When Rusty, my awesome coworker presented me with this crazy dress, we both giggled. A lot.


This is probably the very worst “before” dress I’ve ever had on this blog! When Rusty showed me the label, my jaw dropped.

At first I didn’t understand it. How could the designer who brought the shirt dress, the pea coat, and the trench coat into high fashion also bring us this terrible thing? In the 70’s, Yves Saint Laurent was also exploring tribal themes…I think this dress might be a part of that. But it’s terrible.
I had to do something to help this dress! First, I got to the long task of cutting off all that yarn fringe.

The pic below will give you an idea of what I was dealing with.

One I finally cut away every single strand of that fraying yarn, I attacked the length. That weirdo poufy skirt at the bottom of the dress had to go…no questions asked!

After removing that bottom skirt, I wasn’t really sure what else I should do. This is going to sound stupid, but I didn’t want to violate the design integrity of this dress any further. So, while today’s dress certainly isn’t my typical style (unless I wanted to hop over to a renaissance fair and belt out a few madrigals), I think it’s a big improvement, given what I had to work with! 🙂

I wore a black dress under this thing, as it was just a wee bit too short for me to feel completely comfy in without it. Plus, that red fabric is scratchy! I wore my red dress to karaoke night, where I ran into the always delightful Evelyn! 🙂

I’ve gotta admit. I’ll be happy to never have to wear this crazy dress again! 🙂

Cheers!
What do I think? I think you should send it to me, I actually like it. I’d wear some colorfully patterned leggings and my red huarache’s with a golden/orange sunflower on the front.
first time i came across this i thought it would look good if you cut a small slit (say 2 or 3 inches) on the neck and fold them under to open up the neck but still keep the basic overall look of the garment. I would also cut the cuffs off the sleeves (leaving them long) and just letting them flow!!!
This dress made me laugh our loud for like two minutes straight! Good for you for making it work (if only for one night)…
The original dress looks like a lampshade from a Las Vegas wedding chapel!!
That totally could have been a Yip Yip Alien costume… 😉
the skirt might make a lovely christmas tree skirt.
This one is truely FUNNY! Thanks for the laugh. It’s like the great pumpkin meets grandma’s couch cover with the fringe. Hahaha
Wow, who knew YSL also made giant lampshades…
You conquered the monster well 😉
I honestly think it’s an amazing transformation =D
I think it would look better sleevless if it’s possible and possibly hide that trim? that yarn was ridiculous LOL.
This really was a truly awful dress! Perhaps the bottom will make a cute skirt? I don’t mind the top but that neckline – ack, it’s dreadful. I always thought that maybe it’s just my size that sometimes makes designer things look awful, but now that I see this on tiny YOU, I can only imagine how the model who originally wore it looked – bad! Good job!
Oh dear, but this is the man who was also responsible for the disgusting smelling Rive Gauche perfume! Well done to you for rising to the challenge…