Last week, I published a suite of beautiful and inspirational wedding photographs from an Australian wedding. I loved the Brides style; she was a beautiful lady anyway, but her choice of wedding day attire absolutely did it for me.
It turns out that all the pretty things I liked about this particular wedding are by one Australian designer, Johanna Johnson. Johanna is the creator, designer and director of her own eponymous bridal couture line, Johanna Johnson.
"We are getting so much interest from the USA, UK and Europe, we are hopefully going to open flagships in London and New York or LA in the very near future. We have just opened our online accessory store so international brides are able to purchase from our Trousseau collection of cuffs, veils, capes and headpieces."
All Imagery Copyright (c) 2010, Johanna Johnson ~ Click to enlarge
Left: Cosmo Cap, $660Aus. £384 Right: Ophelia Veil, $820Aus, £477
Johanna told me that she was inspired to create her couture collection when looking for her own wedding gown. Like every bride, she was searching for the ‘perfect’ gown, and after no success in finding the style she wanted, she took pen to paper and created the perfect dress. It was here that Johanna identified a niche in the marketplace...
“I wanted to create beautiful gowns for brides that I would want to wear and feel magic in. Each gown I create is from a unique styling perspective, and everything is considered from fit to quality to comfort. Purchasing a gown is a very intimate, exciting experience and should be a memorable occasion. I wanted to provide impeccable service and attention to detail, for the bride and her family, to add to the Johanna Johnson experience.”
Never, since I fell in deeply in love with the Jenny Packham and Temperley London collections, have I seen such beautiful bridal gowns...
Left: 'The Vintage' Right: 'The Cosette'
These stunningly beautiful designs are from the Johanna Johnson 'Zepphora’ collection, that was inspired by the fashions of the 1920’s and 1930’s. Johanna says she has also long had a passion for all things Art Deco...
"When I was looking for a wedding gown, I couldn’t find anything in Bridal with that purity of line and heavy, simple silk, so looked to the past to reignite that old-world craftsmanship and meticulous attention to detail and cut."
Left: 'The Viva' Right: 'The Ava'
I asked Johanna where she seeks inspiration from in designing her pieces.....
"Anything and everything; in the beginning, it was the old lace houses in Paris and hours walking around flea markets in Paris. For this collection, it was all about a kind of dark beauty; black violets and dark corners in chandelier filled rooms, that really heady sense of old school decadence and glamour. I had a few images of muses, 1930’s socialites and how they flaunted their couture gowns with a shameless knowledge of their own perfection. I wanted this sense of abandon and sensuality to be embodied in Zepphora.
I don't have a muse per se, but for this collection I did look to figures like Marchesa Luisa Casati for inspiration. When I’m designing, I try to imagine gowns that I would like to wear and feel magic in. I like to focus on the little touches that take a gown from pretty to magnificent. All women should feel spectacular on her wedding day."
Left: 'The Isolde' Right: 'The Isla'
Johanna works with the best fabrics ~ heavy silk satin, French cotton lace and silk georgette.
"We also work now in collaboration with Jemala, who produce the finest wool available in the world, as worn by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. We are very excited to be incorporating this into new and interesting designs and creating luxury wraps and stoles.
When it comes to embellishments, it’s whatever interests me at the time and what I can dream up. For this collection, it’s all Swarovski crystals in antique claw settings, often in conjunction with delicate glass bead work and Parisian encrusted lace. Our Harlow Belt is a great example of the sort of soft vintage style embellishment I adore."
The Harlow Belt (available to purchase online, click here)...
Johanna’s accessories stem from Johanna’s extensive skills in graphic design; she designs all the intricate bead work and lacework within the collection ...
Top Left: 'The Garland Cape Top Right: 'The Ophelia Veil'
Bottom Left & Right: The Isabelle Belt
"All of our embellishments are hand made in Paris and the silks are dyed exclusively for us. We size from 6-14 and all our gowns are Ready to Wear."
Utterly beautiful...
Annabel xXx
♥
