Second Annual Prom Season

Prom season just came and went!

Lately I have been so busy with taking care of my almost three month old that it is hard for me to find time for my projects. Its been really stressful because I've had some MAJOR projects: altering two prom dresses and building sleeves onto a strapless wedding dress. 

During our busy season for our business (April through August), my husband doesn't get home until 8 or 9 at night. Most nights he comes straight home and is on "Peter Duty" for the rest of the night. If Peter needs something, he happily takes care of it so I can sew.  

A few weeks ago I finished my work on the prom dresses and it turned out great. 

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The beautiful result!

The first dress was a beautiful blue floral dress.
I hemmed the dress about three and a half inches and added blue satin underneath the sheer part of the bodice. It matched the lining fabric so perfectly!

The second dress I altered was a champagne lace off-the-shoulder dress with a train.

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I raised the lace off-the-shoulder detail to cap sleeves. Along with that, I removed some of the lace from the neckline to expose the sweetheart detail.
The hem had a beautiful train, but it may have been a bit over the top for a high school prom. I evened the hem to be straight across.

The lined cap sleeves and even hem

First Annual Prom Season: Success!

Prom just passed! I did a few alterations for some of the girls from church. I know how hard it is to find a modest, beautiful prom dress and it felt so good to be able to transform these dresses. 

Becky's dress:

Before

After!

Becky's dress was a beautiful bright coral color. I raised the hem 4 inches and built up the shoulders and sleeves. I was really nervous to do such a major alteration, but after searching for some pictures of added sleeves and seeing this post, I knew it would look great.
I'd never done anything quite like this before, so it was definitely a learning experience. I am so pleased with how it turned out, though! The fabric had a lot of stretch, so I had a lot of piecing to do. The seams throughout the shoulders, however, make it look uniform with the criss-cross detail on the bodice.
When I was all finished, I had a piece of fabric smaller than my hand left over. It was a close call!



Kimmy's dress:

Before...

I forgot to get an after picture of Kimmy's dress... But I raised the hem 6 inches and added 1 1/2 inches to the neckline. I ruffled the added piece so it would look uniform with the rest of the bodice.

The Sunday after Prom, all the young women wore their gorgeous dresses to church! It was so fun to see everyone all dressed up.

Since then, I've gotten a few inquiries each week about alterations or projects from people at church. I've learned over the years that sewing skills don't need to be advertised. Once people learn that I sew, they never forget! 

In college, I lived in a house with eleven roommates (yes, ELEVEN!), and I kept busy with all of their projects each semester. Regularly, I would come home from classes and find a skirt and two pairs of jeans at the foot of my bed in need of some repair. The word is slowly spreading and I have a feeling I will be very busy with projects from now on.