** Brides, there is an opportunityt to win a couture wedding veil from Yemi Kosibah provided at the end of this feature **
Morning folks 🙂 And how does this email find you this morning? What a week last week was! Never mind the news headlines, it must have been one of the busiest weeks for me in a long time! And so, I rewarded myself with a day off yetserday. Today, is going to be a busy day, so let me get right on with some super wedding blog content.
This morning I'm really delighted to be introducing you to an indepdent dress designer I've been 'watching' on the interweb for sometime now. His name is Yemi Kosibah and he first grabbed my attention via Twitter some months ago now when he began engaging in always polite and pleasant conversation. It was some months after this that I was attending the UK Alliance of Wedding Planners annual ' Excellence in Wedding Planning' conference, where I was presenting, that Yemi's name was bought up again. It turned out Yemi is pretty highly regarded in the wedding industry and has a reputation for helping Brides look truly stunning on their wedding day. The 'he makes 'real' women look fabulous' comment someone made on the day has stuck with me since. We all want to look amazing on our wedding day don't we? But very few of us share the tiny figures promoted by models in the wedding magazines.
Award winning Yemi {you should also see these photographs too}, who works with Brides from all over the world, designs and creates the most fabulous, figure enhancing, couture and contemporary wedding gowns from his London studio and shop. He also specialises in evening wear and Mother of the Bride outfits. Yemi's use of corsetry and boned bodice recreate the classical and elegant hourglass figure that curve, shape and flatter the wearer. Yemi tells me in fact, that on average, he is able to 'nip 3”' off the waist…
"Because I was trained in Old-School Couture, I create gowns with an individual client in mind – in a process that involves creating an individual Body Block for that client on paper using over 26 precise body measurements, drafting all patterns from that Block, making up a mock version of the gown in muslin or calico (the 'toile') to fit onto the client in order to ascertain and correct any technical or aesthetic issues, going back to correct these issues, and creating another Toile to ensure a perfect fit has been achieved and only after these steps developing the pattern for the actual garment. The gown is then cut in the actual fabric chosen and stitched up…"
Love My Dress Wedding Blog – Imagery Supplied by Yemi Kosibah
The creation of each garment takes hours of painstaking work and involves a lot of hand finished details. Typically, a Kosibah bride is a discerning professional woman who is accustomed to luxury products of the highest standards and who has a strong sense of style and wants a gown a little different from the norm without compromising on taste and/or elegance.
She is a woman who is not afraid to celebrate her femininity in a gown that shows her figure at its best…"
"As a very young child, aged about six or seven years old, I realised that I was very good at drawing and after attending weddings with my parents I would return home and sketch the whole bridal party in profile from the bride to the flower girls. Later on, I started creating the outfits my figures were wearing from ideas from my own imagination.
In my teenage years, I fell under the spell of the glamour and sophistication of Bob Makie’s costumes for Diana Ross. I just loved the way in all her concerts she went through numerous changes of uber glamorous gowns. This has had a long lasting effect of my designs. I also very much admired Anthony Prices seemingly gravity defying gowns for jerry hall and Paula Yates. It was very obvious that there was quite a lot going on inside the gown not visible from the outside to create such figure enhancing gowns. I realised that this was what I wanted to do as a career and that’s exactly what I’ve done…"
"Growing up in Nigeria, West Africa, I was used to seeing women of all shapes and sizes and therefore I feel very comfortable designing for ‘real’ and curvaceous women. Therefore, celebrating the female form is my main inspiration.
Because all my gowns are bespoke and made from scratch specifically for each client, making her look and feel her best on her wedding day is my main focus. I also draw inspiration from the vibrant, multicultural life of London which is now my home. The capital’s diverse population allows me to fuse influences from across the world into my designs with the luxurious fabrics, sumptuous embellishments and meticulous attention to detail usually associated with the finest traditions of Parisian couture…."
"I love the knowledge that something I am creating from an idea in my head is going to be the focal point of such an important day in a Bride's life. I also achieve great satisfaction from the stunned looks of amazement from family, friends and most especially the groom when first see my client with her shape transformed as a result of her wearing my gown. It makes all the hours of hard work worthwhile…"
Yemi has a section on his website dedicated to showcasing real Brides in their Kosibah dresses…
"Because each gown is tailored specifically to the requirements, theme and character of each client, the fabric options are endless. However, I do tend to use luxurious fabrics in natural fibres that lend themselves to the opulence of my gowns. It also depends on what sort of silhouette I’m trying to achieve. So for example for more structured almost architectural gowns, I prefer to use fabrics like Zibeline, Mikado and Gazar. With gowns that are more ethereal I would use Chiffons, Georgettes and Organza. Duchesse satin is quite a staple fabric because it drapes so well and helps to keep the structure of the bodice. At the moment, I’m loving working with different laces…"
"I offer my clients a promise to create a garment that shows off their figure to its best advantage and make sure the experience of having a Kosibah gown made is one of luxury, professionalism, and being made to feel special. I offer a service dedicated to personal attention to detail. This is carried through right from the first consultation where after an in-depth discussion; I come up with a design unique to the client, through dressing the bride on her wedding day, to suggesting suitable drycleaners for the gown afterwards. My clients tell me that they are left with a memory that transcends the actual amount of time they wear the dress for.
As well as making veils to match my bridal gowns, I also design and create outfits for the mother of the bride and bridesmaids. I source or recommend accessories such as tiara’s, head pieces, jewellery and shoes for a one-stop-shop experience for my clients and also to ensure all the elements from head to toe come together cohesively."
As you will see from the example set of images, Yemi can design for a broad appeal of styles and tastes, and his gowns start from £2,500 but on average range from £3000 – £8000. I would urge anyone considering having an independent dress designer to create their wedding dress, to make time to meet with Yemi for a consultation.
"Kosibah will be celebrating 20 years in business in September with a gala event in a very prestigious venue in central London very close to Buckingham Palace. It will be in a spectacular setting with a fashion show where the gowns will be able to be seen quite up close.
I would like to offer your readers an opportunity to attend this event which is by invitation and any bride that orders a gown within six months of the event will get a complementary veil worth from £250 – £850 depending on what style of gown she orders. Readers should contact me via email {[email protected]} quoting ‘LoveMyDress’ for more information about the event."
You can follow Yemi Kosibah on Twitter and Facebook. Be sure to also visit Yemi's website for further information about this talented and charming dress designer.
Much love,
Annabel xXx
♥
I especially love the shorter one in the pic on Tower Bridge – way beyond my budget and inclination though! I don’t think I could spend that on a dress that I wore once with any kind of clear conscience!
really beautiful dresses here x
Hi Peridot! It really depends what you want doesn’t it I suppose. I personally believe Yemi’s rates are very good and reflect his talent and the skill and craftsmanship that goes into a dress – I know a bit more about that than most I suppose as I’m married to a dress designer so I would be prepared to pay these kind of fees, but I do understand, many Brides to be are looking for a more affordable option also.
xXx
Thanks Kim! 😉 xXx
Oh Yemi, you have a new fan, these dresses are INCREDIBLE. Each one so different but such amazing and intricate design work. Alas it is true that not everyone can afford a bespoke wedding dress, but for those that can then this is introducing them to the perfect designer. Le sigh. xx
Stunning dresses, that one with the red bow at the back is amazing!
They are lovely dresses. Peridot – Annabel is right about the amount of work that goes into a bespoke gown. As incredible as the prices look, they really are not out of range.
I do think that one way to get designer dresses for less is to look out for sample sales. Many of these are based in London but the gowns are often hugely discounted (70% off) so the trip by car, train or plane (if you are out here in Scotland) is definitely worth it if you land a dress that you like. The gown you get will not be fitted to you but it will be cheaper. I would also say that sizes are limited too. It is usually difficult to get anything over a size 12-14.
So sample sales are not perfect, but they are an option.
I don’t know if Yemi does sample sales or not, it would be good to know.
Thank you so much for the lovely write up Annabel. Thanks also to your readers for their feedback.
Ruby, I have hesitated doing Sample sales because the dresses are so battered after various photo shoots and fashion shows, I no one would want to buy them. I guess I ought to do a test sample sale discover if I’m correct.
His dresses are so lush, each bride becomes her fantasy self, the one she dreamed as a little girl. His dresses caress, drapes, tucks, enfolds, enhances the woman wearing it. As I have told him before, He lavishes the female form.
i love the 6th one with the structured bodice! oh my gosh i love it so much! thanks for sharing 🙂 ♥
i like all of the dresses, i think any women who put on wedding dress looks happy and beautiful. wish everyone in the world are happy everyday.
beautiful gowns!
Dramatic and beautiful!
Have to agree with Sheila. These dresses are so dramatic. It’s exactly what I was thinking while I was looking through them. Really lovely designs. Want, want, want.
Yemi’s dresses are absolutely stunning – and he is also an absolutely lovely lovely man too. I accept the comment that we couldn’t all afford one, but when you consider the price of a ‘designer’ dress that may be made to measure but will still be worn by other brides versus a dress that is made to and for you – that only you will wear, that has the structures in place to suit and flatter you etc I think that they are fantastic.
Beautiful dresses 🙂