Connie's Dress

Connie gave me her first wedding dress, a simple, elegant, cotton sheer gown. Fabric covered buttons adorned the neck and center front surrounded by an eyelet lace inset. Matching lace and covered button also completed long cuffs at the wrist.

Connie was married in the 1970s and the dress represents well flower child innocence. When she came to me, she had just lost her second husband to unexpected death. Her eyes brim with tears as she hands the dress over to me. She tells me as soon as she cleans out her bedroom closet, she’ll have another one because she has no need of it anymore. Grief leaks from her eyes as she says these words. She is utterly lost and doesn’t know what to do.

A wedding dress is always a beginning point. The bride is like the tarot’s fool who sets out on an unknown journey, not really knowing what she is getting herself into. One never knows what will come of a marriage or a life. There is so much expectation, anticipation, hope, blissful ignorance, and dreams donned when one puts on a wedding dress. When Connie looks back over her life, since her weddings, she thinks, “I never knew…… my life would turn out this way”. Many of us can say the same. Connie will rebuild herself, women always do. She will put herself back together and maybe she will even have another beginning point, another dress to mark in time a new life, new opportunity, new hope.

From Connie’s wedding dress, I made a holiday stocking featuring the center front covered buttons and eyelet lace panel. The original neckline is maintained, buttoned and filled with fabric flowers. An origami flower fits into the neck and is studded with beads and surrounded with rolled greens. Crinoline softens the dark velvet green ribbon accenting the top of the stocking. Roses, once the dress ties, are wrapped tightly in flower form. Beading adorns the toe, arch, and heel. Surprisingly, cream or the candlelight color of the dress had trouble standing on its own. It really needed an additional color to give the stocking a slight lift, hence the green choice.

Salvaged Sweater Turned Christmas Stocking

A sweater who has seen its days as a garment can have a second chance at life when repurposed. Sweaters can be transformed into many things but they look particularly good as lined Christmas stockings. Consider a bulky oversized wool sweater, it is perfect fonder for this craft. An easy washing machine, felting technique creates further texture. A walking foot sewing machine attachment makes all the difference in the final product, by better navigating a bumpy knit surface. Silly, brightly colored sweaters are especially festive as stockings. The possibilities are endless and fun.

Repurposed.... Angel # 2

Angel #2
The tree topper idea continues with a second angel. It also begins as a flat half circle. There are 4 layers stacked: crepe, 2 layers of batting, and muslin. It is quilted and shaped into a cone base to form the angel. This tree topper features asymmetrical designs both front and back. The seam of the cone is hidden first with a 3-demensional rose ribbon trim that follows the seam diagonally from the front to the back. On the lower cone front a fabric folded origami flower, studded centrally with beads is placed slightly off center and balanced with two rose ribbon flowers on its lower left side. A silver leaf trim also runs at a slight angle off to the right side of the cone front. On the back of the angel, beaded bridal lace salvaged from sleeves of a wedding dress is placed in pieces starting at the lower left side and wrapped around to just beyond the cone’s center back meeting the rose ribbon flower trim. The wings are constructed in one piece, quilted in free motion style and edged with fur. The wing attaches to the upper cone back and is blended with a small piece of beaded bridal lace. Wings are secured to each side of the angel. A 3 dimension curve in the wings is attained by a subtle gathering stitch along the side edge, hidden by the fur trim and basted in place. Fur trim also edges the bottom of the cone and an heirloom spoon represents the angel’s material form.

Repurposed.... Angel # 1

Angel #1
Forging ahead with the repurposed wedding dress idea, I currently am tinkering with a tree topper. This tree topper is in the form of an angel and started as a flat half circle, 4 layers stacked: crepe, 2 layers of batting, and muslin. I chose the extra batting layer to add stability, as it eventually will bear its own weight in the shape of a cone. The layers are quilted together with a free motion stippling pattern and the raw edges serged. The beaded lace embellishment is a single piece and comes from a wedding dress’ center front, shoulders and closure of the neck back. The center front of the bodice was placed on the upper center front of the quilted cone. Beading and lace cascades diagonally on each side of the cone's center front, exposing the meandering quilt design. The lace and beaded bodice piece wraps around the cone and doubles back upon itself to form wings. The piece then meets itself again at the center back of the cone where the original fabric covered buttons and loops of the dress’ back neck line connect. Crinoline from a nuptial underskirt was used vertically to fill out the wing pockets. Fur edges the lace diagonally and at the lowest cone edge. An unpolished heirloom spoon acts as the angel’s likeness.

A Few More Ornaments

Holiday Ornaments, Keepsakes from a Wedding Dress

My most recent wedding dress experiments are holiday ornaments, continuing in the same theme as the tree skirt and stocking. All but one resembles a lantern. The lanterns start off as a quilted rectangle of the dress fabric, batting, and cotton backing. I use free motion quilting to secure all the layers and add depth to the lantern’s surface. For further embellishment, I add bridal laces salvaged from collected nuptial gowns. I also include additional purchased trim like cording, fur, rickrack, fringe, and pompoms to widen the variety of texture. After all the embellishment is complete, the rectangle is stitched into a cylinder form and hanging loops are attached. The medallion ornament is a quilted circle draw up into a yoyo. Lace is placed at the center of each side and fur stitched to the circumference. The medallion is a striking tree decoration and was the simplest to make. What surprised me the most was the amount of hand sewing I incorporated into the project. The lantern facing, hanging straps, lace, beading, and some trim required hand work.

I like the idea of a lantern for a repurposed wedding dress because it reminds me of the biblical parable of virgins lighting lamps. A wedding dress is a symbol, ritual, and a turning point in a woman’s life. The cultural image symbolizes she is on the cusp of a new identity. A lantern is a useful tool to help one find their way in the dark. Connecting the wedding dress and a lantern symbol could be a meaningful image or memory of a life changing event. The image of light in the darkest time of the year is also significant and could be expanded upon.

I continue to get more ideas for what wedding dresses could be. At present I'm following my holiday theme. Soon to come, my next wedding dress project is a tree topper.

Wedding Dress Turned Holiday Stocking

Have you ever considered another purpose for your wedding dress? Wait, do you remember where you put your wedding dress? It’s probably in storage, in a box, in the attic or hanging in some forgotten closet. A wedding dress after the ceremony doesn’t have to be forgotten, it can be a remade memory. Consider this example; transform the dress into keepsake holiday or Christmas stockings. Stockings, hung by the chimney with care, made from your nuptial gown could connect the family with what was once anticipated in a wedding, to what, in the present, is celebrated at each year’s end: hope, joy, and love.

This stocking was made from a white, crepe, gown with a narrow, straight skirt. The bodice and sleeves were heavily adorned with lace and beading mounted on netting. A light weight batting was used between the crepe and the lining to draw more contrast from the free motion quilting. The lace was cut away from the net sleeves and re-appliquéd to the stocking front. Sculpted lace from another dress was used to accent the heel and toe of the stocking. Ribbon and straight lace trim were used to vary the adornment of the stocking middle and add contrast and direction to the design. For further texture, the top of the stocking is trimmed in fur. The stocking measures 20 inches long and the foot, 13 inches wide. An elegant dress turned into an elegant stocking. The wedding dress finds new life in a yearly ritual of fun, much better than being stuck in a box.