Ordering your bespoke wedding dress
Enquiries for weddings in 2025 and 2026 are welcome.
I start just one dress per month, and each dress takes 6-12 weeks to complete.
At present I have bespoke commission start dates available from September 2025 onwards, suitable for weddings in Autumn 2025 and beyond.
I take on a limited number of bridal alterations per month. I am now fully booked on alterations until the end of May with some spaces for late summer still available.
HOW DOES MY bespoke DRESS GET DESIGNED AND MADE?
A free design consultation appointment begins the process where we will discuss what you require covering elements such as style, materials, the budget and time-scale. A design sketch and cost quotation will then be posted or emailed to you for your consideration.
An individual pattern will be drafted to your measurements and series of private fittings will ensure a perfect fit and finish. The process of a bespoke bridal dress will usually include the making of a toile, which is a mock-up of the design in cheaper materials, allowing the maker to perfect the cut and the wearer to check the style.
All consultations and fittings take place in my own home and so will be completely private and you will have my full attention during your appointment.
For a more in depth exploration of the design and making process click here
Four to six months notice is usually required for bridal work though I do get booked up for the summer more quickly than the winter months. Once your booking-in fee is paid your sewing time is booked into my schedule and your dress will be made in the time we have reserved for you.
Most wedding dresses take me between 30 and 70 hours of sewing to create. The actual timescale is very flexible, we can spread the work over many months or begin and finish inside a few weeks.
I have made dresses with less than 3 weeks notice on occasion, please ring or email to see if I have space for your rush order.
What if I lose or gain weight?
This should not be a problem, though ideally you have reached your target weight before we begin work. The final fitting would normally be in the last few weeks before the wedding anyway to ensure a perfect finish.
If you lose more weight or gain after we have started, the dress can be altered to fit, within reason, as we go along. However if the change is more than 2 inches (a whole dress size) in either direction I cannot make the same promises about perfection that I can when I am able to measure and make for a stable body size.
Maternity: I have also made dresses for expectant mothers and new mothers without any problems. We can make plans to measure you and create the dress at appropriate points in your pregnancy or after the birth. Having worked with such body shapes before (and having had a few kids myself) I know roughly what to expect and will make sure the dress allows for your changing shape.
Yes, I can, but no I don’t. I would usually be capable of re-creating a dress for you but if it is a design that is still available from the actual designer it is illegal for me to copy it. I am happy to use other people’s designs as inspiration and I actually encourage you to bring along pictures from magazines or the internet which we can use as a basis for designing your dress. It’s useful to have some idea of the kind of thing you would like.
I have made people near copies where the original was nearly right but not quite, with changes to the style, detail or colour to create the exact dress they wanted. If you really love a dress exactly as it is by another designer it’s best to buy it from the original source.
wedding dress alterations
I will sometimes undertake alterations on off the peg dresses if I have space in my schedule. I usually advise that wedding-dress alterations are made about 6-8 weeks before the big day but you can visit much earlier for a quote and then reserve time by paying a booking deposit.
I have altered more than 1000 wedding dresses during my sewing life and there is very little I cannot manage. If you are unsure whether your dress can be altered the way you would like I am happy to offer advice and help at a consultation appointment.
Most dresses cost £200-£600 to alter depending on what needs doing and how the dress is made.
For more information visit my alterations FAQ page.
today consultationBook a Bespoke ConsultaTions
The start of the bespoke process is personal a consultation.
We look at fabrics, sketch out ideas and talk about timescales & budgets
At present I have bespoke commission start dates available from September 2025 onwards, suitable for weddings in Autumn 2025 and beyond.
Since 1753, when the Marriage Act first came into existence, UK marriage law has come a long way. Some things have taken much longer than they should have (I`m looking at you, 1991 and 2013, 2023). But there`s still more than can be done. The association of @independentcelebrants is campaigning for the UK government to follow the recommendations of the 2022 wedding law reform report.
"At least 10,000 wedding ceremonies a year in England and Wales are led by independent celebrants. These ceremonies are perfectly legal to hold, but as it stands a celebrant cannot perform a legally binding marriage – that part must be done separately, meaning added inconvenience and cost for couples."
I`m all about supporting couples to have the wedding day of their dream, and that rarely includes having to find time and money to go to the registry office.
If you want to help with this, then you can spread awareness! Share this post, or make your own. Talk about it with friends and family. And once you`ve done that, you can always get in touch with your local MP. The Independent Celebrants website has a PDF guide to help you with how to go about doing that.
Is this an issue you`re aware of? Is there anything I`ve missed out?
#ChangeWeddingLaw #SpeakUpForCelebrants #LegaliseCelebrantWeddings
I created this Regency-inspired wedding dress for a Bridgerton themed wedding shoot. I used modern fabrics like tulle, beaded lace and shantung, but with period accurate details like the empire line waist, square neckline and boned stays (corset).
I love to work with versality when it comes to my creations, so the dress was designed with multiple layers; the main dress has an embroidered tulle bodice and asymmetric beaded lace skirt. A lilac and pink dip-dyed tulle skirt can be added over the floral train of the main dress for some dreamy ombre magic. A lilac silk dupion `spencer jacket` with hand appliqued beaded lace completes the ensemble.
All these options make it possible to have lots of different looks throughout your wedding day.
Which Bridgerton character can you imagine wearing this outfit?
~
#regencyweddingdress #bridgerton #historicalweddingdress #periodwedding #colouredweddingdress #dipdyeweddingdress #surreydressmaker #londondressmaker #vintagebride #romanticbride #weddingveil #purpleweddingdress #bespokeweddingdress #fantasyballgown
Now and again I`ll take one of the wedding dresses I`ve made, and break down some of the elements. So, if there`s something you love about a dress, but you don`t know the `proper words` to reference them, hopefully this will help you out.
This beautiful 1950’s style wedding dress with delicate cream lace over golden-orange silk has lots of really scrummy details:
🧡 the opening at the back of the dress is called a keyhole (or you could call this a slit opening). This one is closed at the top with three covered buttons.
🧡 the base dress is made of a beautiful russet orange silk dupion, with dark ivory lace layered on top.
🧡 the base dress is essentially a halter neck, with a turn over collar at the front, with the ivory layer providing semi-sheer, full length sleeves.
🧡 the edges of the ivory layer are cut along the floral pattern of the lace, making a pretty scalloped edge.
🧡 this length of skirt is called `ballet` or `ballerina`.
🧡 the front of the dress has a line of false buttons (buttons that are just there for decoration), that match the buttons at the back.
Those are just some of the details of this dress. If you have any questions about anything else, just leave a comment. I could talk dress making all day!
“Felicity – dress maker extraordinaire. I loved the dress, EVERYONE loved the dress. Comments range from “so beautiful”, “stunning", "gorgeous”, “wow”. THANK YOU”
Thank you Rebecca 🧡
I absolutely loved making this 1950s style wedding dress for Rebecca. Taking inspiration from the classic Dior New Look collection, whilst adding plenty of details that are completely `Rebecca`. Isn`t this dress joyful!
Not only stylish, this wedding dress is also sentimental. The turn-over collar was cut to the pattern of Rebecca`s mother`s wedding dress. And to tie everything together, I also made ties and hankies for the groom and best man in matching orange silk.
Can we give a moment to the perfectly matched shoes as well? Divine.
Utterly unique and utterly gorgeous - I love working on bridal looks like this!
~
#weddingdress #bespokeweddingdress #surreywedding #sussexwedding #londonwedding #vintageweddingdress #1940swedding #1940sfashion #colourfulbride #colourfulweddingdress #orangeweddingdress #bespokebridal #weddingdressmaker #weddingdressdesigner #weddingdressinspiration #weddingdressideas #laceweddingdress
On my birthday, 43 years ago, I was gifted a beautiful name...does it suit me?
Felicity means "happiness", from the Latin word meaning "good luck" or "fortune". Shortening to Fliss is good, but never Flick!
What about your name? Does it have a meaning?
Continuing on from my last post, it`s still my birthday week, and I`m still celebrating! I`m celebrating 43 years in this body. 43 years in this life. I`m very happy to be turning 43 - it means I`ve gathered years of experience, both professionally and also generally in life.
It`s important to me that I always remind myself it`s privilege to age. Sometimes that`s a hard thing to remember. When you notice more and more grey hairs, the fine lines around your eyes, eyelid droop, and even voice changes. And I know my body will change even more in the future.
But I`m lucky I get to live through those experiences. It`s a privilege to have grey hairs (whether you choose to dye them or not), it`s a privilege to see your life`s journey in the creases in your skin. I remind myself that nature is always changing, and my body is a part of nature too.
What things are you grateful for, when you think about growing older?
~
Photos by the brilliant Kate of @altweddingco
