There's a long story behind how this dress came about, and it starts with #shirtgate. Someone had the brilliant idea to counter that unfortunate and sexist shirt with a positive women in science shirt. This idea soon became a Kickstarter project, which resulted in not only shirts (I'm very excited to be getting mine soon) but also the release of the fabric design on Spoonflower. The latter is how I got my hands on this awesome fabric.
I'm still can't recognize all of the women on this dress, but there are definitely some great highlights: Ada Lovelace, Lise Meitner, Marie Curie, Jocelyn Bell Burnell, Hedy Lamarr (yes, that Hedy Lamarr), Mae Jemison, Grace Hopper, and even more. I need to find and carry around the key so I can point out the awesome lady scientists that I'm wearing.
For those of you interested in the crafty details, the pattern is Colette Moneta and the fabric is Spoonflower's performance pique. I really like how substantial this fabric is and how it isn't too drapey (a problem I'm having with the fabric in my other Moneta). That said, it was kind of a pain to sew with as my machine kept skipping stitches. The other downside is that there isn't a lot of vertical stretch to this fabric, meaning the final dress is rather short-waisted. Chalk this up to a learning experience. Also, thank goodness for wide belts.
Overall, I love this dress. I not only expect to get lots of wear out of it but also enlighten people on all of these amazing women scientists!
Lovely! I had been waiting for the fabric design to be posted to spoonflower. Immediately after shirtgate, I made a top out of the women of science learning toile, but this has so many more scientists. Nice work.
ReplyDeleteThis is the best dress ever, and I'm so glad you did this! I might have to make one of my own-- I'm an academic researcher, and occasionally I have to spend time around sexist jerks. I can't think of anything better to wear on such an occasion!
ReplyDeleteThis is awesome! I'm going to have to copy--this year will be my first year teaching high school science and it looks like essential professional wear. :)
ReplyDeleteOh. Em. Gee. I love this so hard - thank you! I also may have to order some of the fabric :)
ReplyDeleteWould it be AT ALL possible for me to buy a women in science dress from you in size Medium? Because I love the symbolism of this pattern.
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