A few months back, a formal wear store here was going out of business and one of our neighbors picked up this really poofy and fancy skirt for Bethany to play dress up in. It was a grown up size 10 so I figured that I could just kind of reconstruct it into a dress. With no real direction or skill, I started going at it. And.....quickly realized that it was a disaster waiting to happen. I decided that given my very limited sewing repertoire, I really needed a pattern. So, I go buy a pattern. But, once I have the pattern, I'm looking at the fabric requirements and I have nowhere near enough fabric for the chosen pattern. So, I buy fabric. Oh, and did I mention that I picked an insanely complicated pattern? Yeah, it was a dress with a fitted bodice and a circle skirt. It was also fully lined, with a netting ruffle to provide fullness under the skirt, and a zipper. I've never made a dress with lining, nevermind a damn zipper. Matter of fact, I've only made one other dress from a pattern period and it was a very simple affair...a casual sundress with elastic in the top back edge. So, this pattern was definitely above my skill level. Oh, wait. I may have forgotten to mention that I picked this pattern up on Monday. As in Monday, March 30. And the dance was Saturday, April 4. Yeaaaaaahhhhh. In hindsight, many bad decisions were made.
Anyhow, I managed to sweat, curse, and muddle my way through the pattern. And the end result was...BEAUTIFUL!! I couldn't believe it, really. Let's not dwell on the fact that I was still sewing at 3pm Saturday and the dance started at 6pm. I did add some of my own touches because that's what I do. The outer fabric I used was a polyester/cotton blend. It was very similar in look and feel to that really heavy satin that's dull with just a hint of sheen. The lining was a pale pink broadcloth and even the netting for the ruffle was a shade of pink! The black lace on the bottom and the black satin ribbon tie were my ideas. And really? Bethany looked like an absolute doll. She was so beautiful. I sometimes have a hard time believing that this gorgeous, bubbly, outgoing creature came from my neurotic inhibited self. If you've never met Bethany in person, the one thing that may not come across in pictures that you immediately see in person is that she just...sparkles. She really does. So of course I took a million pictures of her. Here are all my favorites. There are a lot of them:)
Ok, I know Bethany is unbelievably cute in the above picture, but could you also take note of the perfection that is my first zipper? Click the picture to see it full size. You still can't really see it, can you? That's cause it's an invisible zipper!!! I felt like I had performed successful brain surgery when I finished with that part. Moving on.
Dorian was outside running around when I was taking these so you know he had to get in on this action.
And now for a couple of Bethany and Justin together.
The next morning, Bethany told me "Mom...Daddy made me feel really special last night". Awwwwww!!!!! Aren't they so cute together? It goes without saying that Bethany was the cutest girl there, but I bet Justin was the cutest Dad there too.
So, that's what I was doing this week. And I mean, that's ALL I was doing this week. I stayed up late every night working on that damn thing. And the really crazy thing? Now I want to sew something else. I think that if I had a proper amount of time and didn't jump straight into the deep end when I barely know how to dog paddle, I'd probably enjoy sewing.
3 comments:
Its weird to see your mouth and nose on her, but look completely different.
It's PERFECT! She's PERFECT! I was reading anxiously, waiting for the part where you caved and said, "So just as Tameka suggested, I said screw it and went to Macy's."
Made by you, how could it be anything less than beautiful (both the dress and the daughter). She does sparkle in those photos. And for Justin, she really will remember this all of her life- my dad always took me out for a fancy lunch on my birthdays- I'd get to leave school for it and come back afterwards- made me feel so special- and it carries on, because you know how special you felt, and you want to pass it on.
The dress, the dance- all of it- beautiful.
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