“My design concept was inspired by architectural details inside the Palace of Versailles. Due to the massiveness of the chateau, I chose a few rooms to focus on for this collection that shared the same colors and details. This collection originally started in my senior year of high school but never finished or truly developed. Now, in my senior year of college, I have decided to revise, refine, and finish the collection. It started with a mood board of images with no real idea behind them. I kept some of the elements from the original designs, such as silhouettes, colors, and materials, but with a more thoughtful purpose and design concept. I chose to use secondhand fabric and fabric I already owned to be more sustainable. In my research of the Palace of Versailles, I also looked at fashion from the time. I found that men’s fashion was much more diverse and genderfluid than it is today. I also took some aspects of the fashion of that time as inspiration, such as the corsets and beading patterns. Today, there has been a growing popularity of non-traditional bridalwear, such as colorful dresses, wedding suits, and short cocktail-style dresses. I wanted to create an inclusionary collection that was different from traditional bridalwear, specifically focusing on genderfluidity. During the brief time that I have worked in the wedding industry, I have noticed a huge lack of diversity for people wanting a more genderfluid or gender-neutral look. The wedding industry is still deeply rooted in a binary system, centered around heteronormative couples. Although there has been some progress in including more LGBTQ+ couples, there is still a long way to go to make the wedding industry more inclusive. ”

— Alexia King