Magical Silver Asylum Wedding
I've been waiting for years to have a Wilden Bride grace the aisle of The Asylum in Peckham, and this was the year!
The Asylum venue is a Victorian Chapel, partly in ruins; Stained glass windows beautifully in tact, murals fading but still vibrant, and some parts of the wall crumbling. This venue demands something different for the bride, something totally out of the ordinary, and Penny totally got that!
This wedding is technically an elopement (in the sense that it's a wedding far from home, and not because is was hurried or runaway - I think that might be wedding media world changing the meaning of the world for the sake of click-bait there! - oops!!). Penny is from Newcastle, and lives in Birmingham, but loves London, so decided to host her wedding here!
From the very first moment, Penny had a clear idea of what she wanted her dress to look like.
I started the toile, focusing on the fit of the corset bodice first, and the underskirt. The cage was initially made from strip of cardboard to gauge the size and the shape. (The final cage is made from steel, which had a mind of its own when not secured so it's be too dangerous to have it waving about!!).
The fabric, we needed to be slightly sheer, and grey. Satin Organza Gazaar was the only option, and only available in White, so Penny had the luxury of choosing the exact shade of grey which was dyed by Nicola Killeen Textiles in London.
The Print was designed just for Penny too, with the effect in mind that there should be tumbling and tangled vines, with brambles and blackberries and flowers in clusters. Penny really loved the look of lace too, so the floral details are inspired by lace designs.
The Printed fabric was pleated over the cage, and wrapped around the bodice on the bias grain to give the illusion that the bodice was moulded around the body with no seams. Just a few cuts and tucks along the edges of the print allowed for a neater wrap.
After the fabric was stitched into place, every vine was embroidered with tiny silver glass beads, and crystals in teardrop, navette and circular shapes were clustered for maximum twinkling effect.
Penny's veil was made in a mantilla style with white and metallic silver lace falling either side with a few speckled crystals too.
The first dance was inspired by the finale from La La Land, lots of spins and drops! Eeek! Near impossible in this caged skirt!! So I made the dress as a two piece so it could be changed. I found a silk crepe satin in a platinum silver that near matched the silver of the bodice to make a reversible circular skirt (Ivory crepe satin on the reverse side.), that was much more suitable for dancing in!
The shoes were a last minute customisation. Penny already had her Silver suede shoes, but I'd seen an idea on Twitter where two little mouse ears were stitched on the back heel. Penny loves Disney and makes a yearly pilgrimage to Disneyland Paris, so I thought it might make the perfect touch without being to "themed".
Penny and Paul's wedding photographs are by Three Flowers Photography click the link to see more stunning images!!
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