Hi everyone! As you may know, I recently got engaged. In case you’re curious (as it seems all of our friends and relatives are), at this point we still have no idea as to when we’ll be actually having our wedding, and I have to say I’m content to put all of that heavy-duty planning off for another day. What I have been happy to ponder is what kind of vintage-style (as if I would have anything else!) bridal dress I would like to make!

Though I’m not really the type of girl who has all the details of her wedding planned out long before even getting engaged, (though I did just start some Pinterest boards, here, here, and here if you’d like to check them out) but I will admit to saving pictures of beautiful wedding dresses I’ve come across, all of which are from the incomparable Dear Golden Vintage.  Here are some of my favorites, spanning the decades from the 1920s to the 1960s:

Now that you’ve seen all of those, I have to admit I have a couple of dresses that I’ve been crushing on since I saw them, and which instantly pop up in my head of when I think about wedding gown styles. Behold my two favorites:

I love the ivory color, and the beading on this one! I think it would be pretty to change it just a bit and make the flowers into little starbursts. And then there’s this beauty:

I can’t see anything I don’t like about this dress! The shape is lovely and the bodice is simple, yet just enough detail to make it it a little more interesting. I like the rosette, but something tells me a bow would be adorable there too. What’s even better is seeing it with what were most likely the bridesmaid dresses:

I have to admit I’m just a teensy bit partial to the second dress, especially when you see it paired with the bridesmaid’s dresses, and I think the shape might be a bit more flattering for me. I also think that those wiser than me would probably warn me away from taking on elaborate hand-beading when I’ve never so much as tried it. I’m still thinking it over though, and might even combine features from both.

Even though I’ll be making my dress, I may still pop into a bridal shop and try on some different styles, just to find out what looks good on me. This was advised by several blog posts and articles I read on the subject.

Now, I have a big favor to ask of my fellow sewists: does anyone know of a pattern (vintage or modern) that resembles the second dress (or at least just the bodice part)? It doesn’t look terribly complex, but I’ve looked a bit online and haven’t found anything quite like it. Any leads would be highly appreciated!