So, how did I make it?

Well, I made it the old fashioned way!  Many hours of designing and then a huge number of hours hand embroidering and assembling the dress.  The technique used is not new, it is called reverse applique and is a traditional quilting technique.  What makes it current is the choice of materials and incorporating my own design aesthetic.

First I had to decide what color and style of dress I wanted to make.  Black was my choice because it would not conflict with any of the bridal party colors and every woman needs a little black dress and I didn't own one.  Next decision was type of pattern.  Anyone who knows me, knows that I always wear solid color clothing, so pattern is a real stretch for me. I wanted an all over pattern, so the scale needed to be appropriate to the size and design of the dress and the choice of two layers of black fabric and black thread solved my fear of pattern issue.  Once I finally settled on the image, I cut a stencil.  Using a white pencil, I traced the image onto my fabric (it was two layers basted together) and then using black thread, I stitched around the traced design and then cut out the center of the stitching.  This happened over and over again, while sitting in airports, on planes, during a power outage (wearing a headlamp so I could see what I was sewing), while watching the summer Olympics, and on and on.  The easy part was the final assembly of the dress!  That was a breeze after all of the hand embroidery.