If your wedding dress search has led you away from the traditional and towards something more contemporary, something with genuine design ambition and a fashion-led sensibility, then Liverpool designer Anna Vesty of Unbridled Studio deserves a place at the top of your shortlist.
There are two bridal collections I want to tell you about; the first is Collection IV, Unbridled Studio’s fourth and latest full bridal offering: made-to-order modern gowns and transformative separates designed with innovative styling opportunities at their core and created very much for the bride who knows her own mind. The second is a sublime capsule collection collaboration with floral artist Fiona Fleur, a project that translates Fiona’s breathtakingly beautiful sculptural, organic installations into hand-worked silks and three-dimensional detailing, drawing inspiration from three specific flowers – dandelion, sweet pea and lisianthus.
I spoke with Anna about both collections, and what follows is a conversation with a designer who has a genuinely fresh perspective on bridal fashion, a deep belief in empowering the women who wear her work, and a clear sense of what today’s modern bride is actually looking for.
Your collaboration with Fiona Fleur draws inspiration from the delicate forms and textures of flowers. How did you begin translating something as organic and ephemeral as floristry into the language of bridal fashion?
The initial focus when developing the collection was interpreting the florals into contemporary 3D textures. This stage of development is incredibly creative and came before we started thinking about silhouettes.
We created hand worked embroidery swatches using different techniques and materials to create depth and texture.
The collection takes cues from flowers such as dandelions, sweet peas and lisianthus. Were there particular characteristics of these blooms that directly inspired specific elements within the collection?
The three floral concepts created by Fiona were the inspiration for three specific stories. Styles take the flowers themselves. Ruffles of silk organza created spherical forms inspired by the Dandelion whereas delicate layered silk organza echoed the softness and quiet movement of the sweetpea in bloom.
For the liaianthus, the message was stronger, with a rich 3D floral jacquard worked back with ruffles or raw cut satin and organza. The three concepts feel distinctly different but style effortlessly together for an eclectic yet contemporary bridal look.
Unbridled Studio has a recognisable clean and contemporary aesthetic. How did working alongside a floral designer influence or expand the way you approached shape, volume and texture for this collection?
Florals can be interpreted in a wealth of different ways and it was essential that these pieces were still underpinned by our design values. We approached Fiona about this collaboration as there is a romanticism and modernity to Fiona’s work that we find achingly beautiful.
The way she uses texture and movement, her sculptural forms, this all resonates with me so deeply from a design perspective. A key focus of any of our collections is fabric and texture and the idea of fusing our aesthetics and creating a capsule of contemporary bridal pieces inspired by Fiona’s work felt very right.
Many of the pieces feature sheer layers, hand worked silks and sculptural textures. Could you tell us a little about the craftsmanship behind these elements and how you achieved that sense of lightness and movement?
We develop our embroideries hand in hand with the artisans that produce the gowns. The Dandelion and Sweetpea gowns are created using hand worked silk flowers formed of meters of silk organza.
I have a long standing relationship with these artisans, having worked with them for over 16 years. Their skillset is unparalleled with many of their creations having graced the red carpet and the body’s of notable and inspiring women.
Several of the looks incorporate separates and styling flexibility. When you were designing this capsule, how important was it to you that brides could interpret and wear the pieces in different ways?
Each piece in this capsule collection styles seamlessly into the main UNBRIDLED STUDIO collection, offering multiple ways to wear and an array of styling options. Whether this is the LISIANTHUS bomber layering over a statement bridal mini for a winter city wedding, or the SWEETPEA gown layering over one of our signature satin dresses for a more modest look and the option to have a transformative moment later in the wedding day.
The collaboration’s textural organza jacquard works beautifully with our silk separates. We selected these fabrics and yarns so that the colours and textures would work in with our main collection and allow individual brides to create different (more or less directional) looks depending on their own personal style.
Collaborations often open up new creative directions. What did you personally take away from working with Fiona Fleur, and has it influenced how you are thinking about future Unbridled Studio designs?
We have always been very set in our direction and what we want the label to be. We’re now in our 3rd year and embarking on this project is an indication that we are evolving aesthetically as is our confidence in shape and structure.
When we first launched, the collection was quite clean with those core silhouettes. Now we’re allowing ourselves to have more fun. Still modern, still considered, but with more personality.
We’re really honing in on the things that make us unique. You can see this in both the collaboration and our newest collection.
Bridal fashion has evolved enormously in recent years, with many designers moving beyond the idea of a single traditional gown. How do you see modern brides approaching what they wear now, and how does this collection respond to that shift?
A large proportion of brides that come to us want the opportunity to have some form of look transformation or change of pace throughout the day. The doesn’t always mean a totally new look. It could mean revealing a different look underneath or layering on a top.
We make sure that all of our separates have a real point of view and that they offer that gear shift for our brides. It was important that we included this sentiment in the collab capsule too.
The Liasianthus gown and layering skirt really encapsulate this thinking.
Both fashion and floristry involve working with materials that respond to movement, light and the body. When you design, how important is that sense of motion and feeling, rather than simply the visual silhouette?
Our fabrics are always key and this is where everything begins. They’re selected and developed for drape and lustre, for their structure and how they sculpt the body.
For the collaboration movement, fluidity and texture was the focus; with light and airy silhouettes echoing the gentle sway of petals and textural organza capturing the ethereal softness and quiet movement of a flower in bloom.
Each gown marries fragility with strength in designs that feel both romantic and effortlessly modern.
When a bride steps into one of these beautiful designs on her wedding day, what do you hope she feels in that moment?
The most we can hope for is that she feels beautiful and empowered. She also needs to feel comfortable and be able to move so that she can be free to enjoy her day, with the bride wearing the gown and not the other way round.
Our ability to customise and tailor a bride’s look also plays a key part in this as we are able to evolve our pieces through styling and customisations so that their overall look feels very personal.
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