Sunday 10 December 2017

Fairy tale dress for big brother's Bar Mitzvah


Yesterday was K's Bar Mitzvah. It was exhilarating and exhausting in equal measures, and after spending last night washing dishes and today rearranging furniture, I have no energy left even to write about it. I will say, though, that while I often worry about the aspects of parenting that I could have done better, I did look at my boy yesterday and feel a sense of pride that I had helped him reach that special day. It wasn't easy!

But enough about that - you're here for the sewing. No clothes were sewn for the Bar Mitzvah boy, although I did post his tallit bag on Instagram,  but his sister demanded a special dress and chose the sleeveless version of the Oliver + S Fairy Tale dress, without the collar. She chose the fabric, too - a cotton lawn from Spotlight. Not the fanciest of fabrics, but in the end it was perfect for the occasion as we had a relatively informal afternoon tea for friends and family back at our house, complete with backyard cricket.


I was indecisive about whether to go for the sash tie or the sewn-on, lower-key bow, so I left the dress plain, then made a full sash (the one in the pattern is sewn in at the side seams and ties around the back) and tacked it on at the seams so it could be removed after. R laughed and laughed when she saw how giant the sash bow was - she looked like a present! It did give the dress a festive look, though.

Photos were a last-minute affair so they're not exactly great, but the Fairy Tale really is a lovely dress to sew, and once you've made your muslin to get the bodice size right (I made two, then sized up for a longer-lasting dress) it really isn't difficult, especially without sleeves and collar. The layer of tulle under the skirt gives it a bit of extra shape without being uncomfortable for the wearer and the invisible zipper instructions are excellent.


R had lots of compliments on her dress and she looked utterly angelic in synagogue - until she started viciously pelting her brother with sweets. Throwing sweets at the Bar Mitzvah boy is a traditional part of the service, but she was still going long after everyone else had stopped - and she put that bowling arm to good use! I had to drag her back to her seat so the service could continue!

Now that the big event is over and the house is - kind of - back to normal, I'm looking forward to my own fairy tale ending: putting my feet up and bingeing on leftover croquembouche.

10 comments:

  1. The dress is so beautiful! I really love the big, festive bow on this dress - it really makes it that much more special, which is perfect for an occasion dress, right? And I am cracking up imagining the scene of her throwing sweets at her brother!!

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    1. The other style of bow looked really cute too - just less flashy. I think I might sew it on now that there aren't likely to be any dressy occasions for a while :)

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  2. It's so pretty! I also loved the imagery of her hurling candies at her brother.

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    1. Thank you Masha. R looked so cute she almost stole the show :)

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  3. So lovely!!! And I love the image of her all angelic until the time comes to pitch candies at her brother! SO GOOD! I can absolutely see it. Those are the stories you will all remember!

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    1. Thank you Inder. It's not often one can legitimately throw things at someone annoying - it was an opportunity not to be missed!

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  4. hahahahaha I was literally laughing at the story about your daughter throwing sweets at her brother! Such a sibling thing to do! I had no idea what Bar Mitzvah was, so it was interesting to read about it. Congrats! Your daughter's dress certainly looks beautiful, no wonder she got a lot of compliments. She chose well! and you sewed well hehe

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    1. Thanks Jenya, it was one of those cases of the fabric growing on me... also I just washed it and it barely needs an iron, so that's a plus!

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  5. I'm sorry, surely "leftover croquembouche" is a typo. Such a thing cannot exist, at least not in my world! :)
    That dress is every kind of gorgeous. The fabric is so fresh and clean looking and the big, perfectly white sash and bow gives it just enough fancy/pretty.
    I love this dress pattern as those seemingly small changes of collar/no collar, sleeves/sleeveless make for such vastly different dresses. Bet you're planning another one, right?!

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    1. Leftover croquembouche SHOULD be a typo - and so should leftover cheesecake, flourless orange cake, nectarine cake and assorted middle-eastern sweets. But especially the croquembouche. Oh well, better too much than too little, right? And yeah, I would kinda like to make another fairy tale dress...

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