Clothes From My Past

I remember when I was a little girl my Mom had this dress in her closet. I think it belonged to my Grandmother but my Mom is gone now and I can't ask here again but that is what I remember.
I always loved this dress and whenever I came across it going through her closet I would run my hands over the fabric and think about how pretty my Grandmother must have looked in it. I never met my Mom's Mom because she passed away of breast cancer when my Mom was 8 months pregnant with me.
When my Mom passed away 5 years ago I had to clean out her apartment and I found the dress in a box and put it in with my things to take home.
It sat in a box at my house for awhile until one day I decided to dig it out and try to wash it.
It was silk so I was nervous and it had probably been made in the 50's. It had no label so it seemed to be handmade from a pattern. It had gone very dingy and yellowed but I had hope.
I washed it by hand in a mild detergent taking care not to harm it. My heart sank when I put it in the water and it seemed to shrink before my eyes but I trodded on.
I washed and rinsed and hung it to dry and the next day it was so wrinkled I hardly recognized it except for the pattern. I wondered if ironing it would do any good at all.
I think I spent an hour and a half if not more ironing that dress that day so that every wrinkle was gone and every seam pressed to perfection.
There were a few areas that needed a stitch or two and as I went on I realized this dress was looking pretty darn good. So here it is, that dress from the 50's, washed and pressed with love and the added bonus was that it actually fit me. Who would have thought?