Made By A Fabricista: A Mother’s Day Gift - Making my Daughter’s Prom Dress

Happy Friday All!

As a mother and sewist, I am always planning months in advance for any special occasion dress. Due to the pandemic, my daughter missed all the activities at the end of her elementary journey and I was truly heart broken. She did not have any promotional ceremony, field trips or activities for the last few months of elementary school. I made a vow to myself that in Middle School, no matter what life throws us, I would make the perfect Junior Prom dinner dance dress even if she had to twirl in it at home.

When I came across this beautiful blue lycra sequins fabric, I was thrilled. My daughter Arielle and I spoke a few months ago about the perfect Grade 8 Junior Prom dinner dance dress. She found an inspirational photo on Pinterest back in December which was a one shoulder maxi dress that sparkles and she was excited about me making her special dress. At the time she wasn’t quite sure of the shade of blue she wanted but after our trip to Jamaica during Spring break, she was sold. We found the perfect blue on the Fabric Mart website after we returned and I was excited to get started.

My daughter is extremely picky and of course I have sewn less for her over the years. I was a bit nervous at first to cut into the fabric but knew the style she wanted was a basic silhouette and wouldn’t require a lot of construction. For the most part, I knew a basic one shoulder block or pattern and a self drafted circle skirt pattern was essential for the look. The top pattern is from Shakti Pattern on Etsy (here) and the skirt is a maxi half circle skirt pattern that I self drafted after watching a few videos on YouTube.

The bodice is lined and I added a 1 inch elastic for support and structure in the waist. I basically used the outer layer (main) fabric for the casing after attaching it to the skirt and inserted the elastic, closed the casing, and then attached the lining to the main where the casing was inserted. This technique gave her the needed support in the mid section and cinched the waist even more. I definitely plan to try this technique again and of course do a step by step video or written tutorial.

Overall I am happy that she truly enjoyed her Hollywood Theme Junior Prom. I am so proud of my sewing journey over the past 2 years. To see the joy in my daughter’s eyes the day of her Junior Prom was the best Mother’s Day gift I could ask for this year.

I will forever cherish every special moment with both my daughter and son and will continue to sew all special occasion looks. She is already planning next formal dress for the Fall. Thanks for following my journey as a blogger here at Fabric Mart. Be sure to stop by my Instagram page to see Arielle, my daughter twirling in her dress.

One Love,