“Since the chapel was small,” Nancy continued, “the wedding plans were simple, and with the Louisiana weather already warming up, a train seemed unnecessary and heavy, so Becky decided not to wear it.”

After the wedding, the gown and its train were safely stored; it traveled with Becky and Ken over the years as they moved around Oregon, Washington and Colorado. Along the way, their daughter Cara was born in 1977.

From the time the family settled in Corvallis, Oregon in the early 1980s, they were friends with neighbors Nancy and Dick Bryant. “I loved to sew,” Nancy told me, “and not having a daughter, I made dresses for Cara for years.”

The Next Generation
When Cara announced her engagement to Phil Hohenstein in 2005 with plans for a summer 2006 wedding in Seattle, Becky unpacked her stored-away wedding dress and train. Calling on Nancy for advice, Becky wondered if the train might be used for part of Cara’s wedding dress. The bonus was that the gown and train had aged into the soft shade of ivory that the bride-to-be wanted.

Not only did Nancy advise that “the gorgeous satin fabric, lace, and beading” would work beautifully to create Cara’s gown, she volunteered to make the wedding dress as a gift for her dear friends! Cara loved the idea and was thrilled with wearing what would be such a loving contribution from both her mother and dear friend.

Deconstruct & Reconstruct
Nancy’s expertise and skills were needed to work out the hundreds of details required in this type of project: deconstructing and reconstructing the old parts (the original train would be used to make the skirt of the new gown), and designing and making the new elements—all while pleasing the bride so everything worked harmoniously together.

Since there was no room for error with vintage fabric, muslin fittings were needed each time Cara visited her parents while on holiday from graduate school. (At the time, Cara was attending Seattle University; she received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Washington in Seattle—Nancy and Dick’s alma mater, and Seattle was also Nancy’s hometown.)

Cara stayed open to Nancy’s design suggestions (like adding lace from her mom’s train to the simple scoop neckline of the new gown) and Nancy was not daunted by “strange traumas” (“the iron spitting rusty water spots onto the satin skirt back and the elastic loops springing their elasticity!”)

The beads, sequins and lace that Nancy removed from the vintage gown and train were to be reapplied to Cara’s skirt and bodice. “Just like the sewing bees of years gone by, Becky and I chatted and reminisced as we hand-sewed the beads and sequins onto the lace that was now on Cara’s gown. We each added our own design signature to the beading pattern,” Nancy shared.

“The hem was measured and sewn in June at my last fitting with the bride. Then Becky and Ken delivered the dress to Cara in Seattle for one last try on right before the wedding. It was then,” Nancy reported, “that Cara discovered the grosgrain ribbon waistband sewn inside around the waistline. It was embroidered with this message: to Cara with love from your fairy godmother, July 28, 2006.”

Nancy adds this serendipitous footnote: “My elementary school in Seattle had been converted into an event center. Cara’s wedding ceremony took place in a beautiful garden outside what was once the gymnasium of my grade school and the reception was held in my old school cafeteria!”

Family friends Dick & Nancy Bryant enjoy the wedding.

Weddings reveal many “circles of life,” connecting us in sometimes surprising and delightful ways…and always offering opportunities for us all to be “fairy godmothers” to fulfill dreams of little girls of all ages.

TEXT BY: Cornelia Powell

[Cornelia and Nancy Bryant are colleagues in the Costume Society of America www.costumesocietyamerica.com]

From Bride to Mother-of-the-Bride The Lineage of Women