Paper Wedding Dress: Kathryn Godwin

At first glance, this stunning wedding dress could be mistaken for the real deal not a display made from paper.  Recently featured artist, Kathryn Godwin is the talent behind this beautiful creation and she has generously shared some photos of the dress being made which was captured by talented, Emily Chidester.

The dress was made for the grand gala evening for the American bridal summit, Engage! which was themed around Cornelia Vanderbilt's wedding and held at the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina which the Vanderbilt's owned.  The Vanderbilt's were one of America's richest families, Cornelia was married in the 1920's and the reception was held on the estate.  Kathryn also created one hundred and fifty handmade flapper-esque headpieces, bow-ties and pocket squares for a dessert party. 

The dress design itself is stunning and the lace was inspired by the lace on Kathryn's own wedding dress and made from white kraft paper.  The lace design was hand-drawn and incredibly hand-cut, that is hours of work right there.  Cornelia's actual wedding dress was hard to see as it was hidden behind a huge bouquet and veil, so Kathryn drew inspiration from dresses in that era.

The lining of the dress was a double layer of cream mulberry paper, to create some contrast so the lace would stand out.  The following photos of Kathryn in action, I wonder how many glue sticks she used?

Wouldn't this be fun to make for a bridal shower, you might want to find a friend that owns a die cutting machine though!

 Cornelia Vanderbilt on her wedding day!

All images:  Emily Chidester.