I love the 80s.
I mean, like, Howard Jones, big bow, pegged pants, Karate Kid, Wham (Make it Big), shoulder pad, scrunchie it up love the 80s. And I blame it on having two older sisters. One crimped while the other teased and sprayed (with Aquanet) till they gave me the largest bangs in my 6th grade class. Radical.
So when the Film Petit ladies chose Ferris Bueller’s Day Off as their feature project in January, I realized that I totally needed IN on the 80s sewing fun.
If you’re new to Film Petit, it’s an ongoing sewing series hosted by Kristin from Skirt as Top and Jessica from A Little Gray where they give a creative/sewing interpretation of their favorite films. They pick a new movie each month and ask a guest blogger to join along. And for the month of April they asked me! Well, I guess I asked them. And then I requested either Teen Wolf or my all-time, probably favorite movie: Back to the Future. And they went for it!
Is there a more classic, fun movie?? The plot is virtually seamless (okay there are nit-picky moments…like why does the rain suddenly stop after lighting strikes the clock tower? Silly stuff) But mostly the characters and moments are just fantastic! You’re really rooting for everyone.
Except Biff.
Butthead.
So Jessica, Kristin, and I each picked a different character from the movie and gave them our own spin. I went for the classic Marty McFly:
and turned him into Owen McFly:
with the key piece being a freaking huge orange puffy vest.
And with a few other items we completed the look (though I am missing the awesome Marty denim jacket because A) I couldn’t find one B) Didn’t want to make one C) Owen will prob never wear one here in Texas. So if you have a jeans jacket you’ll be extra fly. Or should I say MCfly)
Then layer it all together,
And you’re ready to go BACK, to the future.
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Most of the sewing came together smoothly, using patterns I already had.
• T-shirt: I used my Basic Tee pattern and repurposed Casey’s favorite red tee into little Owen size (thank you Casey for making a Back to the Future sacrifice).
• Button-up shirt: I also used the Basic Tee pattern and extended it a bit to make a new button-up shirt from an old thrifted Mens XL shirt. I even left the collar as-is, which is a little big for the new shirt but for this project it works.
• Suspenders: I used 3/4 inch wide elastic and sewed suspender clips to the ends. Nothing fancy. Next time I’ll make them adjustable.
• Jeans: These were Target clearance for $2 and originally more wide-legged. You could just peg your jeans at your cuff but I sewed my down the side and inseams to make them McFly skinny.
• The Puffy Vest: Oh that vest. A labor of love.
I used the Flip Vest Pattern which worked perfectly. I really wanted it to be orange nylon fabric like Marty’s vest but couldn’t find any so I went with fleece. I added a stand up collar (I’ll have to explain that in another post), sewed 4 layers of batting inside the vest, and quilted wide lines on the outside of the vest. It wasn’t a “hard” project but definitely took all my body strength to sew through the many layers. And I broke about 4 needles in the process (and couldn’t even add snap closures because the fabric was so thick). Next time I’d use a little batting. But I do love how it turned out.
And a little added surprise…when I finished sewing Owen’s shirt there was enough fabric left over to make a Clara skirt!
So I threw her in the DeLorian and she came out of it a 1950s girl at the diner.
I ironed a felt C to her sweater with fusible webbing, used a scrap of fabric for the headband, and finished the look with Old Navy shoes and a T-shirt from Forever 21.
And now Marty had some girls to impress while trying to escape Biff and his knucklehead posse.
I kind of think so.
And he took the modeling pretty seriously though he’s never even seen the movie. He wanted to make sure his hair was pushed up and his sunglasses were positioned like they are on the DVD cover.
Cause that my friends, is the Power of Love (and the bribery of lollipops).
Thanks Kristin and Jessica for letting me join the Film Petit fun! Of course the time travel doesn’t stop here. Head to Skirt as Top and A little Gray where Doc and the Delorian are hanging out.
Now make like a tree, and get out of here.
