She's promised me pics, but until then, here are a few process shots:
This is the underdress. Isn't it pretty? I almost hated to cover it up with the burgundy embroidered rayon. The front piece of the skirt was draped on the bias. I wanted it to skim over the baby belly without adding extra bulk, so I cut the underskirt differently from the overskirt. I don't know if this was a stroke of brilliance or just plain insanity.
And then the overdress. The front was draped in one piece. Again, I didn't want to add unnecessary bulk by putting a seam there. And, again, this may have been a stroke of brilliance or sheer madness.
And here's the detail of the side ruching. (Please ignore the TOTAL DISASTER that is my sewing room. I can't figure out if I am seriously overestimating my abilities or seriously underestimating the amount of time it takes to do things.)
What I will say is that I'm kind of impressed with myself. Between Jessica's Wedding Dress (I just searched my blog and realized that I NEVER posted pictures of this. I wonder if it's because I'm STILL WAITING for the reception photos. [HINT HINT]) So here's a process pic of her wedding dress:
That was ... hmmm... early 2008. MAJOR undertaking. One-of-a-kind, original design, all of the bodice draping was done in one piece, etc etc... Then there was Yvonne's wedding dress, which was a simpler design, but still one-of-a-kind and, again, created entirely by ME. And then the dress above. Each of these dresses has been different, some more difficult than others, but each presented different design challenges and different fabric challenges.
So I guess -- I'm proud of myself? I didn't take draping in college, I muddled along and got some pointers here and there, but most of the time I find myself on a collision course with a deadline and, truth be told, NO FUCKING CLUE what I'm doing. (Scary, no? Notice I don't mention this until AFTER deadlines are met) But I guess I've picked a few things up along the way, because -- SUCCESS! Right? I mean, these dresses look pretty good, don't they?
And I don't want to admit this in a public forum, because I'm presenting myself as a professional, (and I am, dammit!!) But I'm committed to PROCESS and, especially, learning from process. So I want to get on here and admit the mistakes I made. Admit that in one point during the draping of the anniversary dress, I thought that I could drape the underdress in one piece, and that the pleats forming the bust could drape into pleats for the baby belly. Here's a pic:
It's a mess, isn't it? Because it doesn't work that way. And I didn't know that (which is why we drape in muslin!) But I know it now - and not only that, but I UNDERSTAND it now. And I believe that there's a lot of value in that!
So I'll continue being honest. That's ok, right?
3 comments:
I agree, learning from the process is utterly important. I teach myself every new trick I learn or make up, that way I understand "why" certain things are the way they are instead of just being that way because someone else said so
I think that dress is GORGEOUS. I'll be honest, I didn't even think of it being a maternity dress at first. Seriously, so pretty and so perfect for a baby belly. I liked the underdress but I also love how flow-y the over dress was. I want to see pics of her in it :)
Both dresses are simply stunning. The "underdress" is nice enough to wear on its own!
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