GARDEN INSPIRED

Linen/silk chiffon and Chantilly lace cap-sleeved dress with full crinoline petticoat. Ecru silk headband with ivory silk dupioni handrolled rose has a pink jewel button in the center

Embroidered ivory lace organza fascinator with gathered mini pouf. Edge of hat is bordered in Venise lace trimmed with pearls.

The Chanel Look spanned several eras of changing fashion. Her most notable signatures are close fitting cloche style hats, halters, separates, jerseys and strands of many different pearl necklaces all worn at once. Pictured here is a Chantilly lace halter paired up with a long shantung skirt with a sweep train. The sizel hat is a combo cloche and picture hat so evocative of Chanel's time.  A Shantung Bow with netting lends a great 1940s feeling. 

Boho is back! Theres a mix of imported Chantilly laces on the bodice. The full skirt is gathered silk chiffon lined in crepe backed satin. Bodice has lace cap sleeves and is accented with a gold braid tie belt. Floral head wreath is made up of dried roses and Baby's Breath  . . .

A versatile and modified A-line in luxe dupioni silk . . . Here the skirt is hiked up to show off the meringue on the petticoat--- a Chantilly lace border. The complimentary fascinator is 'vintage with an edge'. Ivory Dupioni with handmade silk organdy florals. Has tulle pouf veil and Venise lace edging with hand-sewn pearls.

Val lace over blouse with blue satin tie belt gives this design a very Audrey look. The skirt is four layers of tulle and a separate slip of crinoline and tulle. Detailed touches include a row of buttons down a V-back
and it is all pulled together with a blue sash.

Above: This tea gown could be right out of a Jane Austen Novel. A white silk dupioni sheath draped with Chantilly lace on the skirt and bodice. Back details include a row of covered buttons and lace tie-back. Price upon request. It can be special ordered in white or ivory through Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal

Below: Perfectly chosen accoutrements to go with the romantic tea gown.  At top right the fascinator is Ivory Chantilly lace and crepe with beaded Venise lace edging. Embellishment is two handrolled silk shantung roses. Below left is the horsehair fascinator/veil hybrid accented with a tulle rose and bow.  Below Right:Something old.  A pair of genuine antique pearl earrings.

All bridal Wear and accessories available through Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal Couture

NEW ON ETSY

Meet Fiona! This is an adaption of my evening gown silhouette clients love so much. Incredibly light and airy, it's made out of silk chiffon and lined in china silk (feels sumptuous on). The train is a diaphanous cloud of silk gauze dappled with tiny hand rolled organza florals.

Ordering this gown is a cinch. It can be found on my site, Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal Couture or Etsy. Best to call me 415.258.8204. I'm in The San Francisco Bay Area. I'll send out a good sized swatch of this fabric and linings. . . .

MORE ABOUT CUSTOM DESIGN

There are FAQs I get all the time. My email box is proof the two most frequently asked are: 1.) How long does it take to create a custom designed gown? and 2.) How much does it cost?
OH HOW LONG OH LONG MUST I WAIT?
We designers put in oodles of hours and a high level of craftsmanship when it comes to creating one-of-a-kind gowns. Working with fragile, white fabric and delicate laces is an art form. Add to that keeping those fragile laces intact and white gowns looking fresh through fittings. Figure a gown hand-crafted by a designer usually takes 4-6 months to complete from a listing of your measurements. The greatest thing about custom design is that you'll have more of a one-on-one collaboration with the designer and input on any choices of fabric, silhouette and overall style.
WILL MY CUSTOM DESIGNED GOWN COST ME THE DOWN PAYMENT ON A HOUSE?
Chances are, no, unless you order Lady Di's silk taffeta gown with the 25 foot train and layers of uber-pouf. Most custom designs run neck and neck with the prices you'll find in better salons. Custom designers usually work all the materials and labor into the price of the garment. Prices can range from, $1000.00 for something simple and unadorned up to $10,000.00 for the works: full trains, petticoats, underskirts, bustles, intricate beading, etc. Medium price range for a custom wedding gown as of this writing writing would be around $2500.00-5000.00.

Overall, brides are happy with custom design because of the leeway it offers. Where and in whose bridal collection can you find cotton wedding dresses these days? Or suits? Or two-piece dresses? Or convertable gowns? Custom design is optimal for the bride who wants some individual touch not offered in salons or boutiques.

THE PROCESS
The designer/client relationship is one that's very special so enter with care. Just like any relationship you must be in simpatico. In simpatico first with the design vision and then with your working relationship. You can help by bringing photos, magazine clippings, sketches or swatches of fabric to the initial consultation. All your ideas are discussed with the designer running a few ideas back to you. Choices and cost of materials, fabrics and a few other details are usually explored. If the designer has a small sample collection, this is usually when you can begin trying gowns on to see what the fabrics are going to look and feel like with you in them. This is the time too to look over how well the samples are made. Don’t worry about whether or not you know haute couture techniques here—just pull up a hem or look at the inside of one of the garments and you’ll know if its cleanly made and as beautiful on the inside as out.

THE MUSLIN
Eventually, a gown is in the making. After a final sketch is approved, a written estimate follows, complete with fabric swatches and your measurements are finally taken. For every gown order, a paper pattern is made. Think of the paper pattern as a blueprint, a record with all your dimensions on it. From this, most designers (some dressmakers too) work out a muslin. A muslin is an actual cotton mock-up and ‘living pattern’ of the gown design, fitted exactly to your body. Now, think of the muslin as the foundation work—laying all the necessary groundwork upon which your dress will be built. This is where most of the fine-tuning is done to get the perfect fit before one cut or stitch goes into the true gown fabric(s).
After your muslin fittings (there may be two of them), the muslin is unstitched and laid out on the actual fabric and the gown is made up. Since most of the fitting is worked out on the muslin, second and third fittings usually follow up with finishing touches on the gown like, final hemline, closures, remaining design details, etc. Be prepared for more than three fittings though. A gown made from the ground up is a work in progress and each step along the way is painstakingly taken, checked and rechecked. Keep in mind you want your gown delivered at least a month before your wedding. Yes. You need to synchronize your calendars on this one. You want to be able to relax and deal with all those other last minute details involved in your wedding, not still fussing around over hemlines.

If you want to view some awesome samples of custom design, visit my new pages at http://amyjotatum.googlepages.com

UP AND DOWN: ALL ABOUT TRAINS AND BUSTLES

Back in the Middle Ages when fabric was in short supply, the length of one’s train conveyed a person’s wealth and standing. For Victorians, bustling the train was considered an art form with all kind of intricate floral and lace treatments. Today a gown with a train still suggests formality; typically the longer the train, the more formal the wedding. So what is a train exactly? A train is that extension in the back of the skirt that follows when you move. Read more

BRIDE MAIL: THE PETITE BRIDE

BrideMail@Bridechic.com
I'm 5' and very small boned. Most gowns I've tried on are for women that are 5'6. This means whenever I get in front of the mirror I'm swimming in the dress. Almost any sleeve, belt, print or lace looks magnified on me. What are my options?

One of the most important things for the vertically challenged to remember is scale. If you're petite and in shape, you can wear just about any gown as long as you scale down to the right proportion. Also thinking vertically (up, up, up) it will be easier to figure out which treatments suit you best. For instance, choose a bodice and neckline that draw the eye up to your decolletage. Here's more to consider.

GO FOR

*A gown with a panel or seam(s) running up the front. The unbroken lines give you height.

*Empire waists like the one at left are one of your best options considering you go floor length. You want to keep that vertical line going.

*A V or U neckline will give the impression of a longer neck.

*A mermaid. If you're slim and petite consider this style. It's fitted like an evening gown up top and has all the bounce and swirl of a ball gown below.
*An A-line like the one pictured below. Think of it as your very own scaled down version of a ballgown.

*Sheath and evening gown silhouettes like the one below. Long and columnar, they will flatter you.

*Choose length over volume in your skirt.

*Sleeves that are long and straight like the ones opposite.

*Best proportion is a floor length gown with a veil or train of the same length.

*If you are wearing a gown with a train and/or veil, keep the length just brushing the ground.

PASS UP:
*Any ball gown. The volume in the skirts will consume you.
*Heavy, elaborate fabrics like brocade or any print or design that is large.
*Wide belts, sashes and cummerbunds interrupt the vertical lines you want to create. If you do wear a sash or belt go thin (1-1 ½ inches) and as close to the shade of your gown as you can get.
*Any design with big puffy sleeves or shoulder pads.
*Any train or veil longer than a sweep.


Gowns by Amy-Jo Tatum

411 ON BODICES

Photo by Ron Greystar/All Rights Reserved
The bodice is the focal point, the epicenter of your gown and reflects the heart of its overall style. Which bodice you choose will determine whether or not your gown has sleeves, a collar, high or low neckline, lace overlays, etc. Proper fit of the bodice is especially crucial and the place the most exact measurements need to be taken. Because a bodice is either darted or seamed, it typically has the most shaped and sculpted seams of any other piece on your gown. Also it is the center from which most other components are attached and take form—the place your gown finally goes from a flat to a three dimensional piece of fabric sculpture. While a bodice may look pretty straight-forward from the outside, like the skirt, it may have a complex inner life of linings, facings, and shaping materials we never see but sense by the way the bodice holds it’s shape. For instance, the bodice on a typical wedding gown needs an underling to give it that sculpted form in addition to becoming a strong foundation with which to attach lace, trim or embroidery. Also, an underlining can hide casements within the bodice for boning, a material used to hold that strapless bodice up. We’ll discuss the understructure of your bodice as well as skirt in more detail later. Until then realize most bodices whether draped or closely fitted to your body, frequently have some kind of foundation of reinforcement beneath. Here are a few bodice treatments to consider.

Ruched-Left:Treatment of horizontal gathers stretched across the bodice front and back.

Photo by ejones photography/All Rights Reserved

Strapless-Typically looks like the one pictured at left. Has no sleeves and is held up with boning inside the bodice.



Overlay-A spread of lightweight fabric or lace laid over top the bodice like the one pictured left.





photo by Ron Greystar

Draped-Pictured above, like the surplice, this treatment can be attached from the shoulders or neckline. Also supported by an under bodice.

Surplice-Pictured bottom left, two wraps of fabric criss-crossing over the bust line, usually attached and/or supported by an under bodice. Big 1930s glam look with Jean Harlow struttin’ across the screen in her white crepe satin..

Corset-Bodice or vest usually with visible boning running vertically up the front and back. Laces up through eyelets either in front or back. While I’ve seen a few that hint at modesty complete with miniature rosebuds and bows, typically the corset belongs to the venturesome bride. Yes, a bodice all done up like a corset does have that Moulin Rougesque look; makes busty and heavier brides look voluptuous, everyone else a Can-Can dancer.

All gowns by Amy-Jo Tatum

WHAT'S NEW IN THE GOWN GALLERY?

Every so often I'll be adding new photos as samples are finished. Meet Cosette, the newest member of the Spring/Summer 2008 collection; a silk chiffon and crepe empire with peau d'ange lace at the bodice. There's a sweep train and the gray satin ribbon is a sash all the way down the back. This gown was inspired by a dress I saw in Follow the Fleet, a 1935 Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers flick. When the 'Cosette' design first started going round in my head, I envisioned it on a bride at an outdoor garden wedding. But I think 'Cosette' would also look awesome at a cocktail or evening wedding. As far as the head chic goes, you have so many options with this gown: flowers in the hair, a snood, a veil of almost any legnth . . . .

THE CUSTOM GOWN

Chances are if you're looking for a wedding gown you're browsing online. Maybe you've narrowed down your search--decided you like the evening gown look but not absolutely, positively, 100 per cent sure an A-line is out of the question. Next you get up from the computer and go out shopping. You hit every salon within a twenty-mile radius, go through racks of gowns in fabrics you never knew existed. You try on a few in every shade and texture of white imaginable. And while you feel you've had a crash course in bridal, still, nothing out there's really grabbed you. Then . . . a week or two later this picture of a gown finally comes together in your head--the neckline you found in Weddings; the sleeve on the dress you tried on in the salon combined with the sweep train you spotted last week in the Film Noir. Once all this gets put together you'll have a custom designed gown, something one-of-a-kind like no other in the world.

BrideMail@Bridechic.com
I know the exact dress I want but can't find it online or in the stores. Luckily a friend recommended a designer she used. How is custom design different from buying in a salon?

REALITY 101: Making a gown from scratch requires more fittings than gowns ordered through a salon so you'll need to be open to the experience of watching your gown develop from the ground up. In addition, a custom designer or skilled seamstress puts many hours and a high level of craftsmanship into the creation of a custom gown. Working with fragile white fabric and delicate lace is an art form. Figure any custom gown crafted by a designer usually takes four to six months to complete from a listing of your measurements. Since the design process involved with a custom gown is more of a direct collaboration between you, you'll have more input with decisions regarding fabric, silhouette and style. Custom gowns are typically 80-90% handmade. This means machines do some work like the side seams, cross seams, etc. There are however stitches on these one-of-a-kind gowns only expert handwork can touch in order to produce that exquisite finish.

THE DESIGN PROCESS

Step 1

Every first consultation begins by asking questions about the actual wedding itself. You'll look at and evaluate all the factors involved in optimizing gown design; the scale of the ceremony, the nature of its backdrop, your use of tradition, even the surfaces on which you'll be walking. With respect for cleaning and preservation, sometimes even post-wedding plans are made for the gown.

If you've brought any photos, magazine clippings, sketches or swatches of fabric, these are discussed, usually with the designer running a few of her own ideas back to you. I keep a scrapbook for each of my clients starting with the ideas she's brought in. Cost of materials, fabrics and a few other details are explored. If the designer has a small sample collection, this is usually when you can begin trying on gowns to see what the fabrics are going to look and feel like with you in them. This is also the time you'll be looking over how well the samples are made. And don't worry whether or not you know haute couture techniques here--just pull up a hem or take a look inside one of the garments. You'll know fine workmanship if its cleanly made and as beautiful on the inside as out.

STEP 2

Eventually a gown is in the making. After a final sketch is approved, a written estimate follows, complete with with fabric swatches and your measurements are taken. For every gown order a paper pattern is made. Think of the paper pattern as a blueprint, a record of all your dimensions on it. From this, most designers (some dressmakers too) work out a muslin. The muslin is an actual cotton mock-up and 'living pattern' of your gown's design, fitted exactly to your body. Now, think of your muslin as the foundation--the groundwork upon which your dress will be built. This is where most of the fine tuning will be done to that perfect fit before one cut or stitch goes into the true gown fabric(s).

STEP 3

After your muslin fittings (there may be two of them), the muslin is unstitched and laid out on the actual fabric and the gown is made up. Since most of the fitting has been worked out on the muslin, second and third fittings usually follow up with finishing touches to the gown like hemline, closures, remaining design details, etc. Be prepared for more than three fittings though. A gown made from the ground up is a work in progress and each step along the way is painstakingly taken, checked and rechecked. Keep in mind you want your gown delivered at least a month before your wedding. Yes, you'll need to synchronize your calendars on this one. You want to be able to relax and deal with all those other last minute details involved with your wedding, not still fussing around over hemlines.

BrideMail@Bridechic.com

So what's the difference between a dressmaker and a designer?

DRESSMAKERS-Once upon a time before mass production, every woman either had a dressmaker or became her own. Nowadays most dressmakers specialize. You'll want one with expertise in bridal and/or evening wear. Dressmakers either work on an hourly basis or estimate out their labor. They usually work from store bought patterns and expect you to supply the fabrics and materials such as buttons, zippers, etc. This is a good option if you already have a unique cut of silk or know how to shop around yourself for the fabrics.

CUSTOM BRIDAL DESIGNERS-More and more have sprung up in studios and ateliers over the past decade. They're experts in helping you translate what you see in your imagination as reality. Like a dressmaker, they work one on one with you. Unlike a dressmaker, they usually have tonier establishments and higher prices. The reason? Their services are zeroed in on brides. Most offer small sample collections as well as bolts of fabric right in house to inspire you along with your decision. Custom designers usually work all the materials and labor into the price of the garment. Prepare to pay more here. Prices can range from $1000.00 for something simple and unadorned, up to $10,000.00 for the works: full trains, layers of petticoats, underskirts, bustles, intricate beading, etc. Median price range for a custom wedding gown as of this writing would be around $3-5000.00.

WHERE TO FIND DRESSMAKERS AND DESIGNERS

ONLINE- Most bridal designers have their own sites. Type in bridal designers and you'll come up with thousands (great if you want to browse even more gowns) Type in bridal designers--Los Angeles and you've narrowed it down some. Mostly what you'll come up with is a hodgepodge of big names, the not-so-famous one-of-a-kind designers with their own sites; a few bridal retailers carrying designers, etc. If you've hit a top LA designer you absolutely love like Amy Michaelson and happen to live in the area, try to make an appointment. Realize some top designers do custom work in their flagship store. Remember though top designers get top dollar. As for custom designers, if you're near a metro area, your chances of connecting with the right one are good. Check out the gown photos on the site. Is her vision and your own on the same page. Next go to her real brides gallery . . . (if there is one) see what others looked like on their wedding day in her creations.

SALONS-Bridal salons and specialty stores sometimes employ custom designers or dressmakers either in house or as outside contractors. Depending on how they are set up, sometimes they'll give a referral if it doesn't interfere with the flow of business.

CONSULTANTS-Bridal consultants or planners are an excellent source for referrals and usually know who is truly expert in the area by years of working with them. Some consultants are willing to work on an hourly basis or for a small referral fee.

FASHION EDITORS-Fashion or wedding section editors in regionals can be helpful if you reach them directly or run across their editorials on bridal wear. Most newspapers feature a spread on weddings twice a year. Here, private designers are sometimes featured and listed. Ask for back issues.

MAGAZINES-In the past few years, studio and private wedding designers have put gallery style or half page ads in some of the major bridal glossies. A few run regional sections with listings and the designer's particular specialty.

YELLOW PAGES-Before the internet, this used to be the first place brides looked. After word of mouth, this is still the best place to find a dressmaker (not designer) in my opinion.

FRIENDS-Finally word of mouth and recommendations through friends find the best designers and dressmakers. Someone knows someone who knows someone and often the same name will keep popping up in discussion. Follow it.

AFTERWORD

A custom designed gown is the pinnacle of pure construction. Brides who opt to go custom believe a gown should be comfortable as well as beautifully lined so she can wear it like a second skin--the whole component moving with her as if it is part of her body. If you think about this, it makes sense. She's connecting with a man. In spirit they link. The dress is symbolic of all that, so it should be a part of her and move right along with her. In the end, a custom designed gown is definitely worth the wait.

Text by Amy-Jo Tatum

Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal Couture

http://www.amyjotatum.com/

SUMPTUOUS FABRICS: The Making of a Romantic Bride

Gowns by Amy-Jo Tatum
Photos by Ron Greystar
Model: Robin Patronik

When it comes to wedding wear, silks rule. I designed these gowns in a whole range of silks for the bride wanting an ultra feminine look. When organza, chiffon, crepe and light-as-air laces combine, they make for some real romantic dressing.

MUSETTA: A whirling confection in yards of silk organza accented with peau d’ange lace over a satin bodice.

ARIEL: Go floral. Silk petals and roses decorate a detachable organza train. The rest of the gown is silk chiffon and chantilly lace.

MONIQUE: Surplice bodice draped in white silk crepe harks back to 1930’s Hollywood. Warning: This simple silhouette carries lots of impact.

CHLOE: A lightweight brocade that can go cool and airy for summer weddings.

ANTOINETTE: Be ethereal in a body-hugging embossed chiffon over white crepe. Back features a silk gauze detachable train with handrolled silk florals.


Special thanks to Ron Greystar for his dedicated work on this shoot. All these images are copywritten by rongreystar.com and can not be reproduced without the photographer's consent.