Thinking of Wearing a Vintage Wedding Dress? Here are 4 Things to Keep in Mind

By
Ashley B
-

Over the past year, vintage and second-hand wedding dresses have become more popular. Even Princess Beatrice is getting in on the trend as she wore a reworked vintage gown on her wedding day that was originally worn by her grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II at the 1962 film premiere of Lawrence of Arabia. The Princess choose to modernize the dress by refitting it to her body and adding sheer puff sleeves and removing the underskirts and the bubble hem and replacing it with a silk trim.

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Princess Beatrice married her fiancé Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi last Friday in an intimate ceremony and wore a vintage dress that had belonged to her grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, and a tiara that the Queen wore on her wedding day to Philip in 1947.⁠ Designed by Norman Hartnell, the dress is made from Peau De Soie taffeta in shades of ivory, trimmed with ivory Duchess satin, with organza sleeves. The queen wore it a couple of times in the 1960s: in 1962 she wore it at the world premiere of Lawrence of Arabia (on the photo) and for her speech in the House of Lords in 1966.⁠ For the princess's wedding, the dress was remodelled by Queen's own dressmaker Angela Kelly and designer Stewart Parvin: they made some alterations to the hem, replacing the bubble skirt with a silk trim and adding organza sleeves. What do you think of the result?⁠ ⁠ ———————————————————————⁠ ⁠ La princesa Beatriz de Inglaterra se casó el pasado viernes con su prometido Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi en una ceremonia íntima y lució un vestido vintage que había pertenecido a su abuela, la reina Isabel II y una tiara que la reina usó el día de su boda con Felipe en 1947.⁠ Diseñado por Norman Hartnell, el vestido está hecho de tafetán de Peau De Soie en tonos de marfil, adornado con satén de duquesa de marfil. La reina lo llevó en un par de ocasiones en la década de 1960: en 1962 lo lució en el estreno mundial de Lawrence de Arabia (en la foto) y para dar su discurso en la Cámara de los Lores en 1966.⁠ Para la boda de la princesa, la modista de la reina Angela Kelly y el diseñador Stewart Parvin realizaron algunas modificaciones en el bajo, eliminando la falda globo y añadieron unas mangas de organza. ¿Qué te parece el resultado final? ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ·⁠ ·⁠ ·⁠ #allaboutfashionhistory #fashionhistory #historiamoda #historiadelamoda #dresshistory #costumehistory #dresshistorylovers #1960s #1960sfashion #60s #queenelizabeth #queenelizabethII #elizabethII #princessbeatrice #britishroyals #vintagefashion #retrofashion #fashionhistoryblogger #historicalfashion #normanhartnell #vintage #vintagefashion #retrofashion #weddinggown #vintageweddingdress

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Searches for vintage, second-hand, and preowned wedding dresses have increased over the past year, and if you’re looking to get in on this more sustainable option, here’s what you should keep in mind when shopping.

Put in the Research

Start by figuring out what style and silhouette you’re looking for. Dresses from the 1950s and 1960s are having a moment and more relaxed styles from the 1970s and 1990s have become popular during the pandemic.

Set Your Budget

A good place to start is by setting a budget. Not only will this narrow your research, but it will let you know what kinds of dresses to expect in your budget. In general, major designer labels like Oscar de la Renta, Yves Saint Laurent, and Azzedine Alaïa, will cost you more.

Find a Tailor

Most vintage dresses will need to be altered to get the perfect fit and you may want to customize it to make it the dress of your dreams.

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Pay Attention to the Fabric

When you shop in person, you can feel and see the fabric, but when shopping online, try and get as much information as possible about the dress. Some dresses that say that they’re organza or chiffon end up being polyester.

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