Sunday 7 August 2011

Storytelling Sunday: The Mother's dress..........................

Welcome to another exciting (I hope ) edition of Story telling Sunday. If you have never seen an edition then hop over here to Sian's blog to read more. I you are here cos you have then welcome back and I will let my tale unfold.


Once upon a time there was a beautiful young maiden who was in love with a handsome young Merchant seaman. He had been away travelling but on his return he had popped the question and she had said ''Yes of course''.
She had been preparing herself for the big day and as she was a trained seamstress, she decided to make her own dress.

Conversation 47 years later between the mother and myself:

Me: Please can I get it out?
The Mother: No!
Me: Please Mum I really love to look at it (using extremely whining voice of young child).
The Mother: Well you can get it out if you put it back again.
Me: Of course. But why don't you want to see it?
The Mother: I don't know. It was just such a long time ago.

So there I am reaching up into the cupboard at the top of the stairs for that box which contains one the most beautiful things ever...........................my mum's wedding dress.

 My mum said the box was nothing special, just big enough to hold the dress after the big day.


The veil is just below shoulder length and was made up about 6 layers of material held together with a flower and pearl tiara which my mum said matched the pearl in the dress fabric and the buttons. This is a blurred in Picasa shot to take out the living room background.

 This is my arty shot of the veil.....................

 My mum says the buttons were handmade, she thought by someone else but she made all the little button loops you can see to the left of the picture.

 This is a closeup of the veil detailing which is spread out in small sprinkles across the veil

The mother was not keen to be photographed with the dress and she wishes it to be made very clear she wanted to iron the dress first but I said don't be daft. So yes it is a tad creased but beautiful non-the less for a 47 year old. She can't remember where the fabric or pattern came from but it is a lovely dress. The main thing she can remember is that she was cutting out the pattern pieces the night JFK was assassinated..............gruesome

Here are the mother and the father when they were courting. Aw bless they look sooooooooooo young.
I have hunted high and low for a picture of their wedding day but can't find one just now. When I do I will put it up show you how stunning she looked that day.


18 comments:

  1. I appreciate seeing The Mother's dress, she did a wonderful job and should be proud her daughter is so impressed with her handy needle work .. her daughter's friends are!

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  2. beautiful dress, it must have taken a lot of time and effort. the button loops are so perfect! I bet she looked stunning in it on the day. x

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  3. Jo, it's so beautiful! And your photos add to that special feeling with the way they show the lovely details. I can just imagine you wheedling to get it out of the box and the the way it would feel like such a treat.

    They make a very handsome couple, your parents and I hope you do find a picture of the day because I would love to see it.

    Thanks for the story Jo. And Jo's Mum!

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  4. I remember having to learn how to make those button loops in needlework lessons at school and they are VERY fiddly, she must have worked so hard at making such a beautiful dress. Please do try and find a photo, it would be lovely to see her wearing it on her special day.

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  5. As a seamstress I appreciate the work that went into the dress. Such fine work! will it come down to you many years from now? or is it destined elsewhere? There are museums that would bite your hand off for such a dress

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  6. She made a beautiful dress,Jo.

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  7. You can see the love that went into making that beautiful dress, what a lovely story. Oh and I do hope you come across their wedding photo

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  8. What a beautiful dress. I can only imagine how many hours your mother must have spent making the dress. Painstaking!

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  9. Beautiful dress (though I am not too keen on the JFK connection).

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  10. A lovely dress and I can't wait to see photos of your mum wearing it on her wedding day :)

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  11. there are loads of pics, next i go over i'll photograph a few. forgot to say my mum had a 22 inch waist and it would never fit me in a million years. i would love the veil though.
    jo xxx

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  12. Your mother has made that dress beautifully well done indeed.

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  13. What a fabulous few glimpses of a gorgeous dress. Clever clever lady!

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  14. Wow, beautiful Jo! I can see why you would want to share it here, so pretty!

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  15. What a beautiful dress Jo. She did a wonderful job on it. I hope you find a picture of her in it to share.

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  16. What a lovely dress & such detailing! So glad she let you get a look & a photo of the 47-year-old.

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  17. Beautiful story. My sister wore my mom's wedding dress when she married. I wore my mom's tiara. Thanks for the memory.
    Rinda

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  18. Lovely story, and such skill with the needle!

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Hello and thank you so much for stopping by. It is always a pleasure to read the comments I receive and to meet new friends. I try and reply to comments on friend's blogs as much as possible. I hope you have enjoyed reading my blog and look forward to seeing you here again soon. Love Jo xxx