TGIF- Thank God It's Finished!

Ok so the dress threw me a major curveball and I wasn't sure exactly how to recover the project.  I finally (sort of) figured out the problem.  I really worked on perfecting the fit of the muslin, but somehow that didn't translate when I cut the antique fabric.  Somehow the front bodice was 1 inch smaller at the waist than the muslin, 1/2 an inch shorter at the side seam, and the skirt front was 1/4 inch WIDER at each side seam.  WTF???  I credit it to distortion of the muslin fabric because the actual dress was fully underlined in broadcloth.  That is the only thing I can come up with because everything matched up PERFECTLY on the finished muslin.  Still, it doesn't fully make sense.  I mean the muslin bodice grew, and the skirt pieces shrunk? I never make muslins, so why all the trouble after actually doing things correctly?  Anyway, all the discrepancies meant a lot of unplanned ripping out on the actual dress, scratching my head, and scrambling for a fix.  Anyway it's done, and I'm so happy!  Here's the finished product:

back

I'll be the first to admit that it's not perfect.  My major issue is the bust darts, there placement isn't correct and they're a bit pointy.  Since it's fabric from a 1950s dress (which had majorly pointy boobs) and they were trimmed on the inside, this is as close as I could get them to fit.  I hope it it's obvious to anyone who doesn't sew.

original bodice front

The following pictures really illustrate what I had to work with and how significant the changes were.

original bodice and new underlining

original skirt and new underlining

I applied narrow bands of interfacing (about 1 1/4 inches) to the inside of the underlining at all the armscyes and neckline edges to stabilize them and prevent gaping and distortion over time.

underlining with interfacing

I did carry over a few of the vintage details:

• lingerie carriers (original were thread, I made fabric ones)
• corded bias trim.  the dress came with a tie belt that I used, unfortunately there wasn't enough to do the waistline seam or armscyes
• vent finish.  This one was a great lessons that I've carried over to other dresses.  The fashion fabric was finished as a standard vent, but the lining was finished like a back skirt slit!  This avoids the awkward joining of the two fabrics, which can creat bulk, and is such a nice clean looking finish
• however, I changed the original lapped metal zipper for an invisible

After the wedding, I'll post pictures of me wearing the dress!