before commissioning something, i'd go to several different places and try on dresses. i also wasn't fond of many of the styles out there today but was able to find something that i loved. also, it's possible to add sleeves to many of the sleeveless dress styles, a good store will be able to help you with that no problem.

another thing that i found was that the style of dress that i thought would suit my body type was unflattering. so from trying on massive amounts of dresses i was able to pinpoint exactly what cut and style i wanted and from then on was able to focus on the details. knowing the exact cut that you want from trying things on will help for either buying or commissioning.

but, yes, if you don't fall in love with something, then i'd say definitely have it commissioned.

I love the dress! I do agree with pinafore though--trying on some dresses, even if you know you're getting something else is very helpful. Wedding dresses are different from any other dress really, in terms of cut and flow, so previous experience doesn't help too much. At least this is what I found, and I went to like twenty different place before I found The Dress. The stuff I thought would look good on me was regularly horrible. Funny how that works :-)

Also, go with silk. It's a huge day, and silk is so nice on. Wrinkles aren't going to be a huge deal, either--you only really wear the dress once anyhow!

A thick cotton is going to be a lot heavier and the pleats and gathers more lumpy. Because of the washing, my cotton costumes tend to wear and dull quickly. And wrinkles are not always simple to iron out especially with ruching, pleats and layered gathers.

Dress reminds me of the barbie doll cakes mom used to make for our birthdays. Make by baking cake in glass bowl. Cut a whole in center for doll, then frost the bodice on the doll and the the cake as the skirt. Haha! You could have wedding cake that looked like your dress in creamy frosting.

Um, I don't know. 3 lengths of fabric for the skirt. 1.5 for the bodice. Would have to measure the width of the ruffles and ruching and then 2x the length to figure out trim. For at least the bodice, there's probably also an interlining and maybe lining too.

Ah, yes, polyester dress. Can't remember. Seems like 13 or 15 yards or something like that.

I loooove your idea, and think with a few alterations to the design, this could make for a very romantic wedding dress. I would say big no on the cotton though. Maybe its just me, but on your wedding I feel like you should treat yourself to beautiful fabrics! You could go for a silk charmeuse, one that is not too heavy. If you want a more muted look, you can use the duller side of the fabric, which has less of a satiny finish, very classic and nice.

Good luck!!

I love this dress!!
I can't help you, I don't have any ideas about wedding ;_;

I know nothing about fabrics, but I love the style for you.

Consider silk taffeta, which is crisp and not super shiny. Probably my favorite fabric. Ironing silk is no big deal, ironing ruffles and pintucks of any fabric scares me a little.

Hi! Lots of silk is OK with H2O. Try a swatch and see how it responds to water. If it spots, dunk the whole thing and see if you still like how it looks when it dries.

Anyway, it's your effin wedding dress, you don't have to go on LJ consensus :)

Hi! Lots of silk is OK with H2O. Try a swatch and see how it responds to water. If it spots, dunk the whole thing and see if you still like how it looks when it dries.

Anyway, it's your effin wedding dress, you don't have to go on LJ consensus :)

Sorry to just randomly drop into your journal, but I actually have a potentially helpful comment to make since I was recently looking for dresses with similar details as the ones you're after. ^__^

I had wanted to make my own wedding dress, but I didn't know what I wanted precisely, so I went to try on dresses. I wasn't down for the typical strapless dress with sequins and lace either, and so I really didn't think I would find anything I liked in a store. However, when I went to Pricilla's of Boston I was pleasantly surprised by the Melissa Sweet collection they have there. Their website makes their dresses look much less lovely than they are in person, and it's actually where I ended out getting my dress. It was a strapless style, but I had them add straps. I'm not suggestion you forsake your idea of this Baby replica in a longer length, but you might want to check out a Pricilla's just for inspiration. You might find some ideas to edit into your current idea.

If you go with this Pockets Embroidery dress in a longer style, I think it will be really lovely. You could consider doing a mixture of cotton and silk. You could use silk for the ruffles and cotton for the main body of the dress. I know it sounds kind of odd, but it could also be a really nice way to add an element of detail without adding any additional trim or lace.




Edited at 2009-03-31 06:34 pm (UTC)

Aw~ Thanks! You've got pretty mad skills yourself!

Thank you so much! I did make my headpiece. I saw a similar birdcage veil at the shop, and it was $375. It had kind of ratty looking unfinished silk flowers, and I figured I could make one more to my liking for that price. I used the remains of the extra yard of dotted silk organza I had to order for the straps as well as the silk I used in the bridesmaid dresses. You can't see them in those few pictures, but I also used the same faux pearls I used on the bridesmaid dress flowers. Amazingly, people actually noticed those things!

I've used the silk ruffles on cotton a few times to a rather nice effect. I've done it on tote-bags a few times. and my bridesmaid dresses were cream cotton eyelet with cream silk ruffles at the necklines. Sadly, I don't have pictures of any of these things right now. XD I won't lie though, the color matching on the bridesmaid dresses was really a pain, so I can see your concern with that~

We will talk about the dress in excruciating detail soon, but for today keep this in mind: if you ask someone "cotton or silk?" they are all going to say "silk," because most modern people think silk is for gowns and cotton is for tshirts. Go to Lacis and fondle the cotton organdy, and the batiste they sell for heirloom christening gowns. Those fabrics are much finer, and will do more for your dress, than the more typical silk dupioni.

I have used over twenty yards of fabric in one dress before.

Posted here rather than emailed to you because others who are lurking may benefit from this information. :)