Ivory silk mikado wedding coat

wedding coat silk mikado ivory


Catherine got married at Guildford Cathedral in December so her silk mikado wedding coat and dress ensemble worked perfectly for the weather and spectacular venue.

Official photography by taylormadeimagery

I design a simple and elegant long wedding coat in ivory silk Mikado with slight lip and plunge v-neckline and criss-cross ribbon waist detail. The long sleeves with bell cuffs had real button and loop detail. The train flared with three box pleats and a back belt and cover buttons to finish.

Her dress beneath was just floor length all round and made in layered soft satin and georgette for the plain circle skirt. The boned bodice was duchess satin with a guipure lace over-lay. It had a square neckline and three quarter length sleeves with flared cuffs to finish. A pleated satin sash drew attention to Catherine’s shapely waistline and was ornamented with a real antique gold and pearl brooch and extra hand sewn pearls. The back closed with real buttons and loops. I also helped to restore her mother’s vintage veil and made dresses and bolero’s for her attendants.

modest wedding dress custom made

Catherine with her beautiful flowers all ready to go

windy wedding day on the steps
veils in the wind royal style wedding coat

It was a little windy on their arrival to the Cathedral but every effort was taken to get Catherine safely inside with her veil still attached

before the ceremony bridal long coat
walking up the cathedral aisle wedding coat
bridal veil in a church traditions

Nicola helping Catherine with the big ‘reveal’. Having a plan for who will raise the ‘blusher’ of your veil, and perhaps a practice is always a good idea!

long sleeve wedding dress
plus size bridesmaid dress navy blue silk

Nicola was a perfect bridesmaid, supporting Catherine through the service and always helpful at dress fittings! To see more pictures of her dress and the little bridesmaids click here.

Original design sketches

In the end the sash tails were left off the dress sash and the knot changed for the antique brooch detail.

wedding portrait in a cathedral flowergirls
square neck wedding dress with guipure lace

Later in the day Catherine removed the silk mikado wedding coat to reveal the pretty dress.

made to measure wedding gown silk and lace
cutting the cake plus size bride wedding dress
plus size wedding bride dress sash square neck

We used a beautiful antique pearl and gold brooch on the sash as a pretty detail and also Catherine’s ‘something old’. I added more pearls around it so it did not look too small on the wide sash.

couture detail brooch wedding dress sash
rouleau buttons and loops wedding dress

Back detail: the button and loop closure

Making Catherine’s Dress and Ivory silk mikado wedding coat

toile fitting picture bespoke dressmaker

A fitting picture in the ‘toile’ or practice run of the dress

wedding coat toile fitting picture

A fitting picture in the ‘toile’ or practice run of the coat

fitting picture bespoke dress and coat wedding

The partly made dress and coat.

fitting picture made to measure bridal gown

A final fitting picture in the finished dress.

pleated sash and sleeve detail pearl

Detail of the finished dress with pleated sash, antique brooch and lace applique detail on the sleeves

guipure lace flower bridal gown

Detail of the lace on Catherine’s dress with ‘daffodil’ motifs around the neckline.

vintage veil in a fitting lace flowers

Catherine wore her mother’s veil, the lace applique pieces are original but they had been removed. We carefully replaced them and spaced them to show up beyond the ivory of the coat’s train.

wedding dress and bridesmaids ready to go

I also made three flowergirl boleros, an adult bridesmaid dress and a going away dress for Catherine. This is the whole ‘collection’ steamed and waiting for her to arrive and take them away! Click here to see more pictures of the bridesmaid and flowergirls.

wrist loop bustle something blue tradition

A hidden detail of the ‘something blue’ rose I sew to all the dresses I make next to the wrist loop on the train.

To talk to me more about having your coat wedding dress made to order just get in touch

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Felicity Westmacott

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

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Spooky season has arrived!

I love Halloween, but maybe not for the reasons you might think. For me, Halloween gives people permission to be a little more wild, a little more 'out there' with their bridal choices. And as a seamstress who loves to makes bold and beautiful wedding dresses, there's nothing wrong with a little more wild!

Take these three wedding photoshoots, for example. The first one was inspired by Morticia Addams. It's a black wedding dress! You can't get less traditional than that. And it's now one of my most popular designs. Although all these dress designs are based around a fictional character, they're still the furthest thing from a costume. They're pieces of haute couture art, taking the essence of the character and then elevating it to something truly unique.

The second dress used the designs from the live action Cruella, and I love how the model nailed her character. The final dress used Jim Henson's Labyrinth as a starting point, in particular that iconic ballroom scene (*swoon*). They were all such fun projects. So if you're looking for a wedding dress maker to embrace your wild side, I might be the perfect choice.

If you could base your wedding dress on a fictional character, who would it be?

~
Photography - @lexflemingphoto⁠
Sometimes it can be difficult to be true to yourself. The world can feel really judgemental (even if it's just the voices in the back of your head saying it). But, you might be worried about being 'too much' or worried of what people might think if they saw how vibrant and colourful you really are on the inside. How big and sparkly your thoughts and feelings are!

Well, guess what? There's no such thing as 'too much'. Not in my books! As a wedding dress maker (and honestly, a fellow big, sparkly person) I'm here to encourage you to listen to what your heart is telling you. Ignore those voices telling you should be anything less than 100% yourself, especially on your wedding day.

There is nothing that makes me happier than a bride bringing me their ideas - the crazy ones they've barely voiced to anyone else. The ones they shyly mention, usually followed by "but if that's not possible, then don't worry about it". And there's nothing more exciting than seeing the face of that bride when they realise that I am absolutely on this journey with them, that we will make it happen and that I cannot wait to get started!

Anyway, I love my job 😉

#weddingdress #fantasyweddingdress #fantasybride #historicalweddingdress #dramaticweddingdress #bespokeweddingdress
Isn't this the perfect wedding dress for a colourful festival wedding?

Bright, fun and beautiful to look at. It's the kind of dress you can't take your eyes off of. 

As a wedding dress maker who loves working on alternative and unusual wedding looks, creating unique ombre dip dye dresses is one of my favourite things to do. I'm so glad this bride had such an amazing time dancing in it 🥰

#weddingdress #bride #alternativebride #alternativeweddingdress #colourfulweddingdress
There's just one week left of voting for the Wedding Industry Awards (@twia_official).⁠
⁠
In case you didn't know, here's a quick summary of what's going:⁠
◽️a lovely client of mine nominated me for the awards⁠
◽️I'm now competing in both the Bespoke Bridal and Bridal Alterations categories⁠
◽️You can only vote for me if you've used either of these services with me between Oct 1st 2024 -Sept 29th 2025⁠
◽️You've got until September 29th to vote!⁠
◽️Voting links are in the link in my bio⁠
⁠
Such a big thank you to everyone who already voted for me - it means a lot. But I also wanted to thank everyone showing up in the comments and saying lovely things about my work. I've had so many people tell me they would vote for me if they could, and that feels like a win all of its own 💜⁠
⁠
Now it's time to cross our fingers and see what happens 🤞⁠
⁠
Photo by @altweddingco
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