Friday, October 15, 2010

Wordsworth and Wedding Dresses

Here I am, popping in early, but I will go right away; I promise!

I have been thinking about my wedding anniversary, which is in a couple of days.  And I think that when an impending anniversary is soclose, one tends to be hyper aware of things that recall that day.

So I guess I shouldn't have been suprised to see a postmodern update of my ideal wedding dress on a blog, but I was.  Regular readers will know that I was/am not interested in traditional white wedding dresses for myself; I got married in a tuxedo jacket with a nipped-in waist worn as a dress.

But before I settled on that "dress" from my closet, I wanted to buy a navy blue dress by Chanel.  It was beyond my graduate school budget, so after trying it on I had to move on. 



I haven't really thought of that dress in detail in years, since I didn't take a photo of it and since my wedding was before the era of style.com.  However, on a visit to a fellow professor's blog I saw this Vivienne Westwood dress and consider it the perfect revision of that original Chanel.



All the elements I liked are there, though interpreted differently.  And, gentle My Wardrobe, although this dress must remain in your wardrobe, and not enter mine, thank you for the happy memory: it's a Wordsworthian example of emotion recollected in tranquillity.

11 comments:

Belle de Ville said...

I love the Westwood version. I had the most beautifully cut Chanel dress in navy and white silk in the 1980's. I wish that I still had it...and my Chanel bags.
What in the world was I thinking giving them away years ago?
PS. the gray dress that you asked about was a MaX Studio dress, most likely purchased at a discount store for less than $40.

La Belette Rouge said...

I would be curios to read about where you think you got the sartorial strength to break with tradition and be so sure about what you wanted for your wedding day. You might not fully know that---but I think it takes real courage and sense of self to break with the archetypal white dress( this is me admiring your decision).

Sarah @ Natural History said...

What a blissful dress. I love Vivienne Westwood and some day... some day... but in the interim, there are some interestingly skirted dresses always to be found at All Saints.

Carole Poirot said...

That Westwood dress is stunning. It's fascinating to read about your decision to wear a completely unconventional outfit for your wedding. I think it's a fantastic and very stylish decision, though I'm not sure I could be that stylish (read: have the guts) on that occasion...why not? Something to think about I guess... Have a grat weekend. Love from London x

Unknown said...

Happy Anniversary to Mr. & Miss Cavendish! Will your readers be able to see a pic of you on your wedding day? Indeed a highly personal choice for the future
Miss Cavendish.
Congratulations.
BarbaraG

Miss Cavendish said...

Ahh, Barbara: Still flouting convention, I have perhaps two amateur snapshots from my wedding. Perhaps I'll whip up a quick sketch (when my deadlines are met next week!). . . I do still have the tux, though!

Miss Cavendish said...

Belle, Thanks for the reminder about Max Studio! I see several drapey things I like on the website . . .

Miss Cavendish said...

Belle, Although I love to dress up when performing in theatre, a traditional wedding dress was too impersonal and costume-y for *me.* I wanted my wedding to be as simple as possible, and to focus on just the two of us, I bypassed *all* of the traditions (though I do wear a wedding ring).

Miss Cavendish said...

Sarah, I will visit All Saints, pronto!

Miss Cavendish said...

Mlle P, You know, I really didn't give a traditional wedding dress a first thought other than to dismiss it. I hoped to find something chic that I could wear again and again, but when that dress didn't match my budget, I simply turned to my closet. And I was absolutely content because I felt and looked like myself--wouldn't do it differently today! (Though I would not refuse that Viv dress if it happened to come my way.)

WendyB said...

I wanna see wedding photos!