Cathedral Veil Ariella

Ariella is more than three metres of tulle that keeps its lace for the floor.

The veil is a single layer of fine ivory tulle, gathered to a small point at the crown - sheer enough that the lace of the dress reads straight through it. More than three metres of it follow her, and where the tulle reaches the floor the appliques begin: open roses, leaf sprigs and small buds in ivory. They are massed deepest across the centre back, then thin into single scattered sprigs as the band runs up the sides. The tulle itself is cut in one smooth, unbroken curve, and the lace is set just inside that line, with a margin of bare tulle left showing beyond it, so the flowers appear to float clear of the edge rather than outline it. From the front the veil reads as light. From behind it is a wide oval spread across the floor, solid ivory flowers at the far side of it and clear tulle everywhere else.

Because for most of the walk, this is the part everyone is looking at.