I came across this pattern in my stash, and immediately knew it was from 1986. How, you ask, did I know? Well, dear readers, it is because I wore an exact replica of this dress on formal night on a cruise in 1986.
I bought the dress at Penney’s, and accessorized with an onyx and rhinestone necklace with matching earrrings. I believe that this was the night that we sat at the captain’s table. In either event, we closed the night out at the disco, where I dance with the captain to none other than the Human League and Lisa Lisa and the Cult Jam (my nickname is Lisa Lisa to this day in certain circles).
That particular cruise will go down in history being noted as the first cruise I went on. We got to go for free, because my then-fiance-now-ex-husband won a contest as a McDonald’s manager and got the tickets as a reward. The managers were allowed to take someone with them, so I told his very single buddy that he was taking my best friend, who he had barely met. We girls shared a room, and the guys shared a room. Mostly they just did stupid things like constantly moving the plants in the hallway, at times putting them into their room, and finding that there were always replacements put out immediately. Where they kept all those plants was beyond me.
In either event, it was a three day cruise to the Bahamas, and other than the previously mentioned shenanigans, I don’t remember much because we were 22, fueled mostly by alcohol for those three days, and I’m pretty sure we never slept at all. Made for great memories which all came to light again when I saw this pattern. It was a great dress. I still have the jewelry. And honestly, I don’t think any cruise I’ve taken since has matched it as far as fun – and that’s saying a lot, because I’ve been on some great cruises.
The Vintage Fashion Librarian 