Inspiration from Hollywood - Weddings from the movies

When Elizabeth Taylor married first husband Nicky Hilton back in 1953, she loved her wedding dress from 'Father of The Bride' so much that she had a near identical one made for her actual wedding.  Similarly when Grace Kelly married Prince Rainier of Monaco, she had the world's top couturiers falling at her feet.  She ignored them, and when straight to MGM costume designer Helen Rose who had worked on such films as 'Annie Get Your Gun', 'Two Weeks of Love', 'On The Town', and even Taylor's 'Father of the Bride.'   In doing so, she created one of the most iconic wedding gowns of all time; echoed and repeated ever since.

fashion-era.com

Hollywood movies have been giving inspiration for weddings everywhere since they first began.  Here we take a looking back at some of the best movie weddings of all time:

ayyyy.com

Let's start with.......

celebritybrideguide.com

Twilight: Breaking Dawn was one of the most highly anticipated weddings of 2011, second only to the Royal Wedding.  The Caroline Herrera dress worn by Bella Swann was a closely guarded secret.  The detail in the lace on the back as seen to it that 'back detail' is a hot bridal trend at the moment.

wedding75.com

Mammia Mia! had its central bride Sophie in a Grecian style flayered and flowing gown, designed to look as if she'd made it herself.  It had to be a dress appropriate to the scorching hot temperatures of the Greek island of Skopelos.  Whilst it may not have set the world alight in the fashion stakes, Mammia Mia! reportedly had tourists visiting the Greek Isles in droves.  An excellent spot for a romantic honeymoon.

screenrush.co.uk

Four Weddings And A Funeral simply has to get a mention.  Okay, it's not a strictly Hollywood flick, but it was such a smash over in the US as the British film industry hadn't had in decades.  The film helped to push aside the long-sleeved cuffed dresses and Juliette caps of the 1970s and 80s and made way for puffy sleeves and floral headdresses.  The wedding dress retailer, Berketex Brides who supplied all the dresses featured in the film, also got a healthy boost to their business.

stylenews.peoplestylewatch.com

Sex & The City produced quite a few highly stylish gowns, but this one surely has to be the most iconic of all of them.  With the trademark Vivienne Westwood neckline and a huge princess skirt of the kind not seen since Princess Diana got married, this dress was a piece of unadulterated, luxuriant eye candy.  It's no wonder that because of it, Vivienne was put in the ring to design Kate Middleton's dress.

onefinedaybridalandgown.com

In the last film she ever made before becoming a princess, Grace Kelly emulated 50s bridal glamour with the calf-length flaired skirt and long-sleeved ensemble in MGM's High Society.      It was yet anothet Helen Rose creation which took inspiration from the fashion houses of Europe with the Dior-style hat.  The lily of the valley motif can be seen on some of the SS12 lines now.

neon-splendor.tumblr.com

Even Julie Andrews herself said of her Sound of Music wedding dress: "That dress was a miracle.  I've never felt prettier before or since."  And we're inclined to agree with you, Julie.  Simplicity was the key to this gown.  No frills, no lace, no fuss.  It hugged the actress's body and showed off her lovely curves beautifully.  Teamed with a simple floral headdress and a cathedral length veil, it was true to Maria's country-loving roots, but impressive enough to fill the Saltzberg Cathedral.

Bye Bye Bare Arms - the sleeve is back!

When the announcement was made over a year ago now (my how the time flies!) that Prince William and Kate Middleton were engaged to be married, we all knew that whatever gown she chose for her big day it would be a trendsetter.  And we were not wrong.

Hello Magazine!

 

Resplendent in Alexander McQueen couture, Kate has certainly buoyed up the bridal market for lace and white bridesmaids dresses, but also for sleeves.  For more than 10 years, strapless arm-bareing gowns have been in vogue, but it seems that the tide may be about to turn.  Kate's dress alone would not a trend make, but the second most hotly anticipated gown of the year bears many of the same features.

Summit Entertainment / Alfred Angelo

 

Bella Swann (played by Kristen Stewart in the Twilight movie series) married her long-term love Edward Cullen (played by Robert Pattinson) in a long sleeved Carolina Herrera gown with striking lace detail on the back.  So much hype was focused on the dress, the movie trailer deliberately only gave teasing, tantilising glimpses of it.  Only now that the film has been released.

Summit Entertainment / Alfred Angelo

The design has proved so popular, women and girls are claiming to be engaged just to be able to get into Alfred Angelo stores, where replicas of Bella's dress are being sold, to try the dress on.  I've been rooting for the return of the sleeve for years - perhaps this could its turning point.

2 Dress to Impress - wearing more than one outfit on your Big Day

It's the lucky bride who gets to wear more than one dress on her wedding day.  However, it's not just a symptom of spare budget and extravagence.  Sometimes it is a necessity:

 When Alex Curran tied the knot with footballer love Steven Gerrard in the summer of 2007, she did so in a heavily beaded and bejewelled Flamenco-style Eli Saab gown she'd bought in Paris.  Complete with a Spanish-influenced headdress and flowing train, the gown was a stunning spectacle.  It was also very heavy.  The bride confessed that she eagerly swapped it for a Prada mini dress for the evening's festivites.

 

 Victoria Beckham's creamy golden dress for her Catholic ceremony to husband David was demure, modest and romantic.  For the party, she wanted a far sexier look.  For that, she donned a close fitting "Jessica Rabbit" purple dress that sexily clung to her curves with a cheeky slit up the thigh.  The other colours of the theme, burgundy and evergreen, were picked out in the flower detailling on the shoulder.

In many European countries, religious ceremonies are not legally binding.  A civil ceremony must take place first in order for the marriage to be recognised by the State.  When this happened for Grace Kelly, she married Prince Rainier of Monaco on Wednesday 18th April 1956 in a chic golden suit, heavily embroidered; befitting her new status as Princess of the Meditteraenean principality.  The iconic gown she wore for her religious ceremony the following day was far bigger and filled the Cathedal of Monaco.  Beautiful though it was, it would have been inappropriate in a smaller venue.

Beautiful though your wedding gown might be, we all know that they are not the most practical garments in the world.  5ft trains are great until you have to trail them around the dancefloor.  Shorter skirts are better for dancing in, so once you've greeted your evening dress, you can easily slip into a party dress for boogying the night away.  Arguably some guests may feel cheated if they didn't get to see you in your fancy finery, but your comfort must be the number 1 priority

Dusting Off the Fairytale - what to do with your dress afterwards

It's probably the most expensive outfit you'll ever buy and the one piece of clothing you'll treasure above all others for the rest of your life.  So once you've wrapped it in acid free paper and a UV-protective cover, what will you do with your wedding dress?

Well, unless you marry royalty, it's unlikely to end up in a museum.  However, that doesn't mean you can't showcase your dress.  Purchasing a mannequin and a display case is not unheard of, but you will require a lot of space and fair bit of cash too.  If you're not adverse to cutting up your dress, if you have some particularly beautiful lace or applique, you could cut it off and then frame it.  Alternatively, you could sew it into a decorative tablecloth.

In these times of austerity and great awareness of reducing waste, some people find it an unnecessary expense to purchase a dress they'll never wear again.  Monsoon is particularly great for creating beautiful yet understated dresses that you can use again and again.

You don't even have to turn to the high street for a dress you can wear again.  The ever-thrifty Duchess of Cornwall has been spotted in the dress she wore to wed Prince Charles many times since her 2005 nuptials.  The dress was a bespoke piece by Robinson Valentine.

If you still want to purchase that dream dress you've had your eye for longer than you care to think about, who knows?  If you put it away now, the generation after you may want to wear it.  Daughters wearing their mother's wedding dresses has boomed in popularity in the last few years; this is due in part to the tough economic climate, but also because nostalgia and all things vintage are very much in vogue at the moment.  Who knows: if you buy that dream dress now, it may well be back in fashion by the time your daughter gets married.