Antique Rose Pink Chiffon Wedding Dress

When Joelle found me, she wrote me a really romantic email introducing herself, and all the things that were important to her in her life, relationship and for her wedding dress design.
A wonderful family heritage from Persia and Italy, designer fashion influences from friends and her dear mother, and special memories with her partner Davide, who are both musicians and perform worldwide in amazing venues meant that she had a wealth of inspirations to draw from.

Joelle and Davide’s wedding was to be in Rome, overlooking St. Peter’s Basillica. Joelles inspirations were full of rich and subtle colour, so chose a dusky rose pink french chiffon as the base colour, and overlaid with ivory Chantilly lace for a hint of a traditional feel. The central skirt panel was pleated by Ciment Pleaters in North London, reminiscent of designs by Fortuny worn by her mother. And a smooth chiffon wrapped like an over-skirt and pleated to a slim fit around the hips and speckled with lace, falling away from the center like a cascade, embroidered with a deep Chantilly lace edging, and beaded with antiqued gold beads, reminiscent of lichen which Joelle loved the colour and texture of. This over-skirt was cut long to form the train over the silk satin of the dress lining layers.

Joelle uses a wheelchair for the majority of the time, and while this isn’t an influence on her personality or her overall design choices, there were a few practical things to think about for the fitting sessions and wear-ability of the dress.
Practically; a chair was always on standby during fittings, I help all my brides dress (so no difference there really), and we took extra long fitting sessions to make sure we we not rushed or stressed.
For the design considerations, Joelle wanted to walk down the aisle with the aid of her father and a cane, so the dress hem and the front floated just above the shoe so there was no trip hazard. Joelle also wanted a train, but we had to be practical about the length that it didn’t cause a tangle hazard in the wheels when she was sitting.
Joelle was also conscious that when you are seated, a person can sometimes become swamped by their outfit, so while we wanted a luxurious effect of folds of chiffon fabric, we had to use just the right amount to appear refined, delicate and beautiful, (without appearing to be mean and frugal too).
Any form of structure was best avoided too, even though the boning I use is predominently flexible and lightweight, sitting for extended periods is not ideal. So we worked on the fitting being very slim and supportive without anything rigid to cause potential discomfort.

Joelle found me via a post I made of a silk dupion flower which she loved and decided to get in touch for me to make her wedding dress. While the silk flowers didn’t have a place on the dress, I just had to make some silk flowers for her hair.

I’m now good friends with charming Joelle, and we like to catch a cake and champagne date when we can!