Heirloom wedding dress revival
RESTORE A CLASSIC HEIRLOOM
Sometimes, an old wedding dress is so stylish it simply never went out of fashion. If you have one of these in your family, then you have the opportunity of wearing it and allowing future generations to wear it after you, virtually unchanged. My real bride Tash Lee contacted me about her grandmother’s 1950s dress with the request to make the neckline ‘a bit more Duchess of Cambridge’, as HRH Princess of Wales was at the time. When I saw the delicate lace dress, I realised it mostly just needed a little TLC to repair some holes and broken boning on the bodice, and slight amendments to create the desired royal neckline.
Images of Tash on her wedding day are by Dan Higginson.
WATCH THE VIDEO OF THIS HEIRLOOM WEDDING DRESS REVIVAL:
The simple construction and fabric of the dress appeared fragile compared to the more robust fabrics and layering of our modern manufacturing standards. With a light touch and subtle reinforcement, I could help Tash bring the dress back to life. One challenge with this dress was the length. As for HRH Princess Beatrice, who wore a dress for her wedding borrowed from Her Majesty Elizabeth II, her grandmother, from the same era asTash, there was a need to lengthen the hem.
For Tash, we added a lace trim that complimented the dress. For Princess Beatrice, under the direction of Miss Angela Kelly, Personal Advisor, Dresser and Curator to Queen Elizabeth II, designer Stewart Parvin restyled and refitted the Norman Hartnell gown by adding a smooth silk band to ensure the length was perfect for the Princess. Stewart has encouragement for all of us when it comes to wearing special items, rather than keeping them hidden. He says,
‘Never keep anything for best, best never comes, best is every day.’
If your heirloom dress is too short, rest assured there are numerous ways of rectifying this, although you may decide to embrace the shorter 1950s aesthetic and keep it as it is.
You’ll find more about this in my book which you can buy HERE. It makes a perfect gift for a bride-to-be, or as a Christmas gift for anyone who loves sewing, upcycling and wedding dresses. Use discount code SURREY at checkout to get the book for £39.50 instead of the £55 RRP and receive free P&P.
