Just adding that lengthening the dress with another type of fabric, like tulle, rather than the same, like lace, will make it much easier to find a satisfying match.

No brilliant suggestions Angie - except there are button stores - probably more online than brick and mortar now.

Angie,

Some visuals that might help.

Do you like the skirt treatment on the first McQueen dress here? You would have to cut off some of the lace of the skirt of the dress and reattach it to another fabric that is inset between the original lace skirt and the reattached part. I think it would be easy to find a compatible blue fabric and could turn out pretty spectacular.

Or the second photo. You could have a whole new skirt made for the top and reattach the lace from the original skirt to the new skirt to good effect. You might not have enough lace for 2 tiers, but it might not be necessary. It could look good with just one.

(Top half would look the same as your original dress).

Hmm, love the tulle skirt in your picture. Tulle without the embroidery is a straightforward piece to have made up as a separate to wear with your newly chopped dress top. If you keep them as separates you would have more styling options moving forward.

So many interesting and excellent ideas. The buttons are the easy part clearly. My first thought was the dress over pants look. I have purposely found long tube skirts to try under too short dresses also. But I douby that would be polished enough. Definitely consulting with a great tailor is the safest bet.

Find a good tailor and see what is suggested. You have received excellent advice. The buttons are an easy replacement. I hope both items can be saved.

Angie my idea is a little similar to Carla’s first idea. I thought pleats underneath or perhaps a contrasting lace underneath. I have a beautiful Art Deco top which is too short to wear alone. I wear it over pants, but I also found a shortish pleated skirt ( to about my knees) which I wear it over and it looks like a dropped waist dress. Pics attached. Could do something similar in navy?

You might check Etsy - I quickly looked for 1/2 slips - skirt extenders and there were options that looked promising. They weren’t expensive so it is not a big risk if you didn’t like it. Difficult to match the blue - but black might work.

If it is too difficult to match the colour of the lace, you could try an ombree effect like in this picture, this could help to lenghten the dress.

Ooh Angie this challenge is right up my style ally lol!

The only way I see the dress working with an extension would be to add something straight but tiered... otherwise I think it will look very ‘make shift” and the proportions will be off. Or something like the pics I have attached and possibly not quite as full. I think any addition almost needs to provide contrast as I think it will be too hard to “match” the dress, and I’m liking the idea of tulle, organza... something dressy. I’ve added some pics that give you the general idea ...none of these are perfect but kind of what I’m thinking.

Given the classic and elegant vibe of the dress I think a lovely pair of slim leg dressy pants could work. I don’t know if this is a combo you would consider but I would try it over a slim dressy black pant and add a skinny black belt. I adore navy and black together but I know it’s not everyone’s cups of tea. But I feel I recall you do that colour combo.

xxx

When I looked at it closely the flowers on mesh look remind me a bit of the dress Taylor Swift wore to the Grammys last night... different vibe obviously. Makes me wonder if something similar might come up though?
Like Brooklyn I wonder if any remake could meet your high standards and maintain the integrity of the dress. If you had a trusted tailor who already knew you it might be different..

I'm in the "make the dress a top" camp. And do something else with the rest of the lace. I think it is going to be really tricky to renovate the dress as you would like and it might not work out so well.

I renovated some old Marimekko dresses when I first joined the forum because I couldn't bear to let them go ...but honestly? I never ended up wearing them more than a few times. The proportions weren't right. Mind you, I didn't bother going to an expert (like a wedding tailor) because these were simple cotton and linen summer dresses. But still....

WOW. You're all soooo creative and full of fab ideas! I appreciate the time and thoughtful replies. Thank you sooo much! This was a good read for anyone

Sharan and SarahD8, I appreciate the local Seattle suggestions.

Brooklyn and Debs, your up-cycling skirt experiences come through like pros! You are right - I don't want the result to look "make shift". It has to look like the dress was bought that way, IYKWIM. That part worries me, and so does the expense. Having anything made here in Seattle is exorbitant.

UPDATES after looking and fitting the dress this morning:

• The dress won't work as a top. The cutline is high and the top will be too cropped and tight.

• I am very weary of cutting into the dress. The lace is a work of art as is. (See 6 year old pics of the dress). I just can't do it

• I don't wear leggings, skinnies or solid black, so those aren't options for tunic styling. But I like the idea of a pair of wider navy pants that work with the dress, so thanks to those who suggested the drouser root as a concept! I will keep the dress this length for a tunic.

• So far, I can't find skirt extenders and slips that look deliberate and professional.

• I'm back to liking an extension of tulle at the bottom. The tier ideas are lovely too.

I used P.A. Jens Custom Sewing in Seattle, to make my wedding dress. As a "try-out" project, I had her remake a much adored, but slightly dated, linen dress. It turned out better than I could have imagined.
Over the years, I also had her make a black performance outfit and
alter a number of items, and I always appreciated her honesty and
suggestions.

Anyway, just throwing out a local suggestion, if you want to at least get a consult with an experienced dressmaker.

Kathie, that's a great tip! Thank you. I would like to follow through with that Seattle tailor.

I've also ordered dark blue buttons for my blouse instead of black since my creative juices were flowing too

I am formally switching from Team Top to Team Tulle! The tulle would be easier to coordinate with the lace, and it would be swishy and lovely.

I am pretty sure that Kathie's link is the woman who helped me with my wedding dress-- she didn't make the whole thing but did a fiddly part that was beyond my skills and it worked out great. So, another vote of confidence there.

Jonesy, YAY! Thanks for the swishy love.

SarahD8 how fortuitous! I'm even more convinced that is the route to go.

You may be able to “ play” with some different amounts of added length re: the dress proportions, possibly with some inexpensive tulle or netting. Though the actual new fabric will play into it.

Angie, I don’t know if you have ordered buttons yet, but I just ordered some from Etsy. I’m knitting a baby sweater for a friend’s daughter. I went to my local store with no luck, and looked at Joann’s website. As you can see, these are very special.

Angie let us know what you decide! Good to the dress on you again as a reminder of the fit. I’m going to brain storm (with myself) the idea of an under slip for you xx

I remember when you got that dress! Was it on a birthday shopping trip with Greg? And he loved it so much? No wonder you don’t want to get rid of it. I vote a tulle slip for underneath. Please show us the end result. Good luck!

Lynette, excellent memory

JAileen, ADORABLE and very special. Let me know if you find Yorkie buttons.

Debs, thank you! Ideally a slip with navy tulle. I like this:

Smiling at the buttons. I think of you guys when I come across these social distancing signs.

I really like Runcarla's idea of adding a tier to the bottom that's a bit retro. And...wait for it, to really show off the lace, what about removing the original lining and going with a full, silk slip in CITRON?!

I agree that you'll really need to think about how much you want to sink into the project. I would have the tailor create the slip/addition etc. in muslin to get the fit right and see if you'll like it before you cut into a new expensive fabric.

Going with a contrasting color underneath could really change the feel of the dress and it could feel not only brand new, but you might wear it for different occasions (if that makes sense.)

Coming back to this, I think adding tulle to a slip wouldn’t be that hard. I think finding a navy slip might be hard. But navy tulle shouldn’t be hard to find.

Deb's has an "appron tulle"-wouldn't something like that (in a matching navy) working for your dress, too? Another way to lengthen could be cutting the dress shorter, somewhere on 2/3 of the length- and put between the parts the length you need form a completely another texture of the same navy color -say velvet, sequin, some textured tweed(bouclé) or even a thin faux leather (suede or plain)-Would look edgy with a bouclé or pleather, isn't it? Or you can even insert 2 (uneven) tiers of these between 2 tiers of the dress' lace.

Thanks for the ideas, everyone! You are a creative bunch

I don't want to cut into the lace, so I'm going to try the tulle route post vaccination. No rush, and all in good time.