Posted by Stitchy McYarnpants On October - 1 - 2008   ShareThis

It is my distinct pleasure to present to you a Crocheted Beer Can Gown in it’s entirety. (You’re really going to want to click these photos for a better look.)

It’s taken a lot of work, a few band-aids and dozens of cans, but I am finally finished! And I couldn’t be more pleased with the results. It really does look just as it did in my head.

I’m going to start with the one detail shot I have, because once you see the photos of the dress actually being modeled, you’re not going care about the details. Trust me. So this is the skirt. I sewed on some opalescent pilettes and they really sparkle like crazy when the dress moves. It was time-consuming, but I’m glad I went ahead and did it.


I’ve already sent the dress off to Shelby and she’ll be adding even more sparkly bits to the top portion. She has some little crystal things left over from another outfit, so I gave her free reign to further bedazzle the gown.

And here is my adorable mother-on-law, Barbara, sewing a band of red, white and blue sequins onto the inside of the skirt. It really needed something extra in there and it added just enough pizazz.


Ok, so now here is where things get really good. I wanted to show you the whole dress, but the dress form just wasn’t doing it justice. I needed a model. Now, I would have been glad to do it, but seeing as how my trunk has it’s fair share of junk. There’s no way I’m getting into that thing without getting sliced in half. While it would have made cool photos, I think the internet has plenty of that sort of thing on it already.

So what’s a girl to do? Well, my mother-in-law was in town, but she’s very short and little and would have been drowning in the dress. There was only one choice.

Jon had to do it. Ok, this was the plan all along, but he doesn’t need to know that. Shhhhhh . . . .

Now, I don’t know if it’s because we’re die-hard Project Runway fans (have I mentioned that we’re both hoping like crazy that Chris March will be at the pageant? Oh my god, we’d both be giggling like schoolgirls.) but Jon really got into the photo session. He was nervous at first, but then turned all RuPaul and was hitting poses left and right. But he did keep hid tube socks and shorts on. Let’s not get crazy, here.

And there you go. An evening gown that has champagne taste on a beer budget. Cheap champagne, but champagne nonetheless.

This dress is a memorial of sorts. When Stacy (Shelby Free’s real name) contacted me out of the blue to create the dress (he found my by googling “crocheted beer cans”. Ha!), it didn’t take much for me to say yes. Partly it just seemed like a fun project and a good challenge. But it’s also for a great cause. A couple of years before I met Jon, his brother, Tim, died of AIDS. I never got to meet him, but he’s still included in family dinner conversation and provides lot of laughter as people reminisce about his past exploits (truth be told, he was a bit of a red-headed devil in his younger years) and wonder what he’d think about various things going on in their lives. I do feel a deep affection for Tim because I’ve gotten to know him from the fond and often hilarious memories of those who loved him, and I think he would have gotten a huge kick out of this dress and the pageant.

If you haven’t already, please check out Shelby Free’s website, read Stacy’s story about why he’s doing the pageant and if you feel moved to do so, please donate. Just navigate your way to Shelby’s donation page from his main page and make sure you put “Shelby Free” in the company name field on the donation form so Stacy can keep track of the donations he’s collected. So far, he’s raised $7,000!

Give until it’s glamorous, people!!

15 Responses

  1. Bedford clan says:

    Deb: WOW! and Jonquil’s back hair adds just the right touch of the natural look! Perhaps we should track his/er, or is it her/is, migration through the web? How many people are going to see your live in model, and will he be seen only in your blog, or will the image become so popular that it soars through the blogosphere and he/she or she/he becomes a cyberceleb?
    Great stuff.
    DOD
    Hey how bout some stoles?

  2. Alice says:

    You should post the pattern (with different sizes, of course). I’m sure this will become the next little black dress every girl will want to have in her closet. Perfect for those nights in the town.

  3. Claudia says:

    Bravo! The tube sock and back fur capelette add a certain “je ne sais quoi” to the ensemble.

  4. rechercher says:

    The perfect blend of crafting and alcoholism, I hope you don’t mind if we eventually blog this (especially that first photo of Jon–haunting)!

  5. BARBARA NICKERSON says:

    DEB AND JON,
    SEEING THAT TODAY, OCT.2 IS THE 15TH ANNIVERSARY OF TIM’S DEATH, WHAT A GREAT WAY TO CELEBRATE! TIM WOULD HAVE LOVED SEEING THE “GOWN” ON HIS KID BROTHER.
    YOU, JON AND SHELBY MADE THIS DAY A LAUGHING DAY! THANKS!!!
    LOVE, MOM/BARBARA

  6. Cheryl S. says:

    I do hope that you’ll have a followup photo of Shelby Free in her gown!

  7. Harpa J says:

    Wonderful! You have made my day!

  8. Kristen says:

    this is the best thing I’ve seen in a long time – Jon wears it well. (and in my mind the cats are wandering around thinking “better you than me, but wow – look at those details.”)

  9. Katy says:

    OMG I am laughing my ass off!!! Can I post pics and link to this on my blog? The donation site too of course – this is just SO shareable.

    You are a genius!

  10. Katy says:

    Ok, I posted. I am still laughing my ass off. You are a fashion goddess!

  11. Kat says:

    Oh my. Budweiser cans never looked so good.

  12. Marnie says:

    Frankly, I think the dress is nothing without the Dot. Actually, the whole thing is epic. I love it.

  13. Monte says:

    You are the master. Nice work.

  14. April says:

    ah MAN! That is so freaking hilarious, I love all his poses! waaaa haaaaaaa haaaaaaa You did really good.

  15. Morticcia says:

    Omg! That is some Hawt Couture!

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