Lewisburg, West Virginia – Patrick Morrisey takes office as West Virginia’s 37th governor today. His wife, Denise Morrisey, is about to become the state’s First Lady.
Although the day’s events, which include the swearing-in ceremony, a parade, musical performances by Shenandoah and The Marshall Tucker Band, and an inaugural ball, appear to be seamless, there was a lot of planning that went into making today memorable.
Choosing what to wear was part of the planning process for the First Lady. Fortunately, a Greenbrier County artist and fashion designer helped make her decision easier.
Thomas Ruggiero, a West Virginia University fashion design graduate, is an artist-in-residence at Lee Street Studios, Lewisburg. Morrisey is prepared for the ball with a custom-designed gown thanks to his guidance.
In an interview with Real WV, Ruggiero described the process of creating Morrisey’s inauguration day ball gown, including the incredible amount of work and artistry that went into each stitch.
According to Ruggiero, when Morrisey first approached him about designing a custom dress for a special occasion, he wasn’t sure what it was.
“But, I could guess considering her husband was running for governor,” Ruggiero laughed, adding that he now knows one of his dresses will be worn by Morrisey at the inaugural ball tonight.
Regarding the design process, Ruggiero stated that Morrisey’s only request was that the dress be celebratory.
Ruggiero said he met Morrisey several years before designing the ball gown, and he was eager to get started.
Ruggiero creates a collection of winter coats made from vintage wool blankets from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, which he sells at various markets across the state. One of these markets is found in Greenbrier County.
“That’s how I met Denise,” Ruggiero explained. “She bought a coat from me probably three or four years ago and she has purchased coats from me every year since then.”
“I love giving a second life to older textiles that have been forgotten,” Ruggiero explained about his approach to American contemporary fashion. “I try to always incorporate the use of older textiles because there is such a good quality to them, and a uniqueness to them.”
Ruggiero crafts each piece entirely by hand.
“I make everything – the patterns, I take all the measurements, I cut everything out, I sew everything myself,” says Ruggiero.
The inaugural ball gown
Because Morrisey requested a celebratory dress, Ruggiero created a midnight blue dress called “Fireworks.”
“The dress has glass beading that I did by hand,” Ruggiero explained. “Some of the beads are antique glass beads, and the other beading is beading that I got from a fabric store in Baltimore that sells a lot of French-made fabrics.”
Ruggiero’s artist description of the dress reads: “KA-BOOM! POW! Celebrate! The Fireworks dress is a dazzling triumph that will be the focal point of any grand celebration.
The dress is made of a unique midnight blue silk voile and features over 1,500 handsewn glass bugle beads, as well as over 300 hours of appliqué work.
Layers upon layers of French crystals and sequins adorn the billowing skirt, while two massive bursts of meticulously applied silver beads sparkle in bursting motions.
This dress is both a celebration of dazzling beauty and a tribute to traditional dressmaking craftsmanship. A lovely tribute to novel ideas and the glamour of bygone eras.”
“This dress blends together my upcycling and repurposing of older things and blending them into new materials that are available to us,” Ruggiero disclosed.
Ruggiero spent more than 350 hours creating the ball gown.
“Since the end of August until just last weekend, we have been working on it,” Ruggiero informed me. “When people come to me for special occasions, it’s a very intimate experience because we have to do 5-10 fittings.
We’re making small changes and brainstorming, so it’s a completely different process than simply going into a store and picking something off the shelf and purchasing it. I always try to make others feel good and happy.”
Morrisey says she is excited to showcase the ball gown and the work of a West Virginia artist on inauguration day.
“Thomas is an incredibly talented Greenbrier County designer who deserves all of the praise and glory for my ball gown,” Morrisey told Real WV on Saturday.
Following the inauguration, Morrisey announced that the ball gown would be donated to the Culture Center museum in Charleston as part of the First Ladies of West Virginia exhibit.