Jo-Anns, Jo-Anns, and more Jo-Anns - Buying fabrics

For a while I thought I wanted shantung, a silk fabric with rough lines that run through it giving it a pretty and interesting texture.  I went all over looking for it, to specialty stores and multiple Jo-Anns.  I finally found something very close in one an hour away--a silk dupioni.  They didn't have a color that was quite right (I wanted an ivory white that wasn't too yellowy), but I bought ten yards of their whiter shade anyway.  With a coupon, it was still quite expensive!  It was silk after all!

Silk dupioni, similar to what I bought.

Later, I had many moments of questioning how I was going to sew such a finicky, expensive fabric.  I realized that there was a very real possibility of there being rain on our wedding day, and I didn't want to have to hide my silk dress and myself from getting any drops on us.  (Good thing I anticipated this, because it poured!  ...Then stopped and was damp but lovely!)

photo of rain

I decided to go with something that was not silk.  I returned the expensive shantung silk, and instead got a related fabric that is less textured but a better color, better price, and much more forgiving of the elements.  I picked a polyester taffeta in ivory, and it was lovely.  Just a little shine, just the right amount of weight to it.  I also found a neat mirror organza that reminded me of water, which my husband, a fisherman, loves.  And I found an adorable dotted sheer fabric that I wanted to find some way to use.  I had taken my husband with me to pick fabrics since he is more decisive than I am, and he encouraged me to go for that pretty dotted sheer.  I'm glad he did!  I love how it worked in the waistband and sash I later designed into the gown.

Here you can see the dotted sheer at the bottom right, and the ivory taffeta above it,
as I made the waistband for the gown.  More of the sheer would become a long sash to tie in a bow.

I'd revisit Jo-Anns many times for things like a zipper, threads, tulle and beads and comb for the veil, boning, more boning, more boning, interfacing, horsehair braid, elastic, and a hook for the waist-stay band.  I used many coupons.  I also bought things that were going to last me beyond this project:  a pressing ham, transfer paper and wheel, a proper seam ripper, and a ruffler foot I'd been coveting for a while.

Ruffler foot!  The thing sounds like a demon eating its way through the fabric, but
it does a great job of making very regular pleats that are essentially ruffles.  It took a little
practice to get the hang of it and get used to the noise, but this fun toy helped me make a strong pleated skirt.