Something old, something new....

There isn't a perfect solution of what to do with your wedding dress once the big day has been and gone. After so much planning, searching, fitting, tweaking and stress you're left with a beautiful dress that, unfortunately, you're unlikely to wear again.

Being kept as a keepsake, occasionally to be pulled out to reminisce over is the fate of many dresses. I frequently encourage my own clients to consider shortening the dress and dying it to turn it into a beauteous party dress. This gives them the chance to wear it again without feeling over dressed. If you prefer, there is always the "trash the dress" photo shoot which, whilst it might not be for everyone, looks like a crap load of fun and you've got to love the look of a wedding dress underwater.

But by far the appealing idea for most brides is that the dress should become a family heirloom. You can pass your dress onto a daughter for their wedding when the time comes, or, as was the case for a recent client, you can turn the dress into a christening gown.

We started from this...

There was plenty of fabric and under netting to work with as well as the button detailing down the back.

And I made her this....

 I was able to use the fabric and lining of the wedding gown to make the dress, while reusing some of the net edging as trim on the bottom of the dress. I used the buttons from the back of the gown to run a line down the back of the baby's dress to keep a little reminder there of what the christening dress had once been.

So if you're unsure what to do with your dress at the end of the big day, consider turning something old into something new.