Most of the outfits were worn in Britain, by brides of many faiths. Alongside the dresses are accessories including jewellery, shoes, garters, veils, wreaths, hats and corsetry as well as fashion sketches and personal photographs. Garments worn by bridegrooms and attendants are also on display. The exhibition investigates the histories of the garments, revealing fascinating and personal details about the lives of
the wearers, giving an intimate insight into their occupations, circumstances and fashion choices.

The opening section of the exhibition features some of the earliest examples of wedding fashion including a silk satin court dress (1775) and a brocade gown with its original bergère hat and shoes (1780) lent by Chertsey Museum. The preference for white in the 19th century is demonstrated by a white muslin wedding dress embroidered with flowers, leaves and berries (1807) recently acquired by the V&A, and a wedding outfit embellished with pearl beads designed by Charles Frederick Worth (1880). As the 19th century drew to a close historical costume influenced fashion. A fine example is a copy of a Paris model designed by Paquin Lalanne et Cie made by Stern Brothers of New York (1890) for an American bride.

Designs from the 1920s and 1930s illustrate the glamour of bridal wear which was now influenced by evening fashions, dresses were slim-hipped and made from richly beaded textured fabrics and slinky bias-cut satin. During the Second World War when clothing restrictions were introduced, brides needed to make imaginative and practical fashion choices. They used non-rationed fabrics such as upholstery materials, net curtaining and parachute silk, or married in a smart day dress or service uniform. On display is a buttercup patterned dress made in light-weight upholstery fabric by London dressmaker Ella Dolling (1941).

Wedding Dresses 1775-2014 also explores the growth of the wedding industry and the effect of increasing media focus on wedding fashions. Improvements in photography in the early 20th century encouraged photojournalism and society weddings were reported in detail in the national press and gossip columns. Two of the most spectacular wedding dresses on show are the Norman Hartnell dress made for Margaret Whigham (later Duchess of Argyll) for her marriage to Charles Sweeny (1933), and the Charles James ivory silk satin dress worn by Barbara 'Baba' Beaton for her marriage to Alec Hambro (1934). These dramatic dresses are shown alongside archive film and news clippings of the occasions as examples of society ‘celebrity’ weddings.