A Sketch of the Bridal Dress

"A picture is worth a thousand words." I googled who said that and came up with a list of people including Napoleon Bonaparte, Frederick R. Barnard and Albert Einstein. But regardless who said it, it is true to a certain degree. Case in point, my dear daughter (DD) and I have been sending ideas for her wedding dress back and forth for a month or so now. I send her a picture; she sends me a picture. I comment on her picture; she comments on mine and then we start all over again. I finally looked at all the pictures and dress patterns of which she said she liked parts and I sketched out her vision. Above is the result.

The bustier will be a plain, tightly fit corset with boning in channels. I have purchased a plain dress pattern Butterick 5419 (shown on left) which has a boned corset top. From this pattern, I will use the top as the base for a draped top based on Vogue 8150 (shown at right). Vogue 8150 does not have a corset and is supported by the straps. Since DD wants a strapless gown, I will have to do some patchwork to give her what she wants. (And what my baby wants, my baby gets!) The main dress -- bustier, draping and train (underskirt) will be made of white silk dupioni. The over-skirt will be made of a silk chiffon. As I posted last time, I am using another pattern for the long trained skirt, but I will have to wing the whole chiffon ruffly over-skirt. I may have to do a few mock-ups doll-sized to see how the ruffles will hang best. I have seen them both vertical and horizontal ruffles and I like both, so I will need to experiment a little. Thankfully. I have a year -- but since the last 21 have flown by. . .

DD has approved of my idea of using ivory silk chiffon cut into bias strips and sewn onto the edge of the white silk chiffon ruffles as a finishing technique. It will be the same as applying binding to a quilt edge. I am thinking about 3/8" wide, but we will experiment with that, too. DD has found a pretty, slightly beaded lace in ivory for trim along the top of the bust and at the waist of the corset which you will be able to see where the drape crosses in the middle. The underskirt (the one with the train) will be lined in ivory dupioni. Depending upon looks, we may trim the bottom of the underskirt with the lace trim as well.

Looks like we have a plan!

Happy dress making!