Bride Surprises Aunt at Wedding by Wearing Her 1993 Fashion School Design (Exclusive)

When Valerie Fitch was invited to her niece Alexis Adams‘ wedding, the last thing she expected to see was her wearing one of her pieces from fashion school.

“She was so surprised and couldn’t believe that I was wearing her design,” Adams, 29, tells PEOPLE. “She hadn’t seen it in over 30 years and she was so happy that it was getting a second life through me!”

More than three decades ago, Fitch studied fashion design and illustration at Virginia Commonwealth University. One of her professors, who was a costume designer for Hollywood movies circa 1940s-1950s, assigned students old movies to watch. As a result, Fitch “became inspired by the old Hollywood glamour of the 1940s silk loungewear,” and began sketching “very over-the-top and glamorous, yet still effortless” designs of her own. In 1993, the professor chose one design for Fitch to create for a loungewear category in her final runway show.

Since then, Fitch’s two-piece white design has sat untouched, forgotten about. That was until about a month before Adams’ wedding, when her mother, April, stumbled upon the outfit while cleaning out some boxes in storage. Because Adams was “running out of time” to find a “vintage and playful” wedding reception outfit, April suggested she try on the unique set.

“It ended up fitting perfectly, and I decided then and there that I wanted to surprise my aunt and wear it as my second look,” Adams remembers.

She continues, “I felt sexy, confident and ready to dance the first time I tried it on! My mom and I both cried knowing how special it was that I could wear something that her sister made decades ago for her final fashion school runway project. No alterations were needed and it really felt like fate had handed me this beautiful design.”

Fitch, who is a New York City designer, had no idea that her sister and niece had found her original sketch and outfit. When Adams walked into her reception tent at her Sept. 27 wedding at Vanderbilt Museum in Centerport, New York, Fitch was in “complete disbelief” that she was wearing the outfit. She tearfully exclaimed, “I cannot believe she has that on! Oh, my God!”

“I was so excited to surprise her by walking back into the reception wearing her design,” Adams tells PEOPLE. “I felt so incredibly happy that I could wear something so sentimental to my wedding versus wearing something that I had to buy last minute.”

The big reveal was captured on video, and quickly went viral after the bride shared it on Instagram.

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Fitch told Adams she was honored that she’d want to have one of her designs be a part of her wedding wardrobe. Now, she’s working on recreating the design for others to enjoy.

“She still can’t believe how many people have seen the video and read the story behind her design,” Adams says. “She said that she never really thought anyone would like the design this much, or ever think about wearing it as a bridal design! She’s had a lot of people reaching out from seeing the video on Instagram and TikTok asking to recreate the design for them for their own weddings, even in different colors! She is currently working on recreating the design to be able to sell in the future!”