Creating a 'Renaissance' wedding gown

A recent client wanted a medieval/renaissance style wedding gown and I thought I'd walk through my process to create this gown.

The gown is on the left and as you can see its a modern interpretation of a medieval/renaissance gown. I based it loosely on the gown shape on images of medieval bliauts.

The client also brought a number of contemporary wedding gown images to show me and we combined those ideas that she liked into the final gown. Large soft floating sleeves, Celtic knot work decoration, a touch of red to match the brides maids, a train and a many paneled skirt.

My first step with any wedding gown is to drape the basic shape of the client using calico. In this instance, my client is beautifully statuesque with a long body and for me draping is the best method to get the best fit for an individual figure.

From that, I create a pattern and then work on a toile until we get the style we are looking for, this is a matter of tweaking and shaping to get to the final shape. Its important to ensure that the client can 'see' what's happening with a toile, its my role to make this happen.

Once we are both satisfied, I cut into the fashion fabric and make up the gown. Because I have taken the time and effort in creating a toile that fits and then adapted the pattern accordingly, the gown fits perfectly. Thus saving the waste of expensive fashion fabric and a potentially unhappy bride.