Taking Le-Roy 5063 Out on the Town

Back in February, I bought some great fabric while on a trip to Manchester:

Rock n roll cotton!

I didn't really know exactly what I wanted to do with it until a few weeks ago, when I got a yearning for a shirt dress. This coincided with buying tickets to go see JD McPherson, who I've become mildly obsessed with (Mr Needles is probably sick of being updated on trivial McPherson facts, whch I do several times a day). The perfect outfit for a rock and roll gig!

I had a rummage through my patterns, and came up with this Le-Roy from the mid/late 60's:

I know it's not 50's, but I made it once before a long time ago, and seem to remember it fit really well; besides, I hate all those rules about eras and so on. Rules are made to be broken!

Here's the finished product:

I added a few touches of my own, just to break up the pattern a bit. I cut the upper collar from a contrasting black cotton:

 And I added little black cuffs to the sleeves:

To finish, I lined the skirt with a simple cotton, and hand sewed around the button placket:

And on the night - the dress was perfect for a hot and sweaty gig, and I'd love to show you evidence of this, but I was so busy having a good time that I forgot to get Mr Needles to take pictures of me in it! Instead, here are a few shots I managed to get of JD and the band:

JD, in a rare non-wailing moment

Jimmy Sutton

And to finish, a puzzling non-sewing incident witnessed by Mr Needles and I while on our way into the venue. There was a bit of confusion on our part, and we mistakenly joined the guest list line, behind this dapper gentleman:

Nick Lowe, former member of Rockpile, producer of Elvis Costello, the list goes on...

Who was the producer of this album:

The Damned's first album, containing 'New Rose', arguably the first British punk single

We heard him tell the young guy in the booth he was on the guest list. 

Booth guy asked him 'whose list?' 

Mr Lowe answered 'JD's'. 

Booth guy asked his name; of course, he replied 'Nick Lowe'. 

Mr Lowe waited patiently while the guy in the booth flicked through various sheets, looking for his name. Meanwhile, I felt like shouting out 'Don't you know who he is?' I was sure someone would recognise him and wave him through! 

Unbelievably, Booth guy came back with the answer 'Sorry, you're not on here' and Mr Lowe moved off to one side, looking dejected. I felt embarrassed for him... I hope he got in because it was a great night. 

I'll leave you with video proof he should have been let in - JD McPherson and Nick Lowe on stage together in Portland. Enjoy!