I made an orange wedding dress 1950’s style for Clare’s Florida wedding. She commissioned a flamboyant 1950’s style dress made in burnt orange satin and ivory chiffon with beaded lace and tulle. Official wedding photographs by www.gingermidgett.com The fitted and well boned bodice had a sweetheart neckline framed with straps that narrowed on the shoulder....
Lisa was a bridesmaid for her friend who lives overseas. So I made her a blue and gold bespoke taffeta bridesmaid dress. Lisa was sent the beautiful duck-egg/gold shot taffeta fabric and given free reign over her own dress design. The other bridesmaid’s dress was made up overseas by a local dressmaker. I made the...
Victoria commissioned this stunning dress in royal blue silk dupion and lace. I made fit and flare blue bespoke mother of the bride dress was lightly boned with ruching from underbust to an asymmetric line under the hip. The fitted bodice had a sweetheart neckline and was covered in scrolling lace which was also used...
Pink silk halterneck dress and jacket with Swarovski detail Georgina commissioned this glamorous bespoke mother of the bride Kent. I made her a pink silk halterneck dress and jacket for her daughter’s summer wedding. I made it in pink silk crepe with a fuchsia lining and Swarovski crystal embellishment. I designed her slim fitting dress...
Susan asked me to make her this stunning forest green velvet mother of the bride dress. The dramatic plunge back and colourful embellishment contrasts with the understated and simple elegance of the front. Official photographs by Feather & Birch Photography I design the dress with princess seams, knee length with boat neckline at the front....
Lou commissioned a simple informal midi wedding dress in a Kimono style. I chose soft sand-coloured silk satin to create this design. This dress was worn for a wedding day but was made to an evening dress budget, and so was not lined. The dress has a high boat-neckline and is loose fitting but pulled...
Whether it’s a fifties flirt or a demure tea-length wedding dress, shorter dresses have had a real come-back recently. It makes a change from always dealing with full length and trains! Here is a selection of dresses I have made where the bride has opted to show off her pretty ankles – or more! Examples...
A beautiful 1950’s style orange wedding dress with delicate cream lace over Autumnal golden-orange silk. Photography by Gregg Brown www.greggbrownweddings.com Rebecca’s dress has a fitted and boned bodice with a face framing collar and v-neckline. Long lace sleeves are finished with scalloped edging. The skirt is a tea length full circle over many layers of...
The dress needed to have a vintage, showgirl feel and be really sexy but still realistic as a bridal dress, not many people actually get married in a leotard and feathers! The wiggle skirt with a boned bodice hit all these marks showing off our lovely model, Vanessa?s curves and cinching her waist. I added a teal net petticoat that would show when the high/low hem moved and delicate gold lace detail with Swarovski crystals for showgirl glamour!
Posts from Felicity Westmacott
You might’ve noticed that I can get quite particular about language. I think it’s important, especially when that word can carry a lot of meaning. When words get misused, you as a consumer might get mis-sold something.
An example of this is the word ‘vintage’, which now gets tacked onto the description of any garment, whether or not it actually is vintage. Often the item just looks like it’s from an older period of fashion, and for many sellers now, that’s good enough to warrant the label ‘vintage’ (which it’s not).
‘Bespoke’ is another of those words. The word comes from ‘to bespeak’, which means, to ask for. Like someone walking into carpentry workshop and asking for something completely new to be made to their exact specifications.
Anything can be bespoke, if it has been asked for, to be made especially to your requirements and preferences. You often hear it in the context of bespoke suits, but the term doesn’t belong to any one industry.
When it comes to wedding dresses, you have a few options. Off-the-peg, which is what it sounds like. Then there’s custom or made-to-measure, which both describe when something is adjusted or changed. You might order a dress where there are options to customise the length, the sleeves, the neckline etc.
But true bespoke is something different. It’s a dress that’s been designed and made completely from scratch. Completely to your measurements and your ideas. With several stages of fittings and adjustments, to ensure it’s exactly how you want it. It’s an entirely unique garment, and this is why the price of a bespoke dress can be so much more than something off-the-peg or made-to-measure.
So, next time something online claims to be ‘bespoke’, now you know what to look for to make sure you’re not being tricked into pay more for less.
I won! 🥳🎉🥂
Last night was the Wedding Industry Awards (as if you didn`t already know) and I was up for two categories: Bespoke Bridal and Bridal Alterations. And I am now the regional winner for the Independent Dressmaker/Designer category!
I am so so pleased to have gotten this far, and I couldn`t have managed it without the amazing support of all you lovely lot. So thank you thank you thank you! 💜 to those who took the time to vote, to those who sent me beautiful messages, to those who got excited for me. Thank you!
And thank you to the @twia_official team as well! What a gorgeous night.
Next step: the National awards. Let`s see what happens...
Tonight is the Wedding Industry Awards! I`m in the running for two awards, which is all very exciting! 🏆
Since it`s such a special occasion, I decided to design and make myself a dress. That way, regardless of the outcome, I`ll feel like a winner. I rarely have time to make myself anything, so this felt rather lovely.
I used some gorgeous pink coloured silk chiffon, lined with pale gold silk satin, finished off with velvet ribbon. I started making the dress at 11am yesterday, and I finished it at 3pm today. Now I just have to finish making the bolero to go with it as well. I think we`re gonna make it! 🏃🏻♀️
Just to be extra clear 💜
#seamstress #dressmaker #historicalfashion #weddingdressmaker #weddingdressdesigner
It was a delight to help Rebecca feel like her sparkling wedding dress, resplendent in constellations, fit her perfectly on her special day.
Alterations for size or styling to shop bought or vintage wedding dresses are important to make a dress look like it belongs to you and to give you confidence on your big day. Very few people are a standard dress size so most dresses need adjustment to the bodice, hem length and straps (amongst other things).
There are a limited amount of slots available for each month, so head to my website and book yourself in (link in the bio).
Ooh, I love a good before and after!
Two dresses for two very different occasions. One upcycled from the other!
Eleanor`s original wedding dress (which I also made) was perfect for her more opulent, formal wedding day. But like so many wedding dresses, once the day is done, it never gets to see the light of day again.
Unless it does 👀
Taking a dress and giving it a new life is such a joy, and now Eleanor can wear her much more practical dress for many more special occasions.
As well as the original wedding dress, I also upcycled the Christening gown I had made from off-cuts from the first round of dress making. With these, and the scraps from this transformation, I made her daughter a summer dress to match too. You can see that dress in the final photo 🩵
Would you trust a seamstress to transform your wedding dress?
