The trim was complete, the zipper painstakingly sewn down the back, and all that was left was to hand stitch the bow in place. She wondered if Professor Stewart had ever sewn a zipper into satin material. It was much harder than she thought it would be, trying to keep the fabric from snagging or puckering was a bit of a nightmare. She had almost decided to do buttons, but the thought of stitching all those little button holes to prevent fraying was far too consuming. It would have taken her the rest of the year to finish and she still had another project to start.

Emmalyn walked over to her first mannequin. It was just the right size, somehow her exact size, and placed the dress over the top. “Wow.” She whispered as her eyes drifted up and down her first creation. It was perfect. As perfect as any eleven year old could make it, and far better than she thought she could do.

She took the satin bow and wrapped it around the waist of the dress, noting in her mind the places she would need to secure the band to stay in just the right spot. Thankfully she had taken the little bit of extra time to make the double layer on the waist band, that way she would be able to stitch the inside layer to the dress and leave the outer layer unmarked.

The final part was tying the bow. She stood back to wrap her mind around how she was going to form the bow, not too big but not too small. Her hands met the silky satin and began to tie. Gently, the satin folded over itself and in the end, the bow was just right.

Looking the finished garment over, she did observe a few spots where her stitching could have been a bit neater, very slight wavers in her lines, but only noticeable up close and if you were looking for them. No, she was very happy with the dress she made.