8/4/2019 Amy Sedaris Introduction to The Party Dress Book by Mary Adams

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 Th  e P  ar  t  yDr  e 

 s  s B o ok 

8 

When I moved to New York City in 1993, my brother David would walk me around late at

night so we could look into store windows. I remember him taking me to Mary Adams’s

dress shop on Ludlow Street.

I had never seen a shop like that. All you could see were ruffles. They were everywhere, in

all sorts of colors. It looked like a pastry shop full of cakes dripping in colorfully dyed buttercream

icings. It was a deaf person’s dream—a vision chock-full of bright colors and dramatic textures. Her

windows were lined with exotic party and wedding dresses mingled with plastic flowers. Her shop

stood out among the butcher shops with their skinned lamb’s skull displays, neglected pet stores,

and dilapidated, graffiti-riddled buildings. There wasn’t much there on the Lower East Side.

I started to walk by the shop during the day, but I never went in. I was working on my first TV

show, and knew I wanted to use my first paycheck to have a dress made for myself. I finally went in

the store, and between numerous fittings Mary and I became friends, and have remained friends

ever since. Which means that, as of this writing, I have at least nine of her dresses.

The first dress Mary made for me was tangerine, purple, and green with a hot pink petticoat

that I wore to the Obie Awards. Ethan Hawk approached me and said I had on the prettiest dress

that night. I told him it looked better on the floor, and watched him run away.

I like Mary’s party dresses because they complement my style: They’re nontraditional,

unique, and one of a kind. Mary’s dresses have a humor about them; they’re whimsical, flirty, and

guaranteed scene-stealers. I depend on Mary when I need just the right party dress, and she has

never failed me.

FOREWORD BY

A  my S  edaris 

This darling dress was Amy’s first custom-ordered piece.

Photo by Patricia Sullivan

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