Inspiration:

I grew up with Anne of Green Gables and have considered myself "Anne" since I first met her. Therefore I've always wanted a dress like her (one with "puff sleeves - the puffiest in the world..." :) When I first saw this pattern I had a major Anne fit and wanted to make it really badly. It was very convenient that our friends had a Gilded Age/Titanic tea party at that time. Although this dress would be a little out of style around then I decided to make it anyway (greed overcame good sense :).

If you're big on the Edwardian era check out Anne of Green Gables and it's sequel (Anne of Avonlea) TODAY!

Megan Follows in Anne of Green Gables. My friend found the original edwardian dress for sale on eBay and emailed the link to me. Isn't it incredibly similar to my gown?

Materials:

Simplicity pattern 9723, 2 1/8 yards of white cotton, 6 5/8 yards of blue cotton, 11 5/8 yards of black trim, 2 7/8 yards of lace, 1/2 yard of black fabric (type?), 1 package of featherweight boning, 22" zipper, hooks and eyes.

Construction:

I was very pleased with the construction and results this pattern gave me. It was very simple to follow. The blouse and skirt are one piece which was very convenient and made it cooler and less bulky (and excluded the pain of making two garments). Sewing the braid on the jacket and skirt was slow going (eventually I cheated and sewed the braid onto the skirt using the machine) and my grandmother helped a lot with that.

I was working to finish my dress and my sisters matching dresses before the aforesaid tea party and I was very stressed (I was literally having nightmares that I didn't finish my dress in time :). Rebekah was also a big help as she slipstiched all four hems in one day! Fortunately, all went well and we had them all finished two days before the date!

The Finished Gown:

The only problem I have with this dress is that it's so fancy! I have not many opportunities to wear it which is not making me really happy. Fortunately, I think that I have stopped growing for the most part and am hoping that the dress will fit me for at least a couple more years.