, but I recently bought the Built by Wendy: Dresses book. The one in your picture looks like a variation on the "dirndl" shape she includes. Might be worth getting if you think you'd like to try making it yourself.
posted by web-goddess at 12:24 AM on May 12, 2010

Response by poster: I lurve the dress YessieLynn linked to, but eBay isn't playing nice for me right now. If it's still available tonight, it will be mine. But I am also not ruling out attempting to make it or having it made, if I can find the right fabric. Thanks all!
posted by somanyamys at 6:00 AM on May 12, 2010