Perth bride wears custom dress created by mother-in-law

Tegan Elyse Rodgers, 33, and Ken Andrew Ashton, 41

What’s more special than having a wedding dress hand made just for you? Having it created at the hands of your future mother-in-law during an 18-month period that allowed for plenty of bonding, learning curves and memories to last a lifetime.

The dress was a gift to Tegan from Ken’s mother, Debbie-Anne Ashton but the true gift was the time they shared together in the process.

“I remember the day we decided to make my dress, some 18 months ago,” Tegan recalls.

“Wow the project that we started together took many twists and turns, highs, lows, finger pricks (but luckily no blood), sweat and tears.

“What Debbie-Anne created for me was an absolute masterpiece, and taught me so much along the way. The time we spent together has made lifelong memories and gave me a new passion for fabric, design and creation that I am so excited to continue.”

When and where

Held at Millbrook Winery on November 27, the nuptials included a secret dual-control helicopter arrival by Ken. It was only once the helicopter flew over the forest trees to the venue that the groomsmen and guests became aware of the groom’s arrival.

Dress

The beautiful gift from the groom’s mum to the bride was made with over 2000m of cotton. The stunning beaded couture lace fabric and Italian satin lining was bought from Fabulous Fabrics in Balcatta and took hundreds of hours to make.

Honeymoon

Like most newlyweds married in the time of COVID-19, the couple had to postpone their trip to New Zealand but they had a mini-getaway to the beautiful South West and Great Southern. They relaxed and enjoyed many of their usual hobbies including kitesurfing in Augusta, paragliding in Yallingup, hiking trails, four-wheel-driving, picnics and spending time in nature.