Dress and Jacket for Karen

Cocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott

Karen wanted to look glamorous and sophisticated for her daughter’s wedding day and to show off her new figure, having worked hard?to lose weight.

Her dress and jacket were both made of cafe coloured silk dupion and lined in pale pink satin which was designed to show?in places. The dress had a shaped v-neckline with looped ruching detail over the bust and ruching all down the slim fitting dress.?The skirt flared from mid thigh into a fishtail shape and the pink satin lining was cut longer to peek out of the hem. Chiffon?sleeves, cut full to the elbow and closing with tiny cover button details finished the dress.

The jacket was a simple cut away bolero from the front but graduated in length around to the back where a peplum??detail gave Karen’s outfit more glamour, also revealing more of the lining to echo the skirt.??The long sleeves and peplum back were both finished with cover buttons.

Cocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott

Cocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott

Cocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott: design sketch

Karen had so many ideas about elements she might want included in her dress that we went through several design stages. The final?design, as made, was never actually drawn. It used details from both of the ideas above and combined them to create her perfect dress.

Cocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott: design sketch

In a similar way to the dress, her jacket was gradually simplified and perfected in the design process to perfectly compliment

Making Karen’s dress

Cocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott: toile fittingCocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott: fitting pictureCocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott: fitting pictureCocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott: finished, on the stand

Just as the designs were modified before we began the dress was still changing right up to the last fitting and Karen?changed her mind about the finish at the back of the dress. Originally the dress was to have a silk cowl hanging around a neckline, with an optional chiffon modesty panel which could be poppa-ed in or out depending on the occasion. But after?one fitting Karen decided that simplicity was the key and so the cowl was also made removable, to be poppa-ed back in at the?shoulder if she ever wanted to wear it.

Cocoa and pink silk ruched dress and peplum jacket by Felicity Westmacott: final fitting

Felicity Westmacott

I write about all aspects of weddings, dressmaking, fashion history, and the human relation to clothing. I welcome comments and debate.

Recent Portfolio entries

Read More
follow me on instagram@felicitywestmacott

⁠When Iram saw the ⁠custom Asian fusion wedding trousers and top that I had made for a bridal shoot, she decided she had to have them for her own London wedding – and I don’t blame her! This outfit looks perfect on her.⁠ It's the ideal look for a chic, modern, summer wedding.

The ‘Evie’ separates comprise of a beautiful wedding top and trouser set with beaded waistband for a bride who is not afraid to make a statement. And Iram was definitely not afraid! She exudes chilled, modern bride energy in this cool and comfortable combo. 

If you love this custom Asian fusion wedding trousers, you can find the Evie bridal separates on my Etsy 💜

Photography @saidigitaluk
Since 1753, when the Marriage Act first came into existence, UK marriage law has come a long way. Some things have taken much longer than they should have (I'm looking at you, 1991 and 2013, 2023). But there's still more than can be done. The association of @independentcelebrants is campaigning for the UK government to follow the recommendations of the 2022 wedding law reform report.

"At least 10,000 wedding ceremonies a year in England and Wales are led by independent celebrants. These ceremonies are perfectly legal to hold, but as it stands a celebrant cannot perform a legally binding marriage – that part must be done separately, meaning added inconvenience and cost for couples."

I'm all about supporting couples to have the wedding day of their dream, and that rarely includes having to find time and money to go to the registry office.

If you want to help with this, then you can spread awareness! Share this post, or make your own. Talk about it with friends and family. And once you've done that, you can always get in touch with your local MP. The Independent Celebrants website has a PDF guide to help you with how to go about doing that.

Is this an issue you're aware of? Is there anything I've missed out?

#ChangeWeddingLaw #SpeakUpForCelebrants #LegaliseCelebrantWeddings
I created this Regency-inspired wedding dress for a Bridgerton themed wedding shoot. I used modern fabrics like tulle, beaded lace and shantung, but with period accurate details like the empire line waist, square neckline and boned stays (corset). ⁠
⁠
I love to work with versality when it comes to my creations, so the dress was designed with multiple layers; the main dress has an embroidered tulle bodice and asymmetric beaded lace skirt. A lilac and pink dip-dyed tulle skirt can be added over the floral train of the main dress for some dreamy ombre magic. A lilac silk dupion 'spencer jacket' with hand appliqued beaded lace completes the ensemble. ⁠

 All these options make it possible to have lots of different looks throughout your wedding day. ⁠

Which Bridgerton character can you imagine wearing this outfit?

~
#regencyweddingdress #bridgerton #historicalweddingdress #periodwedding #colouredweddingdress #dipdyeweddingdress #surreydressmaker #londondressmaker #vintagebride #romanticbride #weddingveil #purpleweddingdress #bespokeweddingdress #fantasyballgown
Now and again I'll take one of the wedding dresses I've made, and break down some of the elements. So, if there's something you love about a dress, but you don't know the 'proper words' to reference them, hopefully this will help you out.⁠
⁠
This beautiful 1950’s style wedding dress with delicate cream lace over golden-orange silk has lots of really scrummy details:⁠
⁠
🧡 the opening at the back of the dress is called a keyhole (or you could call this a slit opening). This one is closed at the top with three covered buttons.⁠
⁠
🧡 the base dress is made of a beautiful russet orange silk dupion, with dark ivory lace layered on top.⁠
⁠
🧡 the base dress is essentially a halter neck, with a turn over collar at the front, with the ivory layer providing semi-sheer, full length sleeves.⁠
⁠
🧡 the edges of the ivory layer are cut along the floral pattern of the lace, making a pretty scalloped edge.⁠
⁠
🧡 this length of skirt is called 'ballet' or 'ballerina'.⁠
⁠
🧡 the front of the dress has a line of false buttons (buttons that are just there for decoration), that match the buttons at the back.⁠
⁠
Those are just some of the details of this dress. If you have any questions about anything else, just leave a comment. I could talk dress making all day!⁠
emailme@felicitywestmacott.co.ukTEL 07762 543230TOUCHGet in
from design to completionbespoke wedding dressesFelicity Westmacott
Dorking, RH4 1RT241 High Street• Visit the Studio •
Dorking, RH4 1RT241 High Street• Visit the Studio •
emailme@felicitywestmacott.co.ukTEL 07762 543230TOUCHGet in