A Lesson in Layering

My takeaway from this dress is to not be afraid of trying new combinations of colors -  just because you can't find the color you're looking for does not mean you can't create it.  Sure there's dye but I'm talking about a different approach - Layering.   I've never looked at fabrics this way - sure I've layered fabrics, countless times but never with the intent to match color the way I needed to with this dress.

Typically, after a decision on color has been made, fabric is picked for the dress base with a coordinating overlay.. simple, done.  For this dress, it was little more complicated. This dress needed to match or come close to matching another dress. A color combination was found but was out of stock and was not going to be back in stock for some time.  This was when I started playing around with the fabrics I could order to see if there was a combination of two that would come close to matching the color.  For this dress, a combination of three shades of blush was the magic mix.

Construction:

At the first appointment we looked through pictures of dresses found online, discussed design and the likes and dislikes of each.  Pictured below is the dress that would be the inspiration for her dress:

Inspiration Dress

 

The dress came together beautifully.  There were a few changes that differed from the inspiration dress - the bodice and the sleeve cuffs.  

To keep the dress in place, a waist stay was stitched to the inside.  A waist stay works just like a belt, keeping the bodice from slipping. I like installing them in off the shoulder dresses because there isn't much help to hold the dress up along the shoulder area, even with added boning, a waist stay gives additional support, keeping everything in place. 

Here's a closer look at how I layered the three fabrics -the bodice was layered the same way.

Base layer skirt - Rosewater Sanded Satin
https://www.joann.com/casa-collection-sanded-satin-fabric--rosewater/15080252.html

If you haven't felt "sanded satin", you need to.  It's my new favorite and was just right for this dress - it's lightweight and drapes beautifully.

Underlay - Blush Pink Chiffon
https://www.voguefabricsstore.com/chiffon-solid-60-blush-pink.html

Overlay - Rosewater Chiffon
https://www.joann.com/casa-collection-chiffon-many-colors/zprd_08528820a.html

I learned a lot making this dress and am thankful to have had the opportunity especially during this past year as we all adjusted to a new normal.  There were some hiccups along the way due to the pandemic - finding places not shut down to order fabric, figuring out ways to safely do in person fittings and a postponed May wedding to August.  

Thank you Nicole for asking me to make your dress!

A Special Kind Of Alteration

Recently, a mom I know was diagnosed with breast cancer and had to have a double mastectomy. I wasn't sure how I could help and thought if she ever needed anything altered to fit, I could do that for her.

This past spring, I received a text from her asking if I could help alter a dress she bought for her son's wedding. I couldn't tell her yes fast enough.

We met and started talking about her dress:

The dress was fitted through the bodice and hip, slightly flaring through the skirt line ending with somewhat of a train. The dress had an open back that came together in the center attaching with one button.

She did not like how the dress sat across the top of her shoulders and neck. The neckline was similar to a boat neck (but only across the front) - sitting above her collar bone, it went straight across shoulder to shoulder. She wanted a more rounded neckline, sitting just below her collar bone.  

I gently pulled the neckline down to the point she felt most comfortable. In doing so, it changed the back of the dress. There was now a 5" space between the loop and the button, pictured below:

Button and loop closure on back of dress

This space needed to stay 5" in order for the front neckline to stay in its new lower position - which was only about an inch lower than the original neckline.

First back extender made with dress fabric

To do this, I made an extender using fabric from the train of the skirt. It turned out how I thought I wanted it to until she tried it on - I wasn't sure I liked it or not. I felt the dress needed something different, some kind of detail, embellishment, something. I wasn't sure what until I found 1" wide sparkle/glitter grey elastic trim. 

I attached the trim to the lining of the dress - one side sewn, the other was attached with a button sewn to the inside of the dress and a button hole sewn in the elastic. 

Grey sparkle/glitter elastic extender

The strap looked good but again, missing something. I stopped here to think about the back while I started work on the front.

The front of the dress had two side darts that shaped the dress. Because of the open back, there was no easy or comfortable way to wear an undergarment without it showing from behind.

Before doing anything, I put the dress on my dress form backwards so the front of the dress was on the back of the form. By doing this, the dress fit similarly to the way it did on Beth and I was able to see where I needed to place the cups. My goal was to position the cups to give just enough shape to smooth out any lines or folds in the fabric created by the darts.

Using foam bra cups, I started by pinning one set in place then decided to add a second set. 

First set of cups pinned in place

Positioning second set of cups

Foam cups pinned in place, ready to be fitted

After checking placement, the cups were sewn to
the inside of lining.

The dress was nearly finished, I was still playing with the back extension strap trying to find something to add that would cover a few exposed stitches.  I decided on buttons.

Decorative buttons added to hide exposed stitches

One last thing - we added a wrap.  I used a lightweight sheer knit:

https://www.joann.com/metallics-knit-fabric--silver-and-white/14261655.html

The button used to close the wrap is the original button
from the back of the dress

Cold shoulder opening along each side seam

Sheer to show the back detail

I met Beth a few years ago when our kids were in high school marching band together. We were part of the parent group that dressed the kids, chaperoned the kids, fed the kids and did anything else that needed to be done to get those kids on the field performing. Some of my fondest memories being a part of that parent group include her. 

Thank you Beth for trusting me with your dress.  You are stunning!