Six years ago this summer I was toiling away in a sky-high apartment in Cambridge, MA, working on my bridesmaid's dresses. I had decided to make the dresses, so that they could match my wedding gown in style. I had also decided to make the dresses out of cotton, instead of satin, thinking that when the wedding was over, the girls might be able to wear the dresses to another event.
In the process, since I'm not an expert seamstress by far, I had decided to first make a dress for myself--that way I knew what I should keep the same about the pattern, and what I'd like to have changed for the girls' dresses.
Outside of trying the dress on right after I made it, I've never worn it since. I noticed it this past Sunday in my closest and decided, "heck, why don't I do something about this dress to make it a little more wear-able...?" Since I've been sewing more of late, I thought I'd take a stab at making some creative changes. I figured, what's the worst thing that could happen? I'd ruin it? It's not like I was wearing it anyway, so what would that matter?
Since I didn't care too much if my project failed, I didn't put much effort into making my lines clean. Now that it's turned out half-decent, I'm just hoping that the people in the pew behind me at church aren't staring at my poor sewing the next time I wear this on a Sunday morning. From far away, I think it looks cute enough to wear. Maybe if my bridesmaids have their dresses still collecting dust in their closets, they could do a dress revamp of their own. :)
Most of the important things I changed dealt with the bodice--it was way too bulky up top to feel comfortable, and it came too high on the back. I cut on both sides of the "straps" to make them thinner, but still wasn't satisfied in the end. I ultimately decided to add two little loops to draw in the straps to make them more comfortable. In the back, I simply cut out a huge chunk of fabric, folded down the zipper and sewed. I also trimmed the length so that it lays just below the knee instead of just below the calf. I think it still could have used a little more off the bottom, but I was getting kind of tired of the project by that point.... (My moods are so easily shifting!)
Sorry the pictures aren't so great---I often have trouble taking pictures of myself!
I think that dress looks awesome Libby! I love to sew, but making cute clothing has always evaded me for some reason. I'm glad you were able to make (and revamp) such an adorable dress to bring some summery beauty into your life : )
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about making clothing, though. Most of my by-the-pattern pieces that I've made have taken a lot of sweat and tears! Even these bridesmaids dresses that were supposed to be "easy" took me a long time, and a lot of crying spells! hahahaha! I think only recently have I been feeling more confident in sewing as I made Abby some outfits and decided to just to whatever I wanted, instead of worrying about a pattern. After they came out pretty darn cute, I decided, "I'm going to make things like this more often! Fewer tears!" ;-)
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