Wedding trashers

May 24 2009 by Mieka Smiles, Sunday Sun

HOW long is it since you posed in your wedding dress? Perhaps it’s time to unbundle it from the loft and give your gown the attention it deserves. MIEKA SMILES spoke to one Jarrow bride who decided to have a go at a photography trend that’s sweeping the nation

IT’S the most important – and often the most expensive – dress the majority of women will ever wear.

And for that reason the last thing you’d think brides would want to do is damage it in any way. Many newlyweds spend hundreds of pounds making sure their dress is properly cleaned and delicately preserved in tissue paper.

If that sounds familiar, then this growing trend is definitely not for you …

Trash the Dress – as it’s most popularly dubbed – is an American phenomenon that’s sweeping the UK, with many photographers now offering it as part of their wedding package.

It’s aimed at brides who fancy a last hurrah in their wedding dress rather than bundling away their gown, not to be seen or worn for decades to come.

After the wedding day – on a date set by the bride and groom – a trash the dress photographer will whisk the newlyweds off to a glamorous location for a separate shoot with the aim of producing a fashion mag-style set of photos. The bride can go as far as she wants in terms of how much she wishes to put her dress at risk of damage. Those more daring may splash about in the waves or roll about on the sand, whereas others simply choose to pose with a spectacular backdrop, be it at the beach or at a dramatic abbey.

The shoot is an opportunity for the photographer to capture the personalities of the couple without the high drama, stress, nerves and time restrictions of the wedding day itself.

Nurse Jane Collingwood, 26, is one bride who decided to go for it.

Jane and her husband Robert, 30, a pipe fitter, were married last September at Washington Old Hall and were taken to Howick near Seahouses for a trash the dress shoot after returning from their honeymoon in the Dominican Republic.

Jane, of Jarrow, South Tyneside, said: “I didn’t just want the normal formal shots that you get all of the time – I wanted something a bit different and a bit funky.”

Jane had a mixed reaction from friends and family, but all agree that the results are spectacular.

She said: “I’d never heard of trash the dress.

“When I told my mum she wasn’t very happy initially, but I explained what it was about and that you can go as mental as you want.

“We have put our trash the dress pictures at the end of our wedding album.

“People are quite shocked when they look through it and we have had some lovely comments.”

Jane was hesitant about damaging her gown but found that it wasn’t any worse for wear after the shoot.

She said: “The truth is my dress got quite knackered on our wedding day anyway as it rained and the bottom of it got muddy.

“I didn’t see any other opportunities to put my dress back on.”

It’s also an opportunity, said Jane, to be less buttoned up and experiment with a more outlandish bridal look. She said: “On your wedding day your makeup tends to be subtle, but for the Trash the Dress shoot you can really go for it.

“To begin with it was a bit daunting, but once I got into it I was OK.”

Jane enjoyed the experience and loved the result. She said: “I would definitely recommend it to other brides. It was well worth it.”

Faizal Kirk, 33, is the photographer behind Jane’s stunning shoot. He now offers trash the dress as a wedding package option.

Faizal, who runs Fyzal Photography in Durham with his wife Dawn, 28, said: “I think the British are still a little bit reserved when it comes to things like this.

“When they hear about trash the dress many say, ‘I’m not doing that – no way’!”

Faizal says trash the dress is not about recreating wedding pictures but more about creating an entirely different and original result.

He said: “If a bride came to us who was not happy with her original wedding photographs, we would be in two minds whether to take the job on as the result is completely different and not really like wedding pictures.

“From our point of view we are wanting to do something with the bride that we can’t do on the wedding day as there isn’t enough time or the location is not right.

“We don’t expect everyone to do it – if a bride has spent £3000 on her wedding dress, then there is no way that they are going to walk into a lake for pictures.

“What it does offer is another chance for the bride to put the dress on – particularly if it’s going to get rolled up and put in the loft and no one is going to see it for another 20 years.

“One bride was more bothered about the trash the dress shoot than the wedding photos!”

TO find out more about Faizal’s work visit www.fyzal.com

WHAT did you do with your wedding gown after the big day? We would love to hear from those who have put their wedding dress through its paces. Please email your stories and pictures to mieka.smiles@ncjmedia.co.uk