I'D seen it in various newsagents over a period of a few days and
eventually I gave in and bought it: Bliss, it's called, ''the magazine
for Scottish brides''.
It's true that I got married in a pair of trousers and a red jumper
but that doesn't mean I don't enjoy poring over glossy pictures of fussy
wedding gowns -- and Bliss has them in plenty, as well as features on
truly scary Scottish stag nights, a real-life fairytale wedding in
Edinburgh, and a 28-page guide to wedding services and products.
The bliss of Bliss is, of course, that it really is a magazine for
Scottish brides. As editor Morag Malloy explains, the most that
English-based brides magazines have offered us in the past has been a
spotlight-on-Scotland feature, ''often just one page of advertising-led
copy,'' says Morag.
The new publication had been on the newsagents' shelves for only six
days when we spoke and a third of the print run had already been sold,
she reported.
Aileen Sherry is one of the many people involved in Scotland's
multi-million pound wedding industry who was invited along to the Bliss
official launch party in Edinburgh.
''Apparently it was a great evening,'' said Aileen, ''but I must have
had too much to drink because I can't remember a thing!''
Aileen and Ishbel Mackay run a designer wedding dress company in
Glasgow called Toadilboney. Aileen, who comes from Stirling, remembers
her grandfather telling her, to ''toddle bonny'' -- or walk nicely --
when she was a wee girl and that's where the name comes from.
Both designers are graduates of the Scottish College of Textiles. They
originally set up business in the West
End but moved to a city-centre site in Sauchiehall Street last year.
''We used to advertise as designers of 'alternative wedding gowns',''
says Aileen. ''By alternative, we meant dresses that were preferable to
what was currently available but some people got the idea that we only
designed wedding dresses for punks and goths.''
They've had their share of those, however, and Aileen admits she likes
working on ''the wacky ones'' most of all.
She says: ''A girl came in one day with spikey black hair, ripped
jeans and biker boots and I thought 'what's she going to want?'
''We made her a beautiful purple dress with a simple silk bodice and
an ankle-length net skirt.''
Most Toadilboney customers spend between #550 and #750. They can have
a dress designed exclusively for them or choose from a range that Ishbel
and Aileen design for the shop every season.
Currently there's a brocade waistcoat and matching long silk skirt
(#515), a beautifully simple A-line dress in heavy duchess satin, and a
range of little brocade shift dresses (#200) for beach weddings.
''What, Scottish beaches?'' I ask in amazement.
''No,'' says Ishbel, who comes from Lewis and is a native Gaelic
speaker. ''Caribbean.''
Toadilboney were prizewinners in the recent Best of British Bridal
Awards held in London and they are soon to feature in a Gaelic TV
programme about a young bride-to-be from the islands who comes to the
big city in search of the perfect wedding gown.
Edinburgh-based Camellia Angel did even better than Toadilboney and
the Best of British Awards. Born and couture-trained in the Middle East,
Ms Angel was named best Scottish designer.
Speaking from her Jeffrey Street premises (which opened in 1990), she
told me that her customers were turning away from voluminous, fussy
wedding gowns and choosing lighter styles with a sporty look. One trend
was for a knee-length dress with a see-through, ankle-length layer on
the top.
''But as far as colour goes,'' Ms Angel sighed, ''it's still white or
ivory, which is quite frustrating at times.''
Camellia Angel designs start at #750, although a young Dundee lawyer
(female in case you were wondering) had a dress made which cost #3000.
''It was a huge gown,'' Ms Angel explained. ''And I wondered if it
wasn't going to overwhelm her, but she managed to carry it
beautifully.''
Showing brides how to walk in their dresses is all part of the
service, she added.
Anne Priscilla Halliday had her sights set on a degree in modern
languages (as a mature student) when the lease came up on a bridal wear
shop in Kilmarnock. That was six years ago. Since then, she's
established herself on Beresford Terrace, Ayr's ''bridal row'' where no
fewer than four wedding dress salons can be found.
''The studying I did for my French, Italian and Spanish exams comes in
very useful when I'm ordering dresses from abroad,'' says Anne, who
employs two full-time and two part-time members of staff.
''My dream would be to have an in-house model,'' she revealed. ''But
that's fairyland stuff. But we do have a video that customers can sit
down and watch over a cup of coffee.
''People have become fussier during the six years I've been in
business,'' said Anne. ''Customers want attention -- personal attention.
In fact, some want an arm and a leg! But choosing a wedding gown isn't
like buying a skirt and blouse. Some customers are with us for almost a
year, and if they have an unpleasant experience you can be sure they'll
tell other people.''
Anne Halliday has approximately 140 styles of wedding dress for brides
to choose from, most coming in at about the #1000 or less mark
''although we've recently sold a couple of the riding habit design at
#2000,'' she said.
''I'm not fussy about very frilly dresses,'' Anne told me. ''So I'm
glad the Bopeep look isn't as popular now. The 'classic' Audrey Hepburn,
Jackie Kennedy line is coming back along with brocade and beading.''
Christine Mackay and Rosemary Johnston run one of the country's most
northerly wedding dress establishments, Bride's Corner in Station
Square, Inverness. Their customers come from all over the
Highlands and Islands but because many of these Scottish brides-to-be
are used to ordering clothes from mail order catalogues, Rosemary
reports that she sometimes has a hard time persuading them to come to
town and choose their dress of a lifetime in person.
''You really have to see a wedding gown on to tell if it will suit
you,'' she says. ''After all, you're spending upwards of #500 on it and
it's a rare dress that won't need some kind of alteration to make it a
perfect fit.''
Having said that, Rosemary admits that when a customer has her heart
set on a particular style it's difficult to get her to change her mind,
no matter how unsuitable the design.
''The west-coast girls are the most, shall we say, adventurous,''
Rosemary reveals. ''In build, they're often small and thickset but they
still want a big dress with all the flounces.''
There are about 200 wedding dress styles to pick from at Bride's
Corner and customers have to wait about 16 weeks for their gown once the
choice has been made.
Rosemary reports the same trend towards simpler dresses, including
those featuring the Empire Line which, as she points out, is a style
particularly suitable for pregnant girls.
Although most customers go for white or ivory gowns, Bride's Corner
has recently provided the head dress and other accessories for a young
woman who is getting married in her favourite colour -- black.
Bliss editor Morag Malloy relates that her mother wore one of those
classic Audrey Hepburn-style dresses for her wedding in the 1950s.
''It would have been wonderful to wear nowadays,'' says Morag, but,
sadly, the gown was eventually cut up for dusters.
However, if Morag wanted to give her mum a big surprise for a
forthcoming wedding anniversary she could get in touch with Valerie
Lennie in Edinburgh who sells dolls dressed in replica wedding gowns.
Says Mrs Lennie, who set up her Valerie Louise business five years ago:
''I used to make clothes for my three daughters and dress their dolls in
matching outfits. When a friend was getting married, I decided to give
her a doll wearing a copy of her dress and people loved it.
''It's an especially nice idea if you've decided to sell your gown
after the wedding.'' Porcelain dolls start at #70, small rag dolls from
#25.
* TOADILBONEY, 293 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow, Tel: 041 332 0053.
CAMELLIA ANGEL DESIGNS, 7 Jeffrey Street, Edinburgh, Tel: 031 557 4480.
ANNE PRISCILLA, 23 Beresford Terrace, Ayr, Tel: 0492 282752. BRIDE'S
CORNER, Station Square, Inverness, Tel: 0463 242318. VALERIE LOUISE
DOLLS, 33 Grange Loan, Edinburgh, Tel: 031 667 8827
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article