White satin wedding dress and bag, ca. 1936, British, possibly designed by Worth

White silk satin wedding dress with high Empire waistline and short puffed sleeves. The neckline, sleeve edges, waistline, front and hem of the dress are embroidered with silver thread and pearls in a delicate openwork leaf motif. With matching satin clutch bag with beaded and embroidered design.

Given by Mrs Belinda Harding

This dress was worn by the donor's mother in 1936. It is said to have come from Worth, although it has not been specified whether this was Worth London (under Elspeth Champcommunal, who, until retiring in 1953, became head designer at Worth London when it formally separated from the Paris house in 1936), or Worth Paris (under Jean-Charles Worth).

The high-waisted, Regency-inspired styling of the dress is unusual as at this time most formal wedding gowns were made of form-fitting bias cut silk satin which clung closely to the figure. In addition to a long square ended train (not acquired) the dress was worn with long opera gloves, further enhancing the historic and period aspects of the design.

While this dress is said to have come from Worth, it is not known whether this was the Paris house of Worth (under Jean-Charles Worth) or the London branch (for which Elspeth Champcommunal designed from 1936 onwards).

T.277&A-1985