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Trash To Treasure

Grandmothers wedding dress

21 years ago

Hello everyone;

I have been trying to think of a neat way to display my Grandmothers wedding dress. My heart was set on an old dressmakers form, but I haven't seen a single one! What else can I do so I can enjoy my treasure??? :-)

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Comments (10)

User
21 years ago
I typed in "keyword" mannequin on ebay and you can buy these relatively cheaply. They even have a "hanging one" for under 10 dollars.
User
21 years ago
By the way....the old dressmaker's forms are also listed...a little pricey though!!!
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I think the trim on the dress may be rayon,could be silk but it looks like the trim on my baby bonnet from 1942. Rayon was used a lot, I have some rayon bias tape that is from 1930's.It is a kind of twisted stuff, you can untwist the cord on the dress I think so made up of several strands & then sewn on with small stitches over the cord going in direction of the twist so they can't even be seen. The chiffon type fabric is used in doll clothes in late 1800's & early 1900's. Might talk to someone who collects old dolls & show them pics. They could probably identify all the materials used. Better check on those flour sacks before you wash them & find out value try "textiles", 'kitchen" "ADVERTISING"try that 1 1st. Different books & different sites call things by different names. Lovely gown. One idea would be to get photo of the wedding couple & add a piece of gown(taken from back so won't show) & put under glass around 1 side of photo along with another item if you have it,(piece of jewelry she wore- wedding announcement in paper, maybe bit of flour sack from 1 not in such great shape) use an acidfree piece of heavy stock to mount all this in a nice way to enjoy & put in frame fronted with glass. Hang near the gown. A letter would be nice with her handwriting. That way you would have a little bit of her still with you!! Jan
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Lafonda, about how to attach the denim to the foam board is this the same thing as foam core board - foam on the inside, poster board on the outside? If so, here's what I would do: Cut the denim about 4" bigger than the board on all sides. Lay the denim face down on the table and center the foam board on top of it. Start at the center point on the edge of the board and fold the denim over to the back. Use a straight pin to pin through the denim and into the edge of the foam board. Pull the opposite side taut and pin. Pin the other two sides. Then working back and forth, from side to side keep stretch and adding pins. Miter fold the corners. When this looks good use fabric/craft glue to glue the fabric to the back of the board. If it were me I would probably leave the pins in place just in case the glue didn't hold. This may be way more information than you wanted. My only concern is that the denim color in the fabric might transfer to the baby clothes over time. Maybe washing it first would help. Also I doubt foam core board is archival. This could be a problem over time. Hopefully Igloochic will read this and give some advice.
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What a beautiful dress! I hate to hear it's brittle. Doesn't sound good. I don't really know anything that would help you out - sorry. I had the 1 year old portrait dresses (myself, DD2 and my sister) framed by my local framing shop I've used for over 20 years. He is knowledgeable on the How To's so I always trust him to do an excellent job. My sister's dress was the oldest, and was made by our paternal grandmother in 1956. Not nearly as old as yours. Let us know what you decide to do with the dress. I've linked the thread below for photos: Here is a link that might be useful: Anyone Display Vintage/Heirloom Clothing? Thread
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kathi, I know what you mean.. I used all the wedding dress, except I did have to made a new bodic...and then I added the wedding dress cap sleeves and took the ruffel from the wedding dress and added to the front of the dress.. This little grand daughter is a little on the plump side and my neice was about a size 2... the dress back was longer than the front so I did have to do some fancy foot work there to make it work.. I also was able to use the netting from the dress for her vail..then I just added some ribbons and little tiny rose buds to the waist band which was a new piece and a large bow in the back.. I also added some rose buds to each stremer of ribbon down the front of the dress. It sure did save her mother a ton on money.. as the rest of the girls dresses cost almost $100.00 or more and our cost aprox.. $6.00.. I was lucky the wedding dress was not realy fancy and I was able to wash the dress... believe it or not.. before I started.. which worked out great.. I am all for recycle when ever I can.. Thanks for looking Huggybear
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nonacook
21 years ago
Have a frame made and put it under glass--hang it on the wall!
hallngarden
21 years ago
Entwife, I have two wedding gowns on my wall in the family room. I have each of my grandmothers and have them on a padded hanger and placed the veil above the neckline and let it fall over the top of the dresses. I do have one extra, I have both of the wedding pictures for each beside the dresses. For years, I had them protected in a box for safe keeping and one day just decided to get them out for display. Both have been on display for over 5 years and I get them down and run through the cold cycle on my dryer ever so often. Noticed no damage to them, and I sure enjoy having them out. Both of them date back to about 1910. Just enjoy them whatever way you feel comfortable.
Hallngarden
JoJo_Ohio
21 years ago
My wedding dress 28 years ago was a long cotton dress that had lace at the neckline and a lot of detail at the cuffs. I hung it on a padded hanger and placed it on the door of a spare bedroom that is decorated in victorian. Over the years it has faded and yellowed. It really does look antique now.
joelke
21 years ago
On a craft forum, a lady needed a dressmakers form and just made one. She put on an old tight fitting tee shirt and had a friend put duct tape all over it while it was on her. Then they cut it up the back so she could get it off. She then stuffed it with fiberfill packed as tightly as she could. She then made a muslin cover to cover up the tape. It would be light weight and could be hung or stick a post on a base up the middle to stand. Ever since I read that on the forum, I have been planning to try it. Good luck. You have a wonderful keepsake. Joyce
GrassIsEvil
21 years ago
I'm wondering. If you took the duct tape base and covered it with papier mache? You would have a lightweight shell and wouldn't have to fight with the stuffing.

Ray
babblingbetty
21 years ago
What a wonderful treasure! The idea to "make your own" sounds easy, BUT....in my case...who wants all those humps and bumps in another wedding gown...much less hanging on the wall!
avyona
20 years ago
Why not have the dress made into a quilt? I perform this service professionally for a price ranging from 100-250 depending on the dress and whats involved. I have outlined the detials and answered commonly asked questions at my ebay auction. The link is below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Wedding Dress Quilt
honey_pott
20 years ago
avyona,
No advertising is allowed in any of the forums. this is one of gardenweb's rules. In case you didn't know, this is a forum for some very talented people to share there projects and ideas with the not so talented (like myself). Your quilts are very pretty, however, this is not the place to solicite sales.
Lesley

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