The great reveal - beaded lace wedding dress!

I know I've been quiet for a little bit, but I've been squirreled away in my workroom completing this dress, and then I took a well deserved week's holiday! I'm back going full-steam ahead on various other projects now, but not before I share a few pictures of the finished dress with you (it's ok, the wedding was on Saturday, I'm not spoiling any surprises!)

This was a full-length wedding dress custom designed and made for this bride. Fully structured, it's made from a satin underlay covered with beautiful beaded lace. All the lace edging and the button detailing was applied by hand.

From the front...

 

 The back...

And close ups of some of the edging / the train...

The bride was delighted with it (phew!) and I have to agree, it's a lovely dress and the style she chose suited her to a T!

An update on my Fabrication stock

An update on my stock in Fabrication for you today, as I made a few changes when I was in store last week in preparation for the upcoming cooler weather.

Firstly, I've added a selection basket (literally) of my ever popular wristwarmers. I've tried to put in a range of colours and will keep it topped up with as much variety as I can but if you can't find the colour you're looking for you can place an order for a custom pair and I'll drop them in store for you next time I'm over (which is usually once a fortnight)

Priced at £9 a pair these wristwarmers are perfect for keeping your arms warm under a cardigan in a chilly office, under a coat on a day when you don't want to wear gloves, when doing the gardening... the list could go on. 

Secondly, in order to clear some space for some of my winter stock I've reduced the price on the last few of these vest tops, from £25 down to £15 - an absolute bargain for something handmade in limited numbers!

Once these are gone I won't be making any more until next summer, so grab one while you can! 

[Fabrication is situated in The Light, Leeds, and is open 7 days a week]

A trio of capes

A trio of capes to show you now, all made for a returning customer.

First up, charcoal fleece with a red/black jacquard weave lining:

Second, a lightweight linen/cotton blend cape for summer wear (they were dispatched to her in time for her holiday so she could take it with her!) with a pretty button closure:

Third, a cape made in the colours of her rugby team (Northampton Saints, in case you're wondering). I think this is a great idea, if I followed a team myself I'd definitely have one in their colours for me!

Bodycon dress

From loose and floaty to skin-tight now, with pictures of a custom made bodycon dress that I finished last week for a customer. Made from a lovely thick weight light charcoal jersey, this really a dress which hugs every curve and shows off the figure inside!

(you can see where my mannequin's 'hips' finish by when the ruching on the seam starts - if I'd time I'd have worked out something to add more structure to the lower half to show of the curves better, but c'est la vie, you'll just have to imagine it not doing that on the real person!)

The neckline is finished with a gathered flower made from the same material, with a few discreet black beads in the centre.

 

Custom made summer blouse

This blouse was part of a two garment commission but unfortunately I don't have good enough photos of the other item (a sequin catsuit) to share so you'll have to make do with just this one!

This was a drop-shoulder blouse with gathered sleeves and slight bust gathering, made from a cotton cheesecloth-esque material that the customer brought to me.

And finished with cute heart and flower shell buttons that the customer chose after a trip to Duttons! 

Struggling to find ties for the Groom's party?

I wanted to share these to show couples planning their wedding that if the place you're getting your suits from doesn't have the right colour ties you don't have to stress about it - get in touch and providing I can get hold of a fabric in the colour you're after I can make them up for you! The commission pictured below is a case in point - the bridesmaids dresses were a slightly unusual colour but the couple got in touch and I was able to find them an almost perfect match for the ties.

Problem solved, and five custom made ties for the Groom's party...

Sparkly sparkly sparkly

A belated post to show you one of the other prom dresses I made last month.

This one's a little bit different to the sequinned number I showed in my last post, being duchess satin and there being a lot less of it, but equally stunning in it's own right. A satin skirt and ruched satin bodice front were connected by a number of embellished straps to make a really eye-catching dress!

From the front:

And the back:

Despite its flimsy appearance it fit the girl it was made for like a glove and wasn't at all precariously positioned when it was on her, quite an achievement I feel!

Sequins!

A post today to show you a few pictures of one of the prom dresses that I've finished in the last week. It's a lovely dress, elegant in the simplicity of the shape (which works so well with her willowey figure) but also modern in the fact that the material is small matt sequins.

From the front the dress looks like a very modest number, with long sleeves and a reasonably high neckline.

But from the back? A diamond cut-out adds an extra bit of wow without revealing too much.

And as is inevitable with sequins I'm still finding them on the floor despite having vacuumed since the dress left my workshop, it seems like they hide and creep out when I'm not looking!

Photos from a happy customer

Following on from my previous post, I'm delighted to be able to share a few photos with you of a beautiful bride and her lovely bridesmaids on her wedding day.

Congratulations to Juliet and Alan, I hope you have a long and happy marriage. And thankyou to Juliet for choosing me to make your dresses and cloak, I think it was a fab combination and I'm so glad you were pleased with them!

It started with an idea of wearing a cloak...

Pictures today of a commission that I finished shortly before my week off - a commission that started with the bride to be looking for a cloak to wear on her wedding day and ended up with me being asked to make not just the cloak but matching bridesmaids dresses and her dress as well!

First, her dress: a simple full-length strapless dress with an off the shoulder band that also went round her arms.

And her cloak: beautiful burgundy duchess satin, lined with ivory satin and with a silver clasp to hold it closed.

And the bridesmaids: the same lovely colour satin in styles appropriate to their ages (and sadly the older girl's dress fitted on none of my mannequins so you only get a picture of it on the hanger).

I have seen photos of the wedding day and they all looked absolutely gorgeous, I'm waiting for permission to share them with you all though, so you'll have to keep your fingers crossed for now!

A family of waistcoats

Not a long post today, or one with a lot of photos, but I just wanted to show you a picture of one of my finished commissions this week - a family of waistcoats for cousins of varying ages to wear for a wedding. 

These came about after chatting to the bride when she brought her dress in for alteration, as she was struggling to find anything that went across the three ages in a colour that she wanted them to wear. Fortunately she was able to find the perfect colour at Fletcher's (the back is a two-tone material with a blue 'flash' that matches the front) and I was able to do the rest for her...

 

Replacing an old favourite.

We've all got them, somewhere in our wardrobe - that favourite that we've had for years, that we turn to regularly, that never fails us but which is coming to the end of its life and starting to look a little worn.

This dress came about from one such garment that had been a faithful friend for 20-odd years, that a customer brought in to me with the challenge of creating a replacement that fitted in the same way and made her feel as good wearing it. It's not an identical copy but keeps the overall style and fit.

Made from jade double-knit jersey, it has moulded cups, spaghetti straps and a thigh-high split on her left-hand side.

Have you got an old favourite that you wish could go on forever but just isn't going to do so? If so, why not consider getting a replacement made, it might be a more practical idea than you think!

A coat to make a goth happy!

This coat was finished just in time to be taken and worn to Whitby Goth Festival, and on the Friday they arrived I had a text from the customer informing me that he was the "only goth that's happy that it's misty and cold in Whitby". I think I can safely say that the coat was a success!!

This was a full-length coat made from black wool melton, with contrasting charcoal melton cuffs and pocket flap, and lined with a very lovely silver jacquard fabric lining. The buttons were from Duttons (of course, we're in York!) and chosen by the customer to match the lining.

First, a picture of the whole coat...

And now, some close up pictures...

I'm really quite proud of this, I'm not a traditionally trained tailor but I still think I did a pretty good job, and the customer was pleased with it which is the most important part after all!!

And another happy bride...

The previous post made me realise that I'd completely forgotten to share a photo of from another of my brides. A slightly different project this time - this was the lovely lady I made this dress and these accessories for last year...

Doesn't she look amazing? They had a beautiful day, with fantastic weather (sunny but not too hot, we were slightly worried about that when we had a heatwave the day before the wedding).

I wished them congratulations, happiness and a long life together at the time but I guess it doesn't hurt to do so again!

And now on the person it was made for...

Yesterday I received a lovely email from the lady the cloak in the previous post was made for enclosing a photo of her and her new husband on their wedding day. It's so nice to get to see my garments being worn by the people they were made for, and she very kindly said that I can share this photo online too, so here you go...

Apparently the cloak was a big success, keeping her warm as intended while also looking flattering and stylish and drawing compliments from her guests. And I have to say, based on this photo I can see why!

Congratulations to the bride and groom, I wish them all the happiness and a long life together.