As you know, I am always inspired by the show Mad Men and the wonderful fashions and period details. A few months ago I found a fabric that really got me excited. It is a quilting cotton, but has an almost heathered appearance, like a tweed. It comes in a variety of great colors and I immediately thought of a dress that Joan wears on Mad Men made from a similar fabric.

I first made the dress in the original green. It has a split neckline and a self belt with buckle. I placed the belt a bit higher than on the original; just under the bustline. I decided to use a metal buckle for contrast, but I did make tiny covered buttons. I limited them to two, not wanting to overwhelm the miniature version with too much detail.

When the new Agnes arrived last week, I made her a version of the dress in purple with red details. I used red for the belt and buttons because I thought that they disappeared a bit on the green dress. I think this dress, though very simple in design, has a real vintage flair.