me-made: atomic americana

And with that, the vintage checklist shrinks a little more!

I’d wanted an atomic print something-or-other for ages. It’s one of my favorite midcentury trends, all the more so for how strange it is. The weirdest things go viral sometimes. But designs inspired by atomic diagrams were indeed a Big Damn Thing in the 1950s. Some abstract, some not, all of them kitschy as ever-loving hell.

Some people claim that “atomic” refers to radiation clouds from atomic bombs. To them, I say: don’t be morbid. That’s my job.

This isn’t actually a vintage atomic print dress. They’re collectors’ items at this point, and I am a collector on a budget. But the design was influential enough that I happened to find it on a $4 Goodwill bedsheet, and this dress was born. Thanks to Vogue 8789, it was finished in an afternoon. I’ve used it a couple of times, but I’m continually astounded by how easy that pattern is. Highly recommended for the beginning seamstress.

A breezy summer dress in a midcentury print is about as Americana as it gets. My tree-lined neighborhood? Almost sickeningly so. But we understand each other, me and kitsch. Of course I went all in. Bonus points if you spotted the matching hairbow.