The Flower Girl’s Dress and Sash(es)

I’ve been hard at work trying to get a million things done by the wedding. It’s 22 days and 5 hours away!

First up, I made a bunch of sashes: one for me, one for my sister’s bride’s maid dress, one for the bouquet, and one for the hand fasting ceremony. Phew.

Look I made a sash puppet! For my sash and my sister’s I used the pattern piece for the tie from M5314, a out of print woven wrap dress. I used it for the first dress I ever made with a pattern. I want to revisit the pattern again someday, because I absolutely loved that dress. It was a little bit revealing, but was originally made for a burlesque show so that was a good thing! It’s now a wrap skirt and I still love it.

For my sash, I cut two pieces of the pattern piece instead of one and I lengthened it. The tie for the dress is super long already, but I wanted to be able to make a bow and still have the ends hanging almost to the bottom of the skirt. I also like the pointed ends for my sash. Pictured here with some of the wedding decoration prep:

See how long it is?

The prep for the wedding decorations is for balloons at the reception:

They are wrapped in red tulle and have a fake flower and ribbon tied around them. They are hanging with fishing line so we don’t have to bother with helium. My friend Rob came up with the idea from a Pinterest post and then helped me put it together. He’s my expert decorator and an all-around fabulous guy!

For my sister’s sash, I followed the pattern and cut one and then folded and sewed. Instead of a point at the end, this sash has a diagonal cut. My sister’s sash is half the size of mine in width and a lot shorter. Below, you can see that the sash isn’t even half the length of mine.

For the bouquet and the handfasting sashes, I just winged it. They are both the same size with a diagonal end mirroring my sister’s sash.

I think I’ve talked about the sashes enough. Who really cares about triangles of fabric?

The flower girl dress is the star of this post!

I started with the Sweetheart Dress Pattern from Very Shannon. My niece is five years old so I cut the 5T. Although, I asked my sister to measure Grace just in case and she falls between 4T and 5T. I chose to cut the 5T for comfort, because the finished measurements are fitted across the chest.

The pattern pieces are so tiny!

Cutting out kid’s clothing is a completely different experience. I made Grace pj pants for Christmas last year and was so confused how teeny tiny they were. I thought it must be impossible that a five year old is that small. The pants were a little large on her, though! I don’t think I mentioned the pattern for her pj pants in that post, but it was the Avery lounge pants from Livi Stitches. It was an okay pattern. My only criticism was that it doesn’t have standard size cuts for the elastic in the waistband, but instead says to use your kids as a model and wrap it around their waist to get the length. Great if you have a kid right there. Not so great if the kid you are sewing for is 1600+ km away. A google search gave me standard sizes so I used those.

My sister and her family live on the East Coast so there is no chance of checking the fit on this dress until the week of. I’m not worried, because kids are pretty easy to fit and my sister gave me Grace’s measurements.

I have to say that I can’t really make any comment on the instructions in this pattern as I didn’t look at them very long. I sort of just followed my own methods for the self-lined bodice and heart cutout. I think I glances at them to understand how the heart cutout worked and that was it.

It came together really easily. Tiny bodice plus gathered skirt. That was all. I probably had more trouble with the tiny proportions than with the pattern itself.

It’s a very cute dress and will look very adorable on Grace. She has gold sandals to match the wedding colours. I added a gold button at the back to match the colours, too.

I won’t rate the dress since I haven’t seen how it fits Grace yet, but I tentatively give it 5 stars, because it’s incredibly cute and was easy to make.

Wedding prep is all-consuming now. I haven’t had much of a chance to think of anything else. Although, I have sketched out some summer sewing plans and cut out another M6696 and another cloned bra (in fushia this time). I will also be cutting out a camisole for underneath the wedding dress. I’m using the Savannah pattern from Seamwork without any lace at the neckline. Should be a quick make. I am also making little shorts in silk using the shorts portion of the Parisian Nights PJs from Winter Wear Designs. I’ve made them up in flannel before and I just have a few modifications to make and then make a waistband for it. Should also be an easy make. If I have time, I will make a beige bra and some matching undies, but honestly, if I don’t have time or I feel stressed, I’m not going to go to the trouble.

Our basement/my sewing room has a water leak issue from the window. I might have to move everything upstairs so my landlady can deal with that. Also, it smells horrible in there. A combination of wet dog from the carpet, mold, and dead spiders, I assume. Makes for some unhappy sewing, but I have too much to do to stop now!

Edit:

Forgot to include this silly picture of me in a tulle wig!

Also in the series:

April: The Wedding Dress, pt. 1: The Design, the Muslin, the Fabric, and the Outfit

May: The Wedding Dress, pt. 2: Construction and Details

Stay tuned for:

June: The Wedding Lingerie

July: Wedding!

The Wedding Dress, pt. 3: The Reveal and the Day.

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