What happens when one lets go of convention, yet still retains strong connections with beauty and craftsmanship?

Isn’t that exactly what many of us try to do with our textile and embroidery art?

In the Bridal space, one immersed in long-held traditions and beliefs, there seems to be a quiet reformation within the rich tapestry of form, scale, and memory. Clever designers are creating zinging tensions between sheer artistry and anti-establishment, and I love it.

This is a fascinating time where designers and brides can be almost fearless, just as we should be in our art.

What’s of interest here is that embroidery still features on many of these subversive bridal creations.  The gowns showcase a sense of theatre and occasion that is very reminiscent of the traditional wedding gown, but in a uniquely different way.

Some traditions are being swept away in a current of fearless elegance, replaced by gowns unbound by convention yet deeply anchored in the beauty and romance of a more traditional wedding gown.

The magic is in the details, and embroidery and embellishment remain one of the stars.

Embroidery is never just decoration; it’s a language of beauty, recycled memories, stories, and rituals gently worked by generations of hands to create something that speaks when words fall short.

But now, the subverted wedding dress unbound by convention has become more popular with modern-day brides, yet is still steeped in the traditions of beauty, elegance and storytelling, where a simple needle and thread enable the designer’s vision and narrative.

From the brides of the ancient world to modern couture runways, brides have shared an expression of hope, belief and aristry in the garments they choose to wear on their wedding day, but it appears change is afoot.

Imagine the moment where, for as long as people have celebrated union and commitment, couples have dressed specifically for this special moment, their wedding day.

The guests are gathered, the music begins, and the bride finally appears, wearing something that attracts everyone’s attention.

This moment has become more than just a memory and identity – it’s magic and theatre on display for all to see, a delicate canvas highlighting a rich array of fashion-historical references and paradoxes.

But bridal attire, long admired for its couture craftsmanship, is undergoing a quietly radical rethinking of what it means to be a bride today.

I’m thankful to say, the drawcard, the icing on the cake, so to speak, is still the stunning embellishments and stand-alone embroidery, whether worked by hand or machine, it’s still very much in evidence.

Is it about destabilising and overthrowing traditions in favour of distorting long-held beliefs, or is it a marriage of free-spirited thinking that’s artisanal and raw?

And aren’t these the self-same objectives many textile artists nowadays share?  To break free and be unique?

Barcelona Bridal Week 2025 presented a masterful showing of couture design paired with free-spirited thinking, playing a snippet of an interview with renowned Japanese designer Yohji Yamamoto, known for his philosophy of conquering fashion through antithesis, namely that of traditional Western clothing, creating pieces that challenge taboos and propose radical convictions, voicing his frustration with the fashion industry’s overproduction and obsession with trends.

Now this is a philosophy to take note of.  Does it inspire you as an artist?

Here was a collection of re-imagined bridal gowns, referencing all things bridal in subtle but unmistakably magical accents, yet stepping away from the traditions of things like veils and trains, and this is exactly what many brides are looking for nowadays.

Not way-out radical, yet, exuding a quiet, unique elegance, one gown featured a silhouette-fitting strapless gown embellished with Baroque-style beading cascading down the gown front, enveloped within an ethereal, pillowy, duvet-style, floor-length cloak, that perfectly occupied the traditional veil space.  The contrasts of shape, form and texture created something fairy-tale-like and uniquely memorable.

It was a stunning reversal of bridal traditions while still managing somehow to hold on to them.

These are the same elements embroidery and textile artists should include in their work.

Another sculptural gown featured Art-Deco style embroidery echoing repeat shell-like formations, contrasted with a bustle-style half skirt featuring tulle layering that cascaded down towards the floor.

Again, contrasts of texture, shape and form along with the use of historical references to well-defined fashion eras.

These exquisite examples offer ideas, or in the case of the designer, Yohji Yamamoto, a philosophy for an entire artistic practice.

But some brides want more, and it comes in the form of colour and embellishment.

And some textile and embroidery artists are driven by nothing more than colour and embellishment.

Now, almost two centuries of tradition are being broken with brides wearing zesty lime, azure blue and even black, according to a recent article by The Guardian.

With the anti-bridal dress on the rise, many brides opt for something far more impactful than traditional white, but that still features the delicacy and shimmer that only embroidery and beading can offer.

Indian fashion designer Ashish Gupta favours sheer trapeze-shaped dresses adorned with delicate hand-embroidered, appliquéd flowers on organza, reminiscent of a pretty, soft, springtime garden, or a heavily beaded, multi-coloured fringed mini-dress inspired by the Hindu festival Holi, meaning festival of colours.

His typical customers are non-traditional, fun-loving and a little irreverent.  It’s less about the fairytale and more about the magic.

That’s exactly where embroidery is headed.  People are looking for magic in their lives, their art and what they wear.

Not a bad theory to incorporate into producing new work ourselves – and even better, to understand that that’s the style of work that suits our personalities.

David’s Bridal’s recent collection suggests that brides are increasingly searching for unique dresses, stating that ‘they are wearing cowboy boots with couture’.

One of their gowns worn to this year’s Golden Globes event features black leaf or petal embroidery and appliqué, over a nude-coloured tulle form-fitting silhouette that splays elegantly onto the floor, reminiscent of a vintage 1940s Hollywood glamour goddess.

Why wear one of these gowns?

Writing in British Vogue, Harriet Hall described her almost Elsa Schiaparelli, Shocking Pink wedding gown, as ‘rejecting any suggestion of virginal purity, wifely subservience or impassivity that the white dress has come to symbolise’.

Was Queen Victoria considered subversive when she began the white-wedding dress trend in 1840 when she married Prince Albert?

Elizabeth Taylor wore a canary yellow dress to one of her eight nuptials in 1964.  In 1997, Sarah Jessica Parker wore black to her wedding; in India and China, it’s their tradition to wear red.

The key takeaway is that nowadays, people don’t have to follow a rulebook.

Symbolic motifs may have been left behind, but bridal gowns today often feature overall, eye-catching embroidery or meticulous and intricate floral or nature-based appliqué or beading.

Brides want the theatrics, the drama and for all eyes to be on them on their special day.

And it’s the same for embroidery artists.  Retain the craftsmanship, but move on. Push forward.

We can still utilise symbolism and fine work to explore and disrupt norms by using non-traditional materials, aggressive motifs, unusual threads and unconventional imagery, making textile and embroidery art one of the most interesting artistic genres to explore for the up-and-coming while maintaining the craftsmanship.

But now, in Bridal fashion, as in textile and embroidered art, we see how fabric and thread become the tools for agency, identity and critique – but only for those designers and artists who have a vision and the courage that has to go with it.

We are all storytellers working through ideas and concepts to convey messages of elegance, beauty, inquisitiveness, and reflection, served with an undercurrent of quiet rebellion that mirrors the act of subverting tradition through craft.

But, thankfully, what remains is the elegance, simplicity and intricacy that only embroidery and embellishment can bring.

Quietly, elegantly rebelling, while honouring and redefining tradition.

With every passing of a needle and thread.