Knitting Patterns by Lyndell

Halter Neck Dress for Neo Blythes - here
Design your own Dress for Neo Blythes - here
Gum-Nut Hat for Neo Blythes - here

Who? What? eh?

This is the blog of a constant crafter - a 'showcase' for some of the things I make, some hints for crafting & recylcing - lots of photos and some words. I hope it will inspire.
Please Note: all photos are Copyright.



Saturday 1 May 2010

Vintage Wedding Dress and MonoChromaticism

Stiff tulle and shiny satin - first in white and now in black?



Anyone would think this was a production of the ballet Swan Lake. Which reminds me of an old joke ... Odette is the white swan - Odile is the black swan and then there is a grey swan called ... Oh Dear. erk!


But I digress - these are not tutus but their close relative - big petticoats for 50's frocks. Seems everyone wants one at the moment - even our cat!
The black is for a black circular skirt that I've altered for a client - the white was for my recent bride; that vintage dress make-over I've blogged about previously and now that her wedding has been - I can show you all that make-over involved.

BEFORE: dress from the early 1950s, nylon fabric with all-over embroidery of clover leaves over nasty acetate - the nylon was quite grey, the acetate had gone a slightly pink beige. The original frock had wide straps (tucked inside in that photo) a very strangely shaped bodice and huge circle ++ skirt - but no petticoat so sad and limp. And that bodice fitted not at all and nowhere!

AFTER: unfortunately I have no decent photos of the finished frock on the bride - just a quick click at a fitting

here it is on on the mannequin. After washing and much soaking I got the fabrics as white as possible - the nylon brightened considerably. I completely re-made the bodice, mounting the fragile nylon onto a new, very boned bodice of thick satin - this worked as a corset and achieved the 1950's figure.

We kept the original slightly dropped waistline, adding a black silk sash - with the zip being in the side seam that pussy-cat bow is permanent (lots of costumier's trickery here!) The bride wanted a massive bell-shaped skirt - and with 12m of stiff tulle ... that's what she got :-)












I also made her a veil - all frilly and fluted with lots of fishing line - again no photo on the bride - but at the front it fell to her shoulders, nearly reaching the bow on the dress at the back.
It all fell from a comb with a simple little tiara-ette I made from diamantes.

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