Claire Pettibone’s wedding dresses seem to pull in a lot of influences from the past, particularly the 70’s and Victorian periods.  Quite honestly, I’m not mad about them (though I love the left dress in the pictures below), probably because I was never crazy about either of those two fashion styles (I’m more of a 50’s fan), but I can see the beauty and romance in the dresses, and if you’re into more edgy, rock chick styles, Claire Pettibone may well be your cup of tea.

Check out the Claire Pettibone website »

Phillipa Lepley is another example of quality British bridalwear. I really like her gowns – they’re simple, elegant, and really rather beautiful. She’s a big believer in creating gowns that are flattering to individual brides’ figures, which I guess is why she sells directly to the public, rather than via bridal shops.

Check out the Phillipa Lepley website »

I was at the National Wedding Show at the NEC in Birmingham today (it was heaving with brides), and wandered by Kula Tsurdiu Bridal Couture – a model was wearing a beautifully made silk wedding dress with a bow – completely stunning.  At the moment they sell directly to the public, but I hope they turn wholesale and extend their reach further afield. The dresses are lovely, well designed, and a fantastic example of quality British bridalwear.

Check out their website – Kula Tsurdiu Bridal Couture »

Kula Tsurdiu Sample Sale »

I found out over the weekend that Vera Wang Wedding Dresses are available in Selfridges, in London, so you can get them in the UK after all. There isn’t even a decent page about it on the Selfridges website, so I’m not going to bother linking off to it.

I’m feeling vaguely disappointed that they’ve gone through a massive department store, rather than a boutique bridal shop.

OK, so slight exaggeration – more like, in the material.  And it wasn’t Jesus Peiro himself, it was his wedding dresses, but they are gooooooorgeous.  So gorgeous that carpet cleaners were called in to mop up my drool.  The material is stunning, and the lines of the dresses are even cleaner in real life than they are in pictures.  Oh, and they’re expensive.  Deservedly so.

I mentioned my Euro Vera Wang competition, and the Jesus Peiro sales rep said that Jesus Peiro is influenced by Vera Wang’s work… so definitely a contender.

Jesus Peiro is my second contender for the Euro Vera Wang contest.  His website has the kind of menubar that is overwhelmingly frustrating to use (you’d never know I was a web designer, huh), but his wedding dresses are oh so worth the persistence… *drool drool*  They have utterly amazing lines.

If you can put up with it, view his website – Jesus Peiro.

Stockists in the UK include Blackburn Bridal Couture, Morgan Davies London, Miss Bush, Bea Das Couture, Me Me Me, and Bridal Rooms of Wellswood.

With a handle like Hannibal, you’ve got to do something pretty great with your life, or else you’ll get continuously sniggered at at dinner parties.  I think Hannibal is my first contender for the EuroVW crown.  VW standing for Vera Wang, as opposed to the car, which is fortunate, as otherwise this blog would have just gone sharply downhill (See the Vera Wang Wedding Dresses post).

So, Hannibal Laguna.  He’s got an annoying website, but forgiving him that, he’s got some lush dresses that have a certain Vera Wang flavour to them. He’s also got some suitably designery weird ones that I doubt any bride will ever wear, but that look pretty darn cool on the catwalk. Check out his various collections on his website.

Postscript: After being asked where you can buy Hannibal Laguna wedding dresses (he used to design for Pronovias, but doesn’t any more…), I called his sales line – apparently you can only buy them in Madrid. So if you want one, you’re going to have to make a special trip. I asked if they had any plans to sell in the UK, and the sales guy said “no, not at the moment…”