Years and years ago, I bought a wedding dress from Beggars & Choosers for $5. It had not been cleaned after the wedding and was stained and torn. The parts that weren’t stained and torn were gorgeous; satin with a Chantilly lace overlay; cathedral train.
The skirt was gathered into the bodice to the extent that when taken apart, a size 4 dress easily fit around my size 14 (ha!) waist.
When John and I decided to get married, it seemed like it was finally time to use that fabric.
Alfred Angelo made the dress of my dreams; it was an ad in a Wedding magazine I found while shopping for a girlfriend’s wedding in 1991. The magazine stayed on the sewing books shelf for 25 years. I even found the pattern, Simplicity 7000 (from the early 90s).
When undertaking a new project, the first step is to buy all the books.
- Singer, Sewing for Special Occasions: Bridal, Prom, and Evening Dresses.
- Singer, The Perfect Fit.
- Claire B. Shaeffer: Couture Sewing Techniques.
Short answer: I didn’t need Couture Sewing Techniques, or Sewing for Special Occasions. Perfect Fit covers way more than wedding dresses, especially pants, and the two books below have enough information on fitting.
Bridal Gowns
Click on image to buy.
Bridal Gowns, by Andriks, has dated pictures and is incredibly useful. She takes you through the process, starting with a muslin, through fittings, to the finished gown. She includes a PLUS SIZE BRIDE. REAL PEOPLE.
My review: Palmer / Pletch Series: Susan E. Andriks, Bridal Gowns: How to make the wedding dress of your dreams
The Wedding Dress
Click on image to buy.
Drinan is useful, and certainly has more modern photography. In time, it will be just as dated as Andriks. Drinan has a basic pattern that you can use to create the essential shape of the dress you want.
My review: Becky Drinan: The Wedding Dress: How to make the perfect one for you. (includes basic patterns)
In the End
The dress I wanted to wear had a very complicated bodice with three moving parts–there’s a princess seam on the bodice, and a third piece cupping the shoulder. I struggled with muslins and wasn’t happy, even when we made a dress form. Three weeks before the wedding, my massage therapist said, “why don’t you just buy a dress?” and it hit me: the dress in the magazine was the perfect dress for a 30-year old bride, but I was 58 now. I didn’t need to be that princess.
I bought a lace dress with matching jacket and wore it over the painted lace skirt from the old wedding dress and looked fabulous.
