Fashion: The bride wore a dress to impress

The average price of a wedding dress last year was pounds 689. On top of that, the headdress, veil, shoes and accessories came to pounds 284, making a grand total of pounds 973 for the wedding outfit alone. Getting hitched is an expensive business. However, the amount you spend on your wedding dress does not determine how fabulous you look on the day. A dress can fulfil your dreams whether you pay pounds 200, or the equivalent of a healthy deposit for a house. Tamsin Blanchard chooses between three price ranges: the vintage, the traditional and the outrageously expensive fantasy made to fit both you and your dreams.

Holly Wood, pounds 200

Holly Wood, (yes, Holly's husband's name is Steve Wood), 23, was married last Saturday in a vintage Sixties cocktail dress from Steinberg & Tolkein on the King's Road, London. Her cream-satin, glass-beaded dress cost pounds 190. She added a pair of second-hand Pied a Terre shoes from Greenwich market, a bargain at pounds 5. "I KNEW I wanted an old dress and had a list of shops to work through, including Cornucopia and Alfie's Market. The problem with old dresses is they are usually in really bad condition. When I went to Steinberg & Tolkein, however, one dress really stood out. It was cream satin with a glass-beaded bodice, slim fitting and to the ankle - a bit Audrey Hepburn as Holly Golightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's. "The thing about wearing a second-hand dress is you know that someone else has loved it and that makes you love it too. The dress wasn't specifically a wedding dress but reminded me of last summer's Prada collection. It makes me feel like a chandelier because the beads are very swingy. I feel as though I should have a cigarette holder when I wear it. I wanted something sexy but I didn't want to show off my cleavage - it's just not right for a church. "I was told I could get the dress dry-cleaned, but I went to four dry- cleaners and no one would take the responsibility. One place quoted me pounds 100 but still wouldn't do it. They thought the beads would melt. In the end, my mum handwashed it which took away some of the stiffness and sheen of the satin. I starched it and that's given it a new sheen. After the wash, the fabric around the hem literally dissolved so I had to shorten it and decided on just below the knee. It's quite `cocktail hour' so it was perfect for the informal reception after the ceremony. There are a lot of different occasions you have to go through all in one day: the formal church wedding which is a sober affair; the wedding pictures; the meal - we served fish and chips and trifle - and then the party. "I can only wear this dress once because it's old and frail. To make it fit - women were different shapes then than they are now - I had the armholes lowered, the bust taken out, and the hips taken in. In the Fifties, you would have worn a corset. I bought a fantastic bra from Rigby & Peller. It cost pounds 35 but was well worth it for a slight Fifties pointy look. "My shoes were pounds 5 from Greenwich market. They are pale grey suede with a diamante strap. I was prepared to spend pounds 300 on a pair of shoes but I just couldn't find anything I wanted. I was after kitten heels with a closed toe because I didn't know if it was going to snow, hail or shine. The second-hand Pied a Terre find was just perfect. It was quite an eclectic look." Helen Vasiliou, pounds 2,000 Helen's dress cost pounds 1,700, but came to around pounds 2,000 with alterations. She shopped around at Liberty and Neil Cunningham but finally found the perfect dress from Caroline Castigliano in Berners Street, London. It was by David Fielden. Helen was married at All Saint's church in Camden Town, north London, three weeks ago. "pounds 2,000 was well over what I wanted to spend. And I wasn't going to go for a full dress. I'm 4ft 11in and wanted something simple. I tried on a lot of dresses but kept going back to the David Fielden. It had a tightly fitted, boned bodice in Mercado silk with a multi-layered tulle underskirt and a short train. It had a very flat bow on the waist in front. It was very Sixties. I was a bit disappointed with the finishing. The tulle underskirt wasn't properly attached to the bodice so my mum had to make it secure. For pounds 2,000 I thought it would be perfect. It was very well fitted though and was really comfortable. I didn't have to pull it up once. "When I walked down the aisle, I just looked straight ahead at my fiance to see his reaction. You feel like a queen. A friend said I looked like the cat that got the cream. I'll have it cleaned and vacuum packed and it'll go in the loft. It's a lot of money and it'll never be worn again which was a shame. I don't think any dress justifies that money. But I felt lovely and very special." Basia Zarzycka, pounds 20,000 Basia Zarzycka runs a couture wedding gown business from her shop on the King's Road in Chelsea, London. She includes a pair of hand- made shoes, bag, jewellery, veil and tiara in the package and prices start at pounds 4,500 and go up to pounds 25,000. Her dresses are the stuff of dreams and fantasies, the ultimate fairytale wedding experience. Basia has a six-month waiting list, employs 26 staff and can only work on between 20 and 30 dresses at a time. "We make the dress from beginning to end. The dress grows with the client. When the bride comes to us they could be royalty, or Jill Smith from down the road, but they all have one thing in common: they have a dream, a fairytale fantasy that they want brought to life. We have 600 tiaras to choose from. We do the whole outfit from top to toe, all included in the price. The shoes are made with a beechwood heel and we make a toile for the shoe as well as the dress so everything fits like a second skin. We use the finest chantilly lace, and the best specialist fabrics. A dress usually takes around four fittings to perfect, but the bride won't see the actual fabric until the second fitting. Corsets are our speciality. We use up to 21 panels per corset and we love hand beading. Our dresses are inspired by the eighteenth century and are very elaborate and baroque. We do modern corsets as well. The dress in the sketch is made of old white grand duchess satin from Bucoli in Paris, embellished with chantilly lace and hand-tooled Victorian roses in gold. The corset has 21 segments and is decorated with seed pearls, Austrian crystals and antique sequins. There is also a matching bag and chantilly lace shoes, a tiara and a Cathedral-length lace veil which is 3 metres long. As wedding venues get more unusual - castles and stately homes - women are moving back to a fantasy, ethereal look. They want their dress to be as splendid as possible. We really hold their hand - bring out their personality. I don't know what happens to the dresses after the marriage is over. I have never seen one go on the market for sale. I've heard that some of the clients have glass display cabinets made for the dress and glass domes made for their shoes. We don't always do white dresses. We listen to the client's vision and fantasy and put it into reality. I haven't been married yet, but I have my own fantasy. It's a secret until a year before my marriage. I won't make my own dress - it's bad luck."

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