Gypsy Wedding Dreams: Ten dresses. Ten Dreams. All the secrets revealed.

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Gypsy Wedding Dreams: Ten dresses. Ten Dreams. All the secrets revealed.
Thelma Madine

Thelma Madine, star of Channel 4’s Big Fat Gypsy Weddings and fairy godmother of Gypsy weddings, reveals the drama, secrets and surprises involved in ten gypsy weddings.Through the tales of ten elaborate Gypsy wedding dresses Thelma offers a new window onto the remarkable world of ten brides and their extravagant weddings. For Thelma’s young brides, a wedding dress is more than just a pretty white gown; for some it is a symbol of their fairytale-like hopes and dreams for the future, for others a mark of a long-standing friendship with a non-traveller they have welcomed into their community, and for a small group a sad reminder of day they know will never come.With each chapter based around the secrets and incredible truths hidden behind a different dress, Thelma’s second book is packed full of fascinating new stories. More drama, more dresses, more gypsies.By turns laugh-out-loud funny and achingly sad, and brimming with hilarious anecdotes and larger-than-life characters, Thelma’s book will amaze, amuse and entertain.Beautifully designed, and fully-illustrated throughout, it is crammed with glossy new photos, revealing never-before-seen dresses adorned with thousands of Swarovski crystals and hundreds of LED lights – an ideal gift for fans of Channel 4’s Big Fat Gypsy Weddings, My Big Fat Gypsy Valentine and Thelma’s Gypsy Girls.

Contents

TITLE PAGE (#u7569af35-5efe-56f8-88d0-6575b81d215c)

DEDICATION (#ufab04fc6-a510-5519-8438-54ff42fc9c4a)

INTRODUCTION (#ulink_b2968708-eccb-51da-a4d4-1295b328e719)

CHAPTER ONE (#ulink_791bc85e-e79a-5e1f-a056-3e429345ed55)

Inspirations (#ulink_791bc85e-e79a-5e1f-a056-3e429345ed55)

CHAPTER TWO (#ulink_1f353793-bede-5e0d-b3c5-c8a4c53f9fe4)

The Cryer (#ulink_1f353793-bede-5e0d-b3c5-c8a4c53f9fe4)

CHAPTER THREE (#ulink_f563a605-6783-55ca-a929-c25cebc00a59)

The Con (#ulink_f563a605-6783-55ca-a929-c25cebc00a59)

CHAPTER FOUR (#ulink_eff8b4de-acec-537a-8871-51bfdb962eed)

A Rathkeale Wedding (#ulink_eff8b4de-acec-537a-8871-51bfdb962eed)

CHAPTER FIVE (#ulink_7bd4be7c-5a1e-5350-9538-c8b048eb89ba)

The Bride Who Couldn’t Decide (#ulink_7bd4be7c-5a1e-5350-9538-c8b048eb89ba)

CHAPTER SIX (#ulink_cbbf99d2-03a2-55be-ac43-6f4cd0ceac22)

The Game-Changer (#ulink_cbbf99d2-03a2-55be-ac43-6f4cd0ceac22)

CHAPTER SEVEN (#ulink_13b6d900-a41c-509f-8d0d-fa9534a0d4f4)

The Family Rivalry (#ulink_13b6d900-a41c-509f-8d0d-fa9534a0d4f4)

CHAPTER EIGHT (#ulink_af40183e-a8c5-528d-9499-6fb5fe1b35e0)

The Bumpy Road to the Altar (#ulink_af40183e-a8c5-528d-9499-6fb5fe1b35e0)

CHAPTER NINE (#ulink_a4ab02e8-620c-594c-8633-27dd08019dcf)

The Bride Without a Wedding (#ulink_a4ab02e8-620c-594c-8633-27dd08019dcf)

CHAPTER TEN (#ulink_cffd8570-ae19-502c-8485-473778fa0e2b)

Me and My Big Mouth (#ulink_cffd8570-ae19-502c-8485-473778fa0e2b)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS (#ulink_2bef1720-a144-5b77-8438-7e89f8ba6d8e)

COPYRIGHT (#ulink_31720a66-19a0-5d8d-9271-cb5107eda034)

ABOUT THE PUBLISHER (#ulink_69dcefb4-aa56-5ed7-8cb3-780319048d22)

Introduction (#ulink_e6bf39a7-d9b2-5f84-801b-a66268bec754)

I have enjoyed working with the traveller community ever since they first started coming to me, 20 years ago, when I worked on a market stall in Liverpool. I’ve made some wonderful friends among them, and throughout my career, I’ve felt their support and warmth.

I’ve done proms, First Communions, engagement parties, all sorts … But of course the one area that has had the biggest impact – on both my business and my personal life – is the weddings. It’s through preparing for these big days with the girls that I’ve got to know both them and their way of life better than when I’m putting together any other type of creation. Because gypsy weddings are not like non-traveller weddings, from the intricate specifics of their customs and traditions to the unbelievable imagination and determination that they put into getting the wedding dresses and outfits that will bring their dreams to life. Each time I take an order for a new wedding, I am not just accepting a new piece of business: I am beginning a new journey.

But some of those journeys have been bumpy rides, to say the least! Along the way there have been tears, tantrums and tiaras. I’ve seen girls threaten to cut all their hair off if they don’t get their own way and I’ve had them pleading and begging with me to keep their darkest secrets. And I’ve seen families reach the brink of collapse through bitter feuding about the tiniest details and exchanged the level of kindness with them that I would normally reserve for my own family. Yet despite all the dramas and the heartache that I’ve seen along the way, there isn’t a single experience that I would take back; each and every wedding has been a mini saga of its own, and I’ve loved them all.

The stories included here are my Top Ten most memorable weddings. They’re not all about the dress, although there are dresses here that have changed the course of my career and my dressmaking business Nico, forever.

And they’re not just about the wedding day itself either; after all, for many of these brides, it’s the journey to the altar – and all of the negotiating and heartache that this can involve – that is the biggest part of the picture. But every single one of these ten weddings has been something really special to me. They’re a real window into the worlds of both Nico and all its chaotic splendour and the travelling community and its secretive ways. Whether you laugh, cry or simply enjoy the gorgeous dresses, I hope you get as much fun out of these ten most extraordinary gypsy weddings as I have.

To the happy couples!