Wedding Legacy — Naptime Inspirations

Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.

This large motif I lifted off of the dress and then hand-stitched to the front of the pouch.

Recently I had the privilege to make several zippered pouches (make up bag/clutch) for my friend Joy to give to her daughter and future daughters in law on the occasions of their future nuptials. Joy sacrificed her own wedding dress to make these pouches a reality. Most married women will recognize the generous nature of this gift. The wedding dress is perhaps the most iconic image from a wedding. Much time, dreaming, and planning go in to choosing the perfect gown for that momentous day. But let’s face it—even if your dress was the epitome of fashion in the year in which you were married, the chances that someone from a future generation will wear your dress is very slim. Joy accepted this fact and boldly decided to share her dress with the next generation in a creative way.

This pouch featured the scalloped beaded lace from the train of the gown. I laid it over another piece of satin.

The process began with Joy bringing her dress to me and we discussed what she wanted made out of it. She had already consulted with her future DIL about some of the features that appealed the most to her. Typically I make the body of the pouch out of linen and embellish it with the heirloom textile. But in this case Joy asked for the pouches to be made from the satin of the dress. This really was the best look since it maintained the consistent style of the dress. Much of the beaded lace on the gown had discolored over time, but there were sections that had not and I was able to use those. The long train had a scalloped edge of beaded lace and Joy hoped that I could use that in some way.

Making the first cut felt sacrilegious! The back of the dress provided the largest sections of plain satin so that is where I began. I also used the seam ripper to remove the smaller motifs that she wanted to incorporate. I quickly realized that the beads were basically all strung together. When one thread was snipped they all began to scatter onto the floor. That meant that I needed to secure the beads on the pouch sections that I was using. It wouldn’t be ok for the pouches to lose their beads! A little hand-stitching solved that.

This is the back where I incorporated the smaller motifs that Joy desired.

The front of the pouches featured the largest sections of beaded lace. I embellished the back of the pouch with the smaller lace that Joy wanted to incorporate. I lined the pouches and made a wrist strap with white linen. These are the perfect size to either be a make up bag for the wedding day or to carry essentials like phone, lipstick, and tissues.

These smaller elements were hand-stitched to secure the edges.

I enjoyed this project so much! I absolutely love to take heirloom or sentimental textiles and give new life to them. Some of my customers keep these items for themselves to enjoy, but many customers have me make multiple items that they then gift to family members. Zipper pouches are a very useful gift. Pillows are also a great way to display and enjoy those special textiles. If the cogs are turning in your mind, drop me a line! Here’s how it works: There is a $35 consultation fee which includes meeting with me to look over your textiles and discuss what you want. If any cleaning is required I’ll explain how I’ll do that. The consultation fee applies for up to 5 items. And then there is a cost per item which varies depending on the item. There’s never a bad time for a project like this. But if you’re thinking of having Christmas gifts made, getting your order in by October would be awesome! A wedding order needs to be in at least 2 weeks ahead of the deadline, perhaps more depending on what you want.

Enjoy the pictures of Joy’s pouches!

The collection! On the lower left pouch you can see how the sequins discolored over time. But it’s still a beautiful element. Joy ordered 3 pouches but I thought she needed one for herself too! After all, it was her wedding gown that she sacrificed. So because she’s my friend, I made an extra one for her. She can use it at all 3 of her children’s weddings!

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Naptime Inspirations