To ask if anywhere has this service for making dresses?

[Summertime89]

So I’m roughly a size 10 but have trouble getting dresses to fit really well. I have 2 dresses( same style, different colours) from the shop Quiz that I bought more than 5 years ago that fit completely perfectly. The dresses are a long, straight style. Is there anywhere that would use these dresses as a template as it were, if I knew what material I wanted other dresses made in with exactly the same dimensions? If so, could I just send photos and measurements rather than one of the dresses which are like gold dust to me now 😁
Thanks

@Dalooah

Maybe you should be looking at some tailoring options overseas who can ship to you. I'm shocked seeing a £200 price tag!

This is why fast fashion is wrong really - mass produced in countries where wages are low and working conditions can be poor because we're not prepared to pay more. As a result, lots of people don't know the true cost of a made to measure garment.

A friend of mine (French, small, slim, not beautiful but incredibly chic and elegant) has ALL her dresses made to measure by "a little woman " . Often, she just sketches what she wants, and the lady can make it. She usually has them made in silk she's chosen and bought on her travels. She insists her fab outfits cost less than off the peg dresses in chainstores.

www.minerva.com/mp?type=Patterns&style=Dresses&gclid=Cj0KCQjwweyFBhDvARIsAA67M70iPkrouETytVdGM4z8bLbwWnd5jEprYNpXLSrrvyoQo2AxOAx9r5YaAn3TEALw_wcB

I'd have a look and see if I could find a similar pattern first as it'll probably save you a bit of cash.

Once they make you a pattern ask if you can buy the pattern as well, then you can get the dress made whenever you need.

Jaycotts is a good website for patterns, they have a big selection.

Yes, I have done this a few times.... but in China/India/Thailand 😁

Tbh I haven't tried it in the U.K., but in other countries tailors are set up to do this.

I'd think it would cost much, much more to do in the U.K. That's not saying I underpay overseas, but it's a specific skill and there just aren't rows and rows of experienced tailors here.

I give the actual dress, let them measure me too, and then go back the next day for a fitting.

PS I paid £50 in Shanghai for something similar if you want a price comparison. That included material and lining.

I am aware I was over charged compared to if I could speak Chinese, but I don't mind. It was worth it!

I've have done it before but have used the old dress as a template for the tailor to use. Usually cost me around 40£ a dress with nice fabric...

Thanks so much again! And thanks for the info re Jaycotts!
If I was just to buy some fabric in the right material, does anyone have some more suggestions for where? Just polyester/ cotton/ viscose
Thanks!

Wash the fabric before having the dress made if you do end up finding someone. Not all fabric is pre shrunk and a dress made to the dimensions of a dress washed many times over may end up too small once washed.

You could try Minerva, Abakhan, Croft’s Mill for fabric but there are loads of places around.

Every custom dressmaker will be different depending on location and overheads, but my business would charge you a minimum of £350 per dress, not including the fabric. That would have to cover all the components besides the fabric (paper for the pattern, the zip, threads, buttons, lining, etc), my labour for both the pattern cutting and the sewing, my time for fittings and adjustments and no, as a previous poster said, we're not working for minimum wage. It's skilled work.

@HaroldMeeker

Every custom dressmaker will be different depending on location and overheads, but my business would charge you a minimum of £350 per dress, not including the fabric. That would have to cover all the components besides the fabric (paper for the pattern, the zip, threads, buttons, lining, etc), my labour for both the pattern cutting and the sewing, my time for fittings and adjustments and no, as a previous poster said, we're not working for minimum wage. It's skilled work.

If you want more than one thing making, it's cheaper to fly to India, buy silk from a warehouse in Chennai and find a local tailor to make it.

That's not disrespecting your in-depth specialist skill @HaroldMeeker at all. It's more that £50 for the making there pays for a lot more than it would for a tailor in the UK, whose costs and cost of living/education of children etc is so different. I knew it would cost a lot more in England.

Interesting that you're trying to pass off flying to India to get things made on the cheap as somehow more ethical!

@WeAreTheHeroes

Interesting that you're trying to pass off flying to India to get things made on the cheap as somehow more ethical!

Considering most of the off the rack clothes we buy in the UK are made in India and Bangladesh, I don't think this is the route to go down 😁

The environmental cost aside of flying (as I have never gone solely for that reason and was obviously being flippant!) I don't have any issue with the ethics of "overpaying" a tailor there (compared to if I were local!) to make me something that in turn helps their family.

FWIW, I have also visited garment making factories there and seen how clothes for Walmart, Oasis, etc are made which are a direct comparison as sells for the same sort of price per item. The ethical ones are helping especially the women in rural areas become economically successful. Better than shovelling salt for a dollar a day (which I have also seen 😔).

I've had a couple of made to measure items from eshakti - an online made to measure and customisable dressmaker. They have designs that you can customise the neckline, sleeve length etc of

I paid something like £65 for an evening dress that would have cost at least that in the UK.

I would find a pattern maker locally and pay them to help you draft a pattern and see one yourself. That way you keep the pattern and can make as many as you like!

If you live anywhere near Birmingham I'd recommend you go to the Fancy Silk Store, they have 1000s of fabrics at good prices. Check the label inside the dresses you have to see what type of fabric they're made of.

Lost of shops and markets sell gorgeous fabric at really good prices. You'll find them in African and Asian areas. Eg East Street market, Peckham, Walworth road, Southall, Upton Park, Shepherds Bush, Edgware Road etc. There're also a few tailors there but most tailors operate from their homes. If you have African friends, in particular Nigerians they'll have tailors who make their outfits. I can give you some contacts if you wish.