Beautiful cotton wedding gown. Worn by bride in Wild West of America.

This stunningly simple dress is 100 years old yet has such a contemporary look, it could be Chanel! Fits size 8-10 but would fit a larger bust.

Price: £1100 includes Victorian Taffeta petticoat 

A guide to 1960s vintage wedding dresses: from Princess Grace pretty to Swinging Sixties style!

Dear Reader
Thanks for visiting my vintage wedding blog. Today, I've planned a whistle-stop tour of 1960s wedding fashion...

Original 1960s wedding dress designs by John Bates

Although I do love the 1950s - with its exaggerated femininity, wasp waists, full busts and circle skirts - by comparison the 60s offers so much choice. More than any other decade, 60s vintage wedding fashion offers amazing freedom of expression for a vintage bride.

First, a little background...
In the early 1960s, a fashion explosion took place - and London led the world with designers like Mary Quant, Ossie Clarke, Thea Porter and John Bates. In Paris too, fashion was changing fast as designers like Yves Saint Laurent, Pierre Cardin and Paco Rabanne explored cleaner lines and more modern styling.

John Bates in his London studio

Fashion became hugely varied, and suddenly allowed girls movement and freedom. Liberated girls wanted clothes that freed them from the tight-fitting and restricting (and sometimes uncomfortable) dresses of the previous decade.


But when it came to wedding fashion, traditions didn't change overnight. And although Grace Kelly's wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco actually took place in 1956, the style of her dress was still the most desired right through to the mid-1960s.

Princess Grace in Helen Rose wedding dress

Most early 60s brides still wanted traditional elegance and romance. And most vintage wedding dresses from this period are based on Princess Grace's iconic style, with its long lace sleeves and fitted bodice, designed by MGM's wardrobe designer Helen Rose. 

By the mid-60s, wedding fashions were beginning to catch up. More girls wanted to be in touch with 'Mod' fashion, and suddenly there was much more variety of shapes and styles available.

Seven lovely 60s trends to consider...

1. Early 60s 'Mad Men' style

Classic 60s chic, Jackie O-style

Chic and elegant in 1960s vintage wedding style

Original 60s vintage dress, price £850

Original 60s vintage dress, price £850

Typically chic and sophisticated, the dress pictured above is made in gorgeous lace with a slash neck and a very fitted hourglass shape. 

This original vintage dress is available, priced £850.

2. Edwardian Style

'Edwardian' dress in lace and silk, £995

Edwardian-style dresses - like Princess Grace's wedding dress - featured a demure high neckline, long sleeves, and a fitted bodice. They were often trimmed with lace for a softly romantic look and feel.

The original vintage dress shown here is a beautiful example, and is available priced £995.

One very notable designer in this trend was Priscilla Kidder, who designed as Priscilla of Boston. At her Boston studio, Priscilla famously designed the bridesmaids dresses for Princess Grace's wedding, as well as the wedding dresses for the daughters of two American Presidents!

The beautiful dress pictured below is an original vintage wedding gown designed by Priscilla, and available priced £995.

Beautiful 1960s vintage wedding dress by Priscilla of Boston, £995

1960s dress by Priscilla (lace detail), price £995

3. Babydoll
By the mid-60s, fashion no longer emphasised the waist and bust. The new silhouette focused on a more Twiggy-inspired, gamine shape. 

For wedding dresses, this translated into a trend for softer and more girlish dresses. These would  typically be ankle-length, with shaping seams below the bust. 

So pretty! 60s Babydoll dress, £550

The pretty original vintage dress above is available, price £550.


4. The Mini

Yoko: an iconic 60s mini 

Surely the most iconic and influential of all 60s fashions! The mini makes a fantastic statement dress for an adventurous bride. 

Yoko Ono famously caused a stir when she married John Lennon in 1969, wearing a pretty tiered mini, white knee socks and a huge white felt hat.

US designer William Cahill was beloved by the New York socialite set. His dresses were used in many movies, including 1967's The Graduate. 

The William Cahill original mini dress pictured here, with its integral cape, is a perfect way to show off lovely legs. It's available in my vintage collection, priced £750.

Original William Cahill mini dress, priced £750

5. Feathers and fur
By the late 60s, trims were very fashionable - whether fur or feather. They were used on necklines, hems, cuffs, and sometimes on hoods. 1960s pop star Cilla Black wore a feather-trimmed mini for her wedding to Bobby Willis in 1969.

Cilla, in true 60s popstar style! 

The lovely ostrich feather trimmed dress shown below is by famous London designer John Bates, who created Emma Peel's slinky styling in the Avengers. Bates' designs were greatly sought after but he retired from fashion at the height of his fame to become an artist. His work remains highly collectible.

Gorgeous John Bates original dress, price £750

6. Broderie Anglaise and Cotton Lace

Bardot in cotton lace

In contrast to the delicate lace of the Princess Grace period, the fashion turned to fresher 'broderie anglaise' and cotton lace - particularly with daisy motifs - as worn by Brigitte Bardot in 'And God Created Woman'. 
The dress shown below is beautifully made in a pretty daisy 'guipure' cotton lace. 

1960s 'daisy' dress, £595

'Daisy' dress lace detail, £595

7. Trapeze or A line
By the late 60s, a new silhouette had arrived. A more pared-down look could be seen in the work of couture designers like Pierre Cardin and Paco Rabanne. 

The A line or trapeze dress was a more modern shape, with its clean lines and structured fabrics.

The stunning Christian Dior dress shown below is a simple ivory silk A-line, high-waisted dress. It has an understated beauty with its simple and long lines and its chic low back. This original vintage wedding dress is available, priced £1350.

Christian Dior A Line in silk

Christian Dior, £1350

The dress below shows a real Pierre Cardin influence, combining the modern A Line shape with a short skirt length and beautiful French lace overlay. This short and pretty style would be lovely with little ballet flats or pointed kitten heels. The dress is size 6 to small size 8, and is available priced £745.

1960s short A Line dress with lace overlay, £745

Pierre Cardin style A Line, £745

I hope I've given you a taste of the different trends of the 60s, and an idea of why I love the dresses from this decade - with all their variety and excitement. 

In addition to the lovely dresses featured here, I have many other 60s originals in all lengths, styles and fabrics. If you'd like to know more about any of these lovely dresses, please do contact me.

Thanks for dropping by!
Love
Helena
Heavenly Vintage Brides

Photographs with thanks to Robert Lawler Photography

A Tiered, Edwardian Lace Wedding Dress from Heavenly Vintage Brides for a Beatrix Potter Inspired Wedding

Click the photograph above or 

Click here

to be taken to the article about Millie's beautiful wedding on lovemydress.net

What vintage are you...?

Dear Reader,

So I may have nailed my colours to the mast by saying how much I love 1930s dresses. But that's just me... Now how about you? Are you a Downton Abbey darling, a lover of 1950s prom-pretty fashions, or a stylish swinging 1960s girl?

Each style of vintage wedding dresses has so much to offer! Here's a little reminder of some recent posts explaining each era, with lots of beautiful dresses to enjoy. Take a look by clicking on the titles, and see if you have your own favourite decade...

A Guide to Edwardian (1910s and 1920s) wedding dresses

A Guide to 1930s wedding dresses - the golden age of glamour

A Guide to 1940s wedding dresses - Hollywood sophistication

A Guide to 1950s wedding dresses - Flirty fifties!

A Guide to 1960s wedding dresses - Swinging Style

Ahhhh, so many delicious styles to choose from. Think I shall have changed my mind again by tomorrow...!

See you again soon (and don't forget to contact me if you'd like to see my collection in person)

Love
Helena
Heavenly Vintage Brides

Another wonderful Edwardian vintage wedding dress, on real bride Francesca

Dear Reader

After talking about Edwardian vintage wedding dresses last week, I wanted to show you these pictures of beautiful Francesca, who recently married in Italy. 

Francesca's lovely outfit is very similar to an Edwardian dress I just saw in the V&A exhibition. But, actually Francesca's is an original Edwardian lace blouse teamed with a contemporary bridal skirt I sourced for her. They were a perfect match...

For more gorgeous Edwardian wedding dresses, do check out my Original Vintage dresses for sale here. Thanks for dropping by!

Love

Helena

Heavenly Vintage Brides

Edwardian vintage wedding dresses - a guide.

Dear Reader

The Edwardian period was just ten years from 1901 to 1910. But it is still popular today: just look at the international success of Downton Abbey. (The period after the death of Edward until the First World War is often included, too.)

Original Edwardian vintage wedding dress (with 1930s satin slip), £1250

Fashionable Edwardian brides aspired to the 'S' shape, which was created by whalebone corsetry. The corset design (called The Health Corset) although restrictive, was at least not as damaging to their health as corsets of the Victorian era. The waist circumference was gradually reduced by tighter lacing, until they reached their smallest size which - shockingly - could be as small as 16 inches.

I look for dresses with a reasonable waist size (not 16ins!) then I have a few clever techniques for increasing the size further. For example, adding lace from the same era. This can bring the waist to about 26 or 27ins - which of course is still very small fitting and not for everyone, but hopefully doesn’t require a corset!

Original Edwardian vintage wedding dress (with 1930s satin slip), £1250

And there are other features which may need modification: first, the front of the bodice is often loose-fitting, or 'pigeon chested’. Secondly, Edwardian wedding dresses often have high necks usually supported by tiny ‘bones'. These can be removed or adapted to give a softer neck shape.

I am not at all against changing vintage dress to make them work in a modern context,  as long as it's done sympathetically and the dress looks better for it! 

I am also a fan of Edwardian style headdresses. The fashion was for delicate circlets made from wax flowers, see my post here. I've definitely seen a trend amongst my clients for fresh flowers instead of diamante - which I think is a lovely change. I will always love a well made side-tiara but it’s nice that girls are rediscovering real flowers. And circlets are definitely a trend right now.

Original Edwardian vintage wedding dress (with 1930s satin slip), £1350

I'd also like to show you a Heavenly Vintage Bride from a few years ago. Her name is Millie, and she wore a beautiful late-Edwardian dress for her Beatrix Potter themed wedding. 

Millie’s dress is wonderful fine lace called ‘Tambour’ lace, which is embroidered cotton net. This was usually worked by hand using a frame and hook.

There's lots more lovely images from Millie's wedding on the LoveMyDress wedding blog (a great blog, if you haven't seen it before.) Check out Millie's feature, here.

I'm a huge fan of this style of lace - or any cotton lace, actually! And it’s so good for vintage collectors and wearers as it stays strong for many years. 

Many veils were also made of Tambour lace such as those shown here. I am in the process of having some lovely veils made to complement my dresses, using a special sewing machine which replicates this style of lace.

As soon as my new veils are perfect, I'll let you know: you'll see them here first! I've included some pictures of two wonderful original Edwardian dresses which are both available now. If, like me, you love the dresses from this period, then do check out these vintage Edwardian dresses here. 

Hope you've enjoyed this post - and see you soon!

Love 
Helena
Heavenly Vintage Brides