Solo Dresses
Solo dresses are one of my favorite parts of the competition scene. While some people think that they are getting out of hand with all the glitz and glitter - and I agree to a certain extent - I love the bright colors and hologram materials! I think when it gets to the point where the main base color(s) are made out of applique-type materials, then it's a bit much.
My current dress was made from Siopa Rince, in Dublin, Ireland. All my previous dresses were bought second hand....I still loved them almost as much - especially my very first one (I was so excited!)
The recent trends I've seen for solo dresses, and heard from Ireland news, are:
- One base color instead of two
- Made out of raw silk or other very light weight materials
- A box panel (most dress makers don't even offer the split panel option anymore)
- Lame lining
- Lots of hologram
- No lace
- Usually no glitterball on sleeves anymore...but used extensively in applique
- Embroidery and applique up the sleeves
- Creative boarders
- Two shouldered cape with unique shape...not too unique, though...I saw this girl with wings on her cape once....not very attractive.
- No collar
- Large, geometric applique designs...no animals
- Worn with tiaras, not as many crowns seen (although I personally prefer crowns)
- There is a recent, though not huge, trend toward Mandarin collars. They aren't "out" anymore anyway. It might be a trend to keep your eye on in the future
- Main colors made out of metallic materials, such as weave-color silk - the weave of metallic under a plain color, causing a shimmery, two-toned fabric. Or it can be the other way around, plain color under metallic silk. (My dress has this for the boarder)
- In the folds on the sides of the box panel, having a bright, standing-out color of lining, glitterball, lame, or silk. It can be the same color as the lining, but it's a nice effect when it's different.
Taking care of your dress
1. Be careful at competitions
- Don't wear it more than you have to
- Don't sit on a chair while wearing it. I've heard buckets, or camping chairs work well
- Watch where you lean, sit, put your dress....keep an eye out for potential disasters - gum, pop, other drinks, dirt
- Take it off right after you dance...and keep it unzipped between dances if you can...it'll keep it aired out
- Don't hang it up at the feis....if you can't keep it in your hotel room, store it in it's carrying bag, and lay it flat across some chairs or in another safe place you can watch over it
- If you are waiting around for awards, and don't want to be caught out of costume, wear your shoes, socks, tight shorts, and a tank top and keep your dress right beside you, unzipped. As soon as they start calling your competition results, pull it on and zip up....no one will know you're wearing shorts.....OR.....
- Wear your shoes, socks, bloomers, and tank top and wear your dress half on....when they call your competition results, pull it on the rest of the way
2. Watch out for it when traveling
- Always use a dress bag to carry your dress in while traveling (when you put it in the fold-over kind, leave the dress unzipped. This is what they told me at Siopa Rince)
- NEVER EVER let pushy flight attendants try and check your dress, and stow it below with the other baggage if you are traveling by air, put it in the overhead compartment
- Don't keep your dress in the traveling bag if you don't have to once you reach your destination. Once in your hotel room, take it out and lay it flat on the floor if possible
- If you are carrying it on your shoulder in it's dress bag, watch out for it catching on things. The dress is pretty big, and because it extends past your body, it can get squashed. Keep an eye on it.
3. At home: storing it, and keeping it smelling fresh
Storing it
- Never store the dress in it's bag
- Store it flat (under a bed works great) with a clean garbage bag or sheet both on top of it to protect it from dust and sun-fading, and underneath it
- Store it unzipped
Keep it smelling fresh
- When you return from a competition, put the dress on a hanger - eek! breaking the rule about never hanging your dress up - and hang unzipped by an open window for a few hours to air it out
- Another option is to lay it on a table near an open window, unzipped for a slightly long period of time
- In extreme cases - of bad oder - you might try Febreeze
although I have tried this - spray only on the inside so it doesn't wreck the fabric - and it didn't really work for any length of time....only for about a couple days
(also, some people say that it wrecks the dress, so, be aware there is a risk involved
- Store the dress with dryer sheets in the armpits
Click HERE to go to a site with some interesting uses for Dryer Sheets!
- Try not to dryclean it unless it is absolutely a must. It relaxes the stiffening
- Be sure to have sweat gaurds put in the dress
- If there is a very persistant oder that won't come out, take it to a specialist in cleaning - they won't necissarily dry clean it, and they might have a product that will help
