"I Do" dress shopping

I found my dress in 2011. In the winter edition of Where Women Create. At the time I remember thinking, "that's the dress!" and then quickly putt it out of my mind. The dress in question was used to display jewelry in a cute little boutique/ studio and... it was made of curtains. Very cute curtains, but curtains! Honestly I had never really planned my wedding when I was a little girl, it really never crossed my mind too either. So when my fiance (then boyfriend) asked me not to plan it or even think about it I was more than happy to oblige. In fact it wasn't until the engagement was official that I remembered the curtain dress from four years ago.

Yes that's the dress.

 

and those are the matching curtains.

But hey, when you find "the dress" does it matter what its made out of? Needless to say there wasn't anyway I was going to have an easy time getting my hands on this dress. So I decided to head to Davids Bridal with my bridesmaid Katie. 

After trying on a few dresses I couldn't rate any of the higher tan an 8 with my lowest being a 6. I couldn't get  the curtains out of my head. So I played around with the d=idea of buying a simple dress and adding the tulle and vines. Too bad there weren't any dresses I really liked the bodice of either... So to the fabric store?!?

Since I made the decision to sew my own dress many a cutting assistant has gasped at my answer to "What are you making?". Apparently, wedding dress wasn't the expected answer, despite the rather pale yardage being cut. But hey, I didn't go to two years of school for costume design only to change my major the next summer for nothing! Furthermore, Katie all but has her costume design degree and between the two of us we have made enough sturdy Victorian gowns to fill a London socialites closet for at least a full year! Surely a modern and fairly simple ballgown shoudn't give us too much trouble, even if it is white. 

Well, whiteish...

Can the groom see the dress if its on the bolt? how about a muslin mock-up?