Inspired by Frida

Last weekend, we took a mini-holidays and went to London. Initially, the main reason of the trip was The Cure performance at The Summer British Festival in Hyde Park. But happily it coincided with the duration of 'Making Her Self Up' (at Victoria and Albert Museum), an exhibition of Frida Kahlo's personal items and clothes that were locked up for over 50 years in her home after she passed away. 

Of course, the exhibition also focuses on her art - you can see some of the Frida's paintings as well as photographs. 

I feel like no matter what I can write about it, it will sound trivial. To me, one of the most striking things I realised was the fact that, despite her body being broken by polio and and accident, she never lost her spirit. 

If you can't visit the exhibition but are a Frida fan, I highly recommend getting the book with the same title. It contains beautiful photos of the exhibited dresses, artifacts, etc.

Prior to the trip, I decided that I wanted to wear something special to celebrate this important moment of my life (yes, to me it was a very special privilege to be able to see such intimate objects once belonging to someone that I admire with all my heart) and I made an 'Inspired by Frida' skirt. 

I purchased a fabric from Sew La Di Da Vintage shop (the fabric is available only there).

I don't have many photos or close ups of the fabric (you can have a look on the shop website) as we had a very tight schedule for our trip and the very warm weather made us feel so tired. 

So we snapped a couple of photos on the stairs of the gallery and later in Hyde Park, hiding in the shadows.

I styled my skirt with a hip bag made of Washpapa (washable craft paper), which you could read about here, crop top and hair flower.

Recently, I started paying attention to garment pockets and decided to take a few more minutes, while making this skirt, to include a pair of in-seam pockets, just for comfort of use.

I am really pleased with this simple skirt. It is made of two fabric lengths and gathered at the waist. I didn't want any additional seams apart from side and back ones, so as to not disturb the beautiful pattern.

Of course, I wouldn't be myself if I didn't decorate the hem with orange pom-poms and red rick-rack.

In colder weather, I will wear my skirt with the petticoat, which will add even more volume to the gathered fabric. 

So that was my tribute to Frida. I must admit I got a lot of compliments from people visiting the exhibition and one lady from Chicago even took a photo of me on the street. I can only imagine the feeling Frida experienced while visiting the United States, where her originality and eccentricity was highly admired.