Wedding Dress Bodice

Ok, it’s been a long day, but the bodice is constructed!  (Hooray!)

The bodice has a gathered sheer overlay, and I absolutely hated gathering anything until I learned the cord trick!

For the easiest gathering you’ve ever done in your life, zig-zag stitch over a thin cord; then zip!  pull the cord and evenly distribute the gathers.  Easy-peasy!  I don’t mind gathering as much now, it’s so easy.  Just be sure not to catch the cord!  (Even if you do snag the cord, you can unpick the stitch and is usually OK)

Here’s the chiffon overlay pinned at the seams and center to the lining, before the gathers…..

Not very sexy, right?  Oh but wait!  here’s the gathers pinned in place….looking better, no?  (alas, Bertha is about 3 sizes to big for this teeny dress, so her bewbies don’t match up to the bust curve, and makes it look kinda funny……also, my panniers are still on there…..I need to show them to you guys eventually!)

After all that, I zig-zagged the edge, being careful not to catch the cord.  I set the pleats with basting stitches about an inch away from the edge. 

This is super importante – if you don’t don’t this step, gathers can be pulled out of place when sewing seams.  This is another “a-ha” trick that I finally learned after years of hating pleats!

After that, I pulled the cord out.  (I caught it a couple of times and had to snip a thread or two – no biggie!)  Then, I constructed the lining and sewed the top edge (inserting the straps first).  I pressed up the seam allowance and stitched to the lining side, clipping the seam allowances close.

And here is the fruits of my sporadic labor – a nearly completed bodice!  Ugh, I should re-take the picture instead of constantly apologizing for them, but yeah, the straps aren’t tensioned evenly….the bodice isn’t actually baggy on one side!  (If I remember, tomorrow I’ll re-take the pic……)

Here’s a view of the side…..My favorite pic thus far!  Mmm….makes me want a chemise dress with all sheer gathers!  (Oddly enough, the original inspiration for this design has a distinctly chemise gown flair with ruffles around the neckline!  Huh, I had never thought of that until now!)

And only for posterities sake, here’s the back.  Poor Bertha needs to go on a diet!  (Actually, the gal this is for is positively tiny!)

Oh, also of note, because I will only have ONE fitting with her, I’m leaving the shoulder straps unconnected to the back, so I can adjust as needed and hand-sew them in place after a fitting.

I think I can get this finished (other than hem and final fitting) in 1-2 more sessions of hardcore sewing. 

That is if I can keep of the computer long enough………