The Niagara Dress

The Niagara dress was a couture design for our beautiful bride and model Nicole who was married just last weekend near Niagara Falls in Canada.

Nicole has the elegance and demure nature of Grace Kelly and after watching To Catch a Thief, it was the iconic sweeping chiffon gown designed by Edith Head that had to inspire this dress.
Constructed from a beautiful, finely textured silk chiffon with a hand draped pleated bodice and a scarlet red dramatic flare of colour.

Full length gowns are in the minority here at the studio but when I do design full length I'm always a little surprised how divine and goddess like they look and feel when complete. It's a fine balancing act of remaining elegant and almost regal with a gown design without tipping it over to be Disney ridiculous Princess or A-line average.
We got it just on with a little help from the great Ms. Head and beautiful Nicole.

Congratulations to Ed and Nicole! x

Katie and Her Forties Hollywood Dress - Part 4 The Wedding

The beautiful Coombe Lodge, Blagdon.

Katie set the scene with family photos from the Forties, ration books and collected clocks.

The fabulous vintage bus to transport the guests

Stepping out of the car, film star style.

The Forties bridesmaids. We made the dresses in crepe and piped the panel cut bodice with Liberty print cotton.

look at the amazing Forties styled guests in the background!

This is my favourite picture, she looks like a film star from the silver screen!

We made the fabulous mother of the bride a dress too, she looked incredible and so elegant.

Katie and me in my hat by Janine Basil and leopard shawl forties style.

Katie's name settings. Each table was named after a WW11 plane too.

The beautiful flowers by Eden florists in Winscombe, Somerset. Katie's wedding favours were champagne glasses you kept after toasting the couple.

Katie had a wrist loop added to the train which kept the dress elegant whilst dancing. I hate it when dresses are hitched at the back. No need for it!

Tea was served in vintage tea cups!

The swing dance teachers entertaining all the guests with a demonstration before we aere all taught to swing dance!

 Congratulations to Katie and Luke!

Here are the official photos from Katie's 1940's, wartime theme wedding which was full of Hollywood elegance. Katie worked really hard organizing everything for the day making sure it was just perfect. And Wow it really was perfect!

The day started with the fabulous old double-decker bus collecting the guests (all dressed in 1940s attire!) from the local hotel and transporting them to the beautiful Coombe Lodge in Blagdon which overlooks the lakes. This location was simply stunning.

Meanwhile I dressed Katie, and quickly got in the car to be ready for the ceremony which was held outside in the garden, it was such a beautiful day in late September.
Katie arrived in a wonderful vintage car in perfect silver screen style and after an anticipating pause, she walked around the corner towards her guests and the equally .
She took my breath away at this moment and I have never had to fight back the tears like it did just then, and I wasn't the only one. When you have put everything into a dress or a piece of work it becomes an emotional attachment and this really was quite overwhelming to see her look so beautiful in my dress.

After the gorgeous ceremony, the day proceeded with drinks, relaxing in the grounds of the house and then a wonderful dinner with toasts and thank yous. I even had a mention and a bouquet of beautiful flowers. Boy did I blush! The tables were decorated with tall vases of roses and pearls, the place names stamped with the crown that became the logo of Katie and Luke's wedding stationary. The wedding favours were champagne glasses that each guest kept after the toasting the couple. This was a great touch and the best wedding favours I have seen.
They also had postcards of thier own 1940s film poster printed for all the guests to write a message to the bride and groom.

The evenings entertainment was fantastic in the form of swing dance lessons and a swing band with a beautiful lead singer.

It really was a wonderful day and upon viewing Katie twirl around the room with the dance teacher I knew my work had been done.
I know this is a very mushy post but that's kind of how I feel about this dress, and the bridesmaids and the most fabulous mother of the bride you could dream of working with.

Dress, Bridesmaids and Mother of the Bride: Alexandra King (you know where I am)
Hair and make up : the amazing Beehive Brides, they do vintage hair and make up
Photography: Matthew Wiseman he did a wonderful job and he didn't get in the way one bit!
Flowers: Eden Florists, Winscombe, Somerset
Venue: Coombe Lodge, Blagdon

Katie and Her Forties Hollywood Dress - Part 1

This year is nowhere near over nor is my career (hopefully) but this dress is my dress of the year and the dress I am really most proud of. I love all my other dresses too but after nearly a year with this one it became very important to me.

I first had a call from Katie in September 2010  (OK, I just checked my emails it was actually June 2010, Sorry Katie! No wonder I am so clingy to this dress!) as she was looking for a Forties inspired wartime bridal gown to be made. I instantly jumped at this, anything with a vintage reference and theme makes me very inspired and Katie sounded like she had lots of wonderful ideas. We eventually met in September 2010 (this is right) and we had a chat about designs, Katie was excellent and had lots of inspiration pictures, and I sketched up a few rough ideas to start with.

Over the following months we decided on fabrics, Katie hunted down the perfect lace from the Cloth House , we tested toiles, and the dress along with the bridesmaids and the mother of the bride dresses developed. Katie came to visit her dress quite often and a real attachment grew on my part with this dress over the year. It really was becoming something very special. When it came to September the 30th  2011, watching my dress worn by Katie so beautifully walk down the aisle, It was like watching my child get married, I was so proud of this dress.  I was completely blown away and I still well up just thinking about it!

I spent every day with it in my studio over the last year and at times had to lock it away, It would make me cry, it hurt me but most of the time it made me so happy I would have to give it clap! Is it possible to have a relationship with a garment you make?

Anyway, enough with the emotions, here are are first stages of making the dress .....

The initial sketches and designs

Taking apart the toile, making the pattern and cutting the base fabric

The first bodice

Draping the lace skirt

Sewing the finest seams in the lace for the godets in the skirt

Stitching the seams of the lace

Placing the added lace motifs on the hem of the skirt

A little lace seam

stitching the lining of the bodice and ribbon waist stay in place

 I have a wonderful photo of my face whilst sewing the lining of the dress, it's not a pretty picture. These were some of the many stages that the dress went through as it became the final wedding gown. The best parts are the seams in the lace which were carefully hand stitched around each motif to give a seamless pattern to the hem. It's the little things like this that strangely make me very pleased.

Next to show you will be the corset which went under the dress in a matching cream silk .........