The first fitting

The train of a dress is a curious thing - it drags on the floor, opens up into a mini fan-shaped carpet and has a 99% likelihood to make the bride trip (most likely only incompetent brides like myself). And trip I did, several times in fact. Last Tuesday, I spent a good two hours at the dressmaker's shop in the Esplanade. I was either attempting to take my first tentative steps in the long gowns or staring open-mouthed at myself in the mirror.

No, I wasn't exactly pleased with what I saw. The white dress was still big and made me look like "frump girl". The two lines of bone/wire sewn into the front of the dress for support and structure stood out like large veins and created the impression that my breasts were about to explode (everyone who knows me long enough is aware that I don't have breasts that are anywhere near to explosion level).

The blue evening dress was better. I felt (and maybe looked a little, if I may say so) like Princess Aurora of Sleeping Beauty who danced on her wedding night in a gown of pale blue. The dress was a better fit and the color was perfect. The fit still needs adjusting and I hope the next time I try it on, I'll be the ultimate happy camper.

I must confess that Lin Kiat had a better time at his first fitting the weekend before. The tailors at Gentleman's Quarters in Raffles Place are handling his suit, which is made from Cerrutti cloth. Many employees and partners of PricewaterhouseCoopers (my father included) have their pants and suits made there. Gentleman's Quarters is known for its well-cut pants and Lin Kiat took to his pair like a baby in a silk bunny suit (now, why did I use that comparison? It was the first thing that popped into mind, which isn't always the best, I'm afraid).

First fittings have a notable element of risk so it's good to approach the event with an open mind - for dresses, there won't be any beading or embroidery yet (mine were just swatches of white and blue cloth), and for suits, there'll be threading and chalk lines running over shoulders and chest, as if someone had mapped out all the roads in Toa Payoh on that beautiful dark Cerrutti silk.

Fingers crossed for second fitting!

Posted by Monoceros at May 29, 2003 5:04 PM