This past week I was asked to make a custom flower girl
dress for a summer wedding. The bride wanted a simple design for her four-year-old
cousin. We decided on a sleeveless, knee length dress with a simple collar.
However, there was a bit of a problem. The wedding and the
flower girl were both out-of-state, so there would be no fittings. The bride told me she was a size 4T and
asked me to go from there. When I
found out my wheels started turning as to how I was going to make a dress, from
scratch, without a body!
Well, here’s how it went:
First, I borrowed an old dress from my niece, who is growing
out of her 4T dresses. I used that as a base for the pattern. Then, after a few prototypes (two
skirts and two bodices) I decided on the pattern. Figuring out how to make sure
the dress fit was the biggest challenge, but I do love a challenge! Here was my
solution: Elastic and knots.
It wasn’t all me, I consulted my mother, who is of the generation
that knows everything about sewing, but never sews. I had already decided on
the elastic for the waist, but couldn’t figure out how to make sure the top fit
and that she could get it over her head. And of course, the answer was the
simplest, which is always the hardest to find, ties at the shoulder.
I simply added three inches to each shoulder seam and there
it was, an even more adorable version of the original dress.
I just gave it over to the bride, who is getting married next
week. I hope all goes well and maybe I’ll even get a picture. Fingers crossed.
-Alice
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