weddingdresses Archives - Chantal Mallett Bridal Couture

Oct

Mystic Autumn

We have a very special shoot we’re sharing with you just in time for Halloween that features our more dramatic black gothic wedding dresses; perfect for brides looking for alternative gowns, gothic princess, stylish brides of Dracula & those who like all things spookily fabulous.

In England, after the Summer burns out, nature transitions as if by magic. Greens turn to yellow, to oranges & reds as the leaves flutter to the ground & the first frosts creep over grass & moss, dusting them with icy dew & the promise of Winter.

Summer, admittedly offers a long list of wedding season pros: long hot days, warm evenings & gardens with their beds brimming with colour among them. But if you love the sparkle of Autumn light, cooler days, rustic charm, warm fires as evening draws in & if you hanker after a darker, richer or even spooky colour scheme, Autumn is your girl.

Chantal Mallett dramatic black gothic couture wedding dresses

DOLCE VITA

Inspiration / Art Direction:

Earlier this month a small team of us headed to Rousham Gardens in Oxfordshire to shoot three of our more dramatic gowns. It is always fun to look outside of traditional weddings for inspiration & my friend Magic Owen, a very talented fashion photographer, is exceptionally good at ‘wow’ concepts. She suggested we look to the high fashion styling, where rich colours & black played against sumptuous florals, as seen at the amazing Dolce & Gabbana show at Lake Como earlier this Summer that had been dazzling us on Instagram over the last few months. In preparation for the shoot I designed a golden crown embellished with Swarovski fancy stones to complement the shoot & we paid homage to Frida Kahlo, who is currently the subject of an exhibition at the V&A, by styling it among statement blooms in the models hair. For art direction we looked to the king of whimsy Tim Walker to give the shoot it’s theatrical & romantic vibe to which dahlia flower beds & virginia creepers in the gardens of Rousham delivered a stage set of drama & beauty.

Chantal Mallett dramatic gold couture wedding dresses

ELIZABETH

Dresses & Accessories:

We pulled three gowns from our collection to shoot. Lolita, our first look, is a short corseted gown with a high low skirt & deep pink underskirt. We paired her with a fabulous pair of boots available exclusively at House of Elliot & our new Tatiana crown which is embellished with amber coloured Swarovski stones.

Our second look, Elizabeth, features a strapless corset with scallop shell bust detail & full skirt in gold brocade with delicate, 3 strand pearl straps. We styled her with the Tatiana crown & a pair of matching earrings.

Our final look, Dolce Vita, is a very romantic & dramatic black tulle ballgown with a plunge, sweetheart neckline & bow detail at the decolletage. We created a new version of our Aurelia choker to style with this dress for the shoot in black pearls & crystals with a hand tinted & beaded lace motif worked in shades of red, pink & blackcurrent with highlights of orange.

DOLCE VITA

Beauty:

Hallimah of H Beauty gave model Lita the classic look of a Flamenco dancer, with heavy black eye liner & a bold red lip. She styled Lita’s hair in a middle parting, swept into a low bun intertwined with braids, into which we set flowers tinted to match the dresses & the crown. For the last look I restyled the flowers into a stunning mohawk, set on a diagonal, to offset the lace motif on the choker I created to be worn with the black tulle ballgown.

Chantal Mallett dramatic black hi low gothic couture wedding dresses

LOLITA

Wedding Style Inspiration:

Whilst we shot, deliberately not thinking ‘weddings’, when we saw the edits we loved how this shoot offers up something very different & yet really captures a theme that brides can take & make their own & shows how brides can really rock dramatic coloured & black wedding gowns.

LOLITA

I would like to say thank you to my wonderful shoot team & our lovely hosts at Rousham Gardens. I don’t arrange shoots nearly enough, especially fun ones with gorgeous editorial style themes & when I see the results of working with such amazing, like minded creative teams, I am reminded that I really should do more & do them more often x

ELIZABETH

Credits:

Gowns & Accessories/ Styling: Chantal Mallett www.chantalmallett.com

Photography / Art Direction: Magic Owen www.magicowen.co.uk

Hair & Make-up: Hallimah Abubacker of H Beauty www.hbeauty.co

Model: Lita Flores Garcia www.instagram.com/lita.flores.garcia

Boots: House of Elliot www.houseofelliotcollection.com

Featured as blog posts on 5StarWeddingDirectory , Buckinghams Magazine & dresses featured on You&YourWeddingOnline

DOLCE VITA

ELIZABETH

LOLITA

DOLCE VITA

Jan

THE STYLING POWER OF A SLEEVE OR STRAP (and other styling tips).

I have been working with Brides now for over twenty years advising on the dress & the styling to create the look each customer has in mind.

When we first started building up the showcase of bridal samples, making separates was not only logical, it was cost effective. Every time I added another dress combination of corset, skirt & sleeves/strap, I added more pieces that could be mixed & matched with pieces already in the collection. As we were exclusively making one of a kind gowns, having a collection of pieces offered up more looks for customers to try on & it worked really well.

chantal_mallett_bridal_couture_valentina_sketches3

Our Valentina corset with her original skirt (worn over & under the skirt|). With her strap & sleeve options demonstrating how Sleeves & Straps change the look of a dress.

Sleeves & straps:

From experience, sleeves are one of three things that change the look & mood of a dress more than anything else & it is perhaps why so few off the peg dresses come with sleeves. Manufacturers possibly do not want to limit a dress’s appeal. Yet a lot of brides want sleeves. In their most basic form, a straight sleeve will help disguise bingo wings (which are the obsession of many brides young & old & of every body shape), even a semi-transparent one. The simple addition of a sleeve or shoulder treatment can tweak a gown to work for a particular theme or turn an almost right dress into the dress that perfectly fit’s a bride’s vision.

Oct

You & Your Wedding Magazine | Nov/Dec 2016 Editorial

This Circus inspired shoot, styled by Fashion Editor at large Peta Hunt of You & Your Wedding is simply fab!

We’re really excited to see Valentina styled for the cool, modern, young bride we had in mind when designing her.

ywm_1116_p162_fashcircus

youandyourwedding_nov16_chantalmallett_valentina_10

youandyourwedding_nov16_chantalmallett_valentina_20

Sep

Our collaboration with Amie Bone Flowers ‘Enamour’ Showcase.

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Image: Sanshine Photography

We at Chantal Mallett have a lot of love for the straight talking, incredibly talented, visionary Amie Bone – even more so since getting to hang out with the whole Amie Bone team this weekend at The National Wedding Show, Olympia, London.

A few months prior to the show I was asked if I would design & create a peach tulle fairy gown & accessories to go with a secret garden theme & knowing just how phenomenal Amie’s previous stand was, I was 100% on board & loving the creative freedom of the brief.

As with all designs I created a number of sketches & presented them to Amie who loved the same sketch I did – a design which, after 20 years creating gowns & accessories, finally amalgamated the two into one design.

There was A LOT of complicated wire work to create but we knew it would be completely worthwhile. The design had a strong nod to butterflies with wings for straps & a butterfly motif in the center of the corset & the jewellery components of the gown took several weeks to hand make.

Image: Chantal Mallett

We were incredibly lucky that one of our favourite models Abigail Tara Lilly was in the country (between stays in Barcelona & Tokyo) & could breath life into all our hard work with her enchanting personality & fairy like features.

On Friday 23rd September with the scaffolding tower & buckets of flowers cleared from the aisles, before us stood a 5 meter high stand, covered in roses, hydrangeas, clematis, delphiniums…. in shades of peach, green, purple with touches of blue.

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Image: Sanshine Photography

Image: Sanshine Photography

The floor: real grass, damp as though covered with morning dew. The tablescapes: fantasies laden with moss for tableclothes with touches of gold including gilt Duchess & Butler cutlery & in the center, huge golden urns full of blooms. The quirky chairs had moss seats, some with mirrors for backs, others floral backs decorated with stag horns. Everywhere you looked there were flowers; climbing the pillars, covering the walls & cascading from the ceiling.

Image: Sanshine Photography

At 10am, Abi stepped out of hair & make-up, courtesy of Team Glam, into Amie’s world & added that final touch of magic; a living breathing fairy. Sanshine Photography‘s camera clicked away & Amie’s videographer moved silently around the stand capturing the magnificence of the scene aided by a fabulous lighting scheme by Rendezvous Events.

Image: Rod Leon

For the next 3 days children & adults alike were drawn to the jewel at the center of the National Wedding Show to see this mesmerising garden & meet the fairy & at times with the amount of cameras pointing at the stand it felt like a perpetual press call at a red carpet event.

Some of the images of the fairy shared by Instagram users this week.

We loved this collaboration & thank Amie Bone for asking us to be part of her magical world – we wouldn’t have missed it x

Image: Rod Leon

Image: Chantal Mallett

Image: Chantal Mallett

Image: Chantal Mallett

Credits:

Flowers & Styling: Amie Bone Flowers

Lighting: Rendezvous Events

Bridal Couture: Chantal Mallett

Tableware: Duchess & Butler

Hair/Makeup: Team-Glam

Host: The National Wedding Show

Official Photography: SanShine Photography

Fairy: Abigail Tara Lilly

May

My Fair Lady Styled Shoot

Last Autumn Sanshine Photography, Stylist Miss Munro & I put out heads together & making the best of the last of the good weather, pulled together a quick styled shoot,

The inspiration was a pink gown that had been created for Emily Soto to shoot, a month or so earlier; a gown that was in part inspired by Beaton’s costumes in My Fair Lady.

My Fair Wedding – Timeless Movie Inspired London Editorial

We had in mind a beautiful outdoor location & invited Miriam Faith Flowers, Cutture, Judit Hellebrandt Cake Company to collaborate with us on an apricot, pink & ivory bridal themed shoot, inspired by the film.

For those who don’t know the film, it is set in Edwardian London & stars the beautiful Audrey Hepburn. The entire film oozes style & elegance & it’s the look we set out to achieve with the shoot.

My Fair Wedding – Timeless Movie Inspired London Editorial

Throwing the atelier into the spirit, we up-scaled an ivory parasol into a sugar pink tulle confection complete with Eliza Doolittle monogram & created a modern take on the hats worn in the famous race scene. This, along with our My Fair Emily gown & fabulous hair & make-up from Halimah of H Beauty was the first of two looks.

The table set up, which actually utilised a stone balustrade, was inspired by Eliza’s tea with Mrs Pickering near the end of the film.

My Fair Wedding – Timeless Movie Inspired London Editorial

For the second bridal look, inspired by Eliza’s visit to the ball, Alexa wore our pink & gold opera cape & Empire tiara with a Katya Katya ivory lace gown.

We were extremely fortunate with the weather & in post, Sanshine Photography, added a touch of old Hollywood magic to the finished images which really set the tone we had set out to achieve.

My Fair Wedding – Timeless Movie Inspired London Editorial

These are some of our all time favourite images we’ve worked on with collaborative teams & we love them!

My Fair Wedding – Timeless Movie Inspired London Editorial

Jul

Guest Posts for London Wedding Planner Ishari De Silva

Over the last three weeks, London Wedding Planner Ishari De Silva has been sharing Chantal’s thoughts on all things wedding dress; from environmental concerns to the difference between buying a label from a boutique or commissioning couture, to when to say yes & who & what to take with you dress shopping. Check out part three of the blog here.

And parts one & two of what collectively is being called the Bridal Suite x

Still to come…. a three part glossary on Speaking Wedding Dress:

Dress terms
Dress Styles
Fabrics
Techniques / finishes

Jul

All about the Wedding Dress

Chantal’s my first guest post is live on Ishari De Silva Weddings Blog.

It’s being published as a series & it really is ALL about the Wedding Dress with lots more to come! So please do go & have a read x

May

Inspiration Moodboard: Violet & Black, Dolce Vita & Art Nouveau x

The fifth Wedding Inspiration board in the series is inspired by the gown Dolce Vita.

It would be very easy to create a dark, moody, Victorian gothic theme & certainly this dress would definitely lend herself to that theme.

BUT….. Black dresses are not only for goths x They don’t have to be & who says you have to have the go-to gothy black/purple or black/red colour scheme even if you are wearing black?

Black dresses like Dolce Vita – a froth of black tulle can be given the romantic treatment with an alternative colour scheme & theme; though if gothic is your thing….. go wild.

For the Dolce Vita Wedding Inspiration board, I chose Alphonse Mucha as a jumping off point. Not so random given I styled the dress with a floral hair crown for an Emily Soto shoot that reminded me of Mucha’s work.

*Mucha was a Czech Art Nouveau painter, some of his illustrations featured ladies with floral crowns in their hair.

The moodboard for Dolce Vita is based around Art Nouveau with Violets, Aubergines, Purples & touches of Silver. Art Nouveau celebrated nature & the board uses flowers & branches in very natural ways adding lots of romance to a theme that can take in black too without looking dark.

So go on & embrace all those beautiful things celebrated by Art Nouveau & work them into your wedding, whatever colour gown you wear x

More about the dress: Dolce Vita is far from traditional but not all brides want traditional. It features a deep sweetheart neckline & voluminous ballgown skirt, all made in black tulle with an emerald /blue ombre finish to the corset.

More ideas: Pinterest

Wedding aisle: Make Be-Leaves
Dolce Vita, corseted black tulle gown: Chantal Mallett Bridal Couture, image: Emily Soto
Wedding lanterns: Axioo Photography
Dolce Vita, corseted black tulle gown: Chantal Mallett Bridal Couture, image: Emily Soto
Art: Alphonse Mucha
Wedding decor: unknown source via Pinterest
Stained glass: Tiffany
Table setting: Christophe Dugied
Wedding stationery: invitations-unlimited.com
Wedding bouquet: Natural Art Flowers, image: Teneil Kable Photography
Wedding decor: unknown source via Pinterest
Wedding cake: Sylvia Weinstock

Apr

Inspiration Moodboard: Daisy says ‘I Do’

It’s Easter Sunday, Spring is here & everyone is looking forward to Summer x

White & Lemon, with touches of Pink, the Wedding Inspiration board for Daisy celebrates Summer, it takes the daisy theme & runs with it, whilst keeping things chic & tasteful.

daisy_chantalmallett_wedding_inspiration

Lots of informal naturalistic flowers, lots of white, a touch of bohemian charm with fun, light touches.

More ideas: Pinterest

Daisy features a chic, ivory satin corset & fishtail with delicate daisy detailing on the corset & larger than life daisy’s on the skirt – sassy, sexy, youthful & above all, elegant.

Chantal Mallett, Daisy corset & fishtail bridal gown.

Wedding decor: Bernadette of Dream Occasions, image: Mark Bothwell

Wedding bouquet: Myrtie Blue, image: Mad Love Weddings

Daisy crown: image: Emily Soto

Daisy couture, corseted wedding gown: Chantal Mallett Bridal Couture, image: Veronica Virna

Wedding decor: image: KT Merry Photography

Wedding cake: image: Chelsea Fuss via ProjectWedding

Ice cream cones: Kandyce Caroll, image: Laura Sumrak

Ring: Van Cleef & Arpels

Chair covers: image: Joseph Matthew Photography

Daisy ring: Van Cleef & Arpels

Flower beds/balloons: Sugokuii Events, image: Jake Rosenberg + Andrea Salvia

Mar

Inspiration Moodboard: Valentina

BLOG POST –

Valentina- with it’s high low short skirt & sweetheart neckline is a youthful , exuberant bridalgown; the name is inspired by Valentino’s Valentina perfume advertisements.

The third Wedding Inspiration board in the series is inspired by Valentina. In keeping with the spirit of the dress, it captures it’s fairytale spirit with a ‘Midsummer’s Wonderland’ of Gilded Chalky Pastels; a willow the whisp, enchanted garden scape.

Wedding moodboard inspired by Chantal Mallett Bridal Couture's Valentina bridal gown design

More about the dress: Valentina is a sandy gold colour that features a Solstiss lace corset with sweetheart neckline, trimmed with a bow & pearl drop. The corset is teamed with floaty silk tulle sleeves & taffeta skirt with pearl trimmed waistline – a cross between Marie Antoinette & Rock & Roll.

More ideas: Pinterest

Valentina corseted bridal gown: Chantal Mallett Bridal Couture, image: Emily Soto

Balloons: Christopher Sturman via harpersbazaar

Magical cake: Perfect Endings,, image: Christian Oth via Vanity Fair

Waterfall curtained decor: image: Andrea Polito Photography

Table setting: Hana Floral Design, table design, True Event via Brides.

Floral cocktails: image: emilieinc.com

Ornate ring: faycullen.com

Table setting: unknown via Pinterest

Valentina corseted bridal gown: Chantal Mallett Bridal Couture, image: Emily Soto

Enchanting bouquet: unknown via Pinterest

Moss rabbit prop: jamaligarden.com

Gilded shoes: Oscar de la Renta

Cart

Mystic Autumn

We have a very special shoot we’re sharing with you just in time for Halloween that features our more dramatic black gothic wedding dresses; perfect for brides looking for alternative gowns, gothic princess, stylish brides of Dracula & those who like all things spookily fabulous.

Inspiration / Art Direction:

Dresses & Accessories:

Beauty:

Wedding Style Inspiration:

THE STYLING POWER OF A SLEEVE OR STRAP (and other styling tips).

Sleeves & straps:

You & Your Wedding Magazine | Nov/Dec 2016 Editorial

Our collaboration with Amie Bone Flowers ‘Enamour’ Showcase.

My Fair Lady Styled Shoot

Guest Posts for London Wedding Planner Ishari De Silva

All about the Wedding Dress

Inspiration Moodboard: Violet & Black, Dolce Vita & Art Nouveau x

Inspiration Moodboard: Daisy says ‘I Do’

Inspiration Moodboard: Valentina

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