Theatrical waterfall skirt wedding dress for Richelle

windswept wedding dress bride custom waterfall skirt

Richelle wanted a theatrical dress with interchangeable separates for her two part wedding in Scotland. I designed her a pink and silver waterfall skirt wedding dress in organza, silk and lace. Richelle found me by recommendation from a previous bride, the nicest way to know you’ve done a good job!

Official photography by linaandtom

A theatrical wedding dress for a dramatic bride

Richelle had an epic, three part wedding. So when I met her I knew I needed to design a dress for three venues, each with very different vibes. The ceremony took place in Edinburgh castle with a traditional religious service with a reception afterwards at The Museum of Scotland. And a few weeks later Richelle and her new husband held another party for London friends in a theatre space.

scottish wedding groom in kilt

windswept wedding dress bride custom waterfall skirt

Each layer of Richelle’s waterfall skirt was made from a whole circle or oval of blush organza. I used more than 30 metres of horsehair braid to trim the hem edges making them flute and fall gracefully.

big skirt wedding dress alley way pale pink

bride with dinosaurs scottish groom edinburgh museum

silhouette wedding portrait space and galaxy wedding

Original design for Wedding Dress Separates

I designed Richelle’s waterfall skirt wedding dress as a four piece mix and match set of separates. The dramatic long skirt with train was made with 9 organza waterfalls each edged with horsehair braid (sometimes called crin, as in crinoline) to give them definition and stiffness. Her boned bodice had a sweetheart neckline with the silver lace over layer crossing over to subtle ruching to one side. the lace extended above the main bodice into an off the shoulder neckline with real buttons and loops to close at the back, concealing a zip beneath.

design sketch by Felicity Westmacott waterfall wedding dress

I offered Richelle three ideas for her sleeves/cover-up. The first was a simple bolero and the middle one is a waterfall cape, longer at the back than the front. But Richelle loved the idea on the right with flowing waterfall sleeves that buttons closed at the front. The sleeves hint at a medieval style but look totally modern and romantic in the blush coloured organza with horsehair braid edging. It fastened at her throat with a sweet pink Swarovski pearl for a button.

wedding cape cover up bolero designs by Felicity Westmacott

summer wedding bolero sleeves bridal separates

The last element of Richelle’s ensemble was a simple 1950’s style skirt in blush with silver net petticoat. This was perfect to wear at her party in London so she could dance the night away!

Blush pink organza and silver lace

Richelle wanted a subtle blush pink colour so we found coordinating organza and silk dupion, complimented by the beaded silver lace for her bodice.

silver metallic lace beaded sequins detail

wedding bolero shrug cover up pink

Detail of the bodice fastening with concealed zip with real buttons and loops.

button and loop fastening wedding dress

Making Richelle’s waterfall skirt wedding dress

Richelle’s dress was made over a series of fittings at my studio. It was great getting to know her during the process and comparing our love of theatre. Above are pictures from the first fitting of her ‘toile’, a practice run in cheap fabrics. I had prepped a single waterfall piece to pin on and give Richelle an idea of the size her final skirt would be. Find out more about the bespoke making process here.

sewing a button and loop fastening

Sewing on the buttons to Richelle’s bodice

lace up inside panel bespoke wedding dress

Richelle’s bodice was fully boned and had a hidden corset layer where pulling the laces would cinch in her waist and provide support to her bust.

museum of scotland wedding venue dramatic bride

Can you spot the bride and groom in the beautiful museum of Scotland?

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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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⁠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). ⁠
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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?

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#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.⁠
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This beautiful 1950’s style wedding dress with delicate cream lace over golden-orange silk has lots of really scrummy details:⁠
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🧡 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.⁠
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🧡 the base dress is made of a beautiful russet orange silk dupion, with dark ivory lace layered on top.⁠
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🧡 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.⁠
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🧡 the edges of the ivory layer are cut along the floral pattern of the lace, making a pretty scalloped edge.⁠
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🧡 this length of skirt is called 'ballet' or 'ballerina'.⁠
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🧡 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.⁠
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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