About the Dress

This is the gorgeous Vichy dress by Eliza Jane Howell, part of her Grand Voyage collection. It is made of (I believe) a satin crepe underdress with a heavy beaded over-layer in a beautiful repeating scallop pattern, a sheer top above the bust and stunning detailing on the low back, so it draws admiring comments from both the front and back. It reaches the floor at the front and extends to a train of approximately 50cm behind. I've described the dress as sleeveless but it has long beading that extends to the elbow and somewhat gives the impression of glittering sleeves. This is a lovely detail that adds glamour and might also be helpful if you are conscious of your arms but would prefer not to have sleeves.
The dress is very 1920s in style and highly unusual; I haven't seen it around very often. I felt like a 1920s movie star in this dress! There is such a wonderful movement in the beading, it gives the impression of being covered in glittering, glamorous tassels. It was incredibly comfortable, easy to move and dance in, and quite forgiving after the wedding breakfast!
There is a loop attached inside the train for use while dancing and to keep the train clear of the ground when needed.
I was advised that it wasn't safe to dry clean this dress due to the risk of melting or other damage to the extensive beading. So the dress has been painstakingly washed by hand and looks fantastic. There are a few very small, faint marks on the inside of the train that did not quite come out with careful washing, and a small area of minor pulling where the satin may have caught on my heel (happy to supply extra photos of the flaws). Otherwise the dress is in excellent condition and I have not seen any damage to the beading.
The dress was altered and shortened to fit me (I'm 5ft 4in and wore 3.5in heels on the wedding day). It will come with a bag of offcuts and spare beading which may be useful for any emergency repairs, accessory making etc.

Alterations

The dress was made smaller around the bust and waist, and it was shortened at the bottom to fit me. I'm 5ft 4in and wore 3.5in heels on the wedding day.