My mom sent me a picture of my grandma Clara Lou Peters Stewart on her wedding day recently. It reminded me that she showed me her wedding dress once when I was little. I’m not sure why she had it out specifically but it was in a big yellowing box and when she pulled it out, I remember thinking how lovely it still was and how much I’d love to wear it some day. I never did get to wear it; my first impromptu wedding dress was a bright pink dress I’d worn to homecoming and at my second wedding, I wore a black lace number.
I had been thinking for a very long time about doing something with my wedding dress. Not only was a black Gothic wedding dress totally unique at the time fifteen years ago but I also had hand sewn my own black veil trimmed in the sweetest black crochet trim. It took me weeks to finish. My dress, being delicate lace, had ripped during one of our military moves and so it hung in my closet for years now staring me in the face, unable to be worn any longer but being too sentimental to toss out either.
One day, I was searching around Etsy and I don’t particularly know what I was searching for but I came across the cutest shop called Leavesof3. The designer, Caron, took the little bittiest parts of nature and embedded them in resin before setting them into frames for pendants or bracelets. She also had lace pieces for bridal jewelry that were positively gorgeous! I instantly sent her a note asking if a piece of my own lace could be embedded in resin and made into something special. I was worried the black lace would discolor or perhaps “melt” in the chemical reaction of the resin but she said she’d do a test piece for me and joyfully, the test worked!
Caron made me two large pendants and two bracelets that are the perfect heirloom to pass down to my daughter and granddaughter. I wore a bracelet to work this week and everyone in my office was trying to glance at my arm to see what I had on. It’s so unique – of course, they all asked about it and then I had to show them my wedding picture of my black dress!
When I wear them, I find myself touching them absentmindedly while daydreaming about our wedding day. I remember how pretty I felt and special in my beautiful black dress. This just takes me back to that day, standing there holding Jon’s hand and saying “I do!” while shaking like a leaf from sheer nerves.
My daughter, Taylor, is getting married this weekend and I will be wearing a new black dress and one of my new lace pendants while she will be wearing the other necklace as her “something old.” Is that not the sweetest thing? I’m so excited to give it to her and I’ve already tucked away one for the baby to have someday. I only wish I had a piece of my grandmother’s wedding dress to embed as well. This is a beautiful thing to do… I encourage you all to think about doing something memorable like this for your children and grandchildren.
Please visit Caron at her Etsy Leavesof3 shop! Tell her I sent you!
