Finally, the wedding dress pictures!

So, I kept procrastinating this over and over, thinking I'd put some pictures up here when I had done more photo editing, or that I should take more pics of the details first, or after we send the thank you cards, or, you know, something else. I've been married for over six months now! Where does the time go?

So without further ado, this is how my self-designed, self-sewn wedding dress came out:

It had a few fit issues that I wish I would have realized in time. (But you don't get a trial run, you just look in the mirrors, right?)

One thing is that because I made it a two-piece, figuring it would be easier to get in and out of, the top hikes up, bunching in the back waist and at front under the bust.

Also I apparently have a much - much - better posture standing in front of a mirror than when not thinking about standing straight. Lots of weird hunchback moments according to the pictures! Darn! You can see it in the following detail pic of my flowers and side/front of dress - those folds/wrinkles under the bust are not supposed to be there!

The back looked quite nice though, I especially love how the lace, gold trim and button details came out! And by the way, yes, that is the same gold trim incorporated in my hairdo! Also: The sleeves were once part of 1970's curtains!

The skirt is four layers full circle! It was hard work, but the feeling was pure princess! The vintage lace detail on the waistband was a last minute decision but came out nice. I put two sets of hook and eye on the inside of the waistband to take some pressure off the zipper (God forbid it would break after one slice of cake, right?). And yes, the zipper seams are crooked, but by then I was so tired I just figured that what the heck, it's a side zipper, no one is gonna see that!

Hemming seven meters of hem per layer was... tiring. Not to mention the one layer with all that trim, took a good couple hours, actually!

In the end, I am 90% happy with the outcome. Not bad I think!

I had a few questions about what this cost me. Materials came up to around 2000 SEK (that is circa 235 USD today), the shoes (I had two pairs, flats and these pretty awesome five-and-a-half inch heels), the clutch and the lace umbrella came in at circa 700 SEK (about 82 USD). I also had to replace my old dress form, so there was another 1500 SEK (176 USD).

Then there's the amount of time spent sewing... After finishing the dress I know I wrote the approximate number down someplace... somewhere I can't remember. But as far as I can recall we are talking around 70-80 hours of cutting and sewing. Maybe 20 hours of research, sketching and planning preparations.

Not sure I will ever take on a project as big as this again! (Basically, family and close friends, if I am to make yours, please have less complicated ideas than me, haha!)

Well, anyway, to finish this post up nicely, here are two of my favorite wedding pictures of me and my husband. I guess we're just not the pose-y couple, we're the happy weirdos!