Saturday 30 July 2011

Vintage wedding frocks!

Almost a whole year married and I'm still slowly weaning myself off drooling at wedding dresses, particularly vintage wedding dresses. Admittedly a lot of the beautiful dresses I've come across would do absolutely nothing for me but I love the idea of finding dresses out there that other girls would love. I wonder would anyone hire me as a wedding dress tracker-downer!? I don't think you should have to pay a lot for vintage, with a little bit of internet trawling you will find something perfect for less than €500, and maybe a tiny fraction of that.
Bear in mind that you may have to get the dress drycleaned and this will be pricey. I used Craft Cleaners on Baggott St to clean my lace 1960s wedding dress, it cost €120 which was less than it costs to clean a new dress but I then had a very nervous 2 weeks wondering if it would come back to me in shreds! ( No reflection on Craft Cleaners, they are expert cleaners and do specialise in vintage wear but they had warned me aged fabrics can just spontaneously fall apart upon washing with even the best care.)

1950s Vintage polka dot dress €236 from TimelessVixenVintage on http://www.etsy.com/

1950s lace tunic currently on Ebay for less than €10 but shipping from the USA...
1950s lace wedding dress, bids starting at £50 on Ebay

Obviously the major issue with buying online is that you can't try the dress on before you buy, which is a bit of a gamble, but a good dressmaker could alter it to fit as long as it is on the big side.
To avoid such problems there are some great vintage boutiques in Ireland where you can try on beautiful pre-cleaned wedding dresses with helpful advice and pampering to boot, the first one that springs to mind is Dirty Fabulous, where I got my own dress! As well as beautiful vintage pieces they have recently sourced a vintage inspired range which runs to larger sizes than the often eensy genuine vintage dresses.

1950s inspired wedding dress €740
When you consider that the cost of most new modern wedding dresses is an average of €1,600 these dresses are infinitely more affordable, quirky and unique, and a nod to vintage without the teeny sizing and risk of imperfections.

Some of the Irish vintage stores that stock bridalwear:

Dirty Fabulous, Dublin ~ http://www.dirtyfabulous.com/
Enchanted Vintage, Sligo ~ http://www.vintageclothing.ie/
The Goddess Room, Wicklow ~www.thegoddessroom.net
Hayworth Vintage, Dublin ~www.hayworthvintage.com
After Sybil, Cork ~www.aftersybil.com
De Paor Designs, Wicklow ~www.depaordesigns.com/
Oxfam Bridal, Dublin ~http://www.oxfamireland.org/oxfambridal

Yup. Still obsessed.

Had to add this beautiful vintage art-deco inspired Phase Eight dress I came across today, available on www.johnlewis.com and at £450 not at all unreasonable for a wedding dress.

Phase Eight Elizabeth wedding dress with beaded bodice £450

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