I Saved Up For This Dress For A Whole Year & Now I Want It In Every Color

I Saved Up For This Dress For A Whole Year & Now I Want It In Every Color - Refinery29

Posted: 23 Jun 2019 05:00 PM PDT

It turned out that Innika Choo's sizing was a bit different than I was used to. Instead of a standard XS - whatever, the brand offers dresses in sizes 1, 2, and 3. The dresses I was drawn to were purposely oversized and most had drawstring waists. The sizing chart seemed to signal that I would fit into a size 3, but still, I was hesitant. I had gotten my hopes up many times before only to be disappointed that, once again, a brand didn't have options for my body. But two years and many saved Instagram posts later, I couldn't stop thinking about those dresses. Given that most of Innika Choo's dresses were about $400 (including shipping), I knew I'd have to save for a while before finally taking the plunge. So I did, for almost a year. When I went back to the site a couple months ago to finally make my purchase, I chose the "Peasant Broderie" style in a pastel blue color. It was the most I've spent on a dress in half a decade (although, of course, it's on sale now), and I braced myself for the worst case scenario of it not fitting. But when the dress finally did arrive, I tried it on and immediately knew I had found my soulmate in dress form. Even when wedding dress shopping, I never experienced a "this is it" moment, but I had that "this is it — the most ME dress ever" moment with this dress.

With duct tape dress design, Va. teen could win a national competition - WTOP

Posted: 23 Jun 2019 04:01 PM PDT

Combine 36 rolls of duct tape with 80 hours of effort by a Loudoun County, Virginia, teenager and what do you get?

A one-of-a-kind prom dress.

"I'm really excited. I've been making dresses and stuff for a couple years now, but this is my first time working with duct tape. And it's for a scholarship competition, so it's been a really cool experience so far," said 17-year-old Christina Mellott.

Mellott is a finalist in the Stuck at Prom Scholarship Contest, which — after rounds of public voting — will award a winner with a $10,000 scholarship.

A rising senior at Freedom High School in South Riding, Mellott said she was 13 when she started sewing and designing clothes.

"I'd like to go to college and study fashion design and get into that as a career," Mellott said.

So how do you go about making a dress out of duct tape?

"I stuck the tape to itself and started making it in rectangles and made the rectangles bigger and bigger and treated it like a yard of fabric," she said. "It can be a little bit difficult when the tape sticks to itself or folds over in the wrong way or it sticks to my hands."

Mellott's creation has an adjustable and removable skirt that allows it to transform into three different looks. "I hope my chances are good," she said. "I do like the sheer panel. It added an edgy, unique touch that I didn't see anyone else had."

Mellott has two siblings and lots of support, she said, from her parents.

"My mom will wear some of the things I've made for her," Mellott said. "My dad will help me with my Etsy business and shipping things out."

Indeed, the young seamstress has two businesses online. One features clothing designs, the other sells snuggle accessories for guinea pigs.

"We're just really proud of her that she's been able to do this. She's always taken charge of things," dad Ben Mellott said. "She decides what she wants to do and she just does it. … She's just a wonderful girl."

Everyone is welcome to vote for their favorite creation in the "Stuck at Prom" contest. You can vote once every 24 hours through June 28.

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