First Communion Dress with English Lace

This sweet dress was a custom order for a first communion. The dress features English lace which is accented with French laces. The bodice has a mitered yoke overlay with pressed tucks running horizontally down the front. The tucks are set off by French insertion.

 

The skirt features two lace bands on either side of three pressed tucks. The skirt is finished with a flat lace ruffle. The dress is lined and has a built in liner edged in lace.

CUSTOM ORDER: Sold

 

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Ragland Sleeve Daygown with Pink Tatted Edge and Pink Tatted Bonnet and Booties

 

This precious Ragland sleeve daygown is created using white Swiss Bearissima II batiste. I personally hand tatted the pink edging (DMC #776, weight 80) which is applied flat to both sides of the placket and neck edge. The same edging is applied to the fabric ruffle at the sleeves. The sleeve ruffle was hand rolled and whipped as well as the neck and sleeve edges. The hem is blind hemmed by hand.

The lower front of the skirt on either side of the placket is embellished with a beautiful hand embroidered design using shadow stitched bows and bullion roses and leaves.

The gown features single rosebuds hand embroidered along the placket.

The pink tatted bonnet and booties feature blue medallions. Both items are VINTAGE and have been cleaned and laundered. Fresh ivory ribbon has been used to complete these items. These items are the first I have seen tatted in the pink and blue. I absolutely fell in love with them when I came across them and envisioned the day gown to match. Please note there is a very subtle color difference between the vintage bonnet/booties and the new edging.

These beautiful items are available for sale at my Etsy store:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/128319482/white-ragland-sleeve-daygown-with-tatted?ref=shop_home_active

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Graduation Dress with Pressed Tucks and Antique French Embroidered Lace

This beautiful dress was created for a special graduate in my life. When we sat down to discuss design options, my graduate fell in love with this French embroidered ecru lace. Once she saw the lace, she did not want to consider anything else. However, we had a problem! I only had 3 yards of the lace and it had a heavier texture than most of the other laces I use. The challenge became finding lace to complement the French edging. We finally decided to pair it with a wide vintage insertion with new Spanish laces added to each side of it.

The dress features half inch pressed pleats on the skirt in between the lace bands. The dress consists of white Swiss batiste with a Pima cotton liner.

The yoke also features pressed pleats which begin at the edge of the lace front and continue around the back. The lace front has the embroidered laced edging with the embroidery centered in the section. Then, I turned the lace upside down to create the bottom section of lace. Sandwiched in between are the Spanish laces used in the the skirt bands. The Spanish laces were also used to create the shoulder straps that criss cross in the back.

I would love to discuss creating a custom graduation dress for your student. Please feel free to contact me.

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Yellow Basic Yoke Dress with Scalloped Spoked Collar

This very sweet dress was created using Sarah Howard Stone's Basic Yoke Dress in a size seven. The fabric is a light yellow Pima batiste with a white collar. The collar pattern along with several other designs are included in the pattern package. French Maline laces are used on the sleeves and collar. The dress has a built-in liner. The skirt is finished with a six inch deep hem.

 

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Second Generation Dress

This sweet dress was adjusted to fit the next generation. I wish I could take credit for making this precious dress, but my responsibility was to repair, lengthen, and update it. Unfortunately, I did not take pictures of the dress before the adjustments, but let me share with you what I did.

The only adjustments I made to the yoke was to deepen the ruffle. The original design only had the small edging gathered slightly around the yoke. I removed the edging and zigzagged it to the rosebud insertion to create a more ruffled and fuller look. The ruffle was gathered and whipped on by hand.

The dress needed lengthening by several inches. To accommodate the needed length, I added two lace bands to the existing center band. The beading and floral insertion were original and I added the rosebud insertion and the dot filler. All the laces used are vintage and are exquisite in texture. The built-in liner was removed and a new longer one was added. The liner was hand rolled and whipped and attached to the bottom of the yoke.

I love working with and repairing vintage textiles. The craftsmanship and care to details are simply amazing.

 

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Pale Pink Swiss Batiste French Bonnet

This precious French Bonnet was created to coordinate with a Babette day gown (http://heirloomcreations.blogspot.com/2013/03/pink-babette-with-ecru-lace-and-pastel.html). The headband in the bonnet is made from ecru French Maline laces and the puff and the streamers use the same pink batiste as the day gown.

The crown also is created using French Maline laces.

This bonnet is a custom order and has sold.

 

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Blue Pima Broadcloth Boy Suit with Ecru Lace

This beautiful boy suit was created using blue Pima broadcloth and French Maline laces. The pattern used to make this shirt was Sarah Howard Stone's Benton pattern. I used the round collar in this pattern and adjusted it to have the shaped curve in the front and the back.

 

Back view:

 

Embroidered bullion daisies with satin leaves enhances the collar.

 

Pleated shorts complete the ensemble.

 

This was a custom order but I welcome the opportunity to create one especially for you. Feel free to contact me at catherynmcollins@gmail.com.

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