5 Brides On Why Halfpenny Was The Only Choice For Their Wedding Day – As The Brand Turns 20
“It literally feels like yesterday and a million years ago,” Kate Halfpenny tells Vogue of founding her eponymous bridal brand, Halfpenny London, back in 2005. “I don’t feel that I ever had another career.” In fact, the designer was a stylist for 20 years before she set up the label, working with the likes of George Michael, Erin O’Connor and Emilia Fox.
It was actually when Halfpenny was working with the latter that the idea for her bridal brand first came about. “Emilia asked me to do two of her three wedding dresses,” the designer recalls of the actor’s 2005 wedding. “Then Vogue wrote a tiny line [about her bespoke bridal dresses] and my friend was like, ‘You have got a website?’ Emilia said, ‘I’ll model for you.’ That’s basically how it was born.”
Designing wasn’t completely new territory for Halfpenny, though. The stylist had studied fashion design at university, specialising in bridal wear, before turning her hand to costume design, as well as making bespoke creations for friends and clients. “Being a child of the ’80s, I loved the silhouettes of bridal; the drama that creating bridal gowns really was all about,” the designer says. “It was that whole Princess Diana moment; those big sleeves and those sweetheart necklines.”
Still, even as her brand took off, Halfpenny continued her day job as a stylist, while creating dresses for her brides during her evenings and weekends. “In the garage was my kind of atelier,” she remembers. “It was just myself and a seamstress that would pattern cut and make the dresses; it was all very bespoke at the very beginning. It was pre social media, so it was very much word of mouth: I’d do a bride, then I’d get her sister.”
Remarkably, it was only in 2013 that Halfpenny began working on her brand full-time, opening her first boutique in Bloomsbury, where her store remains today. “My husband said, ‘Look, this is crazy. We can’t leave the house on a weekend. You have brides outside the door all day, Saturday, Sunday,’” the founder says. “‘You’ve got to believe in it.’”
Of course, there was plenty of reason for Halfpenny to believe in her brand, as her success to date proves. In many ways, the designer was ahead of the game with her bridal separates – which allow women to construct their dream wedding dress. “My collection was always influenced by the fact that we’re all very different, and people like to be able to customise their gowns without having to go down the bespoke route,” she explains.
Fast forward to today, and all of Halfpenny’s dresses are still hand-made in the UK – an important aspect of the brand, given that the designer witnessed first-hand the demise of the clothing manufacturing industry in Derbyshire, when growing up in the ’80s. Demonstrating the strength of her brand DNA, many of her most popular silhouettes remain the same, from her Okatan off-shoulder corset to the Cheryl halter-neck dress, which both appear in the brand’s 20th anniversary collection.
What’s been to the secret to her success, after all these years? “The quality of the product that we make; the love and the care that we put into that; the fact that you are part of the journey of creating your gown; that we don’t treat any of our brides the same,” she replies.
Below, we asked five Halfpenny brides to share why the British label was the only choice for their wedding day.
NAOMI GOGGIN1/5Ophelia Lovibond, actor
“I had never given any thought before to the sort of wedding dress I’d want, but strangely the moment I became engaged, a very specific aesthetic appeared in my mind’s eye: striking images of Audrey Hepburn wearing Givenchy and ’60s women adorned in Balenciaga’s big bows. They must have lodged there without my noticing and lay dormant until they were required, as had the rather Dickensian-sounding romanticism of the name Halfpenny.
“I thought to contact no one but Kate and upon meeting in her beautiful Bloomsbury boutique, I knew instantly I’d found the person to bring my dream dress to life. I wanted something with a ’60s feel that felt fresh; graceful without being staid. Kate sketched what I’d been imagining, and the exact dress complete with sumptuous cape and perfectly placed bow emerged before my eyes.
“Made with miles of mikado silk it was full of drama and grandeur, yet elegant and utterly wearable. Kate even made an additional bow which could be attached like a bustle once my bespoke cape was removed, so I could dance with abandon, but maintain the original feel of the design. And: I had pockets.
“All day people marvelled ‘it’s so you!’. I felt like me, completely at ease, confident and so special. I shall treasure it always and if I could wear it to buy milk I would.”
Daniel Lewis2/5Emma Spedding, Vogue contributor
“I think a lot is made about finding ‘the one’ when it comes to wedding dresses, but actually that adds a lot of pressure. I found it was a slower process, as I had several visits to Halfpenny before deciding on my final dress. I went to my first fitting alone, and just had a really fun experience trying on lots of different looks and talking to the stylist about what I look for in clothes or what makes me feel the most confident — she really picked up on the language I used.
“At my second fitting with Kate, I thought I had decided on another dress. I showed her this other option and she then started sketching an idea for how we could create a custom cape that would have a similar high neckline, but in tulle for a lighter, more romantic alternative. She started wrapping my collar bones in a veil-like fabric, and I loved how simple and elegant it looked, with extra layers used to add more drama and length, catching the light beautifully. The Manet cape is usually worn across the chest, but she tweaked this to sit high over my collarbones and fall down the back.
“The dress itself (the Ash) was more traditional than I thought I would go for, as it had a full skirt and fitted bodice, but it really worked for the proportions of my body and made me feel very relaxed and confident. I also knew I didn’t like the idea of a veil, and so loved how we created an alternative – we added a removable long layer to the cape, so after the ceremony I was able to take this off. I think that is part of the magic of Halfpenny: there are lots of separates and detachable elements that can be used to make your dress feel very unique throughout the day.
“After the wedding, Kate posted me a framed picture of her sketch, and it felt really special to have been able to build a relationship with my wedding dress designer, and have several appointments together to tweak and perfect my look.”
Emma Kenny Photography3/5Aseya Nasib Kenny, wellness founder
“I had a Halfpenny dress on my vision board before I even met my fiancé! As a plus-size bride, I wanted to find an inclusive bridal brand and I actually flew from Dubai to London to purchase my dress specifically.
“The experience was incredible. I didn’t actually end up with the dress from my vision board – I tried on the Mayfair dress and immediately knew it was the one! It was so comfortable and made me feel so beautiful that I was ready to wear it out of the store – even though it didn’t fit!
“Our wedding was at Luttrellstown Castle [in Dublin] and the Mayfair dress was the absolute perfect option – I could dance, prance down the aisle in comfort and I felt like an actual princess.”
Courtesy of Hannah Coates4/5Hannah Coates, former Vogue beauty & wellness editor
“I’d heard great things about Halfpenny while doing the whole bridal shop rounds and to be honest, found most of the ones I went to a bit soul destroying. But meeting Kate – who is completely fabulous and incredibly warm – one night after work at her shop (which incidentally has great interiors too) honestly changed the game for me.
“She was like, ‘Tell me what you want to look like.’ I said ‘sexy bride’ and she really listened. Her and her team styled me and understood what my figure needed, rather than putting me in things that would never have suited me as a curvy woman. The whole experience was just a joy from start to finish. I love that they do separates (mine was a corset top and Grecian-style skirt) and I love that they understand the female figure, not to mention they keep it all light-hearted and fun rather than pressuring you to buy. They have fabulous accessories (great veils!) and all the team are so lovely. Can’t recommend enough!”
