I first met with Annette not really knowing what I wanted for a wedding dress. After looking at many of her designs I was struck by the style of one in particular that she had placed in the "special occasion outfit" category.

The dress had a full length flowing skirt and a nice cut with long sleeves and full around the shoulder area - much like the turn of the century look.

I became interested in vintage clothing after having part of a 1903 reenactment for the car club I belong to. I paid quite a bit to rent a costume for the day and I had really liked the old fashioned look.

So while first thoughts for a wedding dress were a traditional white gown, when I really began to think about what I wanted from the dress, I decided to go with something a little different.

In the first place, I knew I did not want to invest in an outfit that was only going to be worn once. I'm too practical for that and I knew it had to be something that I could wear again.

Because of the car club connection I decided to go with a design that offered a bit of a vintage look. Annette said the first step was for her to come up with a drawing of what she envisioned to make sure we were on the same page.

The drawing (below) is what she came up with and I loved it on first site. (If only I were that thin!) We then had to decide on color. I know many people are very particular about that but I had decided on purple and I let Annette choose what she thought would be best on her next shopping trip.

After 4 fittings (over the course of about 6 months) my dress was finally ready, about a month before my wedding. One of the extras Annette made into this dress is the option to wear it with short or long sleeves. I am always too warm so I hoped for a cool wedding day. I really liked the long sleeve look as it has more of a vintage appearance. I got my wish and my wedding day was a sunny 60 degrees.

Another wonderful extra Annete did for me was to refurbish a rather plain white hat that I had purchased by adding some purple tulle and a flower in the back that she made from the same material as my dress.

Now I have an outfit that can be worn with or without long sleeves, mixed and matched with other clothing (the top with a black or cream skirt, the skirt with almost any top) and without the long sleeves in place, the top is not nearly so vintage looking.

Annette tells me that the cream colored lace can be removed and another color put on (perhaps black) or left without any lace at all.

I am looking forward to wearing my dress at the Shelburne Car Show's Fashion Show next year... not sure if I will wear the hat again but I do have a parasol that should add a classic look to go along with my "granny boots".

Thank you Annette - I love my dress!

Ellen Emerson (Wedding - September 18, 2004)