On the blog today, beautiful vintage brides of 2013

Dear Reader

Clients often remark to me that I have a lovely job... absolutely right! I do take great pleasure in helping all my clients find that special wedding dress. Today on my vintage wedding blog, I'd like to showcase a few of the beautiful girls I've helped to find their dream dress in 2013.

KATHRYN
Kathryn wore 1950s tea-length 'Blanche' from my Heavenly Collection of vintage inspired dresses, for her Liverpool wedding. 

Kathryn looked wonderful in the dress. In her own words, 

"The dress was stunning - I felt amazing in it! A massive thank you, Helena, for everything you did. "

If you'd like to see more of Kathryn's wedding, there's a great post on Rock My Wedding.

One of the best things about choosing a vintage wedding dress is the range of styles. I never get bored with my job, since each era is so unique. Today I'd like to show you three more lovely brides in three very different styles - the 1950s, 60s and 70s.

CLARE 
For her Summer wedding, Clare chose a 1950s strapless tulle dress with a matching lace coat. 

Clare has a wonderfully dainty, ladylike air about her - and the dress suited her so well! In Clare's own words...

"Everyone commented on how beautiful my dress was and I absolutely loved wearing it!  It worked so well with the venue that we decided on, Luton Hoo. Many of our friends said they felt they had stepped into Downton Abbey for the day!

Thanks again for looking after me during my appointments with you.  I would not hesitate to recommend you to other brides looking for that special dress."

SUSIE 

Susie was an absolute delight to work with. She chose a gorgeous full-length original 1960s lace wedding dress for her very stylish wedding. 

In Susie's own words, 

"On the day I felt like a princess - I felt lovely and extremely comfortable all day. The dress was perfect, it fit just like a glove! Everyone loved my dress and I am so happy with the silhouette it gave me, it was just a dream to wear!"

I was thrilled when Susie wrote a lovely note explaining why she enjoyed choosing her dress with Heavenly...

"I had discovered Heavenly Vintage Brides whilst doing some research for a friends wedding and I would regularly go on line to have a peek at the lovely dresses! I was thrilled when I got engaged and contacted HVB immediately! Helena was very helpful from day one, emailing me about dresses that maybe suitable. I was blown away when I went to visit for the first time, it is such a treasure trove of wonderful gowns and Helena made the experience thoroughly relaxing and delightful.

I was absolutely spoilt for choice, there were so many beautiful dresses and Helena was fantastic, allowing me plenty of space and time to go through and select the ones I liked the best. My mum and I had a lovely time chatting with Helena whilst enjoying the best cup of tea I have ever had! 

It was wonderful to see so many dresses and talk about their history as Helena's collection stretches across the whole of the last century, so there is something for everyone. I cannot recommend HVB highly enough, I had such a fun time choosing my dress and I was so happy with my choice, I thoroughly enjoyed wearing it and felt very special, I just wish I could wear it more! I had so many lovely compliments on the day and I was just so pleased that Helena is part of my happy wedding memories!"

LAUREN 
Lauren chose a floaty lace 70s dress. She looked gorgeous in this bohemian and relaxed style. And in her own words,

"The dress was so comfortable. I really did feel as if I floated around all day." 

And here is the same dress in pictures from my studio... though of course it looks more beautiful on Lauren herself!

...Just a few of the lovely girls I've been lucky enough to work with this year.

Thanks to all of you who have visited Heavenly - I'm looking forward to meeting many more of you next year! And thanks for dropping by my vintage wedding blog today.

Love
Helena
Heavenly Vintage Brides

Kathryn's photos, thanks to S6 Photography
Susie's photos, thanks to Stella Fakiyesi 
Clare's photos 1 and 2, thanks to Martin Castein 
Heavenly Vintage Brides studio photos, thanks to Robert Lawler

For the perfect city wedding, Ania looks stunning in a 1970s vintage wedding dress.

Today - as promised - I'd like to share the pictures from one of my lovely clients, Ania. For their vintage-inspired London wedding, Ania and Mark knew they wanted to keep the day as simple and relaxed as possible...

As Ania says: 

"We didn’t have any particular theme in mind when planning the day. I just wanted a rustic, shabby, boho feel, with a flavour of vintage to it.”

Ania chose a gorgeous, floaty, 1970s lace wedding dress from my selection of original vintage wedding dresses. A perfect choice: she looks beautiful, relaxed and rocknroll! 

And Ania - such a darling - was very generous about Heavenly Vintage Brides!

"I am so happy I found you! Everyone loved the amazing dress. I can't thank you enough for everything, Helena. For your advice, the lovely words and for my dream wedding dress -:)"

Ania made the dress her own with a simple white flower in her hair, the brightest sunflower bouquet by Turners of Hammersmith, and fabulous shoes from Etsy.

The day was made even more special by their choice of iconic London locations - the grandeur of Islington Town Hall, a traditional London red bus, the AK Rowing Club on the banks of the Thames, and finally Hammersmith Bridge by night!

Add some good friends, delightful home-made decorations, and sunflowers... lots of Ania's favourite sunflowers.

Oh, and dancing too. Lots of dancing! A heavenly formula for a perfect vintage-style London wedding, for a perfectly lovely London couple.

Thank you so much to Ania, and to her photographer Sassy at Assassynation, for sharing the pictures of this fantastic day. 

If you'd like to see more of lovely Ania and Mark, check out the feature on RocknRoll Bride. If you'd like to see more real vintage brides in Heavenly vintage, check out the Real Brides section on my vintage wedding blog here or my website here. 

And if you're feeling inspired to see more beautiful dresses, check out my selection of original vintage wedding dresses on my vintage wedding blog here. 

Thanks for stopping by today. See you again soon...

Love
Helena 
Heavenly Vintage Brides


Ania chose a 1970s vintage lace wedding dress from Heavenly Vintage Brides. 
Her natural beauty was revealed by make-up artist Bella Simonsen.
Ania tripped down the aisle at Islington Town Hall in shoes from Etsy,
Carrying her favourite sunflowers from Turners.
To where Mark stood proudly waiting, looking dapper in a suit by Adam of London.
Then they - and all their friends - travelled across London on This Bus to the AK Rowing Club.
There they partied the night away to tunes spun by MD Essential DJs.
With thanks to Assassynation who were on hand to photograph the big day and night.

Beautiful 70's Bride, Ania.

Here's one of my lovely brides, Ania, featured on Rock N' Roll Bride. 

CLICK HERE 

A Gypsy Vintage Wedding, Part 2.

Dear Reader,
Today I have more delicious Gypsy Wedding images, from the photo-shoot using my original vintage dresses...

After some research, the stylist / photographer team behind the shoot knew they needed an original Romany Gypsy wagon. It took some time to find the perfect one...

And luckily for them, they also found Walter - one of the most revered Gypsy Wagon Restorers. As well as loaning them this stunning black-and-gold caravan, Walter and his family guided them through all the details for the day. In Christian and Erica's words...

"Walter took us though to his barn, and it was an exciting moment to come face to face with what would become the centrepiece of our shoot - a gorgeous, original ‘Doors & Windows’ Romany caravan, hand-carved and covered in gold leaf.

We also took the opportunity to talk to Walter and his wife Mary about traditional gypsy weddings, and within minutes they’d found a fascinating old leather-bound album full of black and white family photos from gypsy weddings. And so we began to form a picture of what a REAL gypsy wedding would’ve looked like."

The results are lovely. So soft and romantic... 

Thanks for stopping by,

Love

Helena

Heavenly Vintage Brides

If you like this post, please try
My Gypsy Style Vintage Wedding Dress of the Week


With thanks to:
Authentic gypsy wagon – adzlee@btinternet.com
Vintage Headpieces – Flo and Percy
Crockery – Felicity’s Vintage Tea Party
Blooms – The Blossom Tree
Make-up Artist – Gemma Lees
Hair Stylist - Emma Buck
Boutonnieres – D C Bouquets
Cakes – Rachel Edwards
Vintage Suitcases – Fountain Pen Emporium
Groom’s Vintage Suits - Vintage Whistles
Wedding Favours – Vintage Twee
Models – Cirila Zorenc and Charles Durnian at Model Mayhem
Photography and Styling –  Christian Ward Photography

1970s tiered lace wedding dress: Gypsy-style Dress of the Week

Dear Reader, 

Hot on the heels of those pretty gypsy images, this beautiful original 1970s wedding dress has to be our Vintage Wedding Dress of the Week...

Romantic 1970s lace wedding dress, £695 including full-length slip

This is such a romantic look, and a really rare find. With its complexion-flattering cream lace, and off-the-shoulder styling with delicate ribbon straps, it perfectly suits a boho vintage-gypsy-style wedding.

On- or off-the-shoulder? Both look stunning. 1970s wedding dress £695

It would look wonderful with a waist-enhancing sash trimmed in flowers. And as you can see above, it's equally fabulous worn on the shoulder for a bride who prefers a little more coverage. I'd love to see this dress accessorised with a flower crown, or perhaps with tumbling romantic tresses...

This gorgeous dress is available now, priced £695 including full-length slip.

See you next week, with some more lovely vintage gypsy ideas...

Love

Helena

Heavenly Vintage Brides

If you like this post, please try:

Bridal Hair for 1970s dresses

Vintage Wedding Dresses at the V&A

Dear Reader

I was delighted to be invited to a preview of the V&A's vintage wedding dresses exhibition at the weekend. It's a great day out with eighty spectacular dresses and some lovely stories about the brides.

Kate Moss in fabulous vintage-inspired dress, and designer John Galliano

The show starts with some amazing examples of 18th and 19th Century wedding dresses, including many Victorian dresses - all works of tremendous skill and opulence. 

1885 wedding dress by Gladman & Womack

Satin court dress, 1775-80

I enjoyed seeing these older dresses from the V&A's own collection. But I did feel there were a few too many, compared to the 20th Century dresses. While these earlier dresses are interesting, they're not so relevant for a modern bride considering a vintage dress - being neither wearable or flattering!

Dress of Cara Leland Huttleston Rogers, 1890. However did she breathe!

The show then romps through the 20th Century at a very fast pace. It begins with 1920s dresses and has a few examples which are much softer and prettier. I particularly liked one lovely example, which reminded me of a very similar Edwardian lace blouse I sold last year.

Norman Hartnell wedding dress for Margaret Wigham, 1933
Its 3.6m train famously stopped traffic on the day!

I was disappointed to see only two 1930s satin dresses, and no 1930s lace gowns which are famously wonderful. And I could only see a few 1940s and 1950s wedding dresses. Since this is considered a golden period for wedding dress design, I felt the show didn't really do justice to it. Most of the gowns in the show are British and I imagine few girls could afford a wonderful dress at that time, but there must have been some society weddings with beautiful dresses?

Charles James dress for Barbara Beaton, 1934
Barbara was the sister of Cecil Beaton

Dress and hat by Geoffrey Beene, 1970s

Upstairs, the show features late-20th Century dresses, including some very well-known contemporary dresses, Some fabulous, some less so!

Gwen Stefani's dress by John Galliano, 2002

Gwen Stefani's wedding to Gavin Rossdale, 2002

Dress by Gareth Pugh for Katie Shillingford, 2011
Veil by Stephen Jones

Bruce Oldfield wedding dress for model Lisa Butcher, 1992

Lisa Butcher marries chef Marco Pierre White, 1992

But I was most pleased to see Kate Moss’s vintage-inspired wedding dress close up as it is far more lovely than the newspapers photos could show. It's worth going just to see how the gold sequins have been applied to the train!

Dress by John Galliano for Kate Moss' wedding to Jamie Hince, 2011

Hand-embroidered sequins and pearls for Kate Moss's fabulous dress

Each dress in the show has its own story, illustrated with newspaper articles etc. I can see that's very important from the V&A's historical point of view, so I'm sure it would influence the curator's choices. But I would have liked to see some dresses chosen purely for their design qualities - their sheer beauty and ability to flatter - rather than for their provenance.

'Bird of Paradise' wedding dress by Vivienne Westwood for Dita Von Teese
Grosgrain, velvet and mink tricorn hat by Stephen Jones, 2005

After the wedding dresses, I dropped in to see the Italian Fashion exhibition - which I loved. One thing I noticed was the great number of talented women designers from the 1940s and 1950s producing wonderfully glamorous dresses. But they seemed to disappear towards the latter end of the century - when the boys took over again after the War!

Wedding Dresses 1775-2014 runs at the V&A until 15th March 2015. The Glamour of Italian Fashion runs until 27th July 2014. Do go to both exhibitions. There are some things of real beauty to be seen in each.

Love

Helena

Heavenly Vintage Brides

Photographs c. Victoria & Albert Museum