Annie’s last homecoming was this past weekend. She decided not to make her dress. 🙁 She saw one she really liked on the internet, but it was a custom seller with a no return policy. I was reluctant because she has a hard time fitting dresses and it was an unusual construction that I didn’t want to tackle altering. (Based on “Outliers”, which I just finished, I need 10,000 hours before I become a rock star in alterations….so it’s going to take a while.) She went out shopping quite a few times without luck. As she was getting anxious, I finally trekked to the mall with her (ugh – I don’t “do” the mall very well.) We headed to a different mall and ran into my sister and my niece! My sister told us the Jessica McClintock store was closing and all the dresses were half off.

Annie tried this one on in a size 0 but I couldn’t get the zipper up. She looked really cute in it. We pulled a size 9 off the rack and decided that, for the price, it would be worth it to cut it down.

I only took it in at the back. I am sure I should’ve/could’ve done a better job at the bust line. Annie was frustrated a little bit with the fit – the very thing she was trying to avoid by purchasing one. Just goes to show, that buying ready-to-wear doesn’t guarantee a good fit.

The chevron and the colors just made this dress so fun! The fuschia – of course – for my “Pink In Mind.” It had a fun and youthful look for homecoming. We added halter straps for two reasons. One, to hold the dress in place. Annie learned a while ago that it’s just not fun worrying about the dress. And, two, she doesn’t like how the strapless looks on her. I had to agree that her long decolletage isn’t flattered by this style. I loved the modesty of this dress!

Annie had a hard time finding jewelry to match so she made her own. She played around with all kinds of ideas and kept taking them apart. I suggested a chevron style to mirror the dress and she created that with three drop-style pendants. In the end, she felt the simple drop design was the best. She made coordinating earrings as well.

I love that by senior year the kids relax and don’t need all the bells and whistles. They are old enough to go out to dinner, so no one hosted a dinner. My usual rule is that I take photos of “you and your date” but I won’t go traipsing about town to take “group photos.” Well, Annie asked if I would go into town and I agreed. We took some photos at our house and then her group met at the town Gazebo. Afterwards, they walked to the restaurant.

She went with her friend since Freshman year and they had a great time.

It’s always a pleasure getting to know so many wonderful kids.

If you want to take a look back on some of my previous prom and homecoming dress posts, click on the photos below. (PS. I’m not surprised that I love Annie’s dress so much, because my favorite sewn dress that I made was a Jessica McClintock design!)