wedding dress Archives - Mary's Thrifty Chic

Hello Everyone!

Since last week was my 29th anniversary, I thought it was a great time to share my wedding dress refashion for newcomers to my site.

Do you remember how you felt in your wedding dress? I felt like a total princess! I never went the route that most brides these days do. There was no dress shopping for me. Shortly after I became engaged, I took a trip back to my hometown of Milwaukee and promptly took my mother’s wedding dress out of the attic. It was in beautiful shape, and once I tried it on I had a vision of what I wanted. From that moment, it was my dress. Don’t get me wrong, it did need a lot of work. Here is the story…

**My beautiful mom and dad back in the day. Mom’s dress had long pointy sleeves, huge bow at the neck, VERY pointy darts,(those were a thing back in the day**) **and a very long train.**

**Fast forward to May 11, 1991! The train was shortened to make new “Laura Ashley” type sleeves, all of the lace** **had to be replaced, the bodice was recut and pieced back together with princess seams, and the bow/s were replaced with bias binding roses.**

**Mom’s dress had long pointy sleeves and a big bow in front**

**I cut off the train to make new “Laura Ashley” style sleeves, and made bias roses instead of bows for the front**

**Here is a closer look at the sleeve “Before”**

**This is a closer look at the roses that replaced the bows**

**Here is another closer look at the sleeves bodice and roses**

As I move forward to my 30th anniversary I have started to think about what to do with my dress. The fabric is still so beautiful. I thought about giving it to a place that makes angel gowns for infants who are stillborn. Another idea was to make christening gowns for my future grandchildren.

I asked my boys what they prefered, and they want me to hold off on donating, They feel that a christening gown would be a good idea, but they want to check it out with their future brides. So, for the time being I will keep it. I have a good idea that my dress still has a great future in store. Whatever I choose I know my mother would be proud.

I would love to know if any of you have made or upcycled your wedding gowns. What is your story?

Hope you are all well!

Hi Everyone!

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Remember how you felt in your wedding dress? I truly felt like a princess!

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Re-fashioning your mother’s wedding dress is becoming a trend right now as the economy and budgets become even tighter. On television, there are even shows dedicated to it such as “Something Borrowed” on TLC (The Learning Channel). But you know me by now, I was a trailblazer. I did it 22 years ago long before “Thrifty Chic”!

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At the time, I was determined to make sure I did not spend my life savings on the wedding. I took a trip home to Milwaukee shortly after my engagement, tried on my mother’s dress, and immediately had a vision of what I wanted. I never even tried on another wedding dress! As you look at the pictures, just remember that when I got married, it was the early ’90s. “Poof” was all the rage in hair, sleeves, and just about everything else.

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BEFORE – My mother and father in September 1950. Weren’t they cute?

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My husband and I in 1991! Sorry for the fuzzy picture, I had to take a picture of a picture to avoid taking apart my wedding album.

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Here is my beautiful mom waiting to walk down the aisle. There were no princess seams, only a dart which emanated from the waist and released to a poof over the bust. There were also bow ties on the center front bodice and the pulled-up sections of the skirt. The sleeves were long and tight, and came to a point at the cuff.

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To this day, I still have pieces of the original dress, lace, and the sleeves. (pictured) I have always planned on making Christmas ornaments from the scraps for my brothers and my sister. For some reason, I just have never gotten around to it. I think this year will change that.

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Here I am waiting to take the plunge as well. You can see that sleeves and bodice are very different from the original.

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I added princess seams, puffy sleeves (hey, remember it was the 90’s!) and changed the bows to handmade rosettes created with self-fabric bias looping. I had to take my dress out of storage to get these pictures so excuse its rumpled appearance. I didn’t want to disturb it too much.

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In these pictures, you can see the full length refashioned gown. The one on the left is prior to putting on the hoop slip underneath. Pictured on the right, the slip is in place and we are about to leave for the church. Click on any of the pictures to make the images larger. Keep in mind the shine is exaggerated due to the flash.

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Since I did this 22 years ago, I don’t have a tutorial. If you are thinking of trying something like this yourself, here is my best advice:

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Professionally dry clean and press the dress before you start anything. This way you will get a fair idea of what the fabric is really like and make sure any existing stains can be removed. It will also make it easier to see any damages in the fabric and make it easier to work with.
If you don’t have a lot of sewing skills, seek professional help. Even though I was in the fashion business at the time, I hired a pattern professional to help me with the reconstruction of the sleeves and bodice. I did all of the sewing myself.
Make sure that if you need to replace any lace that the fabric will not be/or become ruined in the picking process. My dress was not a sure thing until I removed all of the lace and the dress was still intact. Every bit of the lace needed to be changed. This was especially precarious on the organza upper bodice but luckily it held up well.
Make sure you have enough fabric to make your changes. My mother’s dress had a very long train which allowed me to cut new sleeves and bodice. Even then my dress still had a small train left.
Give yourself plenty of time to get the work done. The last thing you need is to be more stressed about the wedding.

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When all was said and done, I spent about $40 on lace and notions. Luckily, my pattern maker worked gratis as she was my friend. How about you? Do you want to wear your mother’s wedding dress or know someone who does? I would love to hear your thoughts and questions. If you made your own wedding dress, I would love to see your pictures!

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‘Til next time… Love, Mary!

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