Wedding dress designer London – Long sleeve top for Danielle

Danielle needed my help as a wedding dress designer near London to create her a custom long sleeve bodice that would fit perfectly over her wedding dress. Danielle’s wedding dress was beautiful even just ‘off the peg’ but it needed a little something extra to create a bit of drama on her wedding day.

long sleeve bridal top separates on classic english bride

Working with Danielle, I designed a long sleeve wedding top in pale ivory crepe. We carefully matched the fabric in colour and texture to blend perfectly with her wedding dress beneath. The over-bodice has a modest boat neckline at the front which contrasts with the plunging v-neck back. I suggested we add real buttons and loops as a feature fastening. Adding the same fastening to the back and to the sleeve cuffs brings the whole design together.

I had to be very careful to ensure the neckline of the wedding dress beneath worked perfectly with the bodice being put over the top. As an experienced wedding dress designer, checking for this kind of thing is part and parcel of what you pay for with my personal service.

Danielle said “I wanted to thank you SO SO SO much for all of my alterations on my dress. It was absolutely perfect and I had so many comments, mainly from people very confused at to whether I had two dresses!!”

scottish bride bespoke wedding dress and groom in kilt
confettis shot modest wedding dress traditional bride
long sleeve bridal top with boat neck and button cuff
custom wedding top with buttons and low v back
custom wedding dress surrey dressmaker
beach wedding separates low back wedding top

How to create two looks on your wedding day

Danielle wore the top I made for the wedding ceremony but then took it off for the evening party. This kind of ‘big reveal’ is a fun way to work different looks for the parts of your wedding day. that have very different vibes; an emotionally serious ceremony and a fun filled celebration later on.

classic bride wears a diamante headband tiara hairpiece
The dress underneath Danielle’s bespoke wedding top, and the diamante hair band I made

Many modern wedding dress designs very revealing than has been common in the past with plunging necklines or flesh revealing lace. As a wedding dress designer I often advise that layering a more modest, bolero or top is a good compromise. However you should only cover up or reveal to please yourself! We should not allow the pressure of expectations from others to influence our choices. I wrote a blog post all about dressing to please yourself. I hope to support brides who like to go against the grain!

It was so lovely to work with Danielle on this commission. Seeing the finished article being worn on a wedding day always give me such a little buzz of pleasure. Being a wedding dress designer in the London area means I get to help brides from all different backgrounds. This dress was worn with a Scottish groom in a kilt! I would describe this style as ‘modern traditional’ – being simple doesn’t stop a design being dramatic!

A little bit extra from a wedding dress designer London

I also undertook the sizing alterations on Danielle’s shop bought wedding dress. It gives me immense satisfaction to work with well made things. I love taking something that isn’t quite perfect bringing it to bridal standard perfection.

As well as usual sizing changes we added a diamante belt to Danielle’s dress. After cutting to length there was just enough of the trim left for me to create a matching head band for Danielle. It wasn’t part of her original plan but it’s the kind of added extra I pride myself on being able to see the potential for. I no longer often make hair accessories but it was fun to get the tools out again for this occasion!

wedding hair accessories made from belt

Pictures from Danielle’s fittings.

Images from the final fitting of Danielle’s dress and the original design sketch

bespoke dressmaker surrey dress fitting real bride
original design for long sleeve bodice by felicity westmacott

If you are in need of a wedding dress designer in London please do get in touch. I’d love to help!

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Felicity Westmacott

I write about all aspects of weddings, dressmaking, fashion history, and the human relation to clothing. I welcome comments and debate.

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I'm a regional finalist for the Wedding Industry Awards! ⁠
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Not only that, but in both my categories; Best Designer/Independent Dressmaker and Best Seamstress/Tailor. So thank you to everyone who voted for me. Your time and effort is not only appreciated, but has also paid off 💜⁠
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And well done to my fellow regional finalists; @alexandersharpebridal, @harrietchristelow, @shell_stitches_kent, @stitchesbykristine, @nicolaleverington.⁠
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There are a few finalists outside of my categories that I wanted to give an especially loud shout out to - well done @alexjaggermua and @lushcurvebridal!⁠

Thank you to the organisers and Damien at @twia_official
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Wishing everyone the best of luck! 🪡✨️⁠

Photo by @altweddingco
This is what a bespoke veil with almost 400 flowers looks like.

On top of some other alterations, @katiepigden wanted a chic, modern bridal veil. We chose a length a little longer than her dress and I got to work.
Her wedding dress already had these beautifully delicate 3D flowers on the bodice, so we echoed this design element in the veil. I hand embellished almost 400 satin flowers, selectively scattered at the hem of the veil and gently creeping up. I wanted it to look as though Katie had been standing underneath a blossoming tree and some had happened to fall onto her veil.

A veil is such a perfect way of finishing off a bridal look, and I think Katie looks stunning. If you're looking for something completely custom for your wedding day, then get in touch 💜
Spooky season has arrived!

I love Halloween, but maybe not for the reasons you might think. For me, Halloween gives people permission to be a little more wild, a little more 'out there' with their bridal choices. And as a seamstress who loves to makes bold and beautiful wedding dresses, there's nothing wrong with a little more wild!

Take these three wedding photoshoots, for example. The first one was inspired by Morticia Addams. It's a black wedding dress! You can't get less traditional than that. And it's now one of my most popular designs. Although all these dress designs are based around a fictional character, they're still the furthest thing from a costume. They're pieces of haute couture art, taking the essence of the character and then elevating it to something truly unique.

The second dress used the designs from the live action Cruella, and I love how the model nailed her character. The final dress used Jim Henson's Labyrinth as a starting point, in particular that iconic ballroom scene (*swoon*). They were all such fun projects. So if you're looking for a wedding dress maker to embrace your wild side, I might be the perfect choice.

If you could base your wedding dress on a fictional character, who would it be?

~
Photography - @lexflemingphoto⁠
Sometimes it can be difficult to be true to yourself. The world can feel really judgemental (even if it's just the voices in the back of your head saying it). But, you might be worried about being 'too much' or worried of what people might think if they saw how vibrant and colourful you really are on the inside. How big and sparkly your thoughts and feelings are!

Well, guess what? There's no such thing as 'too much'. Not in my books! As a wedding dress maker (and honestly, a fellow big, sparkly person) I'm here to encourage you to listen to what your heart is telling you. Ignore those voices telling you should be anything less than 100% yourself, especially on your wedding day.

There is nothing that makes me happier than a bride bringing me their ideas - the crazy ones they've barely voiced to anyone else. The ones they shyly mention, usually followed by "but if that's not possible, then don't worry about it". And there's nothing more exciting than seeing the face of that bride when they realise that I am absolutely on this journey with them, that we will make it happen and that I cannot wait to get started!

Anyway, I love my job 😉

#weddingdress #fantasyweddingdress #fantasybride #historicalweddingdress #dramaticweddingdress #bespokeweddingdress
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