Christmas Gown & Stomacher (RETIRED)
Dec 11, 2012 21:04:51 GMT -5
Post by CleverLC on Dec 11, 2012 21:04:51 GMT -5
No pictures, but I got this dress in 1993 or thereabouts. It came with the overdress, skirt, 2 stomachers, pinner cap, bobby pins, hair ribbon, and necklace. It did not come with the shoes--those were offered later.
This is the first AG outfit I ever got (other than meets), and the only one that my mother ever bought for me when I was a kid (unless you somehow count the Cardinal Cloak as a full outfit). Over the years, I lost the little fiddly bits. (The hair ribbon probably lasted a week, tops. I never really had a good place to keep hair ribbons or Barbie shoes, and they always got lost almost immediately.) Later on, one of the snaps came off the alternate stomacher (fortunately, it was a center snap, so it wasn't noticeable), so my mother made me get rid of it. The lovely blue ribbon trim has faded to purple. It is not as shiny and new as the pictures everyone else has.
But you know what? I wouldn't get rid of this dress for the world. It's beautiful on Felicity and matches the book illustrations perfectly (except for the faded ribbon). The dress itself has held up wonderfully well, and the main stomacher still has all 6 of its tiny snaps. And now that I'm an adult and can darn well MAKE places to store all those Fiddly Little Doll Pieces, I'm going to make all of the pieces I lost, and even suffer through putting a new ribbon on the dress, just so my children can have the joy of Felicity's Christmas Dress too.
I would not recommend displaying her in this dress, though, unless you're very careful about such things. I'm pretty sure exposure to sunlight is what ruined that trim!
For those who are complaining about the quality of the LACE and RIBBONS: That has definitely changed over the years. My lace doesn't look like the lace on the newer dresses at all. The ribbons on my alternate stomacher were clearly dark on one side of the ribbon and light on the other, and twisted so that both sides of the ribbon showed, not gradient-dyed like that. For those who are complaining about the quality of the BLUE FABRIC: Sorry folks, but that's just how taffeta is. I've owned taffeta dresses (that certainly weren't cheap, by any definition) and that is how the fabric feels and drapes. Taffeta is a sturdy, economical silk substitute that lasts a long time. It doesn't feel like silk, but for something that looks this nice, that's a sacrifice I'm more than willing to make.
This is the first AG outfit I ever got (other than meets), and the only one that my mother ever bought for me when I was a kid (unless you somehow count the Cardinal Cloak as a full outfit). Over the years, I lost the little fiddly bits. (The hair ribbon probably lasted a week, tops. I never really had a good place to keep hair ribbons or Barbie shoes, and they always got lost almost immediately.) Later on, one of the snaps came off the alternate stomacher (fortunately, it was a center snap, so it wasn't noticeable), so my mother made me get rid of it. The lovely blue ribbon trim has faded to purple. It is not as shiny and new as the pictures everyone else has.
But you know what? I wouldn't get rid of this dress for the world. It's beautiful on Felicity and matches the book illustrations perfectly (except for the faded ribbon). The dress itself has held up wonderfully well, and the main stomacher still has all 6 of its tiny snaps. And now that I'm an adult and can darn well MAKE places to store all those Fiddly Little Doll Pieces, I'm going to make all of the pieces I lost, and even suffer through putting a new ribbon on the dress, just so my children can have the joy of Felicity's Christmas Dress too.
I would not recommend displaying her in this dress, though, unless you're very careful about such things. I'm pretty sure exposure to sunlight is what ruined that trim!
For those who are complaining about the quality of the LACE and RIBBONS: That has definitely changed over the years. My lace doesn't look like the lace on the newer dresses at all. The ribbons on my alternate stomacher were clearly dark on one side of the ribbon and light on the other, and twisted so that both sides of the ribbon showed, not gradient-dyed like that. For those who are complaining about the quality of the BLUE FABRIC: Sorry folks, but that's just how taffeta is. I've owned taffeta dresses (that certainly weren't cheap, by any definition) and that is how the fabric feels and drapes. Taffeta is a sturdy, economical silk substitute that lasts a long time. It doesn't feel like silk, but for something that looks this nice, that's a sacrifice I'm more than willing to make.