Frankly, this one put me over the edge. I could have made two dresses in the time it took me to take in 6 1/2 inches, hem, and bustle this dress. I won't name names, but it came from the largest bridal chain in the country. I can't imagine why they would carry a dress that was not made to be altered
It consisted of a sateen strapless dress full of boning. Attached at the empire waist was another dress made of netting with numerous seams. The lace was then sewn over the seams apparently with the feed dogs down using a minuscule stitch length. Atop the lace was beading. Hence, I had to remove the beaded trim around the waist, remove the beading on much of the bodice and below the waist, remove the lace from bodice and all seams involved in altering the skirt, remove the bones from the lining of the dress, take in 6 1/2 inches from the bodice tapering down at the hips, and make a sway back adjustment. It was like removing knots! I can't believe that I didn't rip the netting. I sounded like a sailor at times and had to stop when I got a headache from looking at the white on white with magnified glasses. I didn't begin the hem and bustle until 6 days before the wedding, and I had parent-teacher conferences all week! Ugh! Sleep? What is that? I finished at 2:50 A.M. Thursday night. The wedding was Saturday.
Funny thing is -- I would do it again! Look at that sweet face. She is always kind and always cheerful. My frustration with the dress is nothing compared to the joy I felt seeing her so happy. Love you A.
P.S. I used to be a procrastinator, but that is not why I worked until the last minute. The amount of work and a little mishap kept me from finishing. I fell on my stairway as I was leaving for church the day of the wedding shower in September and broke my tailbone. I doubt most sewists ever think about how important their bottom is to the hobby. I never did.
