Laura Ashley: Seamstress reunited with 1993 wedding dress
- Published
Sharon Wells said she was one of seven people who worked on the dress
A seamstress will be reunited with the vintage Laura Ashley wedding dress she made 30 years ago.
Sharon Wells worked for Laura Ashley in Machynlleth, Powys, in the 1990s and was one of seven seamstresses who made the dress.
The ivory silk dupion dress will be exhibited on 24 June in a collection celebrating the legacy of pioneers.
The dress still has its bilingual tag attached and it was Ms Wells who signed it all those years ago.
It reads: "Gwnaethpwyd yng Nghymru gan" in Welsh and "made in Wales by" in English.
The dress was found in an Oxfam charity shop in Oxfordshire and bought for £200 by Ann Evans, the organiser of the exhibition.
Ms Evans, who also worked for Laura Ashley, is the founder of Heritage Hub 4 Mid Wales which aims to celebrate the legacy of pioneers in the area.
She said: "The dress is like new and the tag signed by Sharon, before she married, is still attached.
"It's a perfect example of quality work by Laura Ashley seamstresses in the company's Machynlleth factory bridal studio."
Sharon Wells said she once had a thank you letter from a woman in America who had worn a wedding dress with her name on the tag
Ms Wells worked for Laura Ashley for seven years and is now a teaching assistant in Corris, Gwynedd.
"It was lovely to be reunited with the dress and a real blast from the past, especially as it had the tag signed by me still with it," she said.
"I was one of seven seamstresses selected to work on dresses and suits for brides, bridesmaids and pageboys from start to finish."
The dress originally retailed at £550 and was called Isabella. It also featured in the 1994 Laura Ashley Bridal Catalogue.
"We would put our signatures on tags with the finished garments and it was just lucky that my name was on this wedding dress. It was very much a team effort," added Ms Wells.
"Some of us put the sleeves on, some of us overlapped, some of us put buttons on the back, the bows on the shoulder. It's a very simple but beautiful, very petite dress in beautiful ivory silk.
"I did enjoy being part of the bridal team as it always felt a privilege to make a wedding dress for somebody's special day."
Sharon Wells signed the bilingual tag 30 years ago
Ms Evans is hoping to establish a permanent Laura Ashley heritage hub in mid Wales in 2025 which would have been the year of the designer's 100th birthday.
The exhibition in Machynlleth also features a pixel portrait quilt of Laura Ashley commissioned by Ann and made by British quilter Devida Bushrod, who now lives in the United States, from 1,500 pieces of fabric in 13 colours.
- Published9 March 2023
- Published25 January 2022
