A special custom-made coat

Quite a picture heavy blog post today to showcase a coat that I recently finished. This coat was a special commission from a good friend who is also a loyal customer (and has been from the start). We had a vision of how it wanted to look, and finding the perfect fabric and buttons was as much of a challenge as getting the coat right!

In the end we decided on a black poly-blend Melton fabric for the outer layer, and a beautiful blue-black jacquard weave lining fabric with a rose motif on it. Buttons were sourced from Duttons after an extensive look round everywhere.

The coat design itself is fairly simple: full-length with a fitted waist and additional flare at the back to create dramatic movement when she's walking. And, as is only appropriate, a voluminous hood.

Winter product highlight: cloaks

Following on from capes a couple of weeks ago it's time for my last product highlight: cloaks!

Full-length cloaks were the first item that I started to offer on a made to order basis, and they've remained a steady favourite ever since. Most popular are my fleece cloaks with a polyester lining, as they are lovely and warm plus showerproof and can be easily machine washed when needed.

(I also offer an unlined version, but most people seem to like the opportunity to have a flash of contrasting colour from the lining as they walk)

In the last year or so I've seen an increase in demand for semi-circular cloaks, which customers generally prefer to have made up in a wool-blend Melton or pure boiled wool. These are truly spectacular garments, quite heavy but super warm due to the amount of fabric you have draped around you.

I haven't listed the semi-circular cloaks in my online shop yet as price varies quite a bit depending on the length you require, but it is on the list of "things I really need to do". In the meantime I'm happy to do you a quote if you let me know what you're after!

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!

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!

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!

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.

First wedding cloak of the year...

Yes I know it's April, but January to March doesn't really seem to be a popular time for weddings. I made this cloak a little while ago, but I always wait until after the day to share pictures of anything the bride's wearing even if she hasn't explicitly asked for secrecy.

So, here we go... this was a lovely idea for a cloak, full-length ivory cotton velvet with a round hood, silver clasp and arm slits so that she could hold a bouquet / champagne glass and still be warm!

The full-length picture doesn't really do it justice, since it's on a mannequin which is just a torso. It draped properly and without distortion on a body with arms, but that didn't work for photography. I've added renovating my full body mannequin to my list of things to do!

Wool melton cape with a detachable collar

In addition to having some ready-made items for sale online I also offer custom made capes and cloaks, so you really can have the cape of your dreams!

This cape was a custom order for a lady who'd been looking for something similar for ages and was delighted to find that she could get exactly what she was after made! Made from a polyester/wool blend it has 4 buttons down the front, a contrasting stormy grey lining and a detachable faux-fur collar.

I also made a matching faux-fur headband for her, very stylish!

Ever popular cloaks...

My cloaks seem to be growing in popularity with every month that passes, which is very pleasing since it means that I've got the design and price about right! Last week I sent out 3 custom made cloaks, 2 of them to the same person. They've arrived safely and she's delighted with them - I received an email the morning after delivery to say that she couldn't decide which to wear first which is a lovely dilemma to have caused.

Her first choice, a dark red fleece with a camel coloured lining...

And her second, emerald fleece with a cerise lining...

As you can see they're quite different to each other but both make lovely cloaks, what would you chose if you were having one made yourself?