The Wine Tasting Frocks

So Beth had this awesome idea of recreating the wine rack we intended to make on the show while ALSO doing a photoshoot with dresses we designed and I sewed.

Out of the two I made, Beth's was my favorite. Or maybe it's just because she looks so gorgeous in it. That's probably it;)

She wanted it to be lacey but also modern. The first prototype I made was too long and looked dowdy with all the lace.

Plus, the first dress I made used a stiffer less wide lace trim. That was the only type I could find at JoAnn's. But for the second dress I made I went to my local outlet fabric shop and found this amazing vintage bridal lace for $8.50 a yard.

It was originally pure white but we wanted an off-white color for a more rustic look. So I tea dyed the lace with a touch of yellow RIT dye and it turned out JUST RIGHT!

I like the belt Beth choose for the dress. It added that modern/vintage flair that was perfect for the dress.

Okay but seriously, how gorgeous is Beth? This photoshoot was so iffy. We wanted to get it done before the Craft Wars episode aired. Then they pushed our episode up one week and we had to scramble to get everything completed in time. Not to mention a storm front came into the area on Sunday and we had to push the photos back until the day the show was to air. Things were TIGHT! But it all worked out. Tuesday was sunny but cool and even though the mosquitos were out for blood we managed to get everything done without a hitch.

Now, onto my dress. I also wanted something lacey but not dowdy. I've been watching a lot of Boardwalk Empire lately (great show BTW) and I was inspired by the maid's aprons. I made the bodice of this dress come all the way down to the waist in a V shape. I then added a green underlayer for a pop of color.

To keep it from looking too dowdy I made the skirt pegged and shorter.

My lace materal was a little stiff but I liked the design. It wasn't the traditional lace pattern you see. But if I had to make this dress again ideally I'd prefer a slippier, softer lace. That sort of material works best with pegged skirts.

I also painted my fingernails a sparkly glitter green. Fun.

The location we choose was really perfect. It's an old barn with a giant star on the top. Pretty well known in the area. It was built in 1872 and is listed as a National Historic Landmark with the National Register of Historic Places. They say it may be one of the most artistically photographed, painted, and replicated buildings in America because of its unique architectural design, building layout, and most notably, its giant five-point stars on each end.

 So this will be the last post pertaining to the entire Craft Wars experience. I know, I feel like I talked it to death too:P I feel like although our efforts were a big craft fail we got so much more out of the adventure than just a TV appearance. We learned a lot about what it's like to do a tv taping, I got to know Beth even better than I had and we had a lot of laughs along the way. Not to mention....cute dresses!

Check out this crazy cricket that happened to land on Brian's shoulder. Yikes! I would have totally freaked out!

Hope you enjoyed our journey as much as we did!