"She Wore the Dress, And I Stayed Home!"

Yeah, I know, it's about sisters, not moms/daughters, but it applies.

I guess after last year's dress success, I might've been just a pinch cocky about sewing up this year's dress.

It took more tries than I anticipated to get the fit acceptable. So I was later than I wanted to be when I actually started sewing the dress, but I thought I still had time. It really wasn't that difficult of a dress, and I already had the lining done.

Things started deteriorating this morning when I pressed the assembled front of the dress (I'd sewn the front and side fronts together) and discovered that the crease from the fold on the bolt wasn't just a crease...it was a fade line. And the crease wasn't right on the center of the fabric, so the pink line was off center. Couldn't cover it up with trim.

Fortunately, I'd cut the dress with a 'without nap' layout, so I had some extra fabric. Thought I'd make a sharp little shell top out of the remnant...but I cut a second center front piece from it instead, took the front assembly apart and replaced it.

Then I made a bone headed boo-boo on the boning and put it in with the natural curve going the wrong way on 5 out of 6 of them (I caught my error as I was getting ready to sew in the last one). I used Rigilene, which I sewed directly to the lining, so I had to take all those out and redo them.

The facing wanted to roll to the outside, even after understitching. So I hand picked it all along the top. I'd put some loopy silver trim along the top edge, so the pick stitching was well hidden.

I made another bone-headed boo-boo sewing the lining into the jacket...had to redo the sleeve/sleeve lining seam. In both sleeves.

And The Flute Player is simply not well enough endowed to hold up a strapless dress. So I ended up adding clear elastic straps. She wasn't terribly pleased with that, but, well, it was way better than the possible alternatives.

I started sewing this morning, never got a shower, never ate lunch, and was working on the jacket when My Sweet Baboo got home from work and informed me that the event actually started at 6:30 tonight, not 7, as I had written on the calendar.

Once I admitted to myself that there was Simply No Way I was going to be ready in time to go, the stress eased considerably.

But I spent a lot of mental energy fussing to myself all day today that it was really silly of me to have undertaken this project at all; she's going to outgrow the dress very soon...probably before she even gets to wear it again.

What was I thinking????

Oh, well, she's out the door and enjoying the awards dinner w/her brother and her dad....and the dress did look nice...