Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Cirque Dress Disaster! When Bad things Happen to Good Clothing

My super wonderful hubby tossed a few items into the washer. It was not enough to run a load so he didn't start it. I saw the items in there and tossed my laundry on top including my yellow Vogue 9112 Cirque Dress. Little did I know, he forgot to check his pockets and there was a pen in the pocket of his shirt!


When the washing was done, I discovered several garments including my dress spotted with ink. I loaded the unsoiled items into the dryer repeating the reminder, "I love my husband, I love my husband, I love my husband."

Ink Stained Cirque Dress
I looked at the stain and was sick to my stomach! I loved my dress and hated the thought of it being ruined.



Luckily, I had recently tie-dyed some t-shirts for my kiddos and still had the leftover dye bath. The dye was Rit Brand Turquoise color prepared per the stovetop package instructions. Thinking quickly, I reheated the dye and submerged the damp dress in the pot hoping to camouflage the stain. The resultant color was a unappetizing pea green with the ink still somewhat visible. The dyeing was not ideal, but it gave me hope that it was redeemable.

  
I ran to the store and bought another bottle of dye, this time in Denim. I added it to the lighter color dye bath, agitated it for 30 minutes and left it to sit in the pot completely submerged for an hour or so. I ran some errands and took it out when I returned home. 

When all was said and done, I was saying, I love my husband! I love my husband! I love my husband! The result of this pen oversight was a happy accident! Here is my new "denim" Cirque dress with no visible signs of the ink stains!

Worn here blueberry picking 4th of July Weekend!
I love the color accuracy of this dye! It looks like denim fabric without the weight of denim. 





The linen is airy and cool and best of all, I saved a dress I love!


The weight of my new Havana Twist braids forces the collar down, but I don't mind :).  I can pop it up again for more drama! I am so happy I was able salvage this dress! Have you had a sewing accident that you thought ended your project? Were you able to breathe new life into it? Please share!

I will be taking a sewing break for a bit. I hope to return soon with some hand-sewing projects and stencil designs. Until then,   

Happy Sewing,
Bianca


17 comments:

  1. Lovely save! It looks beautiful in the denim.

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  2. That is a great save Bianca! I think I actually like it better in the denim! I've saved a few things as well but had to have the perspective of DH close by to help me think the disaster through! Happy sewing! Sue

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    1. Thanks Sue! I knew you would appreciate this save! Funny that your hubby helps you out of jams while mine puts me in them!

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  3. Fabulous save. For what its worth, next time you can get the ink out with hair spray, really.

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  4. Wow.....what a story! I agree, I actually like the denim better!

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    1. Me too! The yellow was a pleasant change for me, but blue is my favorite color!

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  5. Very helpful, thanks. I just made this dress with piece of fabric whose history and composition is unknown, and to my disappointment the color is fading, after only two washes. I was already thinking I'd try and dye it, your success gives me courage....

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    1. So glad to help! Is your dress on PR? I would love to see yours!

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    3. Hi Bianca, yes, just posted on PR a few days ago. What I thought was just a trick of the light is the fading of the fabric. If it was an even fade it would be ok, but it's not.... so off to,the dye vat I go. Will let you know if it's successful...

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  6. Wow! Way to persevere through a tricky situation! It looks beautiful...and so does your hair!

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  7. Great save! I have been wanting to sew this pattern -- I can see why you love it so much!

    Annie
    http://enantiomerproject.blogspot.com

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  8. Great save on this dress! I love how it turned out.

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