Oh dear...

Why is it that one repeats the same mistakes, with equally disastrous results? Shouldn't a bell go off somewhere, alerting you to the fact that this will not end well?

What did I do? I got a pretty late 1950's crepe dress from my aunt, which I was considering wearing tonight. Upon inspection I noticed a largish stain on the front of the dress, and in stead of pausing to consider the condition of the last vintage dress I tossed in the machine (which shrunk considerably, and  lost its shape), I decided that it probably would be fine if I washed the dress on a 30 degree silk program.

The dress came out of the washer some 2 - 3 inches shorter that it was before washing...

I have now pinned it into shape on an ironing board, steamed it very lightly, and I am just hoping the damage will be undone this way.