Bickle Bait

"The days go on and on... they don't end. All my life needed was a sense of someplace to go. I don't believe that one should devote his life to morbid self-attention, I believe that one should become a person like other people." 

           

Any number of forces have gotten me thinking about Taxi Driver lately. Boardwalk Empire inspired a Martin Scorcese binge that started with Casino (which I really only like for the clothes) and also sparked a conversation about favorite Scorcese movies in which my younger counterparts conveniently forgot any Scorcese movie exists prior to Goodfellas. Well, Taxi Driver has all the gritty, sweet, intense, violent, creepy ultra-reality that I associate with Scorcese, and will always be the first movie I think of when his name is mentioned.

Another thing that's brought Taxi Driver to mind was Marc Jacobs Spring collection in which every look seemed to be inspired by Betsy (Cybill Shepherd) or Iris (Jodie Foster) respectively. I can't help but think of the seventies as our sexiest decade and the vibe in this collection epitomizes that look of detached sexuality. These girls have either seen it all, can handle it all, or are above it all. Even on the runway there is something about these looks that just imply these ladies are walking through the garbage of wet alleyways. It's a weird kind of glamour, but it is still somehow glamorous.

I'm in the process of going through my fabric stash, (a subject of which is a future post in itself) and immediately saw some resemblance in this purple mod print knit fabric I already had and the following dress from Jacobs's Spring show. Sadly I only have about 1 yard, but I feel that I can easily create the top portion of this dress with a wide knit band, making it super easy to wear with skirts or pants. I may also accentuate the seventies further by making the long sleeves out of the same contrast material as the band, or maybe making elbow-length puffy sleeves with a knit cuff.  

The fabric is a really silky nylon jersey or tricot, not stretchy enough to be swimwear fabric, but has some of that luster. Knowing already that this kind of fabric wreaks havoc on my machine's tension I am going to make sure to make this top have the least amount of seams I can manage, and will make sure I have a brand new needle. The nice thing is this silky knit is lovely to wear, like the lingerie it was made to be used for.

Here we have Simplicity 5250, a pattern I was completely inspired to buy because of the Cupcake Goddess's current project. Her muslin mockup looked so modern to me, with Taxi Driver on my mind, that I compulsively google-searched for it and somehow immediately found it in a size I wouldn't have to grade up too much. The hat on the pattern sleeve is totally Iris too! I'm thinking corduroy since I have no interest in working with satin, especially for a jacket with lapels.