Katie and her Forties Hollywood Dress - Part 3 The Dress

The dress awaiting its debut.

The back trimmed with a concealed zip and 36 matching covered buttons.

The bodice, the neckline is cut around the lace pattern and to make sure the bodice was symmetrical, one shoulder has an appliqued motif cut so that it matches. The lace at the waist and hips has also been cut and hand appliqued in place. The puff shoulders are structured with tulle ruffles inside.

The back of the skirt. The top layer was to sit separately from the under dress so that it moved freely, little tacks kept it from going adrift.

The lace applique over the back of the skirt to make the pattern.

A close up of the lace applique. Each motif had to be carefully hand cut from the border of the lace and hand stitched into the pattern.

Using the lace we made a cord and then looped this into the button loops to fasten the back.

The sleeves, French seamed and trimmed with matching covered buttons. Edged in lace appliqued to the cuff.

The soft tulle underskirts edged in satin

 The final dress, the mannequin and my photo taking skills really don't really do it justice.

I know you may be thinking the bodice is a little reminiscent of another bridal gown this year? There was quite a bit of debate about this neckline, I was dreading it and my initial thoughts were NO NO NO, NOOOOOOO! As you can see the initial design had a high neckline, no V but we hadn't set anything in stone and we wanted to see how the dress developed.
I really didn't want to do anything that even vaguely looked like the KM dress. Not that I don't like it, it's the most stunning example of couture and craftsmanship that anyone will see but knowing this, my feelings were that anything that looks like it will be a cheap copy. Plus it's someone else's dress!

So, could I really say to Katie 'no you can't have your wedding dress how you want it' and cause stress over the shape of a V? Well no, the Royal family can't have the monopoly on V necklines. Katie's was inspired by the 1940s which the whole wedding revolved around, a wonderful Wartime theme and whatdaya know, they had V necklines in the 1940s too!

The cut of the dress with the hourglass fit, soft tea colour and Katie's incredible look with Forties red hair and lipstick, there was no way this was going to look anything cheap or copy like. Sometimes you have to trust a bride too, they are ones who are going to make the dress come to life. And she looked stunning, and by far the best Katie to me!

Here it comes to life, more photos from the incredible wedding tomorrow ........................................

A sneek peek at Katie in her dress - photograph by Matthew Wiseman

A little note on wedding dress buying ......

For me, it's a really great way of working when you have lots of interaction from a bride, I know some people may think it's annoying but really it's like you have an extra helping hand, and being involved in the design of your dress makes sure you get it how YOU want it. I generally will only say no to something if I think it will look bad or won't work, or obviously if it's copying.  Having a good relationship with the person supplying your dress is quite important and you can trust them to be honest with you too. 


So when getting a dress made or even buying a dress from a boutique it's important that you think about it, ask millions of questions if you really need to and speak out if you are not completely happy about something. If you are getting overwhelmed (I sure did) just walk away and take a break from wedding dresses until you clear your head a little. I know some of us know exactly what we want and others haven't the foggiest, and that's ok.
A good supplier or designer will be wanting you to be reassured, for you to trust them and for you have the most amazing day in your perfect dress. Don't ever feel like you're being a pain.  ( please don't ever be rude though, you may have your dress sliced in half! :) )

Katie and her forties Hollywood Dress - Part 2 - The corset

my numbered pattern so I don't forget the order of the pieces, they all look very similar

the base of the corset

the fine chanels need to be cut on the bias in strips

the all important strengthening stitches

the spiral steel boning

the pressed bia channels ready to be sewn to the corset base

the corset before the hem is sniped shorter so that Katie could sit down easily

the corset placed over the toile of the bodice to check the neckline positioning

the final corset with it's tweaks

the lower cut back, always fasten a corset in the centre

Katie really wanted some added 'hug' to her dress and to enhance that Hollywood hourglass silhouette we decided that instead of a strapless bra or basque we would make a corset. The curve in the back of the dress and the strapless design along with needing some secure support meant a custom corset was going to be the best option.
I was really lucky to be taught corsetry at University by an excellent pattern cutting lecturer Lee Hollahan who worked on Kate Winslet's 'Titantic' corset and the corsets for Back to the Future Part 3 to name but a few. Sorry this is a little name dropping and tenuous linking to my corset here!

This gave me some great foundation skills to make the all important bridal corset. This one went through quite a few changes being nipped and tucked as inevitably our model changed shape on the run up to the wedding. As this was to be worn all day it needed to be comfortable and most importantly light even with the steel boning.
I used a single layer of silk taffeta which is beautifully light and strong. Sometimes corsets are made with two to three layers for strength but I really didn't want to add any bulk or for it to be seen underneath the dress, so the decorative stitching you see isn't just fancy its adding re-enforcements.
The low back (corsets usually have quite high backs to give all round uplift) and maintaining support at the front was something that kept me up at night trying to figure out but we got there in the end and I love the fifties shape it has.  Bra designers are really the best engineers in the world to keeping us perky and bare backed, they are quite amazing!

The corset had extra narrow fine boning with is spirals so that it curves with your body and was then trimmed in lace at the hem and top to give a very soft edge that wouldn't show through the dress.
I really need a corset dummy as these standard ones can't have their waists cinched with their super tough tummies! 

Swanson the star dress of the show

The super beautiful Claudia played by Nicole Kidman in Nine if you like Moulin Rouge and beautiful vintage women you will love this. Also check out 8 1/2 for good measure along with La Dolce Vita

The incredible Gloria Swanson in Sunset Boulevard

Here is the 'Swanson' dress again named from the cast list of Sunset Boulevard, this the star Gloria Swanson.
This dress is designed to be the show stopper with influences coming from the red carpet, old Dior and Nicole Kidman in Nine. I watched it over and over and over again just to see the dress and the lines were just mesmerizingly elegant.
The dress she wears has a very pointed bust and I wanted to keep this line on my 'Swanson' dress but the mini Madonna points weren't going to work quite as well off screen. This is where the pleats and folds came in creating strong lines with similar angles.
The dress is cut on the bias at the skirt giving hourglass silhouette and flares at the hem to give a statuesque appearance.
I chose to put a bow at the back (I know the 80s cliche bum bow!) but this is with the 1950s in mind, used to add shape to the back and wraps around the waist beautifully making the dress that little more sultry.
Available made to order here in our online shop.

As always ask if you have any queries, I'm always happy to hear from people. 

Also this week we opened a shop at Wedzu which is full of amazing handmade wedding items. Just like Etsy but for weddings and super awesome. They check out all the sellers before they can open a shop so there's no nonsense there.  And I have made some gorgeous dresses for races and weddings which I will update next week. One particularly lovely Audrey-esque navy blue and white lace dress.

Creating a Wedding Dress

I usually work on bespoke dresses where the bride has a very individual idea and then I design her dress specifically for her, instead of picking from a collection of set dresses. I now have quite a few designs I've been dying to create so it's time to release my own collection which should be ready early next year.    

This dress was a first sample trial run so I thought I would share the process of creating a wedding gown from start to finish.  I haven't included everything as we would be here forever!

We start with a basic block for the bodice to make the foundation of the dress and make a muslin toile to make sure the bodice design will work and fit correctly. We next cut out the foundation bodice in the silk once the pattern has been cut correctly.

Next the foundation bodice is made up and then boning is inserted where needed whilst checking the fit all round.

The next stage is to build the lining of the bodice, this is the inside of the dress pictured down to the hips and again it's checking the fit and how it lies with the foundation bodice. 

This dress has so many full circles for the base lining, the lining and the tulle skirt which is made up of metres and metres and metres of full circles, all layered and draped to create the full skirt. 

The best way to cut a full circle is with a tape measure and a pin, measuring the same distance all around to make a perfect circle.

The the base lining is attached in silk and I start to build up the layers of the skirt carefully hand stitching each piece in place and checking the fall all the way around. 

I always check the dress in the mirror as I'm working, it's something I picked up from art lessons at school and I think it gives you a new perspective so you can see if anythings not quite right. It's definitely needed after working on the same dress for 10 hours a day!

(please excuse my messy studio, I'm a hoarder!)

Then the bodice is draped onto the foundation in stages constantly adjusting the folds in this particular design until I've got then just in the right place and then hand stitching in place.  Then it's time for the finishing touches in the way of details, sashes, beading, etc. The total time amounts to over fifty hours but the finished piece is always worth it.

The most exciting part is being able to walk into my studio the morning after I've finished the dress to see the design I sketched weeks or months before in real life. xxx