Rally for the Arts!
As I enter Week 3 of not working (1st week was vacation, but it still counts!), I’m starting to get a bit down. :/ I find myself staying up/sleeping in ridiculously late, and I feel draggy and lethargic all the time. Right now, I’m in a weird limbo state where I don’t know if I have a job or not. All will be decided when the SC Legislators get back into session.
I decided to attempt to cure my drab & dreary mood by fixing a drab & dreary dress! 🙂
It’s a drab day in South Carolina!
This dress is frumpy and dated as can be, but there were a couple of things to like about it. First off, the light linen-y fabric was comfy as could be — perfect for a hot and humid day! The top of the dress had this lovely detail as well:
Purty! 🙂
…but then I was reminded of this:
Does anyone else remember the Kathie Lee Sweatshop scandal of ’96? Not cool, Kathie. Not cool. 🙁
The first thing I needed to take care of was that blah beige!
Say hello to my little friends!
I mixed some Scarlet dye with a bit ‘o Navy. Usually when I use Scarlet, I end up with a Coral hue. Adding some blue will surely prevent this, no? 🙂
Mixology at work!
After my dress was dyed & dried, I needed to shape it up a bit! I took it in from the sides 3″.
Getting it in shape! 🙂
A quick stitch session followed.
Whirrrr!
I cut off the extra fabric from the sides, and used one of the scraps to make (what else?) a sash!
Stitch it down, then turn it inside-out and close up the raw end! 🙂
I’m not done yet! 🙂 I liked the length of this dress, but if it was going to stay, I’d need to get my all-natural air-conditioning elsewhere!
And…CHOP!
I folded that top raw edge under twice, and stitched it down…
Making a casing! 🙂
This made a casing for me to put a nicely-fitted piece of elastic into!
In ya go!
After a good press, my new dress was ready for a Rally to Save the Arts in South Carolina! 🙂 That’s right, people from all over South Carolina organized at the statehouse to show their support of the of the SC Arts Commission and the SC arts movement!
Ready to Rally! 🙂
When I first showed up, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Would people really brave the rain to support the arts?
Um…yes! 🙂
I have to admit, I was genuinely touched by all the support! Some of my best buds came out to show the arts some love, too! 🙂
They just don’t want me to be stuck sofa surfing with them…;)
Lots of Love for The Arts in SC!!! 🙂
Rain? What rain? 🙂
I ran into some awesome local artists as well!
It’s Nick Dunn and Natalie Brown! 🙂
It’s Michael Krajewski (in his own refashed shirt!) 🙂
Feeling like a Greek Goddess! 🙂
This rally did my heavy heart a great deal of good. 🙂 I hope to have some good news for you guys in the next couple of days as to the future of The SC Arts Commission, and of course, my place in it. 🙂
Rate this:
Share this:
Like this:
18 Responses to Rally for the Arts!
I love the color!
Yay for all who rallied! If I lived in SC, I would have been there.
You are simply fantastic.
hope everything works out!…oh, and the dress is super cute too 😉
Am keeping everything crossed for you. You looked fab and a great turn out!
I hope it turns around quickly for you… being in limbo is tough!
Nice job Jillian! Love that color
Your dress looks awesome! I really hope you get to keep your job!
Great looking make over. I am so glad you had such a great turn out of supporters. Here’s to hoping you get your job back quickly- xo Diana
Hey Chica –
I haven’t had a fulltime job for about 4 weeks now. The best thing I did for myself was create a daily schedule. Bed at 10pm, up at 6am, breakfast, exercise, and then job search til 5 or 6pm. It helped keep me on a regular sleep pattern even when I varied it slightly and kept me focused each day.
Lotsa love!
I can’t tell you how many of those KL dresses I’ve come across…I feel absolutely inspired right now! And how awesome to see so many people rallied together to support the arts!
Hey Jillian
I have been following you for a while now, I am inspired and until today was pretty anxious about trying to refashion especially since I have never used a sewing machine! But I have an event over the weekend that requires a costume… so I bought some purple RIT and got to dying. I am really happy with the piece, it is rayon and picked up the purple great (was very light green before). I decided to add in a cotton skirt that is just the perfect fit, but over the years has become a less bright white… it came out with a bit of a tye dye look, which I actually love, but going forward, I am wondering how to avoid this look? I used cold water as that is what the Rit website suggested for the rayon. I also used cold for the cotton. perhaps, I should have used a warmer temp?
Any help would be appreciated! Thanks so much for your inspiration!!
Best of luck with your job. your work is of the kind that benefits many in so many different ways and just simply needs to be saved!
Krystal
Hi Jillian, I heard this afternoon that the SC House overrode the veto of the Arts Commission funding – yes!! On to the Senate tomorrow. I’ll be sending positive thoughts!
Your talent and passion bring me insane amounts of joy and I want nothing more than to see you continuing to work doing what you love! I hope to hear great news!!!
Simply amazing, as always!!! you never fail to amaze. I have a great dress for you that I got off the dollar rack, please advise how to get it to you. heidismartinez@yahoo.com
This is my favorite refashion by far! Keep you head up and eyes open, this unemployment may turn into opportunity. You are sure to land on your feet, whether it is back in your old job or starting another adventure.
I think what you’re feeling is very common. Plus you seem like someone who is so used to being busy; maybe look at this as the break you need? After a reasonable amount of down time, look into volunteer opportunities perhaps? Hang in there! =) <3
I loved this one; great job!!!
Leave a Reply
Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:
You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out / Change )
You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out / Change )
You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out / Change )
Connecting to %s
Join 1,087 other followers