The Cotton Bride

relessly for a place that understood me, I finally got in touch with Fikre and from the first time we spoke I knew that this was the place for me. Fikre is a gem. I'm not kidding. He's the sweetest person and not for one minute did I feel like he was pushing me in any direction. At first nothing was really working for me, I felt like a lot of their dresses, while beautiful, were a little heavy. Fikre knew exactly what I was looking for and pulled the most beautiful dress out of their workshop which is in the next room not on display. As soon as I put it on it just made sense and that was it. These guys really care about what they do, they will work tirelessly to make you happy. Yes they can create a custom gown but not for one second did they try and coerce me in any way other than what I wanted. Things to help persuade you: -If you are scared of looking like a sparkly marshmallow, come here, nothing is cheesy or overdone. - If you can't imagine spending thousands of dollars on a dress you'll wear for 5 hours, come here. Their prices are extremely reasonable for the quality, attention and care you will be getting throughout the process. - If you want to be comfortable on your big day and want a dress to reflect your confident, amazing self, do yourself a favor and drive, train, bike, fly over.

ail and in person with all of my questions. It’s in an industrial area of Long Island City (my parents and I drove, and my sister met us by subway), in one large showroom with so many beautiful dresses around the perimeter. I sent Fikre the names of my favorites by e-mail, which had comparable prices to lower-priced options at big name stores (~low $2000s), but included alterations, and the dress is made just for you. They do have a ready-made line for less; these were pretty, but made overseas, without options such as organic cotton, and I felt they were more appropriate for a beach or outdoor wedding, with no train, etc. Before deciding, we did go to a few big-name stores, but the personal service at Cotton Bride could never be approached by a big dress "mill" that orders in a standard size from a designer you haven't met, and would not have options for sustainably sourced fabric. After narrowing down my favorites and discussing fabrics (silk cotton, heavier cotton, raw silk), Fikre brought out a dress from another line in black silk shantung (raw silk) with white lace appliques, that Chris had made a similar dress to in ivory for his own niece. It was so beautiful that we even considered a black wedding dress! I decided on that style in ivory silk with a small train, lined in organic cotton. My first fitting was less than 3 months later, and I chose how the appliques along the neckline would lay; and my 2nd and final fitting was less than 2 months from that. I try to source my purchases with care and hadn't been thrilled with the "regular" bridal dress options, and on top of this, the personal service at Cotton Bride could never be matched. They also agreed to alter my mother's dress since she felt that they knew exactly the type of sweep she wanted. The Cotton Bride's soft spoken humor, helpfulness, and suggestions by Chris and Fikre is the best of the best, and I can't thank them enough for such a wonderful experience and making such a beautiful dress that's so "me." Update: I loved wearing my wedding dress and I got SO many compliments on it! The organic cotton lining was so perfectly comfortable, unlike the scratchy tulle inside other dresses I had tried on at other stores. I knew it had been made very tight, so I wanted my sister to practice zipping me into it, which she finally did the night before the wedding, with some difficulty, though she said this was mostly due to the zipper being very small and pointy and hard to grasp; and the day of the wedding, she was able to zip it up much more easily, so I guess it just had to be worked a couple of times! I had a relatively small train, so Chris only made one bustle hook, though if I did it again I would do 3, like my sister had, since by the end of the night I danced the bustle hook right off. I was ok walking and dancing around even with the train down, and probably the tulle layer at the bottom kept me from stepping or tripping on it much. I was sorry to change out of it at the end of the night when we got back to our house with our friends! It was really such a joy to wear, and we're hoping to dress up again soon with it for some post-wedding photos outside our house! I can't rave enough about Chris and Fikre for such a wonderfully personalized and special experience and dress!

show. Throughout that time I had opportunity to deal with both the designer of the dress as well as his assistant. I cannot speak highly enough of the quality and service I received from both of them. They were amazing and I am truly grateful to them for everything they did for me. I would HIGHLY recommend The Cotton Bride!

day. Thank you!