Bridal

I'm sure many of you have watched with a box of tissues in hand, the incredible ceremony that was the marriage of two soulmates Constance & Denim. Their love and admiration for each other, their free lives and their two beautiful families becoming one is a recipe for a tear jerker.

I was first introduced to Con last year when she emailed me in a desperate hunt for a wedding dress that was different. She needed a dress that complimented her personality, her style and her body shape. But to top it off she just loved the IXIAH brand, the use of feathers and shells, the embellishments and accessories it was all just so ... "her". So with an abundance of compliments, I agreed to meet with her and start discussing designs and ideas to create this masterpiece.

Our first meeting was to measure Con and discuss ideas and concepts. I just remember the entire table of girls almost falling over themselves with laughter as Con cracked jokes about how she 'doesn't' want to look on her special day. All about her best and worst body parts. Con made it clear she wanted feathers, to show her ‘pins’ & how she loved shell embellishment & possibly wanted a beaded harness/accessory. She also loved the idea of a corset that drew her body in and shaped her. She then mentioned the wedding was only a few months away and that she was pregnant and will be 4 months by the wedding so we had created something incredible yet possibly adjustable for her growing and glowing body. This was a challenge due to the tight timeline and her changing body.

So with all of this, my ideas were starting to come to life and I spent the next few weeks creating different design ideas for what I thought would work for her. I drew and presented these ideas to Constance and had her measurements finalised.

Once she chose her final idea we were able to proceed. I had my incredible pattern maker create an initial pattern and toile for our first fitting...

It was then that the dress really began to take shape and form. I added feathers and organised the beading placements. We decided to dye the tulle to match the metallic finish on the corset. We had the dress made into a top and skirt, all for ease of adjustability. The corset could lace up at the back for ease of her growing belly and shape her and we designed a skirt made with layers of tulle that would be sheer and show Cons legs, while also wrapping under her belly for an easy and comfortable fit. We then added feathers to cover her underwear line and shape her belly - something she didn't want to hide but embrace.

Once this fit was perfected it was time to create the final dress.

While the dress was being made, I begin my work on the embellishments and accessories. Beading is the longest process but absolutely my favourite part of the process. It is a time where I sit with all my beads and create a huge number of formations until something works. This can take hours or days, it really depends on the style and the design. With Con's dress, it came together within a few days. I went for copper bright beads to compliment the champagne colours in her dress. I contrasted these with shells, wooden beads and an iridescent diamonte bead that added just the right amount of sparkle. I also made a neckpiece/choker as a harness would have been too much for this style. I knew at this point it was going to be incredible.

“To me, Con is one of those strong bold women who say how they feel and if you don't like it then she actually couldn’t give a damn. Being outspoken and true to yourself is so important. I admire this girl and can see why so many others do too. 
She deserves all the happiness she has ultimately found.”