Celebrities and friends are getting married all over the place and photos are appearing everywhere from Hello magazine to Facebook. Unfortunately I haven’t had any invites this year (not even from Kate Moss!) but I do love looking at all the wedding dresses. Of course the wedding of the year was Prince William and Kate Middleton, and whilst I did like her dress, I preferred Lily Allen’s vintage style dresses. The price for all of the ones we see in magazines are usually somewhat astronomical and out of reach for most of us, which makes handmade dresses on sites such as Etsy, even more appealing.
The dress above by blackmirrordesign is no doubt a brave statement to wear as a wedding dress, but if you like it; why not? Surely your wedding day is the best time to wear something that truly reflects you.
I have never understood why people pay so much for a dress that is worn for one day only and tends to look pretty similar to everyone else’s. Young girls dream of their wedding dress long before the boy has even been met; and the dream usually consists of stepping onto the aisle, the organ playing and everyone turning to look at you. I dreamt of a train so long it would reach the door while I was stood at the alter! In fact, it was only two or three feet long, and that got trodden on often enough! My wedding dress was bought in a charity shop for £5, which I then customised by opening the back and adding red ribbon lacing, tying ribbon around the medieval style sleeves and gluing on hundreds of beads to form a gothic style flower on the train. I was very proud of my dress and especially loved knowing that no-one else would have one the same.
My dress is packed up in a box in the roof, but there’s no rule to say you shouldn’t think of the future and get better value by buying a dress that can be worn on other occasions. Some simple dresses look absolutely stunning, and it does seem a shame that they often never see the 
Lastly, this is a gorgeous velvet and silk wedding gown I’ve upcycled by dying, hitching and adding delicate antique lace. It would suit any fairytale wedding. I’m making more wedding dresses, so please take a look at my Etsy shop, Threads of a Fairytale.
NB. This article was first published on Try Handmade last year.
