As an estimated 2 billion people worldwide settle into their armchairs to watch the biggest royal wedding in 20 years, Jane Yeh will be gearing up for one of the longest nights of her life. over just 12 hours, the iconic Kiwi wedding dress designer will re-create Kate oiddleton’s bridal masterpiece, and send it on a tour of New Zealand, beginning in Auckland at midday on Saturday 30 April – the day after the royal wedding.
“It’s the biggest challenge I’ve ever had, but I want to see how quickly I can make this beautiful dress,” says the Taiwanese- born designer, who has created unique wedding gowns for some of the country’s favourite celebrities, including Wendy Petrie, Hilary Barry, Lorraine Downes, Mandy Barker and Nerida Lister.
“The reason I started designing wedding dresses was because I love the fairytale fantasy of a wedding. After Diana and Charles’ wedding in 1981, this is the biggest wedding of a prince and princess there will be in my lifetime. I can’t be in London on the day myself, but I can make the dress. I’m going to have to work very hard to make it this fast though!”
While Kate’s British wedding dress designers – who Jane thinks may come from the house of celebrity favourite Alexander ocQueen – will be spending hours with their nervous client, checking the ?t and every tiny detail, Jane will be relying entirely on her specialist knowledge of what women want on their wedding day.
“Even if my client lives overseas I usually have three days and at least three ?ttings with them before the dress is completed to my high standard,” she smiles.
Jane insists the key to the success of her mammoth task is preparation. “I will have to get as much ready as I can before the event,” she says from her salon in the exclusive Auckland suburb of Parnell.
But as the dress design is arguably the world’s biggest fashion secret right now, that’s easier said than done.
“I have everything I think I could possibly need – silks, satins, tulle, lace, beading – I’m very organised. As soon as I get the ?rst glimpse of the dress, which will be at around 10pm on the Friday night, I’ll start.”
Although Jane’s prepared for any eventuality, the experienced designer clearly has an idea in her head of what may be coming. “If I could choose Kate’s dress myself, it would be pearl-white heavy silk duchess satin with silk tulle and hand-made French lace detail, which will work beautifully with her colouring,” she says.
“She has a fantastic ?gure, so I’d give her a dress with a sophisticated, simplistic silhouette, ?tted around the waist and hips, with an off-the-shoulder sweetheart neckline and a full A-line skirt with a long train. She will have sheer sleeves and the dress will have subtle beading and on-trend detail.”
While Jane has a team of ?ve machinists, one hand-beading specialist and a cutter who has been with her since her ?rst day as a New Zealand designer, 17 years ago, she will be on hand to oversee every step of the design.
“Timing is the hardest part – we will have to be very ef?cient with the shape and detail,” says the self-described perfectionist.
“I’ll have the sketch ?gured out ?rst, then I’ll do a rough cut, put it on the mannequin, then pass the details to the cutter. I’ll be checking constantly until it’s ?nished, then the dress will be ?tted on a model.”
Jane will accompany the ?nished dress to its debut at Farmers in Auckland’s St Lukes shopping mall before heading home for some well-earned rest with husband John Harris and their daughter Natalie (16).
“Natalie and her friends are fascinated – they’ve always loved the shop, and often come in to look at all the dresses.”
As Jane gears up for what she describes as one of the biggest challenges in her career, she says, “I have a real passion for creating beautiful, romantic, fairytale gowns and re-creating Kate oiddleton’s wedding dress will be no exception.”
