Orange silk and lace vintage 1950’s wedding dress + groom’s ties for Rebecca

candler 4 autumn fall wedding ornage silk dupion short full skirt dress petticoat

A beautiful 1950’s style orange wedding dress with delicate cream lace over Autumnal golden-orange silk.

Photography by Gregg Brown www.greggbrownweddings.com 

Rebecca’s dress has a fitted and boned bodice with a face framing collar and v-neckline. Long lace sleeves are finished with scalloped edging. The skirt is a tea length full circle over many layers of ivory netting, each edged with orange satin ribbon. The lace hangs in handkerchief points over the silk skirt and in a waterfall peplum at the back. The dress closes with a concealed zip at the back and is finished with a silk sash and covered buttons on the bodice and back of the halter neck.

candler 10 1950's knee short midi tea length wedding dress bespoke

Rebecca said “Felicity – dress maker extraordinaire. I loved the dress, EVERYONE loved the dress. Comments range from “so beautiful”, “stunning”,”gorgeous”, “wow”. THANK YOU”

candler 16 design sketch for 1950's full skirt vintage wedding dress
candler 8 wedding dress with collar v-neck and sash vintage style mature older bride
candler 6 church wedding bespoke dress
candler 9 english church wedding orange gold coloured silk
candler 7 high neck wedding dress with button fastening made to order
candler 12 lace wedding dress with collar buttons and long sleeves matching tie and hankie
candler 11 vintage alternative coloured wedding dress custom made to order
candler 3 alternative wedding dress silk and lace with long sleeves

Ties and Hankies

candler 5 autumn colour theme wedding made to order dress and tie father of the bride

Ties and hankies were made for the groom and best man in matching orange silk.

candler 2 groom and best man ties and hankies in orange russet silk

Making Rebecca’s orange wedding dress

candler 1 toile practice run fitting of vintage style cross over bodice

Making a bespoke wedding dress always includes a ‘toile’ or practice run in cheap fabrics. We can check the style for fit and it being flattering. I pinned a few changes into the bodice during Rebecca’s toile fitting.

candler 18 silk dupion russet orange gold shot ivory lace

The lace and trim’s that Rebecca chose for her Orange wedding dress were from Bennet Silks and Michael’s Bridal fabrics. I keep both of these company’s sample books at my studio so clients can browse for suitable fabrics at your design consultation. I am also happy to use fabric you find elsewhere and will always provide yardages required in your quotation letter.

fitting picture front and back made to measure wedding dress

Final Fitting Pictures

candler 17 fitting picture ivory netting with orange ribbon edge
candler 14 fitted bodice bridal gown 1950's style cross over buttons sash
candler 15 high neck modest wedding dress buttons halter lace

The little details matter! Here you can see the silk buttons and loops I added to the collar of Rebecca’s orange silk wedding dress.

If you’d like to see another orange wedding dress I made head over to Clare’s wedding dress made for her special day in Florida. Or this regal silk dress in shot bronze and gold.

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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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As a seamstress there are certain things that give me the ick. Usually they're pretty specific and unless you're also a dressmaker it might be something you're completely unaware of.

I've always had a ‘thing’ about language generally. I find it really interesting. I've noticed how strong a reaction I can have to people using language differently to what I’m used to. And when I notice that I often go on a bit of a deep dive to understand where that difference stems from. I think coming from a historical costuming background also means I love to know the history of things (and despite my instinctive language-conservative leanings, I do actively work on being accepting and open minded, trying celebrate the differences).

That said, please don’t say your dress has a trail!

Snails have trails - dresses have trains! 🐌
I found this sheet music in my house, and I was so surprised by what it was 🎹🎵

There’s a music stand in my childhood home, and when I was having a look, I found this: “Three Songs composed by Ethel M. Lightfoot”. And my curiosity was peaked. So I sat down at the piano.

When it comes to reading music, I can play piano and sing a little. Nothing outstanding but enough that I could put the music in front of me and have a go at playing it. And I was surprised to discover that I found it was really easy to sightread and sing. Ethel liked the same key signatures, melodies and intervals as me. The things I wrote in my teens (usually quite a bit more angsty) were really similar in terms of structure. Her themes were different, of course, like “Cradle Song”, where a mother sings to her child about their father being away at war.

Ethel, as it turns out, is my great grandmother. Ethel was a musician, and it was so wonderful to find some of her published work, play it and somehow feel connected to her through our similarities. Somewhere in my blood is Ethel’s love for music, and it was so special to find her sheet music flowing so easily from my fingertips.

I love learning about history generally, but there’s something extra special about learning about your own personal history 💜

Is there something from your family history that you’re particularly proud of?
With leaves starting to change to colour, my thoughts have turned to autumn. So I'm sharing my process for this autumn inspired dip dye wedding outfit;
🍁 deciding I wanted to layer a dip dye overskirt on top of the bridal playsuit
🍁choosing lots of warm, rich colours that make me think of autumn leaves carpeting a forest floor
🍁 cutting the tulle of the skirt to the right length 
🍁 gradually blending each layer of colour, using an ombre of yellow, orange, brown and just a little bit of gold at the end
…and then the finished product!

Doesn't this bridal outfit look right at some in the woods?

If you love the idea of an overskirt for your wedding dress, drop me a DM and let’s talk colour palettes!

~
Photographer: @charlymaephotography
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