Drawstring dress- complete!

Finally, a mere 2+ months from beginning this thing, it is FINISHED.

The bodice pattern was draped by the amazing and talented Maggie Waterman. 

Posing for this shot involved my boyfriend saying the phrase 'yeah, I can back up and take it'......so yeah, that happened......

I made the bottom ruffle as a separate piece. It is attached it at the top of the ruffle, with the bottom roughly even with the hem of the dress, hanging over about 1/4". It was easier to leave the bottom unattached rather than try to get it all to lay down smooth, and it doesn't seem to be flopping or rising up about as I wear it (knock on wood). If it becomes an issue I'll just tack it down in a few places. 

Dorset buttons from http://www.wmboothdraper.com/. Waiting for these to come in the mail was the final thing holding this up, even after I had worn the damn thing. Cannot tell you how good it felt to sew them on there and label this dress as DONE.

In action as Lizzy Bennet in Vevay, Indiana 

Photo by Andrea Kappes

There was a fair amount of obsessing to get the right about of poof in the sleeves- from how long to make them, to how much I wanted the sleeves to come onto my hand, to how long the trim should be for that to happen, to moving the wristbands around once they were in and I had worn it once. I  must say, I am pretty damned please with myself on the results. 

'Cause that's how we roll...........