Blog - Musings from the mind of a bespoke dressmaker.

Wedding advice, fashion, history, photoshoots and behind the scenes.

 

See lots of pictures of previous clients on my portfolio pages

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Forest Green Beaded Wedding Dress

deep dark bottle forest emerald green wedding dress bridal outfit

Photography – Andrew Brannan Real bride, Janet, had been following me on Instagram for a few years before she got in touch. When we had our first Zoom meeting, she said she had been waiting for the perfect moment to be able to have a dress designed and made by me. I think a wedding...

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Chantilly lace wedding dress

French lace and silk organza wedding dress with ribbon sash

I created a bespoke chanitlly lace wedding dress for lovely Harriet. We started the design with a boned bodice. The sweetheart neckline was covered with the delicate French Chantilly lace. The lace layer has a boat neckline and elbow length sleeves. The a-line skirt is layered satin and silk organza with a small train and...

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Custom Wedding Dress Sussex

slim fit wedding gown in a grand hotel room

Custom Wedding Dress Sussex: Karen commissioned a beautiful dress in layers of ivory lace and satin. The dress has a boned and fitted bodice with sweet heart neckline, where the satin underlayer is just revealed inside the pretty, beaded scalloped lace edge. Half-sleeves also made from the beaded lace covered the tops of Karen’s arms....

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Handmade wedding dress Surrey

vneck back wedding dress countryside wedding

Reeta commissioned a hand made wedding dress surrey wedding day. I made her a plunge back dress in buttermilk silk satin and ivory lace. Official photographs by www.photofactorysite.com I designed a fitted bodice, softly boned with a sweet-heart neckline. The lace extends higher to just below the collar-bone with narrow straps set wide on the...

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Bespoke Portrait Collar Jacket and Short Wedding Dress

angela 7 alternative wedding dress portrait neckline collar and dress

I made a bespoke portrait collar jacket and wedding dress trimmed with chantilly lace for Angela. The dress and jacket were both made in opulent oyster pink duchess silk satin. Photography bywww.christellephoto.com Angela wanted a little old world glamour for her wedding so we created this vintage inspired ensemble in luxurious silk duchess satin and...

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Bespoke Wedding Dress Photoshoot in London

ancient egypt egyptian greece grecian cleopatra queen inspired dress

The theme for this bespoke wedding dress photoshoot in London can be summarised as “Nile Queen”. Whilst being inspired by things of the past, we still wanted to keep this wedding very modern and chic. I had the pleasure of designing the wedding dress for this shoot, and absolutely loved making something fit for a...

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Cultural Fusion Wedding Dress Design

mixed race wedding couple portrait

I am fortunate enough to have been commissioned to design many a cultural fusion wedding dress. I have love for wedding traditions (and the less traditional) from all over the world and a joy in seeing people from different backgrounds looking to create something unique by bringing both worlds together for their celebration. My grandmother...

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Phoenix Dipdye Wedding Dress

Phoenix Dipdye Wedding Dress woodland bride

I made the Phoenix dipdye wedding dress for a photoshoot. I designed a frosty sheer silver lace dress and a rose gold flowergirl dress as well for the same shoot. You can see more pictures from the entire shoot here. The autumn colour wedding dress was a pet project I’d been keen to try for...

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Historically Inspired Wedding dresses

Victorian inspired wedding dress off shoulder alternative bride

My favourite type of dress to make is an historically inspired wedding dresses. My whole career has stemmed but an interest in costume history. I began by colouring in photocopied pages from my mother’s fashion history books. This led an arts degree in costume design for the stage and screen. Making costumes is not only...

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Gold Lace Hijab Wedding Dress

Bespoke custom UK muslim interfaith couple Gold lace satin Hijab wedding dress

“I felt like an African queen. Everyone loved my dress. Thank you for making my dreams come true!” This is a beautiful gold lace hijab wedding dress, accentuated with yellow crystals and scalloped lace. I designed and made this fully bespoke look for a bride for her interfaith wedding. The bride wanted a simple and...

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follow me on instagram@felicitywestmacott

I've still got Valentine's Day on the brain, and with Valentine's comes a lot of talk about love and loving other people, naturally. But I wanted to talk about a different kind of love, about loving yourself. It's still kind of a slightly taboo subject for us brits (and beyond), but isn't it just as important to love yourself, as it is to love others?⁠
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This photo came to mind. I often don't like how I look in photos but I actually like this one. ⁠
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And much like a relationship with someone else, even on dark days, you can find the angle to look at yourself that makes you feel good. Or at least, okay with yourself. Like, a photo you like, a small act of kindness you can offer to someone, or who someone offers you. Being open to change, finding the motivation to do something hard, or accepting today is a day you can't do more than exist and that it's okay. It's okay to have those days. ⁠
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It's so important to find an angle that allows you to look at yourself with love, every day, even in the harder times.⁠
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(a big shout out to my sister, who provided me with the inspiration for this post during a conversation we had going to the theatre together recently 🩷)⁠
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I want to know...what small acts of love do you show yourself?⁠
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~⁠
Photography @altweddingco
Happy Valentine's Day!

What better day to give some love to a shoot that summarises everything me and my business are about! 

Vibrant colour! Unique silhouettes! Sparkle! Fun!
(and some queer love to boot)!

These two dresses show that a colourful wedding dress can mean either a pop of colour (like the dip dye) or leaving out the white all together. Both look fabulous, and both never fail to make me smile 🥰

~
Organiser & hairstylist @bighair.energy
Model couple @michele_and_graziella 
Wedding dress @felicitywestmacott
Photographer @magpie.eye.weddings
MUA @joannehook_mua
Accessories @thelucky6pence
Styling/floristry @ashdownevents
Streamers @streamadelica_uk
Coordinator @dani.singam

~
#queercouple #queerwedding #cabaret #cabaretwedding #wlw #lesbianwedding #lesbiancouple #lesbianbride #queerbride #redweddingdress #altwedding #alternativewedding #altbride #alternativebride #bespokeweddingdress #bespokebridal #bespokebride #bespokedressmaker #rocknrollbride #weddinggown #surreydressmaker #londondressmaker
Over Christmas I wanted to make something to combat the darkness of December and add a bit of razzle dazzle to my bridal shop. And so the Poinsettia wedding dress was born!
I love to make dresses for my brides, but once in a while it's very fun to make something from my own imagination and see where I end up. 

The first thing I knew I wanted was sparkle! And lots of it! I wanted to make something dramatic and showstopping. I went with a deep plunging neckline, and a semi-sheer bodice. To compliment the sleek silhouette of the base dress, I also made a big overskirt (removable, of course). But the crowning glory of this dress are these gorgeous oversized flowers! And they match perfectly with the white and silver sequins of the material of the dress and I think they're a stunning feature of the dress.

Although the intention of this dress was to be for a winter bride, I think there's something very Hollywood glam about it. And the fact it's sleeveless means you won't overheat, even in the summer.
What do you think - does this dress suit a winter or a summer vibe?

If you're looking for a bespoke look for your wedding, drop me a DM. I love to create completely unique and beautiful bridal pieces, so let's chat!

#bespokeweddingdress #sparkle #surrey #dorking #weddingdressmaker #seamstress #bridalboutique
As a wedding dress maker, I would say the fitting process is when I need my brides to trust in me the most. It's all well and good showing them beautiful drawings and fabrics, but when it comes to those first fittings, things can look very different to what you imagined. And that's fine!

All art goes through a process, whether it's layering oil paints on a canvas, or refining the clay of a sculpture...but an artist knows, it will all be worth it in the end.

I think the finished result looks absolutely beautiful, and that’s thanks to those fittings, where I could refine, check and double check, and make sure this bride’s dress fitted her perfectly!

If you want to see photos from Laura's wedding day with this dress in action, on a beautiful, snowy day, then have a look at my earlier post.

~
#weddingdress #wedding #bride #bespokeweddingdress #customdress #weddinggown #londonbridaldesigner #surreybridaldesigner #surreydressmaker #londondressmaker
emailme@felicitywestmacott.co.ukTEL 07762 543230TOUCHGet in
from design to completionbespoke wedding dressesFelicity Westmacott
Dorking, RH4 1RT241 High Street• Visit the Studio •
Dorking, RH4 1RT241 High Street• Visit the Studio •
emailme@felicitywestmacott.co.ukTEL 07762 543230TOUCHGet in