FROCK & AWW
A dressmaker brought some magic to lockdown for her beloved gran by recreating her beautiful wedding gown – almost 60 years after her big day.
Amy Copland, 26, sails around the Caribbean on a cruise ship, working as a wardrobe supervisor for theatre productions put on to entertain guests.
But when the pandemic hit in
March 2020, and with foreign travel halted, she flew home to the UK and formed a support bubble with her gran Jean Short, 79.
Amy, who lives near ex-cleaner
Jean in Dundee, spent two weeks and just under £100 painstakingly copying the fabulous frock from a photo, before an emotional unveiling at Jean’s house earlier this month.
Amy said: “I usually sail for months at a time but, since lockdown, my gran and I have been keeping each other sane. It was really hard for the first six months of lockdown to not even hug her but, as restrictions eased, we’ve been able to form a support bubble. I’m only a walk away and I spend one night a week at her house.”
Amy was inspired to recreate
Jean’s satin and lace wedding dress after admiring a picture of her big day on her mantelpiece.
Amy added: “She was so happy when she saw it – she kept saying how beautiful it was. It fitted like a glove.”
Jean said she knows her husband Jack Short, who she married in Dundee in 1962, would have approved. Remembering
Jack, who passed away from bowel cancer in 1996, aged 58,
Jean said: “I first met Jack at a dance and we were engaged a year later. I found my wedding dress in a local shop but, after lending it to friends, I never saw it again.
“I’m over the moon that I now have this recreated version. I’m so proud of Amy. Seeing the dress brought back a lot of happy memories.”