Customisation - What are your options?
Image by Four Ferns. Louise added fluted silk sleeves to our May Dress
At Rolling In Roses we really do believe that a nearlywed can wear whatever they want, regardless of age, gender or size, we believe you can wear whatever you want as long as YOU feel awesome, we will be there to support you through the journey. From the moment you walk through our doors we are there to help you decide on fit, length and even colour, we love nothing more than talking to you about your venue, flowers and anything else you fancy a natter about. I always like to tell brides from the get go that we are a tiny team, and that every dress we make is made in the atelier just next door to our showroom mere metres away, by a team made up of Ellis and Sophie who are just killer seamstresses, who make your dress from scratch. Because we have this facility (your fabric arrives in the building and doesn’t leave until you walk out of the building with it a month before your wedding!) we can make alterations to any of our designs, meaning that each bride can have their own version of our pieces.
Image by Belle Art Photography. Sarah adapted our May Dress to add silk button sleeves and a lower V at the back.
I try not to overwhelm nearlyweds with too many options before they see any dresses as sometimes it can be a bit much, but as you are trying on pieces I can explain what adjustments/customisations can be made, and advise if something won’t work. For example if you have a really low V on the front of a dress and it’s an even lower V at the back then you run the risk the shoulders may slip off, even when the dress is perfectly fitted to you. It’s not to say it’s impossible but it’s worth bearing in mind. This blog is intended to give you an overview of the kind of customisation we offer, the list is exhaustive and if I featured all of the unique brides we have had over the years we would all be here for hours! But it’s fair to say we offer a unique service that allows you to adapt a dress to your taste. Below is a list of some of the common adjustments we make.
Zena added a custom necklace to the back of her Faith Dress and added a thigh split. Image by Simone Franzel
Ellie chose to build the back of her Sweetclover Dress up so she could wear a bra Image by Maddie Farris
Susanne changed the cuff of her Passion Blouse and thickened the straps of her Anise Cami.
Options available; These do not apply to every dress/piece, we can discuss individual requirements at your appointment, this is purely an overview.
Change of fabric, to silk, lace, sequins etc / Add or remove lining / Change of colour (When available. Brides who want a change of colour have to act quickly as coloured silks do not stay in stock for long!) / Lengthen or shorten a sleeve / Add a different sleeve to the body of another dress / lower or higher a neckline / lower or higher a back / Fill in a backless dress so a bra can be worn / Change from zip to buttons / Make dress ankle length / Sew separates together to make a dress / Make separates from a current dress design / Add fullness to a skirt / Take fullness out of a skirt / Extend or reduce a train / Custom Veils / Add a cape / Add a thigh slit / Embellish cuffs / Change buttons / Add pockets (only on certain pieces)
It’s worth noting that RIR brides love customising the May Dress, it has had many iterations in its past but here are just handful so you can see exactly what you can do to your dress to make it even more unique. We have also dyed a few of our fabrics to see how they take the dye and most take it successfully which is great to bear in mind after the wedding, it gives your garment a new lease of life and can be used for many more years, we can discuss fabrics with you at your appointment and advise if certain fabrics are workable.
So in summary the world is your oyster! If you have any queries just drop me a mail at hello@rollinginroses.co.uk and I can talk you through your options, it’s worth bearing in mind we make your dress to the nearest standard size to your measurements, then alter the finished piece so it fits your individual figure perfectly. However, if you have had fitting problems with standard sizing in the past, we can also offer a bespoke pattern service for an extra £450 which will be drafted to your personal measurements. All of the alterations listed above are charged in addition to your dress and are quoted on an individual basis. We don’t charge for hem length alterations, because we make the dresses here so we don’t finish off the hem until you have come in for a fitting with your wedding shoes for us to establish the perfect length. As a rough idea, average alterations costs can be between £50 and £150.
Jess went for a low slashed V adding silk sleeves to her May Dress
