Many think you can’t rewear a wedding dress after your wedding day, but this Dawn Winfield-Hunt begs to differ. She made the decision to rewear her wedding dress for a year to raise money for very special causes.
It all began when Winfield-Hunt was dared to wear her wedding dress while paddle-boarding.
“I was dared to wear it paddle boarding and I said OK..and I’ll wear it to Tesco too,” she tells Wedding ETC. “Someone photographed me whilst I was paddle boarding and I posted on an isle of Wight photography site to see if I could find the person and from there it spiraled.”
She has worn her dress in unique places like Buckingham Palace, while boxing and even swam in it on Boxing Day. She says people are always fascinated by her getup, and it’s a great conversation starter. She started a Facebook page called ‘The life and times of a wedding dress’ to document her dress’s journey and raise awareness for the charities she supports.
From here, she decided to put her wedding dress, named Bella, to good use and raise money for three charities: Mountbatten Cancer Trust, Friend’s of The Animals and The Food Bank. She had even planned to put on a charity wedding dress ball but with the COVID-19 pandemic, has had to change her plans.
Winfield-Hunt plans to have a little beach party in her dress to raise money, and also to say goodbye to her wedding dress.
Check out her Just Giving page if you would like to donate to the charities.
Picture/s: Dawn Winfield-Hunt / The life and times of a wedding dress
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One of the most iconic brides in history has to be Bianca Jagger. The Nicaraguan-born actress and activist stunned crowds in a unique and incredibly chic bridal suit when she married rocker, Mick Jagger. Her wedding look still inspires brides today.
The unique pair tied the knot during a shotgun wedding on May 12, 1971, in St. Tropez. While their marriage ended a few years later, it remains one of the most stylish celebrity weddings to date. We take a look at their big day.
Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger met Bianca Perez-Mora Macias at an after party in Paris in late 1970. At the time, she was studying political science at the Paris Institute of Political Studies. The Rolling Stones were in Paris after reportedly fleeing England to escape tax debt. The pair immediately hit it off, so much so that they found out they were expecting a child together within a few months of dating.
Only one day before their wedding, the unpredictable couple informed their guests of their plans to marry. Their wedding had a 75-person guest list and featured household names like Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Brigitte Bardot and Keith Richards to name a few.
There were quite a few uninvited guests too, as hundreds of paparazzi descended on their day to capture the festivities. In fact, the commotion was so bad that the Jagger’s arrived at their ceremony an hour-and-a-half late to try to avoid the crowds.
When they did arrive, they looked absolutely amazing. Mick wore an olive green suit with a floral shirt and coloured sneakers, and Bianca stunned in an impeccably tailored, white Yves Saint Laurent smoking jacket with nothing underneath. She paired it with a matching calf-length skirt and large veiled sun hat. This outfit started the courthouse wedding chic trend.
The pair tied the knot during a civil ceremony at the town hall, then had a traditional Roman Catholic ceremony at St. Anne’s chapel, with the soundtrack of Love Story playing in the background.
After their ceremony, they made their way to their 200-person reception held at Café des Arts where the party truly began. Guests enjoyed impromptu jam sessions and partied till the early hours of the morning.
The Jagger’s had a 10-day yacht honeymoon traveling Corsica and Sardinia. Their daughter Jade was born a few months later in October 1971.
Unfortunately, the marriage did not last. The couple divorced in 1979 following Mick’s affair with American supermodel Jerry Hall. Bianca famously told the New York Times in 1986 that “My marriage was over on the wedding day.”
Mick is one of the most influential frontmen in rock n roll history, with a career that has spanned five decades. He has eight children with five women.
Feature image: Pinterest
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Everyone deserves a fairytale happy ending. A bride-to-be in Boise, Idaho, had the surprise of her life when she was given just that. She even had a story written about the turn of events.
Denise Amouzougan dresses up as Princess Tiana, the main character from fairytale The Princess and The Frog, as a role she plays for her party company. On July 9, she was working at a birthday party.
As she read a book to the children, she found a hand-written letter. “Every princess needs a prince – will you be mine forever?” it read.
She turns around to find her love, Blaze Montgomery, behind her, dressed up as Prince Charming. He got down on one knee and asked her for her hand in marriage. Montgomery had even perfectly timed the proposal to line up with the water fountain in the background, which comes on every hour.
As Michael Buble played in the background, she said yes!
All of their family and friends were present to watch the fairytale unfold.
Amouzougan’s friend Celine Daily captured it all on camera and even wrote a little story to go with it, and she shared it all on Facebook. The pair share a close friendship, as can be seen from Amouzougan’s comment on her friends post.
“Omg!???CONGRATULATIONS SIS. WE DID IT!! WERE ENGAGED AND I COULDN’T BE HAPPIER FOR US. Your the absolute best adventure buddy. So glad I have an amazing friend like you to share all this with. I LOVE YOU DEARLY!!!????,: said Amouzougan.
See it happen, and read the story below:
Image: Unsplash
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Tiaras have long been associated with royalty. From the ancient Egyptians to the Ancient Romans, tiaras or diadems as they are also known, came in many forms.
Today, brides – royal and non-royal – the world over love this accessory to top of their wedding look. The wearing of a tiara is an ancient custom created as a symbol of nobility. Centuries ago, tiaras were popular amongst ancient Kings. While it is difficult to trace their exact line of development, we can see how different cultures appreciated this beautiful accessory.
According to British jewellery specialist Geoffrey Munn, the word ‘tiara’ “is actually Persian in origin—the name first denoted the high-peaked head-dresses of Persian kings, which were encircled by ‘diadems’ (bands of purple and white decoration). Now, it is used to describe almost every form of decorative head ornament.”
In classic times, a simple band of cloth tied around the head with a knot acted as a diadem. Over the years, this evolved to the ornate and heavy crowns worn by Eastern Kings.
The Egyptians in particular were fans of the rich gold headdresses encrusted with jewels and decorated with tassels. When King Tutankhamun’s tomb was excavated, his mummy was found wearing a gold diadem featuring a detachable gold ornament with the head of a vulture and the body of a cobra.
The earliest Greek diadems consisted of gold or silver sheet decorated with simple patterns of dots embossed from the back.
Ancient Romans also favoured gold headdresses with precious stones. The earliest diadem in Roman history can be traced back to C.E. 245-313 and belonged to Roman Emperor Gaius Valerius Diocletianus, also known as Diocletian. Champions and decorated generals in Roman history were gifted golden wreaths to honour their bravery in battle. For Roman brides, a simple wreath made of flowers and leaves were perfect symbols of purity.
Tiaras or diadems fell out of popularity when the Roman empire began to decline and Christianity grew across the world. During medieval times, women followed more demure fashion and wore cone-shaped hats with veils.
Napoleon and his wife Josephine are often considered to have started the trend of luxurious headwear. In fact, Napoleon had the famed Cameo tiara, worn by Swedish royal brides today, made for his wife.
Tiara’s saw a resurgence in the late 18th century during the Renaissance period and again following the Neoclassicism movement of the early 19th century.
It was in the 19th century that tiaras first became important wedding symbols for the British royal family. Queen Victoria began a collection of priceless tiaras that still belongs to the family today.
There are a number of famed royal tiaras such as the Queen Mary Fringe Tiara worn by Queen Elizabeth on her 1947 wedding day, and the Diamond Bandeau Tiara, worn by Megan Markle on her wedding day in 2018.
Royal families across the globe have their own special tiaras. Queen Elizabeth II is believed to have the largest, most valuable collection of tiaras in the world. Most of them are inherited heirlooms from Queen Alexandra.
In the 1930s, tiaras gained mainstream popularity as silver-screen stars like Audrey Hepburn and Grace Kelly donned the iconic accessory. Designers like Vivienne Westwood, Gianna Versace, and Philip Treacy have all made their own unique spin on the trend too, bringing tiaras to the catwalk.
Today, anyone can wear a tiara. Its exclusive symbolism has worn off over the years, although many still idolise the famous tiaras of yesteryear.
Feature image: Unsplash