10 of the Most Bizarre Gowns We’ve Ever Seen

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Here at Flavorpill, we tend to like our fashion with a healthy dash of surreality — at least when we’re daydreaming about our ideal wardrobes. Crazy, absurd gowns, whether created as fine art or for genuine wearability, are nothing new (Austen Scarlett, we’re looking at you), but we’ve been stumbling across them so much lately that we thought we’d take a look at some of our favorites of the genre. Just for the record: we’re discounting celebrity outfits, or Lady Gaga and Nicki Minaj would have the whole list to themselves. After all, they have people designing them clothing expressly to be as outrageous as possible, which is totally cheating. Click through to see our round up of a few of the most bizarre gowns we’ve ever seen — and then add to our collection in the comments!

Last month, Finnish artist Aamu Song’s enormous gown, made out of 1,800 feet of wool and featuring 238 pockets big enough for a human to crawl inside, was exhibited at York Hall as part of London Design Week. Human-sized pockets? Someone is reading our minds. [Images via Co.Design]

Artists Hissa Igarashi and Sayuri Marakumi created a full-length gown dress out of 50,000 candy gummy bears for TWELV magazine’s debut issue. The 220 pound garment, which took three weeks to create (every bear was glued on by hand) was an homage to Alexander McQueen. [Image via Laughing Squid]

And while we’re on the topic of sweets, there’s always this crazy dress that Ukrainian baker Valentyn Shtefano made for his fiancée to wear on their wedding day. Made out of 1,500 cream puffs, and weighing in at 20 pounds, we’d say that Shtefano just secured himself immunity. [Image via MSNBC]

This functional brass birdcage gown, designed and built by Kasey McMahon, is really gorgeous in that special steampunk kind of way. If you’re entranced, the artist offers a special guide on how to make your own in twenty-five easy steps: “It’s perfect for casual Fridays at the office,” she writes. “Steer clear of cats, coal mines, ferrets and weasels.” Photo by Suzan & Kelly Jones.

Susie MacMurray is famous for turning everyday objects into works of art, but this wedding gown made out of 1400 rubber gloves turned inside out is probably our favorite — even while it strikes fear into our hearts. “My choice of materials is a search for ways to explore the contradictions and paradoxes of human existence,” MacMurray explains. “I am often attracted to “Stuff” that generates a measure of ambivalence. Memory/mortality, power/fragility, seduction/repulsion, terror/wonder- I am drawn to materials that help me make sense of these juxtapositions, and I see sites and cultural references as further materials that must be juggled and finely balanced until nothing superfluous remains.”

You knew this was coming. Yes, this brightly colored wedding gown, created by English dress designer Thelma Madine, is made from 820 feet of human hair. We just can’t believe we haven’t seen Lady Gaga in it yet. Photo credit: Mercury Press Agency Ltd.

The Bubelle Dress is basically a full-body mood ring. Created by Philips Design, the gown responds to the physical changes (body temperature, sweat levels) that are associated with changes in mood or feeling — so you can program the dress to turn a specific color (red, say) when you’re in a bad mood and just want to be left alone. Ingenious. [Image via Daily Mail]

This isn’t quite what most people mean by “tent dress,” but Adrienne Pao and Robin Lasser don’t mind that. The insane garments in Dress Tents, their ongoing series of “wearable architecture” examine 21st century femininity and also make us laugh. See more of Pao and Lasser’s dress tents here.

This gown doesn’t look that crazy, but it is. Technically a cape (but look at it), it’s the world’s largest garment to be made from 100% spider silk, now on public display for the first time at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. That is the silk’s natural color, by the way. [Image via Ecouterre]

People do love those edible wedding dresses. After all, it’s a day when you should definitely get to have your cake and eat it too. Artist Lukka Sigurdardottir created this gorgeous and delicious-looking edible wedding dress so the bride (and all her friends) could do just that. The wedding might need to come to her, though. [Images via Oddity Central]