The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle: A Novel

Hugh Westcott is Grace’s love interest. He is the master of Aldhurst Manor and its lands, a position he took on recently when his father passed away. He also works in the war office in London. At the beginning of the novel, he is weighed down by the responsibilities of his estate and his position at the war office. He neglects the estate for the most part, not bothering to learn about the villagers or the consequences of his father’s plans for it. He also feels the pull of the betrothal his father set up for him when Hugh was just a child; the woman, Astrid, and her parents are pressuring Hugh to make it official.

As the narrative progresses, Hugh learns how to care more for his community, rather than focusing solely on the distant political work he does in London. He transitions from the cold, dismissive man he has become in adulthood to a more light-hearted, caring man. When Grace asks if his leaving Astrid will hurt his career, he tells her that he was in politics to help people but that Grace has taught him “there are plenty of other ways to help people, and [he] know[s] that [he’ll] be of much more use to the world with [her] by [his] side” (367). Like Grace, Hugh learns how to throw off society’s expectations so he can pursue real love and a life of meaning.

Cressida Wescott is another of the protagonists and the aunt of Violet and Hugh Wescott. She is a famous fashion designer and couturier in London, and at the beginning of the novel, she has not been to her home village or spoken to her family in decades. When she is forced to seek shelter with her niece and nephew after the bombing of her neighborhood, Cressida embarks on a journey of reconnecting with her roots and discovering the power of community. Her character arc emphasizes the theme of The Transformative Power of Community and Friendship.

Violet describes Cressida as warm but also crisp and no-nonsense. As Cressida gets to know the women of Aldhurst, she reveals her caring, supportive nature. She takes to Grace immediately and becomes a mentor, encouraging and building Grace up to seek her own path in life. As a newcomer, she brings an outsider’s perspective to Grace and Violet’s lives and to the broader narrative, questioning societal expectations that the other women take for granted. Simultaneously, Grace and the Sewing Circle bring out the best in Cressida, who learns the value of participating in one’s community and building friendships. She has spent her adult life isolating herself and pursuing only her professional success, but she finally admits to herself that she has been lonely and that she enjoys having close relationships. She knows she wants to keep the life she has built as a fashion designer, but she also recognizes that she is no longer the same “solitary, tireless woman she used to be. It [is] as if she [is] still the same, but now she [is] something else as well. She [is] part of the community, a friend, an aunt, and an individual who [has] needs, emotions, desires” (376). Through recognizing her own humanity and providing guidance to the novel’s younger women, Cressida rebuilds the ties that bind her to Aldhurst and creates a fuller life with the villagers.

Ben Carlisle is Grace’s father and an old friend of both Cressida and her fiancé, Jack, who died in World War I. Jack’s death during the war has haunted Ben for years as he coped with shell shock, now recognized as a form of post-traumatic stress disorder. In the 10 years since her mother’s death, Grace notices Ben suffering a resurgence of his shell shock symptoms, including dreams about Jack. He sits alone in his study, she notes, “distancing himself from not just his parish but the world” (4-5). His renewed friendship with Cressida, however, who shares his grief over the loss of Jack, helps him come back to himself. As their friendship flourishes, Ben becomes Cressida’s love interest; this creates inner conflict for Cressida, who spent her adult life believing she had to choose between love or her success and identity. Together, Ben and Cressida learn that it is possible to be two individuals with their own lives and a shared life as well. Their relationship, marked as it is by shared trauma and grief, highlights the theme of Resilience in the Face of Great Difficulty as the characters learn that mutual vulnerability can be healing.

Violet Wescott is the third protagonist of The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle. She is Hugh’s sister and Cressida’s niece, and she lives in Aldhurst Manor. When the novel opens, Violet is a spoiled aristocrat’s daughter who disparages efforts to support the war and is obsessed with marrying a titled man and fulfilling the role her father set out for her. Like Grace, her arc aligns with the theme of The Transformative Power of Community and Friendship. Her relationship with Cressida sets her on a journey of self-discovery, with her aunt’s encouragement before her military support service training helping Violet understand her experience differently. When Cressida sees her off at the train station, she tells Violet, “A spot of discipline and a few skills won’t do you any harm at all. You never know, you might find you do rather well. I know there’s a capable mind beneath all those blond curls, however much you like to pretend otherwise” (101).

These words come back to Violet toward the end of her training, and she uses them, and her newly discovered desire to live life on her terms, to propel her toward success. She leans into her cleverness and skills in mechanics to start a new, fulfilling life. The training also gives her exposure to a wider variety of women and social classes; their shared experiences help Violet develop a newfound respect for people of all ranks. She builds on this when she returns home, learning how to care for others and pulling away from the self-centeredness that ruled her life before training.

Lieutenant Landon MacCauley is an American soldier stationed at the manor where Violet serves after training. They meet before her transformation, and she dislikes the man, judging him as crass and irritating, but they develop a friendship when she is assigned to be his driver. Ultimately, the two marry despite their class and national differences.

MacCauley’s primary function is to support Violet’s character growth. As their friendship deepens, Violet learns to question the beliefs her father instilled in her. She laments “[h]ow incredibly vapid [she’s] been, sitting at home, moaning about [her] father’s death and the inconveniences of war, when [she] should have been putting plans into action, making things happen instead of waiting for [her[ father or Hugh to help” (145). This new perspective allows Violet to see more possibilities for her life than she had believed possible.