Beware: Random Post

well, I just spent an 1 1/2 hours doing this exact post, which just barely got deleted somehow by this wonderful program...Grrr. Needless to say, this second REpost is going to be short and sweet.

So, as some of you know a me and a friend of mine started on an exciting venture of designing and creating dresses-SO FUN! However, our lives took over and to be honest, we haven't thought about it since until now. Shabby Apple is doing a very cool thing called "Dare to Design" where anyone can post their designs for their up and coming spring line, so we thought, "why not?"...so here we are giving it a shot, what do we have to lose right? The judges at Shabby Apple choose 15 of their top designs and post them on their BLOG by November 10th and the blog readers then vote on their favorites and whatever dress gets the most votes wins and their dress becomes part of Shabby Apples spring line...super exciting, so wish us luck!

Our inspiration came about by us talking one evening about how we can NEVER find apropriate dresses for functions that we had. ie, black tie events, awards banquets, cruise line dinners, etc. There were always plenty of dresses that you could wear to church and to a wedding but there never seemed anything more formal than that, that had the necessary length and coverage that us girls needed. We were done with cardigans, crop jackets, and skirt/top ensebles...we just wanted a nice dress that was nicer than the average church get up and not as formal as a gown....is it too much to ask? so, we decided to think of some on our own. All the design don't necessarily "look" more formal, but they are in a sense of the construction, being more fitted with darts, and a use of higher end fabrics...not knits or cottons. So please be nice and I hope you enjoy. Here are 3 dress designs for Shabby Apple dresses .

Color: Deep plum or a fushia'ish color...I love jewel tones, I don't know what it is, but I love them!

Fabric: The band around the neckline, bustline, and hemline, as well as the inner-layer of the bust and skirt is a silk charmeuse. The outer-layer of the bust and skirt is a silk chiffon

Color: Navy..It is the only color I have ever seen this dress in and I think that it is a classic color for all seasons.

Fabric: Silk taffeta. It needs to be a stiffer fabric because of the standing collar and the inverted box pleats to keep its shape. The lining would probably be just a plain lining fabric, of a poly blend; however, if it really was made in silk taffeta you would need to have a lining of the same caliber...you can't mix polyester with 100% silk in my mind.

Color: Bust would be a cream with a black lace overlay, band and tie would be cream. Skirt would be cream with a black accordian pleating on top.

Fabric: The top would be out of a stiffer silk satin with some sort of lace to go on top, the band, tie, and inner-layer of the skirt would be a silk charmeuse. The black accordian pleating would be a silk chiffon or georgette.