Julea's DAR gown, July 2002 convention, Washington, D.C.
This is the dress I made for Julea in 2002. The dress code for the Daughters of the American Revolution gowns are very strict, they have to be a certain length and color, for example. Bibi's green ball gown inspired the design. We used a polyester shantung for the base and the top layer was a sheer crinkled chiffon. I added a bit of lace to the skirt hems, not too much, since Julea is no fan of overtly frill. the dress closes in the back with buttons.
Here's the little purse I made to go with the outfit...
DAR convention, July 2004
Julea is moving up the ranks within DAR and she's back, this time in color!
The pictures, unfortunately, don't show off the beautiful dual tone sheen of the sheer we picked for the top layer, it's pink one way and more red the other, depending on how you look at it. The base is formed by a gold charmeuse, which came embroidered in a floral motif. This comes through underneath the sheer top skirt. I added some copper, bronze and gold colored beads for more detail. Julea also wanted something light weight this time, since it's rather hot in July in Washington D.C. and she got it. This dress weighs close to nothing. Inspiration this time came from a period portrait of a Mrs. Salisbury. I tried my best to imitate the front gathering, but wasn't satisfied with the results, so I went with the deep V-line instead.
