39 Days to Go: Karen's NDAD Creation

Today's final wedding remake comes from Karen!

It is my honor and privilege to be a part of your blog experience!  Isn't this dress so gorgeous?  This is my pal's wedding dress and she was ready to release it to me for a makeover.  There are so many directions I could take it - I could not resist all the lace and of course the pink!  I wanted to make the lace really pop out and be noticed!

Pink lace is right!

What will Karen do with her friend's dress?

I decided to cut all the top lace off except for a v-shaped area by the neckline. I had plans to make the lace pop out and be noticed.  Major surgery here as I cut the dress into a long top.

Off came the sheer over-skirt and then the under part of the dress was a goner as well!

I carefully removed the long sleeves...

With the sleeves gone, this is what was left - delicate and swanky all in one fell swoop!  Now we're talking!!  I pinned the underarm seams so they wouldn't fray and sewed them down nice and delicately.

I envisioned the lace neckline being the rock star, so I gently peeled back the pink under-blouse so just the lace would show through.

Big oops here - I tried to iron the back of the creation and melted a bit of the lace.  Luckily I had salvaged the sleeves so I trimmed a portion of the lace from them and carefully covered the damage done.

Now I was ready to try the finished product on!  Check out these peekaboo sleeves!

The neckline with the lace became the focal point and the belt was made from the sheer castoff (formerly the skirt portion of the dress).  Now this dress-turned-tunic ushers in New Years Eve, not a long ago wedding!

You have inspired me over and over and I always said, from the beginning that I would be first in line WHEN your book comes out, for a personal signed copy! 

Your dress-turned-long top turned out fantastic!!  I'm all about the peekaboo lace too!  Love how it really gives a dainty look at the sleeves as well as at the neck.  Such a gorgeous job Karen!  Thank you for sharing and thank you for your super kind words :)  I'm thrilled to have assisted in inspiration for upcycling other pieces!  See more from Karen here!

40 Days to Go: Lucia's Wedding Fascinators

Talk about a DIY wedding, I was so overjoyed when I heard of all the cool things Lucia B. was planning for her big day!

The whole wedding party is wearing great vintage stuff we found at local shops, but plus size vintage is impossible to find so I'm making my dress as well as a bouquet of vintage brooches.  I’m submitting photos of the fascinators I made for the wedding party to wear.

I'm obsessed with the "something blue" in this!!  So, so, so beautiful!!  (PS, Lucia – send pics of your dress!!)  Check out the other fascinators Lucia made.  It must have been just like the Royal Wedding at Lucia's big day!

My daughter Morgen was nice enough to model a couple of them for me. 

I am having so much fun, people keep telling me I need to turn this in to a business and I am sure it would be more fun than accounts receivable.

Also, I'm including a picture of one of my fave little projects – we made scratch off tickets for cards with the directions to our wedding site.  So much fun and they turned out great!! 

Getting those in the mail is always a hoot."

Lucia, I hope the wedding was just a smashing affair – can’t wait to see follow up photos of everything!  Morgen is gorgeous in those fascinators and next time you have a craft day, I want to come hang and make these with you!!

41 Days to Go: Vicki G's NDAD Creation

More wedding photos from you guys are coming all weekend long!!  Today's is from Vicki G. in Tigard, OR.

 Marisa - I love following your blog, and you have definitely inspired me to get my creative juices flowing again!  I learned how to sew when I was about 10, and made most of my clothes during high school and then majored in Theater in college, focusing on costumes.  I even designed and made my own wedding dress!  I would advise others NOT to do this, though...just a "little" stress!  However, during the past 20 years, my focus has been my kids, and my business, so to say that my "right brain" has atrophied would be an understatement!  I went looking through my closet when I was prepping to go to my niece's wedding.  I knew that I needed something new, however, my checkbook said otherwise!  I took my inspiration to Goodwill, where I found this…

How do you think Vicki is going to change this up??

With a little advice from a younger, more fashion-conscious friend, and pinning help from a seamstress friend, I ended up with the following (picture courtesy of another niece, who did the pictures at the wedding)

Thanks for your inspiration! 

You look stunning Vicki!  Lady in red, that's for sure!  I love how this turned out, starting off as a Goodwill find and then morphing into a lovely wedding ensemble.  Way to go!!