Getting To The Preacher

Still MORE Sewing Clothes!

Dear Readers, I can't believe how Patient you all are with me while I try to outfit Almost EVERY doll I have for this Wedding! It is (obviously) taking me MUCH more time than I really ever imagined it would! But really, once all the Wedding Party are in Fancy clothes... it is too shabby to make all the guests come in their everyday outfits! And you really CAN'T have a Wedding without any guests! So I have continued to sew more outfits for all the little people! As you can see, Harold's suit coat is now finished. I think it makes him look rather Distinguished!

(I wonder WHAT Celeste will think when she sees him after so many years...?)

Now that he is ready he has gone off to The Folly to wait with the rest of the Gentlemen of the Wedding Party.....

Don't they all look Dashing in their Tuxedos?

(Do you think Arthur is getting a bit Nervous with all this Waiting?)

I am sorry it is taking SO LONG to get everybody ready....

but I realized that I didn't want all the Children to be left out....

and they Couldn't come in their grubby clothes!

So I started with the youngest ... this is Jasper...

The Aileens' youngest child. He got a new shirt.

And a vest... but I decided not to try a jacket for one his size!

He looks dressed enough without a whole suit....

After all.... his Daddy is sort of casual in just a blazer......

(Not Everybody has a tuxedo!)

Here is their whole family... already heading to the Castle!

And the daughter, Amber, is dressed in a green velveteen dress with gold tulle overdress.....

She feels like a Princess!

And here we have Fleur's family...

her husband Daniel and their daughter Juliet.....

I had to make Daniel some dressier pants to go with his jacket....

but he is also on the Casual side....

(Because I couldn't stand to make any more dress shirts and jackets!)

But Fleur is looking Gorgeous in a long patterned chiffon Wrap ensemble....

The pattern is large and vaguely Oriental, with gold and black figures........

And Juliet has the beginnings of her Princess Gown....
in a figured Gold Tissue.....

Paired with a Pink velveteen bodice and Pink satin sash....

(She is a Pink Girl!)

Here you can see her sash...

it is very long and wide in the back.......

And with better lighting......

She DOES feel like a Princess!

And then we must NOT Forget Cousin Kitty!

SHE is Not a Princess at all!!!

But she needed a fancy gown...
that might or might not conceal one or two of her cats.....
because she cannot leave them behind!

She got a rather Medieval style gown in a cut blue velvet....

that could be mistaken for a ratty old Bathrobe on a good day......
(that makes her look a little more like a Witch than a Princess.....!)

And WHO is that hiding in her collar?

Are we going to allow cats at the Wedding...?

But before we get TOO carried away in the Family Drama.....

we have to line up a Preacher for the Wedding Ceremony!
After a great deal of Searching to No Avail for a Ready Made Man of the cloth...
we had to settle on the Old Reverend Dr. Goodenough......

Who was willing to don the vestments of the Church .....

And even let me add the decoration to the Stola

using ready-made ribbon rather than hand embroidery......

I think he is looking rather pleased with the transformation.....

And he is More than Happy to conduct the Marriage Ceremony.......

As soon as he finds his Book of Sermons.......
Are we Almost Ready....?

Getting to the Preacher!

Makeovers!

Over Dressed... Or Dressed Over....

It Must be Fashion Week at my house, Dear Readers, because I was home on Vacation and I spent the ENTIRE Week with a Parade of Little People crossing my worktable in search of new Fancy Clothes! Now, I know some of you might be wishing to see the Bride's Gown or even the Bridesmaid's Gowns.... but I am not going to spoil the surprise and show them now! You will have to wait! But I feel it is acceptable to show you the Other Doll's gowns... and we will start with Helen, Pollyanna's Grandmother. The top picture shows her with her regular dress on... and me testing the fabric for her skirt by wrapping it around over the dress. This is just to spare her modesty.... she is one of the Vinyl dolls whose clothes are removable.... so I was able to start from scratch with her! But I did not take photos of all the steps.... so you will have to be content with one before photo (above) and half a dozen after photos! Below you can see the completed gown! It is made from antique purple silk with a purple (also antique) silk chiffon capelette with pleated ruffled sleeves.....

The gown itself is a sleeveless floor length sheath with wide shoulder straps....

Here you can see the profile of the pleated capelette......

And from behind........

And even closer...
to see the details of the antique pleated chiffon...

I think she looks quite Elegant!

But before I could move on to making the gowns for the other dolls, I had to make a decision. Most of the other dolls had clothes which were FIRMLY attached! Should I Sacrifice their regular clothing in the name of Party Fashion.... or should I Overcome the problem by dressing them OVER their clothes? It wasn't really a Hard decision..... I Certainly didn't want to have to make Completely new Wardrobes for ALL the dolls... so I decided to Make their Gowns Over their clothes! So If some of the gowns are a little bulky... or Not in the Highest Fashion.... you will understand!

Pollyanna's Friend Cherie is a good example......

Here you can see her with her regular casual clothes.....

And I have started to stitch her sleeves Over the shirt she is wearing.......

And here I am fitting the Dress over her clothes......

It is a Beautiful iridescent silk in turquoise and Apricot...

Perfect for her coloring!

Here you can see it completed...

I added a gold neckband and waistband to the Empire Style gown...

And just a Glimpse of her in the Castle Great Hall.......
Doesn't she look beautiful?

Next on the Parade is Joanna... Mother of the Bride!

She is one of the Caco dolls.... clothes firmly attached!

At SOME point I might explore the re-fashioning of her costumes..... but not now!

I started by adding a floor length gown in purple....faux suede this time......
Her skirt is cut on the bias with an overlapped petal hemline....

And a simple jacket over the top...

with sleeves tapered at the wrists.....

And two tiny buttons to close at the neckline......
This cloth was wonderful to work with and needed no hemming!

And here you can see her in the Castle Great Hall.....

waiting with Celeste.... Mother of the Groom...

who has also had her Gown Made OVER......

I failed to take pictures of the progress.... but you get the idea......

I simply covered the glittery Silver gown with a satiny velvet-figured organza......

in Purple, of course!

And as if THAT weren't enough SEWING for one week.....

I had to make a start on the Groom's Suit!

And this is where I really started to Question my Sanity!
Arthur is normally a Casual guy.....
He needed a Tuxedo!
I had to start from Scratch!

Here you can see the start of fitting his new trousers......

And starting on his shirt.....

I found a figured cotton I have had for AGES....

the only white cloth I had! But it is also part polyester...

so it is not easy to press seams and hems.....

and the weave is actually a bit loose..... but I managed!

Fitting the body of the shirt.....

Sleeves attached and shoulders sewn.....

And now came the tricky part... the collar!

I cut corners and didn't hem all the seams normally...

it would have been way too bulky.....

but I managed to make it look like I hemmed everything!

And he has to have a bow tie...... I KNOW....

they are not currently very Fashionable......

but they are more Formal.....

And I know it is a tiny bit too big.....

but it is as small as I could manage with the ribbon I had...

So it will have to do...!

And then I had to find the buttons...

and the cummerbund.......

I think he is looking VERY Handsome!
But I don't care What you say.... none of the Others are getting a Real Shirt!

And I haven't even STARTED on his Jacket!
This is going to take a While!

Makeovers!