Wedding Dress: Final Draft

Jesse and I got engaged in June 2014. It came as a total surprise to me, so I was NOT prepared! Our engagement was three short months, so I got to work immediately on my dress.
I used my dress form throughout the whole process. It doesn't have my exact measurements, but it is pretty close. Even still, it made the whole process easier. I matched it to the height I would be with my wedding shoes on - a whopping 6'3" - so I could make the skirt the perfect length. 

The raw silk in ivory and the lace in white turned out beautiful. The slight color difference adds detail to the lace and makes it pop much more than if they were the same exact color.

I spent so many hours on this dress! I tried it on every day as I worked on it to make sure it fit me perfectly. 

The darts on the bodice were fitted to me perfectly. I was unhappy with how the first dress fit, so I made sure this one was just right. 

I hand stitched extra lace flowers onto the bodice. I wanted the whole thing covered.

One of my favorite details: the belt!

The perfect belt!! From BHLDN

I love looking back at our wedding pictures! 

From our pre wedding shoot a few days before the wedding. I was still doing some finishing touches on the dress on the drive to the beach for pictures! So stressful.. 

My biggest mistake was wearing brand new shoes. My feet were toast after two hours!

Wedding Pictures by Nickell Blair Photography

Whenever I visit my parents' house, I end up going to my old closet and looking at my wedding dress for a few seconds.
I'm so glad I didn't pass up the opportunity to make my wedding dress. I probably could have saved myself the trouble and bought a better-made, better-looking dress elsewhere, but I'm so glad I didn't. I've got this new sense of pride in what I did. I learned so much and I am a better seamstress now than I was before.
Plus, it's one more thing I have in common with my wonderful mother-in-law, Jennifer, who also made her own wedding dress!