The Gown

From the flowers to the favors, delightful details abounded at Julie and Dallas' wedding, but the bride's gown was the centerpiece of it all. Julie's mother hand-sewed the gown, which she and her daughter based on an upscale designer style and fine tuned to get exactly right. The strapless, ivory satin gown featured a wide band of pearl beading at the waist (with more than 2,000 hand-sewn beads!), a full skirt with box pleats, and almost no train. I wanted it to look like a very elegant ball gown, not a 'wedding gown,' Julie explains. Even with all of that handiwork, Julie's mother still found time to sew the six bridesmaids' black satin dresses as a gift to each of them.