I'm sincerely interested in your answers to that question. You see I'm getting married in August and I assumed I'd be making my own gown. I've made them for others, so why not for myself?
I want to do it for economic reasons, for environmental reasons, for romantic reasons, and for sentimental reasons. DIY certainly seems to be the choice of most brides today when it comes to the favors, decor, flowers, etc. At least it seems that way when you look at Pinterest pinboards, or the myriad of wedding sites in the blogosphere.
Then I started reading some other sewing blogs on the subject. In her recent post, What I Learned While Sewing My Wedding Dress, Kim from Cotton Creek Sewing has some really great advice, including buying extra fabric and being willing to start over. I plan on using satin from my mother's wedding gown, so extra fabric may not be an option, though I am looking for some look-alike satin just in case.
I already incorporated my Mother's wedding gown in my daughter's Odette tutu. To make the basque, I separated the bodice from the skirts, removed the sleeves, and replaced the zipper with a grommeted lace-up closure. The tutu was made from scratch, but the top layers were netting and re-embroidered lace from the skirt of my Mother's gown.
I saved all the other bits and pieces, but not with the idea of ever using them for a dress for myself. I never thought I'd get married the first time, let alone remarry! I like the idea of wearing at least parts of my mother's gown, I like the ecology of refashioning, I like that most of the fabric will be free, and I like that the result will be uniquely me. I have some vague visions of what the completed dress will look like.
Meg, from A Practical Wedding, started out with a family (group effort) sewn wedding gown, only to find that the dress, despite a muslin and multiple mailed back and forth fittings, did not fit properly. The hand sewn gown was jettisoned in favor of a vintage find. Though I plan to do all the sewing myself, could I end up needing a "Plan B gown"?
Many sewists do their own gowns. Examples includes Melissa of FehrTrade, The Curious Kiwi, and the totally impressive Iowahoodlum of FeatherPetalSilk, who learned to sew by doing her wedding gown!
Well, would you do it? Let me know!
