Have you seen these darling vintage-style wedding head-dresses? Each one is handmade and unique...

Dear Reader, 
Last year, a lovely bride called Ruth shared her wedding pictures here on my blog. You might remember her?

Vintage bride Ruth in original 1950s lace wedding dress, from my West London studio.

Since then, some of my brides have asked about this darling flower crown Ruth wears. It makes the perfect complement to Ruth's original 1960s wedding dress – and would look equally beautiful with many other styles, from 1970s floaty boho wedding dresses to slinky 1930s styles.

Ruth wears a unique bridal flower crown to complement her 1950s wedding dress.

I'm delighted to report it was made specially by Ruth's mother, Julia. And I now have a few of Julia's gorgeous creations available for brides in my new Etsy store.

One of Julia Mason's delicate hand-made bridal crowns, from my Etsy store.

Julia made the first head-dress for her daughter's wedding in the summer of 2015, and now makes them to order. She has various styles all with subtle differences, and each one is completely original.

Delicate flower crown – the perfect complement to vintage wedding dresses.

Her delicate creations are light and airy – not quite like any other bridal headdress I've seen. They have a very ethereal quality, don't you think?

Three delicate tiers of dainty flowers – from my new Etsy store.

Delicate flower crown worn low, with Angel 1930s style wedding dress.

Handmade flower crown, available now from my Etsy store.

Stunning three-tier head-dress – a future heirloom, £195 from my Etsy store

Each piece is entirely hand-made and completely original (Julia creates every individual flower herself). Many, many hours of work goes into each one. They really are beautiful heirlooms of the future, to pass on to your children.

A beautiful two-tier headdress, priced from £145 in my Etsy store.

Visit my new Etsy store for vintage wedding dresses & accessories

I'm delighted to be working with Julia on her new venture, and to have some of these stunning pieces available at my new Etsy store. Do drop in and have a look – prices are from £85 for a comb, £155 for a two tier pice and £195 for a three tier band. Or if you'd like to try one on, contact me to make an appointment at my studio in West London.

Love
Helena
Heavenly Vintage Brides

If you like this post, check out
A History of Vintage Flower Crowns...


And check out more real brides 
on my website, here...

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1970s vintage wedding dresses on the Paris catwalks...

Dear Reader,
The Paris couture shows for Spring 2016 have just drawn to a close with SO many beautiful wedding dresses. (Quite a few bonkers ones too, but more of that later…) 

1970s style wedding dress by Giambattista Valli.

Many designers took vintage wedding fashion as their inspiration. So over the next few posts I'll be picking out some beauties fresh from the Paris couture shows. And I'll also show how you can achieve each catwalk look with the gorgeous original vintage wedding dresses from my London studio.

Beautiful softly pleated skirt on original 1970s boho wedding dress, £695

1970s off–the–shoulder styles are having a major fashion moment right now. The pretty 70s inspired dress from Giambattista Valli's Paris catwalk show (top) is a lovely example of this from the Paris Spring 2016 shows. 

Kate Brien in Valentino 1970s style

1970s boho style is always a favourite with fashion bloggers too. Vogue recently featured View From The Top blogger Kate Brien wearing – yes, you guessed – a Valentino 1970s vintage-style dress for her Mexico wedding…

Valentino 1970s style wedding dress

This style is very wearable and looks amazing on a real bride. Just take a look at the three  stunning real brides featured below, each wearing original 1970s boho wedding dresses from my studio... 

One of my gorgeous brides in original 1970s lace wedding dress

1970s cotton lace dress available from my studio, £795

And with their ruffles and floaty styling, 1970s vintage wedding dresses work brilliantly on the wedding dance floor too!

A fabulous bride in one of my original 1970s vintage wedding dresses

Floaty and so pretty: ballerina length 1970s wedding dress, £495 from my studio.

Another beautiful vintage bride in one of my original 1970s wedding dresses

Gorgeous cotton lace 1970s wedding dress, £795 from my London studio.

Gorgeous 1970s off the shoulder styling, from my studio.

A beautiful original 1970s lace wedding dress from my studio.

I'm always looking for these pretty 1970s boho wedding dresses for my collection, and I have some amazing ones available right now. Just look at these beauties below...

Original 1970s boho wedding dress, available now £695

Original 1970s vintage wedding dress in embroidered chiffon, £495

Gorgeous tiered skirt – perfect for twirling on the dance floor! £495

Pretty off the shoulder neckline on original 1970s lace wedding dress, £695

Sweet and pretty 1970s off the shoulder styling, £495

If you love the idea of twirling in one of these beautiful 1970s wedding dresses, come and see my West London studio, or check out my new Etsy store here…!

Pearl and crystal trim on a 1970s off the shoulder wedding dress

More posts from Paris coming soon – including the craziest dresses on the catwalks. Do pop back. And remember, you can always contact me here...

Love

Helena

Heavenly Vintage Brides

If you love vintage wedding dresses, there's lots more in my new Etsy shop. 

Just click here!

If you love seeing Real Vintage Brides visit my website, here…

And if you enjoyed this post, please try

Hairstyles for 1960s and 1970s wedding dresses…

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Are These The Most Stylish Weddings of 2015?

Dear Reader,

How's your Christmas going? All ready...? No, me neither. No matter how early you get started, doesn't it always seem a rush. Well, let's steal a minute away from the festive frenzy to draw breath and enjoy a few vintage moments from our year. 

Kick off those high heels, swap your spiced rum cocktail for a nice cup of Earl Grey, and relax while I show you the Most Stylish Brides of 2015 according to the Daily Telegraph... 

Heiress Beatrice Borromeo in Armani Prive… just one of her five couture wedding dresses!

As it's The Daily Telegraph these are crazy society weddings. All the brides do look stunning – but at what a price! One wedding dress is encrusted with 15 carats of Chopard diamonds. Another wedding dress is rumoured to have cost over £50,000. And heiress Beatrice Borromeo wears not one or even two – but five couture wedding dresses! A tad excessive... non?

Hilary Rhoda in Carolina Herrara dress, encrusted with 14.7 carats of Chopard diamonds!

However, most of these fabulous couture wedding dresses are based on vintage originals. And it's perfectly possible to achieve equally stunning looks on a more realistic budget. So – of course – I can't resist showing you how...!

Beatrice Borromeo in blush Valentino vintage–inspired wedding dress and cape

Beatrice Borromeo

For her official wedding ceremony, Heiress Beatrice Borromeo chose a pale pink Valentino silk tulle gown with a delicate beaded cape (above). I'm always looking for similar antique beaded capes from Victorian to 1930s. And if you too love this look, do call me to see what little treasure are in my current stock. 

An original vintage wedding capelet, from my West London studio.

A week later, Borromeo said 'I do' again – this time on one of her family's islands! For this ceremony, she wore a beautiful ivory-coloured dress with a flared silhouette in Chantilly lace from Armani's luxury Privé label. The silk chiffon layered gown was paired with a delicate silk tulle veil, also with a Chantilly lace border.

Beatrice Borromeo in Armani Prive wedding dress

Full length lace wedding dresses like this one are always in style. I have a range of lovely figure–flattering dresses in my Heavenly Collection made from exquisite lace (and you don't even need to be an heiress to afford one!) As well as some wonderful original lace wedding dresses like the 1960s one shown below…

Full length, 1940s–inspired lace wedding dress from my Heavenly Collection.

Original 1960s vintage wedding dress in lace, from my West London studio.

Long lace veil from my Heavenly Collection

Allison Williams

Another featured bride is Girls actress Allison Williams. Allison married entrepreneur Ricky Van Veen in September at Brush Creek Ranch in Wyoming, in a ceremony officiated by actor Tom Hanks. Her 1950s–inspired Oscar de la Renta gown was created by the fashion house's British creative director, Peter Copping. The heavily embellished gown featured a sheer, long-sleeved overlay atop a full-skirted strapless dress.

Allison Williams in Oscar de la Renta wedding dress.

These 1950s wedding dresses are so feminine and flattering, whether original or simply vintage–style like my Heavenly Collection version below. These styles really are timeless. Look out for the cinched waist, full skirt and neat bodice.

Original 1950s wedding dress from my West London studio.

One of many 1950s inspired lace wedding dresses in my Heavenly Collection

Nicky Hilton

Not only Allison's but several other dresses in the Most Stylish list had their roots in classic 1950s styles. Nicky Hilton married banking scion James Rothschild in Kensington Palace Gardens in London. Her 1950s–style couture lace Valentino gown that is said to have cost £50,000 and with its high neck, full skirt and long sleeves has echoes of everyone's favourite brides Grace Kelly and Kate Middleton.

Nicky Hilton in lace Valentino wedding dress

1950s style lace wedding dress from my Heavenly Collection

Noor Fares

Fine jeweller Noor Fares also chose 1950s style for her wedding to artist Alexandre Al Khawam at a beautiful ceremony in Normandy in June. Her first dress – yes, there were two – was this beautiful haute couture Giambattista Valli gown. 

Noor Fares in 1950s style wedding dress by Giambattista Valli.

1950s lace wedding dress from my Heavenly Collection

Noor also wore an Azzedine Alaia wedding dress, speckled with delicate pearls...

Noor Fares in Azzedine Alaia wedding dress.

Bar Refaeli

The next bride featured in the Most Stylish list is Israeli model Bar Refaeli. For her lavish wedding to business magnate Adi Ezra this year, Bar wore a custom-made, 1970s–inspired bohemian Chloe gown.. and looked every inch a supermodel!

Bar Refaeli in Chloe vintage–inspired wedding dress

But you don't have to be a model marrying a millionaire to look gorgeous in a boho–style original vintage wedding dress, like this beautiful original 1970s dress from my collection...

Original 1970s wedding dress from my West London studio.

Original 1970s wedding dress from my West London studio

Hilary Rhoda

Model Hilary Rhoda wore an elegant and simple 1930s–inspired Carolina Herrera wedding gown to marry NHL player Sean Avery in the Hamptons. But – you guessed it – this chic and 'simple' dress also featured beading with 14.7 carats of Chopard diamonds!

Hilary Rhoda in Carolina Herrara wedding dress

For similarly chic and elegant 1930s–inspired silhouettes try my Heavenly Collection… (Real diamonds come as extra!)

1930s style lace wedding dress with fishtail, from my Heavenly Collection.

1930s inspired wedding dress from my Heavenly Collection

Riley Keough

Model and actress Riley Keough wed stuntman Ben Smith-Peterson in Napa Valley in Feruary. She wore a Delphine Manivet Couture gown featuring double levels of soft French lace, long sleeves with vintage-style buttons and a stunning open back. Truly lovely and very 1940s.

Riley Keogh in 1940s style full length lace wedding dress

1940s lace wedding dress & jacket, from my West London studio

1940s inspired lace wedding dress, from my Heavenly Collection

1940s inspired lace wedding dress from my Heavenly Collection

Sophie Hunter

Theatre director Sophie Hunter and actor Benedict Cumberbatch may have kept their wedding pictures under wraps, but thanks to US Vogue we got a good look at the bride's heavenly dress. The Valentino gown was Medieval-inspired with long sleeves, a high neck and formed of delicate silvery-grey lace.

Sophie Hunter in grey Valentino lace wedding dress

While I can't promise to find you an original Medieval dress (!) many 1960s styles are based on this timeless silhouette – with its flattering empire line, high neck and elegant lace sleeves. This original Priscilla of Boston 1960s wedding dress was recently sold from my collection, but do contact me if you're a fan of this beautiful look…

Original 1960s wedding dress by Priscilla of Boston, from my studio.

Detail from Priscilla of Boston 1960s wedding dress.

Sabine G

For her wedding to billionaire Joseph Getty, Lebanese–Egyptian jewellery designer Sabine G wore a wedding dress and cape by couture house Schiaparelli. The outfit was hand–embellished with no less than 500,000 sequins. A fabulous dress to end the list – and one I'm afraid I can't match. But I guess when you're marrying into the Getty family, you really need to pull out all the stops! 

Sabine G wears Schiaparelli couture wedding dress and cape with 500,000 sequins

Well, did you agree with their selection, and which is your favourite? At New Year (not so long now!) I'll be delighted to show you my own personal favourites from my real vintage brides – looking every bit as beautiful and radiant as the selection here! A happy wedding day, a room full of loved ones, a proud groom and a beautiful vintage dress – these are the things that can make every bride look as beautiful as any supermodel!
Love
Helena
Heavenly Vintage Brides

With thanks to The Daily Telegraph

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