Bridesmaid Dress

This past week, I had the opportunity to visit my family the same time my friend Mandy and co-author was visiting hers.  While we were shopping, Mandy ran into an old friend that was getting married in a few days and couldn't find bridesmaid outfits that matched her colors.  Mandy being the generous and giving person she is, volunteered our skills in sewing to solve the dilemma. 

We first found a cute and simple pattern from New Look 6975, then found fabric as close to the brides colors as possible (trust me these colors were tricky especially in a town with very limited fabric selection options!), and finally found some beads to draw the outfit together.   

We went with elastic for the waistband instead of a zipper because of our limited time and also we didn't have the exact measurements from the bridesmaids.  The pattern was simple and fairly easy to follow (are they every REALLY easy?)  We were also able to modify the pattern without problems for different sizes.

The necklaces were a headache at first.  We tried to do it several different ways until we settled on this style.  I love how they turned out and once we figured out what we were going to do, it only took a few minutes to make.  Just cut two pieces of ribbon the same length and tie a knot in the middle of each one.  Then, thread a needle and tie a knot on the end. Next, push the needle through one of the knots of ribbon and then through the string of beads and finally through the second knot of ribbon.  Tie another knot in the string to finish it off.  We left the ribbon long and untied at the ends so it could hang down the back of their necks.

To complete the outfit we picked up a very cute shirt at Maurices.   The entire outfit ended up being around $30 to complete. So, yet again, the skills of sewing have come to the rescue!