Long sleeve lace wedding dress and veil

Bespoke ivory lace wedding dress by Felicity Westmacott


Whether for a small an intimate elopement or a traditional country wedding with a marquee and hundreds of guests, a traditional long sleeve lace wedding dress ticks all the boxes.

Issieโ€™s dress was made with a boned satin bodice with pretty lace overlay. Long sleeves and a boat neckline were trimmed with a pretty scalloped edging. A simple silk dupion sash highlighted her tiny waist and the back fastened with buttons and loops. The full skirt was three layers of silk organza over linings and netting flowing out behind in a wide train.

I also made Issieโ€™s very two tier long veil. The train part was trimmed in matching lace edging to her dress and the blusher (comes over the face) was edged with simple cording.

Official photographs by Monty Steedman Photography

Classic corded lace bodice and silk skirt wedding dress

original design sketch by Felicity Westmacott
Original design skirt for Issieโ€™s dress
Traditional military wedding dress with full skirt and veil

Military Wedding

Issieโ€™s traditional long sleeve lace wedding dress was a perfect foil for her groomโ€™s military uniform. Other dress styles could work too. I have made a very modern and understated dress for a military wedding before. Mixing up traditions and new ideas can work really well in all aspects of wedding planning.

Ball dress style wedding gown custom made to order

corded lace sleeve detail on custom wedding gown

Bespoke wedding veil and dress for English wedding lace and silk

Making Issieโ€™s Traditional Long Sleeve Lace Wedding Dress

Pictures from the fittings showing her dress at various stage of the making process. Every bespoke dress I make starts with a โ€˜toileโ€™ or practice run in cheaper materials. We can check the fit and style are just right before working with more costly fabrics. Then a series of fittings enables me to check everything is progressing at it should as the dress comes together.

I also made a long, two tier veil for Issie to match her wedding dress. It had a โ€˜blusherโ€™ which is the extra layer that can be worn over your face when entering your ceremony space. I hand sewed lace edging to the long train of Issieโ€™s veil and edged the blusher with matching narrow soutache cord.

final fitting picture of bespoke wedding dress and veil

Sweetheart boned bodice and lace wedding dress

Fitting picture hand made wedding dress

Fitting picture of custom wedding dress and veil

bespoke corded lace bodice and corded edge veil made to order

To see another wedding dress with a lace bodice and sleeves see Sofiaโ€™s dress on my blog

If youโ€™d like to speak to me about your ideas for a bespoke commission, be that a traditional long sleeve lace wedding dress or another idea just head over to my contact page to get in touch.

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felicity westmacott wearing a hat

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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A little bit of this and a little bit of that lead to a whole lot of magic โœจ 

Want to see how the dress looked on the day? I'll be posting it later this week (and it's all your soft focus, dreamy Kate Bush vibes ๐Ÿ•Š๏ธ)
Especially if it's the bride's mother's wedding dress from the 80s, hand dyed to the perfect shade of warm pink, and restyled to evoke the iconic Vivienne Westwood. 

There's definitely a lot of happiness in that. 

#bespokeweddingdress #vintageweddingdress #weddingdressalterations #weddingdressrestyle  #bride2026
emailme@felicitywestmacott.co.ukTEL 07762 543230TOUCHGet in
from design to completionbespoke wedding dressesFelicity Westmacott
Dorking, RH4 1RT241 High Streetโ€ขย Visit the Studioย โ€ข
Dorking, RH4 1RT241 High Streetโ€ขย Visit the Studioย โ€ข
emailme@felicitywestmacott.co.ukTEL 07762 543230TOUCHGet in