Why did you choose to commission a sustainable wedding dress?
Over the last few years, I have made conscious changes to be more mindful & sustainable with my lifestyle choices. It’s been almost 3 years since I stopped buying products made from animal leather and over 2 years since I turned vegetarian. I also no longer shop from fast fashion brands and follow the “quality over quantity” mantra. There’s been a huge shift in my wardrobe curation since I started leaning more towards timeless pieces which won’t go out of style in a year or two. You will also usually see me carrying my own water bottle & a cotton shopping bag in a serious attempt to reduce my single use plastic consumption. So, it only seemed fitting that a milestone event such as my wedding would also reflect my ethos and beliefs. When I discovered re- on the Lakme Fashion week Instagram feed and read about their use of recycled industrial textile waste & floral waste to create beautiful ceremonial outfits, I just knew that an outfit from re- had to be a part of my wedding trousseau. I got in touch with Ateev and from there on, there was no looking back.
What was the process like working with re-?
Ateev Anand was very kind and wonderful to work with. From our first meeting at the re- studio to the very last fitting at my home, the team put in 200% to give us beautiful & unique outfits. Ateev is patient and also understands his client’s style well. It was the first time re- was designing wedding outfits for an entire family and that too in a short span of time. Like with everything wedding related, there were ups and downs because it was a big project for re- that had to be executed in a short span of time – And as a bride I wanted everything to be perfect. Regardless of the hiccups, Ateev gave me the confidence and comfort that he would deliver. I felt that we were very aligned in terms of sustainability and design sensibilities. Not only did we get beautiful outfits through the process, I also made an amazing new friend!
What did your family and friends think when you told them the dress was made of recycled fabric?
My family and friends were so intrigued when I first told them about re- and the materials they use. Most of my friends ended up immediately looking up re- on Instagram – They loved the earthy & timeless look of the outfits and thought the pricing was very reasonable for the beautiful workmanship. Tanay, my parents and my brother were all immediately onboard when I told them how meaningful it would be if we all wore sustainable outfits for the Mehendi event.
How did you feel when you wore the dress on your wedding day?
The mehendi day event was the closest to my heart because the theme was “The Enchanted Woodlands”.
The beautiful English countryside lawns were transformed into a magical world that brought to life all our favourite fairy tales and fantasy books such a Peter Pan, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Alice in Wonderland.
When we walked in wearing our beautiful floral motif hand embroidered re- outfits, we felt like a prince & princess in our very own fairy tale.
The outfit made me feel ethereal and Tanay looked like my real life Prince Charming in his regal 4 piece outfit.
My 80 kali outfit definitely caught everyone’s eye because of its uniqueness and they loved the story behind it! It’s definitely going to be a favourite in my closet – In fact, during my final outfit trial, I remember telling Ateev that it made me feel so beautiful that I wanted to walk around the house in it all day!
