Dalys knew what she wanted when she showed up for her fitting. She had a binder with pictures, some swatches of fabric and a clear vision of what styles flattered her figure. There was only one problem: she had less than a month to her wedding date. Lucky for her I am a sucker for a beautiful wedding dress and clients with a clear vision of what they want. This past month has been a whirlwind of fittings and shopping and sewing and beading and pressing mixed in with my steady stream of regular projects.Here's the time breakdown:
- 4 hours of pattern making: I was unable to find a pre-made pattern that matched her design so I created one to her specifications. She wanted a two piece dress. The skirt needed a thick 2.5"-3" waistband and a tight fitted skirt to just below her hip. The bottom of the skirt needed to flare out and have a simple, smooth and short train of about 18". The top would be a hip length princess seamed bodice with a square neck and cap sleeves covered in beaded lace overlay. The overlay would have a higher boat neck and 3/4 length sleeves and have scallop edge beaded trim all the way around. We decided to make the top so it could be worn tucked in or left out.
- 3 hours of cutting out fabric: Yes, it takes that long to arrange the pattern pieces on the yardage and cut out the satin, lace and two layers of lining for a wedding dress.
- 14 hours sewing. This includes basting, pressing, alterations after fittings, installing zippers and closures, linings and hemming.
- 2.5 hours of fittings/consultations
- 3 hours of handstitching-beading, buttons and finish work. Oh My!
