And So It Begins

Yes, yes, I know, I'm a terrible blogger. I got everyone all excited and then left you for TWO MONTHS. That's just cruel. Well, I'm trying to buy a house, which is a horrible thing to try and do in Ontario right now, and is exceptionally stressful and is playing games with my heart, so almost all my energy is consumed by worrying about that every single waking moment. And then Jelly (did I mention I have an almost-9-year old?), she had her school March spring break, so we ran off to the Caribbean. Well, now we're back and work is actually quiet so I have lots of time to worry about houses and dresses.

My sister (Bridesmaid Other) had some drama with the dress she'd found back in January, and it ended up not working out and she had her own stress about finding something else, and she FINALLY did, just yesterday, so OH MY SWEET 7 lb 3 oz BABY JESUS THE PRESSURE. Now she was sharing pics looking all cute in her dress and with strappy heels and she'd even found cute earrings and I was all forever alone over here with my heap of fabric like fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck.  So, damnit, I started the dress.

I started by remembering to figure out how to add pockets, since that wasn't included in the pattern. So I watched a YouTube video on that. Then I realized I didn't have a pattern for the crinoline/petticoat, so I watched a video on that. Then I realized I had exhausted my stall tactics and started cutting. I hate the cutting.

Pretty professional, accurate notes there, right?

So first I started with sewing darts, which I don't think I've ever done. I didn't really measure them or know what I was doing, but I felt pretty good about it.

Next I started sewing stuff together incorrectly, because I wanted to make sure my seam ripper still worked. Do you SEE this fabric?! While it cuts like butter, it also tears like tissue, so I told myself not to sew anything else the wrong way after doing one of the darts on the wrong side. However, it's really, really hard to tell which side is the right side and which side is the wrong side, so I went on to sew the underside of the sleeve the wrong way.

Then I decided I should probably take a little break, because I tried on what I had and I already can tell it's going to be too small, so I need to sew in some panels or something. I also figured I should start reinforcing my seams, so I did that. I've already made a few changes (changed the sleeves, change the waist), so we'll see how I like that. Jelly has a sleepover scheduled for this Saturday so I think I'm going to try and knock it out then; otherwise, I've got company coming next week for Easter so will have to convert my sewing room back to a guest room, and then I'll probably forget about it for another two months, and no one wants that.

The mothers of the bride and groom have picked out their dresses, and they are in shades of pink, just lovely. Bridesmaid Other's dress is a mix of greens and pinks and ties everything together nicely. We'll definitely be a colorful bunch!