WHEN Grace Gray uncovered her wedding dress from the back of the wardrobe, she knew exactly what to do with her something old – turn it into something new.

The doting gran gifted her much-loved satin gown to her daughter Michelle, so she could have it made into a christening robe for her baby Pippa.

And the beautiful wee girl was all smiles on her special day in her hand-me-down, upcycled gown.

Michelle, 32, said: “I always loved my mum’s wedding dress and never imagined it would become my daughter’s christening dress, but I’m so glad it did.

“For Pippa to be christened in such a special family dress made the day all the more amazing.”

Grace, 54, wore the pearl-encrusted ivory dress when she married husband William, 73, in Clydebank 18 years ago.

Michelle helped her mum to pick the dress and was a bridesmaid at the wedding.

She said: “I was quite young when my mum married my stepdad and I remember going shopping with her when she picked the dress.

“It had lots of pearls and diamantes and I just loved all the sparkle. She looked so beautiful.”

After her wedding, Grace packed away her dress in a box and kept it at the back of her wardrobe.

Michelle, who is looking forward to her own wedding to partner Frazer Ward, 29, next year, said: “It has been there ever since but she came across it when she was clearing out.

“It was her idea to have it turned into a christening dress for Pippa.”

The family took the dress to Fabricated Bridal Alterations in Glasgow, where the seamstresses made not only the christening dress but a head band for Pippa and a matching hair clip for her sister Tilly, four.

Michelle, who also lives in Clydebank, added: “I did feel a little bit anxious at the thought of mum’s

dress being cut up but the end result was so beautiful.

“Mum had a tear in her eye when she saw it.”

Grace said: “I can’t think of any better use of my wedding dress than seeing it given to my

granddaughter for her christening.

“I felt really honoured to share in her big day in such a special way. I was overwhelmed by how beautiful she looked.”

Andrina Greig, of Fabricated Bridal Alterations, said there was a rising trend for women to put their wedding dresses to good use.

She added: “We’ve had more and more women getting their wedding dresses made into a christening gown for their children – but this is the first time we have had a grandmother’s dress brought in to be made into a christening gown.

“Michelle’s mum’s dress was perfect for the transformation.

“It was in great condition and the beading, bow and button details were ideal for scaling down and keeping as a feature on the christening dress. We were thrilled with how beautiful Pippa’s gown looked.”

read more:www.marieaustralia.com/formal-dresses-adelaide

www.marieaustralia.com/red-carpet-celebrity-dresses

The year ’s at the spring,
And day ’s at the morn;
Morning ’s at seven;
The hill-side ’s dew-pearl’d;
The lark ’s on the wing;
The snail ’s on the thorn;
God ’s in His heaven—
All ’s right with the world!

He sits quietly while she explains patiently
what it is that he really wants.
If only he'd listen, he'd not have the stress
of second guessing himself.

In his quiet, in the soft breeze
of her advice, he runs
through perfectly good past menu options
and again considers how their taste
had readily agreed with him.

He resolves and waits for her
to finish her salad,
and before dessert he explains
he needs to leave and walk the dog.

And once safe home,
old Pippa loves him for who he is
and he gratefully takes the lead,
while blocking one more number on his Nokia
and pocketing a mini mars bar for later.

Today a baby boy was born
The future heir to the British throne
Remember July 22nd was the date
Proud parents William & Kate
Every child born today will receive a Silver Penny
A collectors item, for so many
First we watched William & Kate marry
He has a really cool Uncle in Prince Harry
I bet he will show him some tricks
A bouncing baby boy 8lb 6,

A baby, a toddler, then into a little nipper
Look after him Auntie Pippa.
We will watch him grow up and ready to take his place
The news confirmed on the easel at Buckingham Palace
Well done to Kate Middleton
To us a Prince, to you a son.

Prince Charles is your Grandad
The Paparazzi will go mad
One day old and already on Twitter trending
Who will help, with the Royal winding
William & Kate must be so happy
One hopes One's been practicing changing a *****
Born in St Mary's, Lindo Wing
A child that will be our future King
Everyone is so happy for them
Born on a Monday 4.24pm
You're Great GrandMother is called Her Majesty the Queen
We'll watch him grow into a teen
For Prince Phillip four male generations
Now the country starts with the celebrations
The new addition to the Royal Family
The future of the British Monarchy
The Windsor family and the family of Middleton
A boy to bring them so much fun
Proud watching down over all times will be his Nanna
Brought up in the memory of  Princess Diana
The name now we have to all guess
For now we call him His Royal Highness
For the country this brings so much joy
A beautiful, bouncing Royal Baby Boy

I'm going to be reading Saturday, first reading in exactly four months. I would like you guys to help me pick what to read: send me your 3 favorite titles (a link or description if untitled). I will read the most poular, if not the two most popular (but not the one about my algebra class or dreams,  if you like a section of either  of those, send me the section number). And if you live close to Port Townsend, Washington and would like to hear me read, it's from 6-7 pm at Pippa's Real Tea, downtown Port Townsend. There are two other scheduled readers, both are pretty amazing, and then a half hour open mic.

I just heard about the near miss.
My mind was elsewhere.
Pleased to hear about Syria,
But it was elsewhere.
I didn't know Pippa had a wardrobe malfunction,
The loss of the Toronto Blue Jays,
The deformed frogs and west coast fires,
And the downing of a 747 somewhere in the Asiatic Sea.
Big news. Bigger problems!
But, like I said, my mind was elsewhere.
Like the ten million payout to the terrorist from Canada
Whose human rights were violated.
I didn't hear that one til today.
I just heard there's been a few transformations
For Caitlyn and Donald. Hope they like their new lives.
My mind was elsewhere,
And I've left it there.
Whew!
Did you hear something about North Korea launching ICBM's?

Dear, you.
It's been a while.
How are you?

I'm in Canada,
with Pippa.
A quiet life.

I still remember when we first met,
ah- the nostalgia
We were just kids in love.

And oh those memories,
the good and the bad,
they still haunt me every night.

You-
you,
you, are a regret.

I've ever so regretted you,
since the day I fell in love,
you are a regret i've always loved.

Remember our dance under the stars?
You were pretty in a dress,
and I was handsome in a tuxedo.

I keep thinking of you,
and everything that comes with you.
and it's hard to forget you.

Love,
Charlie.

Pipers pipe
Pippa pips
The royal servants
Skip, skip, skip!
The whole world
Shouts with glee
As this baby is born to thee.
Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge
His Royal Highness
They all say
But he is not more than
Two days!
Child of the world
He is
And he will be till his parish date
But first he must find a mate
And create another kid
To be loved by all of Earth
Oh, what a birth!
But, until then,
We will watch him grow into a young man
And bloom into an amazing king
Who shall spread his bright beam
Across the world's stage

Out in the real world they march around like angry ants

huddled masses each in their  lone planets, never seeing

eyes averted, grim faces, grimmer minds, quick steps

as if every one is searching for something lost in the wind

never seeing who's next to them, never knowing who's lost or

lonely



In the subway heads are buried in broadsheets or giveaways

voices hardly rise above whispers as papers rustles in turns

a cough there, a sneeze here, doors opening, doors shutting

only the voices of kids and teenagers peel in the carriages

A pregnant lady stands, no male got up and offered her his seat

the carriage is a sealed capsule going to space and all is plugged in



Come evenings and in slippers and comfy dressing gowns

life suddenly begins, computers fires up and every one

rushes into communities online, its facebook, its instangram

its twitter, its this and its that, virtual humanoids in virtual lands

the frustrated trolls dribbling spittle, mad eyes rolling, springs alive

their day has began as they take seats in their Office of Hate and

Insanity



Hello Pippa, , hello John, hello Blanko, and the chatters begins

stories are shared, pictures downloaded, gossips do the rounds

My wife did this, that person grows okra and **** tell of his
students

you could almost hear ices clinking in glasses as if all were at a
party

Troll 1 has that Posh successful lady, she serves at the cafe, in her
sight

Troll 2 is after the ex who told everybody he has a little floppy ****

Troll 3  has it in for the that flashy rich black footballer with the Bentley



Tomorrow they will all go out again, wearing blank faces marching like ants

eyes down turned, muted voices and heads buried in rustling papers

Some would sneeze and some one would clear their throat loadly

Pippa may be seated next to John but neither would know each other

Bobby cancells seeing mum later, he's got to finish that Minecraft battle

Eddie retired, sits all day surfing, waiting for all his friends to come online

Whilst Sammy has started virtual *** webcaming with that Chatrulette ******

Human lives go on. but its in the virtual world now, minus our humanity.

ink or coffee blotches - most certainly creases:
chicken scratching for hand gesticulating
weaving together letters...

is this some sine qua non when romancing /
breaking into an effort:

name man, any man: as gallop -
           or tire calling him: frivolously extending
the whips of Xerxes -
some lesser creature would cost less
to hinder - ordeals of turtles and of rocks -
creatures of disproportionate sizing
with beards that attained
                              an eye's focus for waterfalls...

om - which ended as an omlette -
                          or aum -
                        and no (indefinite),
    not (definite) - aubergine -
   at best outlandish -
   for all this prepositional
   and conjunctional juggling:
  as if this, already wasn't...
               a joke of imitating convo.

                   - not by candlelight -
or by the itching glare of electric insomnia,
as bothersome as: the horizon and
London, just "there" might be...
              
    fiat voluntas tua!                (albeit...)
                                         sub rosa...

                                  as ever: what's new
or could possibly be?

                       - a question that does not desire
an answer: but what to observe?
    throw as much latin into the cauldron...
  heap upon heap of it...
latin like butter, red kidney and / or cannellini
beans all bloated -
       in a sauce thickened by
potatoes...

                     better than latin then...
a live tongue - a slimy fish of a tongue -
   so zazzi - some singing zing -
                  some amore lazio...
                       some pippa: bara-bing
para-bling...
                        and the pope's p'oo'ooh oops:
poops and not the chimera: pops!

  lingo moderno - linguaggio
  moderna lingo - bagaggio -
  dodging: gergo...

nove mesi a la puzza:
                             poi er tormento de la scola,
la cacca a la ssediola...
     er governo, lo spedale, li debbiti, la fica...

ciliegie e uva
          rafano e sedano rapa...
mare e cielo
              marrone di tutto:
                           soprattutto cazzo...            

zoom-zoom zours: russhin'o cap'oh
snare:                    pi-ц-a                  oh: eee...  

somehow i can only add:
thank god this isn't music...
           i bid - as much fun frustrations as:
i came to have...
mit herr watt - or rather:
                      mit watt und herr knott.

You know the Five Stages Of Grief?

It's like that.

Stage one, Bargaining.
I told him I'd do anything, absolutely anything to keep him in my life.
I pleaded, I begged. I was ready to drop anything and everything for him.
Just for him.
All for him.

Always.

for.

him.

He was worth my entire life.
At the drop of a hat.

Or a noose.

Then came the Grief. I was... Incomparably sad.
My life fell apart, I felt nothing but pain.
Felt like my guts were being torn out, and spilled at his feet.

Choking on tar

my mind was never quiet.
It was all my fault, If I'd been better I'd still be his.
It hurt.
So much.
  So
       So
            Much.

Then Anger.
It was his loss, I was SICK AND ******* TIRED OF BEING ******* OVER BY HIM! I deserved BETTER than that ******* and whatever PITIFUL MEANINGLESS FLING our two years HAD BEEN.
I'd burn every precious **** thing he'd given me.
He'd filled my life with bits of him... Art, poetry, clothes. Built me palaces of paragraphs.
I'd tear it all out of me as if it was a tumour.
A desise.
Discusted by the thought I'd ever affiliated myself with his filth.. Inch by toxic inch I'd tear him away. Dig in my nails and press hard Hard HARD with the point of my razor.

Then I crashed.
The fourth stage, Depression kicked in.

Nothing had meaning,

my anger had evaporated, without it I was the shell of the person I used to be.
Empty
Cold.
Dull.
His City lay,
all burned out,
no longer aflame,
my highway overpasses crumbling and scarred with decay.

My dark glassy eyes now dry, no more rain soaked asphalt.

No more laughter or dancing.

No more cheap laminate countertops.
and he was gone.

And he was gone.
And
     He
            Was      
                        G O N E.

Like watercolour dripping off a canvas.

Nothing i could do. I had no purpose anymore.
My life was cold and grey without him lighting it up, painting cave walls with his love.
My perfect, perfect boy.
He'd gone forever.
I slept and slept and slept. To try and stave off the emptiness. The hollowness he'd left inside of me.
To pass the seconds ticking by without him. It didn't hurt, I was just... in my heart there was emptiness. Grey and blank and hard as cold concrete. All the bright chalk mandalas washed away.
Now the last step.
Acceptance.
Acceptance.
Acceptance.
I'm working on it.
I can live without him. He's not my one and only perfect thing. I wasn't blinded by love. I was idealistic. Hopeful and nieve, praying and begging to anything that could mean hope, that he wouldn't leave.
Now I realise You are, Tom. Toby and and Emma are.
Pippa and Frankie and Willow and Jack and Chris.
Molly and Emily and... Me.

Every beautiful person in my life.

I know none of you would leave me.

Not like he did.

The song. Our song.


Honeybee

It feels like acceptance to me too.
I know it's dumb, it's just a song, but it came on shuffle last night and I think it triggered this.
I'm far from okay,
but I'm closer than I've been before. ****, I've got trust issues, I feel like I can't ever let anyone that close again.

I'm terrified of vulnerability.
But that's what you're here for.
You guys are gonna help me out the other side.



Thank you so much for that.



"Hello Goodbye, Twas nice to know you
How I find myself without you
That I'll never know
I let myself go
Hello Goodbye, I'm rather crazy
And I never thought I was crazy
But what do I know?
Now you have to go"

You set me free.










I
Forgive
You.


Even if you hate me.
Even if it should be the other way round, and you can't. Won't.
I loved us.
And I'm sorry.
🖤