A Not-So-Little "Underthing"

Hello People,

So today I spent quite a bit of time working on the wedding gown...rather a petticoat to be worn underneath to give it structure and shape.

I spent some time doing some research on a suitable shape for the dress style and fabric weight and after about an hour of research, I settled on a two hoop petticoat with a crinoline (or net) overlay.

A couple of weeks ago I finally located a reasonably priced stiff net in Ivory and purchased about 5yards (I also bought some in white which I plan to dye and use for some bird nest veils for the BM's and MOH...but the dyeing process hasn't been as successful as I anticipated, but that's gist for another day).

I started off by cutting 10" wide strips of net for the gathers...four steps in all, and then cut a quarter  flare skirt out of a matching fabric to line the petticoat.

I attached two rows of polyester boning to the flared skirt. I like this particular boning because I can sew on it and eliminate the extra stress time I would have used to create casings. It is not as stiff as the plastic? type though.

Next was the net. I started with gathers on the first step, but it was so time consuming I had to resort to doing pleats at intervals. The net is stiff enough to hold its own even without the extra "puff" from gathers...plus, the boning gives the petticoat some added structure.

I attached the net to the lining at the waist, matched up the boning ends and sewed the center back with about 10" left on top...which I bound with a matching bias tape.

I finished (well, technically its not finished as I may add one more ring of boning to the bottom and then attach some gathered fabric, but this is dependent on the bride's preference) it off by cutting a long strip of fabric on the bias and binding the waist with about 12 inches extra on each end. This will be tied and tucked in to secure the waist.

I don't have a dress form (yet), so these are the best pictures I could get. They don't really show the shape given by the boning but they at least give a general idea.

Here the hoops are visible :)

I am so excited and eager to see how it would look under the dress...and of course that's some motivation to speed up the process...I just might finish the wedding dress in one week :D. I have measured and cut out the pieces and even positioned/pinned the pleats, so hopefully I'll have some progress pictures within the week.

Until Later, Much Love and God Bless you


Preye