“Princess Diaries 2” Coronation gown, my wedding version

My brother and I were laughing our way down the aisle because…well, read the description!

This was my wedding gown.  10 yards of silk duchess satin, almost as many yards of pintucked silk dupioni, and 5,000 Swarovski crystals. Yes, 5,000.

As of two weeks before my wedding, the crystals hadn’t arrived.  Cue a frantic drive down to Los Angeles with my mother-in-law to track down as any as I needed, which I had to buy at retail (it’s more painful than it sounds).  Finally, with a mere thirteen nights left, I frantically started to make this gown.  No pressure!  Well, except that our caterer backed out for a more lucrative gig (and kept our deposit…), leaving us in a lurch and having to re-plan the entire reception, including location.  Oh, and I was also making the cake.  Thank goodness I don’t need sleep…. 

I made this gown in three pieces.  The first is the bodice, which is lightly boned and zips up the back.  There is more fabric over the shoulders than I’d otherwise have liked, but, since this fabric has no stretch, I needed that excess so I could nurse my baby as she needed.  That was my most important priority that day, no matter what anyone thought about it.

Under that is a longline corset.  The unadorned fabric visible in the neckline of these photos is the top of the corset.  The boning stops underbust to facilitate in nursing.

The last is, of course, the skirt.  This part obviously took the longest due to all that beading!  I made a French bustle to contain the length.  It was almost nine feet from my waist!

On the day of the wedding,  I was down a flight of stairs about 150 yards down a hall when the ceremony started.  No one at all thought to tell me that it was starting.  I’m so chronically on time for everything that it as just assumed that I’d be there.  Since I thought it was strange that no one called for me, my ladies and I snuck closer to find out what was going on, and heard the music.  We rushed up the stairs, I tore my skirt, and we got there literally at the moment my maid of honor was to start walking down the aisle.  We couldn’t have cut it closer.  What a tiring day!!

For credit where credit is due, the lovely Carmen, my “Don Juan”/”Think of Me” bride, was our makeup and hair artist that day!

See this Facebook album for more photos.