Evelyn: More Sleeve Please!
August 31st, 2008 @ 4:41 pm by Mrs. Avocado
I arrived at my second fitting to find my beloved looking kind of scraggly. She was the right length now, but she had threads hanging out all over the place and was stripped of the majority of her beautiful buttons.
Unless a dress advertised to be temple ready is purchased, in most cases an LDS bride has to choose whether she wants to go with a bolero or pay to have sleeves custom built into her dress. There are specific parts of the body that must be covered, as I spoke about here, and 99% of mainstream dresses do not fit the bill.
3 years ago I would have told you I was going to buy a bolero (yes I have been planning this thing for like 10 years), but I decided it wasn’t for me. I think I also liked the challenge of finding a way to maintain the integrity of the dress while making it temple ready at the same time.To create sleeves, A Bride Beautiful simply ordered some extra fabric from Watters when they ordered my dress. At my first fitting the seamstress and I discussed the look I was going for, and she was able to whip something up in just 2 days for me. I asked her to make sure that the V was high enough that I didn’t have cleavage hanging out of my dress the entire day.
Here I am with my signature bun, modeling the mockup. Can you even tell what is new and what is old? This fitting had me so excited to see the final product.
We also agreed that little “modesty panels” as I like to call them, should be added around the armpit area and up near the bra line, so that I would be covered as I move around throughout the day. It was the only decision we made that took away from the asthetic of the dress a little bit, but I was willing to make the sacrifice.
I was instructed to come back the next day at closing time to pick up the finished product. Time couldn’t go by fast enough!
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13 Responses to “Evelyn: More Sleeve Please!”
Way to resist the t-shirt dress! The cap sleeves you’ve added look like they were meant to be part of the design - and it’s lovely 
Just a question though, aren’t LDS temple-dresses supposed to have long sleeves?
I think it looks gorgeous already- I love the cap sleeves! Can’t wait to see the final pics!
Love the neckline!
@jtg: No! They just have to have at least what would be considered a cap sleeve. In fact, the majority of girls choose dresses with short sleeves, but I think that is because that is what is commercially available. I would have loved to do a 3/4, but it just didn’t work with the style of the dress.
I love the way your dress is turning out!
jtg and Miss Avo… The dress worn in the temple for the temple ceremony does have to be long sleeved. But most brides elect to have cap sleeve dresses for the rest of the day’s events. You can wear a short sleeved dress in the temple if you also wear temporary sleeves… (which I have never seen so I’m not sure how they work but I’ve heard about them, I picture arm length fingerless gloves.)
@shaver2b: You are totally right I won’t be wearing the dress in the temple though, because it is ivory and not white (can you sense the foreshadowing for a future post?)
I figured you knew… but I think that’s what she was asking about. Yes I see the foreshadowing. Two dress brides rule!
Mrs. Avocado, Seattle
Age and Occupation: 23, Student
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 26, Consultant
Engagement Date: July 27, 2008
Wedding Date: October, 2008
Blogging Since: June 30, 2008
Venue: LDS Seattle Temple & Hotel 1000
About Me: Somehow this little farm girl found herself a genuine Pole to fall in love and eventually move away to Poland with. I am an LDS bride attempting to plan a private religious ceremony, ring ceremony, seated reception for 100, and an open house while coordinating for guests flying in from across the United States and as far away as Poland. I try to avoid fads, excess waste, and saturated fat. I strongly endorse photography, DDR, calorie counting, rss feeds, cooking, and utilizing your resources.
I’m sorry to hear about your dress, I’m sure it will be beautiful in the end.