I do love it. There is something magical about a wedding dress – as with anything associated with a happy wedding: it’s imbued with an ability to cheer me up. And mine’s particularly brilliant (if I do say so myself) because it’s purple, and I designed it myself, on the back of a tube ticket.
So why is it relegated to the dark recesses of my wardrobe and never allowed to see the light of day? Poor thing. Maybe it would like to be resurrected, born again into a new existence so that its magic can work again.
My wedding dress was a little shift dress and a massive long jacket. The little dress actually has been out again since the wedding – twice, in fact: to a family party and a friend’s wedding. But the jacket is the real magic, and, on my fifth wedding anniversary, I realised that it had had five dark years of no fresh air.
It would make a great suit! I do sew, but was CERTAINLY not about to chop it up, and trust my own limited skills with it. Very exciting: a new suit, practically for free – and with all that love sewn into it.
Found a tailor who could do it. Hoorah!
The day came to take the jacket in. My baby! Man, I was nervous. What if they f**k it up? Might have killed my baby. Took lots of photos of it in case I never saw it again.
The tailor just got out her scissors. “about here?” – oh god, I don’t want to WATCH you do it! It’s like taking in a friend with a brain tumour: I know they’ll need to take a knife to their head, but I don’t want to see it.
I nearly died.
Went back a fortnight later to collect it. More nerves: would the magic still be there in a suit? Would Madam Tailor have done a good job? Would I still love it?
I LOVE IT!! Resurrected wedding dress – I can wear it again without looking like I am wearing a wedding dress (which I obviously would be…) Looks great (if I do say so myself…)
And everybody else loves it: here it is before – at my wedding – and in its new incarnation – at a friend’s wedding two weeks ago.
You could call it recycling a wedding dress. I call it getting a great outfit for practically free. Brilliant.
Caroline Fiennes
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