The Dress

A few days ago, Morgan was coloring in a Cinderella coloring book and fell in love with one of the dresses. Well, actually, it is more like she fell in love with the idea of making the dress that she thinks is so beautiful. Having never sewn anything other than a straight line or anything more complex than a square, I have to admit that the task has seemed a bit daunting and beyond my capabilities. I was secretly hoping that she might forget or abandon her idea and I have since abandoned my secret hope. Morgan has the original picture from the coloring book and one that I traced for her. She has consistently carried one of them everywhere we have gone, with the exception of the pool. In the car, she sits in her seat and studies the dress until we reach our destination....Now, for those of you who are thinking that I should help her choose a simple dress pattern from the store and start there...great idea, but Morgan was NOT having it! I tried to explain why that idea seemed more reasonable to me given my limited sewing experience. We even went to Wal-Mart and looked at many patterns. She seemed happy, everything seemed like it was going to go my way, and then, "Yeah, you can make me one of those dresses, but it's not this dress (she points to the folded up picture I hadn't noticed her carrying in)." It seems like the funny looking kind-of-dress that I had already started to piece together was what she really wanted. Home we went without purchasing a simple dress pattern. Home we went to await Audrey drifting off to sleep so we could lug out the 30 year old sewing machine. Home we went to work on our wonderful creation that will have 1 bow at the top and 3 at the bottom when we are finished. Each time we sit to work together on this dress, I end up having so much fun. I have gotten to hear just how clear Morgan's ideas about clothes really are. When she describes what she wants me to do with the dress, it is obvious that there is a very specific picture she holds in her mind. I have noticed this before when she puts outfits together in a departments store. She never chooses an outfit that is displayed on a mannequin, she walks the entire store as if she has something in mind already that will go with a certain item she has chosen. Who knows where this interest of hers will lead, but I hope to help her as much as I can.

(Stay tuned for a finished picture of "The Dress.")