Baptism Dress and more...

I finished it... well almost. I still need to hem up the underneath layer and add the horse hair to the lining to make it a better finish, but I was too excited once I tried it on her that I yanked her into the bathroom, played with her hair and made her go outside so I could snap lots of pictures. (phew- what a run-on sentence!)

Here is the front and the back

And here are some pictures of detail on her dress. Embroidering all those little pearls and crystals on her sleeves to make little viney flowers took almost as long as sewing the rest of the dress, but it's one of my favorite parts- so I feel it was worth it. I actually really enjoy doing embroidery work though I understand it drives some people nuts and they think I'm nuts if I go to the work to do it. For me, it's fun. I added a tulle (tutu material) slip to push out her dress just a touch in between her lining slip and her silk underskirt (that is just below the organza black viney layer). The waist has a beautiful silver and black trim with embroidery through it of flowers and vines and we added the little pearl broach to the center.

I'm so happy with how it turned out and I'm happy for her that she has made this decision for her life. It has taken her a while to decide if she wanted to get baptized. She told us last spring that she wasn't going to get baptized if she wasn't sure that the church was true. We were proud of her for wanting to think for herself and we told her that it was her choice and we wouldn't pressure her one way or the other, but gave her advice for studying it out for herself to find her testimony. So since then she has been reading the Book of Mormon on her own every night and with us and she has been writing in her journal things she learns and praying to know if it is true. I'm happy to have a child so determined to find truth for herself. I told her I'd make her a pretty dress for her 8th birthday no matter what. :) I'm happy she has received her witness. That will be a strength to her all her life.

On a much lighter note... our littler one decided she needed a fancy dress. Would you believe the girls sewed this? I helped in places, but the two of them designed it with the scraps of other projects.

It was cute to see Makenzie cutting out the bodice in the shape of what you would draw on a stick figure for a shirt. She asked me to sew up the side and top of the arms. Then Kendyl picked out other fabric and said how she wanted it layered. She even designed a puffy silk part along the waist like a princess dress. She found some scraps from our vampire dresses and tried to sew an apron into it which is completely crooked and starts in the middle of the dress and ends near the back. One girl would push the peddle below and the other would guide the fabric and then they would switch places. I would help guide their hands and shout for the peddle pusher to start and stop. Kendyl also cut out an old bratz valentine and attached it to the front of her dress completing the disney store look. All she needed was a parasol and tiara and she was ready for a night on the town. :) Fancy!

This dress took about 20 minutes to make- which is a very nice alternative to how long Makenzie's took. :)