The Royal Wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle is less than a month away and excitement and anticipation for the day is heightening.
Speculation of who will be winning one of the biggest fashion commissions of the year and designing the wedding dress is mounting. This designer is unlikely to be revealed until the day itself and we can’t wait to see what Meghan is wearing!
We’d love to see the beautiful bride in a dress by a British designer – Jenny Peckham, Emilia Wickstead, Alexander McQueen and even British brand Burberry are all possible contenders. We’ll all have to wait and see….!
With all this feverish wedding build-up, it got us thinking about our very own Royal connections. Lesley is no stranger to creating garments for the most exclusive names and in this blog, Lesley reflects on her VIP experience and the outfits that she has had the privilege to work on over the years.
“My career started working for Royal wedding dress designer Norman Hartnell, working in the couture workrooms. I was privileged to work on garments being made for the Queen Mother and hand finishing these exquisite pieces. I then worked at Aquascutum where I was closely involved with designing and making garments for Margaret Thatcher, even meeting her when she toured the factory.”
I was delighted to head the team at Royal Wedding Dress designer, Elizabeth Emanuel; ordering fabrics, pattern cutting, supervising her team, taking measurements and fitting clients, many of which were famous names.
During my time at Elizabeth Emanuel, we made numerous outfits for the Duchess of Kent; very pretty soft pink, silk chiffon, embroidered evening gowns along with tailored skirts and matching waistcoats teamed with silk satin blouses. We also made the garments Enya wore for her music video – a beautiful silk velvet cape worn as she galloped away by horse and a silk chiffon dress inspired by the Lady of Shalott as displayed in the Tate Gallery. Koo Stark, Jools Holland, Cherry Gillespie and the wife of The Beatles singer Ringo Starr were all regular clients. It really was a fun time gathering incredible experience!
Whilst running my own business, I’ve been privileged to make High Sheriff suits for the Countess Howe (Lord Howe’s wife) and for Francesca Skelton whilst in their appointed roles of High Sheriff of Buckinghamshire.
For Countess Howe I’m honoured to have also made a Mother of the bride outfit, as well as a ball gown based on an exquisite and elegant dress worn by Mary, Countess Howe, in the 18th Century portrait by Thomas Gainsborough.
More recently I have also made a christening gown worn in St Paul’s Cathedral for the child of an Olympic Gold medal winner, which was made from his wife’s wedding dress.
I’m honoured to have worked with so many well-known people over the course of my career and the experience has been invaluable. Being entrusted to make a gown for anyone’s special occasion is such a privilege, that we treat every single woman we work with as a VIP!”
Royal or not, if you decide to work with us at Lesley Cutler Bridal Wear, our vast experience means that you’re in the very best hands!
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