1234Irene

My daughter took a trip to Long Island with her boyfriend to meet his family. Then in Time Square he proposed to her in his army blues. Awwww, so romantic for her! Anyway, They come back home, I pick them up from the airport, when they let me know that they want to tie the knot September 16th, this year. Only 8weeks to plan this wedding! Her fiancé gets deployed to afganastan in December! Please help, she is my only daughter, and I don't have a clue as to what to do. She asked me last night if I would make her dresses for the flower girls, and possibly the maids of honor. Is there a check list or something to help me with this, or can y'all "help" me make one? I truly don't know where to start.........

QuiltnNan

wow, that is a really short time frame. do you have a sister or someone who can help you with the details while you do the sewing... even someone to answer the phone and relay questions or make the meals is usually a big help. felicitations to the bride to be. and thanks to the groom to be for his service.

QuiltnNan

try to keep the patterns for the dresses simple. start with the color and type of fabric... be sure everyone gets you all the measurements you need.

QuiltingGrannie

First - Congrats to you and to them

Now - step back, take a deep breath. Breath in. Breath out.

Now,
how many dresses total?
Can she or someone help making them? Even doing the cutting out of the patterns, the finishing work, hemming, embelishments? etc.

Do the girls all live close so you can take their measurements to get the right sizes?

I'd keep them as simple as possible.

What other things have they asked you to help them handle? Don't over extend yourself. Be honest with her about the time it will take, the help you would like etc.

I'm a former wedding consultant so feel free to PM me with any questions you may have.

QuiltingGrannie
Phyllis

Glassquilt

With only 8 weeks I don't think you have time to plan & do everything yourself. Perhaps you could encourage her to get off-the-rack dresses that are classic & simple. Embellishing these dresses would take far less time than sewing them. And the attendants will probably thank you for saving them money.

Do you have a group of friends in a club or at church? I bet they'd love to help out.

Ripped on Scotch

Check out the Knot.com you can register online there and there is a check list with timelines for everything. That will really help you out. Good luck!

bjeriann

When my DD was getting married they were going to get married in Oct. but came in to inform me that they decided not to wait. We had 10 days til the wedding. I was 1/2 way done with her dress and hadn't even thought of the bride's maide dress or flower girl's dress. Let alone were to have the wedding. I was working full time as a real estate broker. So I took some time off. We had the wedding at my parents house there living room is very large (40x40) I got the dress done-it had over 10 thousand beads and sequins. All came together and I keep my sanity. So if I could pull that off so can you. Remember you have 8 weeks and keep it simple. I love to sew - so if I can help pm me.

mltquilt

Congratulations. As several others have stated, don't try to do it all by yourself. This is the time to call on your friends and other family members to get the help you need. Look at what you can do and be willing to have someone else do things that you know you cannot tackle.

mltquilt

cjr

It may be worth your time to hire a professional wedding planner. A lot of reception venues have staff wedding coordinators as do many churches. It definitely can be done. Well meaning friends & relatives do not always follow thru. I am a retired florist, who assisted many brides in planning their big day.

The advantage of a short planning time is there will be no time for changes of colors, flowers, venues, guest list etc. Like making a quilt lots of bits & pieces of a puzzle to put together; but everything works out in the end, and no one knows but you if it was supposedd to be different.

When it comes to weddings everyone has advise and an opinion, most you probably want to ignore. Decide what is right for you and your daughter.

Enjoy all the festivities.

Tartan

How is the money situation? If they think making dresses rather than buying will save money you need to explain the cost of fabric these days. Up here in Canada, we have the Sears catalogue that has some great wedding party pages, everything from flower girls, bridesmaids and wedding dresses. If you have something similar, check into ready made first. I know you have some great reasonable Bridal Shops in the U.S. and they might have some sales running since the downturn in the economy. If time, patience and money are not a problem, YOU GO GIRL! I know you can do it!