Her Wedding Dress Made From Husband's Parachute-- Part 6: About That Nightgown

For months, Gerald Bonsonto recovered in hospitals in France, England and Capri, Italy.

While in France, he asked a woman to make a nightgown for his bride out of parachute material;.  The long-sleeved, sashed gown even has a nickname, "Edith," embroidered across the top left side.

Aida said that Gerald told her the cost of the seamstresses' work was two packs of cigarettes.

It was a different time, Aida said, and even though she only wore the nightgown on her wedding day, she machine sewed the originally hand-stitched seams to add durability.  She has also hand-washed the gown over the years.

Back then, the parachutes, said Jerry Bonsonto Jr., "were thin and lightweight, designed to get the men down fast so they wouldn't be targets in the air."

Caroline Bonsonto said the parachute nightgown "looks delicate but it is sturdy as steel."

--GreGen