Leslie at goodcrafternoon.com sent me this link to Melissa (at fehrtrade.com) and her awesome dress, made from an Ikea shower curtain.
Oh yes, a shower curtain. Which is only part of the awesome. The rest of the awesome consists of this being her first project using piping (which she made herself) and that it's lined! Obviously, Melissa is a goddess.
Here's a picture of the bodice, gloriously piped:
Where does Burda come in? Well, the pattern is the 124C pattern from the May issue of Burda World of Fashion (as reported by Ikeahacker.com).
You guys know I love using Ikea fabric *and* piping, so for me this project is (as the kids say) made of win. It also makes me want to duck into Ikea tomorrow when the boy and I do some back-to-school shopping out in that anteroom of Hell known as Schaumburg, Illinois. (I'm sure that he'll have patience for that after finding a new backpack and shoes, right?)
Click the image to visit Melissa's great blog and congratulate her on this dress!
A Dress A Day 
Just as an Ikea warning – it’s back to college weekend for a lot of universities, so be prepared for massive crowds there an at target!I looove the dress! I’m ready to start my foray into learning to sew, and will definitely look at Ikea for fabric.
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oh so cute! i love the idea of making clothing out of fabrics that aren’t generally clothing.back about a millionty eleven years ago when i was a rainbow girl we used to pick a pretty sheet for use as the fabric for our matching dresses for grand assembly.
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Oh, awesome! And I have a date to Zipcar out to Ikea tomorrow with a friend! Must remember to look at fabric. And bring a boarding axe.
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I love it – very Sound of Music! Love the piping – still working my nerve up for piping. Or is it my patience?And I love “anteroom of Hell” – malls and shopping centers in general function that way for me. One feels the need to synchronize watches and set serious time limits (though ironically the more time I spend the less I can bring myself to buy).
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The only thing better than Zipcar is I-Go especially if you’re visiting the Bolingbrook (Ill.) Ikea. There are upfront parking spaces for I-Go cars at this Ikea!
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UGh, IKEA on a Saturday??? You are a brave woman, Erin. Good luck and Godspeed. I was at the Schaumburg “anteroom of Hell” a couple of weeks ago and they have really expanded their yardgoods section, so it might just be worth it.That dress rocks! And her first attempt at piping.. she is a goddess.
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How about the pic of her wearing it in the rain (in Wellingtons) in Glastonbury?! Apparently shower curtains make the perfect dress for a rainy afternoon.
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You are lucky that you even have an IKEA store. Apparently Denver is considered a western outpost not worthy of our own store. I do purchase fabric online but it’s not the same as copping a feel in the store.
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Erin, I’m one of those freaks who never wear dresses but love your blog anyway. Just because they aren’t my style doesn’t mean I don’t recognize them as art and understand their power. This dress is exactly the sort of thing that might push me to drop a few pounds and buy a sewing machine. My mother sews. I have the gene for it. There’s really no excuse. –L
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And may I say, she is rocking that dress in tennis shoes. I am trying to integrate tennis shoes into my dress/skirt wearing, because it is so much more comfortable if you are going to be walking much, or in an area where open-toed sandals would be icky (say, the livestock barns at the county fair).
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LOL…I remember going to a reunion in an hotel in Schaumburg and visiting the huge shopping mall there..”anteroom of hell” is apt,indeed! After an hour of sensory hyperstimulation I practically ran out screaming. Here in the hinterlands of south NJ we don’t have our own Ikea either..we have to drive west to Philly or north to Elizabeth, both 90 min away/ Not terribly far, but not all that close and via potentially highly trafficked roads. But Ikea is worth the trip! The dress is super!
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Okay, I’m going to break with the crowd and say I just don’t like it. It’s just not my style. I can say it’s creative, but…Um.
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We just got an Ikea here in Portland!! Yay!! There is some divine fabric that says “huge circle skirt” all over it. Boyfriend and I were overwhelmed by all the people there, on a Tuesday, a month after they opened, that we just ate a plate of meatballs and turned tail. I will give it a few more weeks for the crowds to thin out. Then it’s riding the MAX (light rail) to the store-there’s a stop right out front-and snapping up that fabric. Oh, yeah, and about five pounds of frozen meatballs.Melanie
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i truely heart making dresses out of IKEA Decorator fabric. I will have to soon send you a pic of the skirt that I made from the same stripey stuff that you have a skirt from.
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REspect for the woman that sews piping!
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Wow! Did y’all see the other things Melissa’s made? How about the print silk dress with blue satin drape collar and ruffled pockets? How about that awesome little ruffled purse? She’s an original!Chris
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I absolutely love and adore you blog!!! and the vintage pics you post! very inspirational! thank you very MUCH!!!
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IKEA does have some awesome fabric. And that dress is cute.
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Erin, do you fully realize the impact of your blog? I tend to watch auctions that you mention and so many go for high prices, but this dress was different. I just located a huge stack of Burda WOF back issues. I did some eBay research and realized I wouldn’t be able to sell them for much, so YEAH, they went into my sewing room. However, I just found a newly ended auction for the May 2007 Burda WOF issue which this dress came from–it sold for over $40! I can’t help but think that your blog and the other ones that mentioned this dress (love the dress, hate the fabric) were a huge plus for making some sellers day!
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Wouldn’t the world be a prettier place if all young women dressed like this? Great job Melissa. You look darling.
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Have you seen the cool IKEA college website @ http://www.roommateliving.comVery stylish…/gordonS
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I can’t find a pic of it on the online version, but that dress made the front page of the Thursday, September 6, New York Times House & Home section.
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gail, or anyone else, I’m looking for the Burda WOF 10/2004, if anyone has it…brandenburg456@yahoo.com
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