Ball Gown Part 2

Just a report on the Civil War Ball Gown progress. We stopped in for some fittings and R11 did some work at home. Here are the results.

As you can see the length was cut off of the original skirt and Mrs. R decided to add another button for the bustle. We decided the length could stand to come up some more after R11 tried it on.

So, where do you think the second tier of the skirt came from? It’s made from the length of the gown that we agreed to cut off after the first fitting! It has a velcro elastic waist band and comes off separately from the first tier. Simply beautiful!

The pinned on ruffle was made with a ruffle attachment and serged edges made with black thread. Exquisite!

R11 attached the ribbon to the waistline as a way to tie it on and off under the gown. It also provides the lift under the skirts to give a hoop effect. It’s really quite something when you see the final phase.

R11 used her serger to secure the edge of the underskirt and she put some pleats in it to reduce the waist size- then added the ribbon for a tie. After she tried it on, we determined it could use more pleats and she added them.

The crinoline was taken from an adult sized Laura Ashley gown. Remember Laura Ashley? Oh man…I had a closet full at one time.

The ball is Saturday evening and I’m excited to share the rest of the progress on the bodice as well as the final design. Stay tuned!