The replica of the Royal christening robe.

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I would love to have had the chance to make the christening robe for Prince George.
It was a replica of the gown worn by Queen Victoria's eldest daughter in 1841.
It has been used for generation after generation of royal infants including the Queen's father King George VI, the Queen, the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry, with Lady Louise Windsor being the last royal baby to wear the delicate ensemble in 2004.
But after years of wear, the original gown is now too fragile to use, so the Queen commissioned a replica in 2008, and the Earl and Countess of Wessex's son Viscount Severn became the first royal baby to wear the new robe at his christening in April of that year.

It was made by the Queen's dresser Angela Kelly and the team of dressmakers at Buckingham Palace, and features the same lengthy skirt and elaborate collars and bow as its predecessor. I love the length of the robe it dominates the photo drawing the eye to the baby and what the day is all about.

The original Honiton lace and white satin robe, which is now 172 years old, was last used in 2004, after which the Queen commissioned the handmade copy so the historic outfit could be carefully preserved.

   The original lace and satin christening robe was specially crafted for Victoria, the Princess Royal in 1841, by Janet Sutherland from Falkirk Scotland ( who received the title "embroiderer for the Queen")

 The replica robe made by the Queens dresser is such a lovely colour that Kate has matched it with her outfit, by Alexander McQueen.

The whole ensemble seems to co ordinate perfectly, maybe Angela Kelly had a hand in it all. Pippa wore a cream coat by Suzannah Crab and Carole wore another Catherine Walker  and I am going to guess that Camilla's hat is a Philip Treacy again! The cream and the blues of everybody work so wonderfully well that I feel it must have been orchestrated to create the perfect photo. I love the fall of Kate's frill complimenting Prince George's robe.

Wedding photos

 Another summer wedding but sadly there wasn't much sunshine this time, however no-one was going to let it spoil the "Big Day"

Girls you will be glad to hear that we have a new "Lucky umbrella"

Since 2009, after the August that the West Link was closed in Belfast because of the floods, we have had the luck of a fancy umbrella that was lent out to our brides. As long as you had the umbrella is wasn't needed. However the end of July this summer I was out dressing a bride, the lucky umbrella at the ready, but the skies opened.  There was a down pour, no umbrella was going to be of any use that day!! Not long after that the umbrella got lost and fortunately a new one was sourced and much to our delight it has already proved lucky.

Something new and something blue

It's that time of year when I'm getting ideas for new designs and looking at new fabrics. There is the textile forum to keep up to date with the latest.

By visiting the Textile show it keeps me up to date with the latest new fabrics and laces available.

It is great to see more choice in colour for the laces, as they still are proving popular for next year.

You & Your Wedding

The You & Your Wedding Bridal Retail Awards 2014 - now open for entries!

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They are launching the You & Your Wedding Bridal Retail Awards 2014. They want to recognise and reward the very best in the bridal business right across the UK – from individuals and small independents to high street favourites and designer brands.

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