Concept

We wanted to offer the ability to create a unique look for our clients, something they wouldn’t see in shops or anywhere else. A luxury image was the aim of this project.

Materials

So who would have thought that the above image started life with the following simple materials: mosquito netting, tulle and a bodice? Well, that’s exactly what happened…

Stage 1

The first stage was to make the right form for the dress. Using the mosquito netting helped provide the stability and fix the required shape of the dress.
We knew that the final image we were after would have a luxury, romantic fairy tale feel, and to get it we would need a princess style dress.
Just in case you are wondering, yes, that is a light stand holding the dress in place whilst working on it! We just couldn’t wait to find a proper mannequin, and the light stand was right there begging to be used… Keeping with the “studio gear” theme, we also used clips to pull the dress in place before sewing it together… This allowed the shape to be made whilst still giving us the flexibility to change it as we went.

Once the shape was arranged the clips were replaced with sewing and a bit of hot glue gun work just to make sure the mosquito netting stayed in place!

Stage 2

Once the shape was in place we started to wrap the tulle in layers until we got the desired volume. In the end 15 meters of tulle were used, and this ensured the gorgeous shape that also allowed movement and fluidity as it’s worn.

Again the clips secure the tulle in place until the desired shape was achieved.

Dress Fitting

Once the dress was at this stage we had a fitting session with our client and were able to adjust the size of the waist and take in a lot of the fabric. The dress was originally made as a size 18 to ensure that it would be fully adjustable for anyone, with an adjustable closing fastener at the front.

Two colours of tulle were used: white and champagne. It adds extra depth to the final images. The additional front panel was added after the dress fitting to ensure the final look from the front would be as beautiful as from the side.

Photo shoot

Once the hard work was done, the fun bit began: finding the perfect locations to go shoot our client in the dress. The local park was the first, and to our joy the dress attracted a lot of attention from the children in the park who were frequently overhead trying to persuade their moms to go and say hello to the princess!!

As we were fortunate enough to be doing this as spring was starting, we found this next location for a different, more fashionable look:

Of course a fairytale wouldn’t be complete without the imagery from the childhood stories:

And a very special thanks to the gorgeous Beatriz for giving us the pleasure of working with her: