dharmajane: Here Comes the Bride!

This past weekend, there was a weddin'....a wonderful and magical evening to celebrate the union of my friends Liz and Seth.

They are a lovely couple, just lovely:

I had the special honor of creating a flowery belt/sash to adorn Lizzie's dress...when she asked me, I was both nervous and quite excited to attempt to recreate the vision she had in her mind.

She had seen one that she liked at the Bridal Shop where she purchased her dress, but it was the last one in stock. And it was dirty. And it was expensive. She took a pic and texted me to see if I could make something similar for less:

Seemed simple enough. Ribbon, flowers, jewels. Some possible challenges: How do I keep the ribbon flat against the dress and not let it get bunchy when it's tied in the back? How many flowers? What kind of flowers? Will she like what I make...no one wants to disappoint a beautiful bride:)

I tackled the first challenge by heading to Joanne Fabrics and sought out a few employees who looked wise in the ways of sewing. I was thinking some kind of interfacing could work, but I wasn't sure which one. An experienced, crafty worker confirmed my hunch and lead me to a thicker, iron-on option that would do just fine.

Lizzie had already purchased ribbon, fabric for flowers and some jewels so we started the bridal belt adventure with a 'ribbon fitting'. After small group, I took some measurements around her waist and cut the ribbon to the length she wanted.

I had also asked Liz to map out where she wanted flowers to be placed so I had a reference point for construction. Ready to roll!

I ended up cutting the interfacing the same thickness as the ribbon (2 layers actually), ironed it on just in the middle section where it would lay on her waist, and tapered the ends towards where the ribbon would tie in the back. Then sewed the tapered ends with a matching thread for good measure to make sure the interfacing wouldn't peel away from the ribbon while she was bustin' a move out on the dance floor (better safe than sorry).

I was happy with the result and felt confident to move on to phase 2! I planned to make a few different styles of flowers to add texture and interest and Liz really liked the frayed look of the belt at the shop. So I started there.

I cut a long rectangle out of the organza fabric:

Pulled a few strands of thread from each side of the fabric to give it the frayed look that she desired:

Then wove a thread all the way up the middle of the rectangle so I could pull it tight at the end and form a circle:

Then I fanned it out and sewed the middle to secure into a 'flower':

According to the 'map' she provided, I needed a big one (just completed), a medium one and 3 small ones. I decided to make 2 more smallies in the same style:

And then the medium and one more smallie in a different style...petals rather than the fraying to add some dimension:

Once they were all constructed, I sewed the pretty jewels in the center of each and arranged onto the ribbon belt in their designated spots:

Satisfied with their placement, I sewed them in. And what's better than sparkly jewels? More sparkly jewels...I sewed an abundance of them in between the flowers directly on the belt in random spots. Sparkles, Oh yeah! And some white feathers on the end to bring it all together. I did my best to capture her vision, and I think it turned out pretty nice: