Sweet days of summer

So on Friday I got married to my favourite bloke in the world. We had unbelievably good weather, exchanged sweet and slightly soppy vows, laughed with all our friends and family, and danced the night away.

It was a joy to wear my handmade dress and see the mix of reactions from people who finally saw it finished as well as people who learnt during the day that I’d made it myself. Made of organza layers over duchesse satin it was floaty, romantic and a dream to wear. I wanted to feel like I’d stepped out of a vintage Dior photo shoot and it really felt that way when I stepped into the ceremony room.

My dress was all finished the week before and packed in a long garment bag, hidden from view. I started working on my frock before Christmas, testing toiles, deciding on Simplicity 1606 as the base, and draping a test dress to see how I could create the bodice effect I wanted. I practiced seam finishes and stitch settings and agonised over fabric choices for each layer.

In April I did the bulk of the work, with the sewing room door firmly shut and my playlist blaring. I redrafted the skirt and just managed to get the pieces on my cutting table. I spent a long time on the bodice and used every single entomology pin I had. Hemming the four skirt layers was extremely stressful and then lining up my lapped zipper nearly pushed me over the edge but as I handstitched my lining into place I knew it was going to be alright.

Everyone said to me on the day they couldn’t imagine what I was making but then they saw the dress it was exactly me, which was music to my ears. I’ll be sharing how I made the dress, tips and resources for future brides, and thoughts on the whole process throughout August. Like this post, a few will go up while I’m away on honeymoon but I’m excited to hear what you think when I’m back. So until then…

Lots of Love

Mrs Scarr xx