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If you've read much of this blog, then you know that Daughter Laura is getting married. On June 5, in fact. Of course, we have to be crafty. Some of the craftiness we're paying professionals for, like the alterations on her wedding gown. Laura tried to be crafty with some paper flower decorations, but those have become UFOs and we are now the proud owner of a thousand sheets of purple tissue paper. Two shades of purple. Guess what I'm using for wrapping paper for the next 10+ years. Maybe that can be a party favor. Or not.

Laura found a great deal on gorgeous purple satin dresses at the Limited of all places, so the bridesmaids dresses are RTW and amazingly need no alterations. Or so these girls tell her. I hope that's true, but I've let go of the worrying about it. Especially for the one who said her dress is a little tight, but it will be fine.

You tell by the picture, then, that I'm making the flower girl dresses. Yes, there are 2 flower girls. I'm making view B, which is the 3-tiered pink one in the picture. The base fabric is the lavender/lilac taffeta, and the flowy bit is the flowy organza you see there. I'm going to make the sash pictured on the long dress in the dark purple to tie them in with the bridesmaids. The pattern has the base fabric as a lining in the bodice, but I don't want the seams to show, so I'm treated these 2 as one, and will use a pink cotton batiste to line. Then there is the underskirt to which you attach the tiers to, plus a lining for the skirt, which they make out of the same fabric. Two layers of taffeta in June in Atlanta will be too much... too stiff and too hot, so again with the batiste lining.

I'm doing a test wash and dry right now of the taffeta, as the care instructions say hand wash and line dry, but I'd love for the whole dress to be machine washable, so I'll see how that goes. I ordered the batiste and the extra yard of the organza I'll need only yesterday (originally thought there would only be one flower girl, and we had chosen a different, younger looking pattern), so I can't really get started, but once that all arrives, then it will be all systems go! Deadline for this is April 16 when we head to Tennessee. That's where the little girls live (and fiance Thomas is from) and we'll be attending a party there that weekend. I want to deliver the dresses then.

No problem, right? I hope not. I bought the 2mm rolled hem presser foot today to assist with the hemming of all those tiers. That should be fun. And I think I'm going to do hand-picked zippers. I've never done a zipper by hand, but how hard can it be?




Did I mention I'm making my MOB dress too? I'll let y'all know when I'm officially declared insane! Oh, and Uncle Thomas, no showing this picture to anyone involved with Flower Girl 1 or Flower Girl 2. I want it to be a surprise.