A Sneak Peak At Kathrine's Dress...

My friend's wedding (who I was making the wedding dress for in a previous post) is just around the corner, so I thought I would show you a sneak peak before the big day...

These two photos show the lining, crinoline and bustier (with boning).

Here's the bridal satin layer on top of the lining/crinoline/bustier layers. More layers to follow :)

Stay tuned to see the final wedding dress...

Celebrating Our One Year Anniversary!!!

This time last year I was walking down the isle to say I-do to the life long commitment to love and serve my husband-to-be. I can't believe it's already been a year, the time has really flown by. It seems only yesterday that my husband carried me over the threshold of our first place together and getting up early to open all the wedding gifts waiting for us in the living room, as if it were Christmas morning.

It was nice to look over our puritan marriage vows and be reminded of the commitment that we made to each other a year ago today...

I, S.H.,
covenant before God and man
to you J.S.
to be your loving husband and to lead you,
to protect you, and to provide for you in the fear of the lord.
I vow to love you as my wife even as Christ also loved the Church,
To lay down my life for you,
To wash you with the water of the Word,
To love you as my own body
and to nourish and cherish you even as the Lord does the Church,
To render unto you the affection owed you,
knowing that I do not have authority over my own body but you do,
To dwell with you according to knowledge,
giving honor unto you as unto the weaker vessel,
and living together with you as heirs together of the grace of lif.
You alone will be my delight as the wife of my youth.
I will fight for you, for our sons, for our daughters, and for our household.
The lord do so to me and more also if anything but death parts you and me.
I will be yours in times of plenty and in times of want,
in times of sickness and in times of health,
in times of joy and in times of sorrow,
in times of failure and in times of triumph.
I pledge to you my life as a loyal and faithful husband.

J., repeat after me:

I, J.S.,
covenant before God and man
to you S.H.
to be your loyal wife and to submit myself under your headship.
Just as the Church is subject to Christ so will I be to you in everything.

I will live first unto our God and then unto you,
loving you, caring for you, obeying you,
and ever seeking to please you as my earthly lord.
I will be your discreet, chaste, keeper at home,
diligently, industriously, and faithfully caring for the affairs of your home
so that your heart may always safely trust in me.

 If the Lord chooses so to bless us,
it will be my delight to be your fruitful bearer of children,
and I will help you diligently teach them the commandments of the Lord
as we talk of them in your house, as we walk by the way,
when we lie down and we rise up.
Wherever you go I will go
The Lord do so to me and more also if anything but death part you and me.
I will be yours in times of plenty and in times of want,
in times of sickness and in times of health,
in times of joy and in times of sorrow,
in times of failure and times of triumph.
I pledge to you my life as an obedient and faithful wife.

I'm so thankful for God's grace to uphold our commitment to each other this past year. It's been a wonderful first year of marriage getting through various trials and enjoying fun memories together. It's been great to see how God works it all out for His glory and our own good. Praise God for my husband! Praise God for our marriage, and for many years to follow!

Sewing a wedding gown... fit for a princess

For about a week now, I have been working on a wedding dress for my friend, Kat P. Last week we went down to the fashion district in LA and picked out all the fabrics she wanted (about 39 yards in total!)

A couple days later I started working on cutting out the pattern for the bustier (adjusting it to match her measurements).

Sewing them together with the boning...

and then finally seeing what it looked like finished. My friend then came to try it on to make sure it fit. I made the adjustments I needed to and then I was off to sewing again...

After finishing the bustier I started working on the lining. Today Kat came over to try everything on. It looks like we are all set for the next step... cutting and sewing the crinoline on the lining.

Right now I only have the bottom layers complete... so you all wont even see the above mentioned steps on her wedding day... the best is yet to come!

... to be continued...