Love My Dress is delighted to have had the opportunity to chat with Nicki Macfarlane, of Nicky Macfarlane Bespoke Bridesmaids. Nicki, who is exhibiting this Sunday at Claridges for the Absolutely Beautiful Weddings event, is one of the UK's leading designer of exceptional dresses and outfits for bridesmaids, flower girls and pageboys.
Nicki's award winning designs feature regularly in leading UK bridal publications and her clients have included many celebrity and society brides. Detail and presentation are our her trademark (each outfit has the bridesmaid or pageboy’s name hand embroidered inside and comes with a pretty bag containing their accessories) and many of her dresses include delicate hand applied detail such as beading, crystals and embroidery. A bespoke service is available as well as a ready to wear collection and Nicki is clearly commited to providing only the very best of services to her clients;
"Our clients can expect a completely personal service, which is fun and
inspirational. We aim to inject a sense of romance and drama into every special occasion, from pretty country weddings to elegant London ceremonies."
Photography Copyright (c) 2010, Nicki Macfarlane
Further to her success of the past 30 years, 2010 sees the launch of Nicki’s first ready to wear collection for children from birth to twelve as well as the introduction of beautiful communion dresses and christening robes. This stunning new collection not only evokes the unique style of Nicki’s bespoke work – it brings the classic elegance and exquisite styling synonymous with a Nicki Macfarlane design to a new audience.
I spoke to Nicki Macfarlane to find out more about her expanding brand of beautiful designs…
"I have been designing children’s clothes for over 30 years, but have been specialising in flower girls and bridesmaids dresses for the past 6 years. I started because I have always been passionate about fabric and design and I chose Bridesmaids dresses because of a big gap in the market for high-end dresses – and because I was asked to make dresses for a Bride who had 22 Bridesmaids and Pageboys!"
Flippedy do!
"I draw my inspiration from so many places – it could be from a vintage garment, or a piece of fabric might spark off an idea. Having dealt with bespoke orders for so long, I have also gleaned a lot from the brides themselves."
What materials do you prefer to work with/find you work with most?…"We work almost exclusively in silk, satin, organza, taffeta and chiffon."
What do you enjoy most about what you do?…"Meeting the brides, their families and their bridesmaids. It is wonderful to be closely involved with them at such a special time."
As well as her Bridesmaids dresses and Pageboy outfits, Nicki also designs the most pretty accessories, that include capes and cardigans, hair accessories, and shoes…
What is your price guide/range?…"For bespoke dresses, from £200.00 for flower girls and £350.00 for bridesmaids. In the ready to wear collection – from £185.00."
Where do you stock? Where can clients purchase your products?…"The bespoke dresses are only available direct form Nicki Macfarlane. The ready to wear is being launched this spring and will be available from the website and from selected shops."
What are your plans for the future?.."As a result of many requests we are launching a new ready to wear collection at the moment which is more affordable than our bespoke work and means that our designs will be available all over the country. We are also developing a gorgeous new range of classic everyday childrenswear to be launched for Spring/Summer 2011."
What are you most looking forward too with regards the Absolutely
Beautiful Weddings event?…"Having the opportunity to showcase the
collection in a personal atmosphere alongside other companies who all
offer a specialised service."
As well as Absolutely Beautiful Weddings, Nicky Macfarlane will be exhibiting at the following consumer shows:-
♥ The Designer Wedding Show, Battersea Park, October 2010
♥ Modern Bride, Excel London, November 2010
And the following Trade Show:-
♥ The White Gallery, Saatchi Gallery, May; Bubble London, June 2010
For further information, visit the Nicki Macfarlane website, email Charlotte Macfarlane, or telephone +44(0)1892 891988.
Many thanks to both Charlotte and Nicky Macfarlane for talking to Love My Dress.
♥
Annabel View all Annabel's articles
Founder of Love My Dress. Passionate Podcaster and Editor. Annabel lives in rural North Yorkshire with her husband and business partner Philip, their two daughters and menagerie of furry hounds. She loves photography, meditation, walking, being outdoors and star gazing. She is fierce when it comes to championing talent within the wedding industry and when she's not working on Love My Dress, she supports her husband Philip in the running of the family's sustainable flower farm and floral design business, Moonwind Flowers. In 2013, she became a published author.
