I found Ali by simply Googling "wedding dressmaker Bristol" because I had such a vision of what I wanted for my wedding. It was the best search I ever did! Ali was so incredibly talented, supportive and the most down to earth person I could have asked for. She truly helped me hone the vision of my dress and helped me ensure it was the right level of quirk. She also would let me know if she thought something wouldn't work for me and my body. Working with Ali took away all of the anxiety I envisaged around dress shopping and having my dress made with Unique Dress was utterly incredible. I'd highly recommend this process to anyone!

I am so glad Ali agreed to be my wedding dress designer. She is a true & consummate professional designer & seamstress of the highest degree.

I enjoyed every appointment with Ali as my beautiful wedding dress took shape.  We spent time deciding on materials, sleeves, bodice and lace.  I was guided by Ali’s sheer perfectionism & so happy with the final design.

I felt amazing on our wedding day and so very happy to be wearing my original organza & lace dress.

Thank you Ali. 

Utterly mind blowing! I cannot recommend Ali enough. If it wasn’t for Ali then I would not have had the dress I dreamt of. I had a very definite idea of what I wanted, but found it hard to describe and couldn’t find any dresses that really matched it. Ali was so patient and worked with me to design the dress that I had in my head. She met with me over and over again to make sure that it was going to plan and that I was happy. She put more time and effort in to it than I would have ever expected from someone. She really is very passionate about her work. 
The dress turned out perfectly. I could not have asked for it to be any better. It was just stunning and such high quality. I wore it all day and night, messing around with children and dancing. 
I am so grateful to Ali for all her time. She really did go above and beyond.

Ali did an absolutely fantastic job on my wedding dress. It was such a fun experience designing the dress with Ali - she was incredibly patient and helpful when going through different materials and designs.

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The dress was absolutely amazing - so much more than I dreamed! Cannot recommend her highly enough!

I consider myself to be very lucky to have met Ali. After traipsing around so many bridal shops from Norwich to Cambridge to all over Bristol with a very tired mother and still not finding the dress of my dreams, Ali really helped me to find the solution. The two of us worked together to design a dress that I had never imagined could be so perfect. I loved being able to pick the lace and choosing fine silk to complement it. It was so great to be able to choose what I wanted. Ali was brilliant to work with from her flexibility of visiting hours, to how quick she was at responding to my emails and how kind she was when the traditional, bridal self conscious wobble reared its ugly head. The outstanding dress compliments I received on the day were all thanks to her amazing work. I couldn't have asked for a better dressmaker.

Ali was amazing and created the dress that I pictured and imagined.

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I loved how she took her time over the dress and had such an eye for detail. The dress was fantastic and I felt so comfortable in it thanks to Ali and the time she took making it perfect.

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Thank you for your help.

I first contacted Unique dress 15 months, before my wedding and we met up. I knew straight away I wanted Ali to make my dress. She listened and drew pictures of the design in my head, of a winter wonderland wedding dress. We went through lots books of materials and fabrics and found the exact lace I wanted. During the next year we met up a few times as my measurements slightly changed, which didn’t seem to bother her. The final dress fitting was a week before my wedding and trying on the finished dress blew me away, with so many emotions and I fell in love with it. Everybody commented on the wedding dress and how stunning it was and the sparkle that came out in the photos is picture perfect. I can’t thank Ali enough for the dress and veil she made for me on my wedding day ‘my dream dress’. I am actually going to miss meeting up with her now my wedding is over. Thank you so much. 

If you need alterations made to your wedding dress or a dress made, go to Ali at Unique Dress. You will not be disappointed.
Ali altered my wedding dress and from the moment I met her she was kind, considerate and absolutely professional. She put me at ease and I felt absolute confidence in her.
Everyone complimented me on my dress on my 'big day', I felt beautiful and confident. All down to Ali.

I just wanted to say a HUGE THANK YOU for all your support and dress-fitting seamstress expertise to ensure my dress fitted me perfectly. It was with your assistance a 'unique dress', as well as feeling like the 'perfect dress' for me. I twirled endlessly and felt amazing. Thank you so much for making my dream / vision in to a reality - despite the layers! THANK YOU!

I had searched high and low online and just couldn’t find what I wanted, because it didn’t exist. Until I met Ali.
Ali has such a great appreciation and knowledge of fashion in particular era’s that on my first appointment, the design and fabrics had all been chosen!
She communicated brilliantly throughout the whole process - which was important seeing as I lived in Leeds and she down South, and when it came to my final fitting, the dress was perfect. I had goosebumps.
Ali made, what ordinarily be a hugely daunting task of designing a wedding dress, a piece of cake. Her guidance and suggestions were always well thought through and the finished dress was simply awesome. She has an amazing talent and I wouldn’t hesitate in recommending her.

Thank you so much for designing and making me the perfect wedding dress!

I loved it and so enjoyed wearing it on my special day. So many people gave me compliments on the day and I told them all it was your handiwork!

Thanks.

Ali came to my rescue, I shall always be thankful of that. 

I knew about avoiding the classic schoolgirl error of trying to get a dress made online but I thought purchasing from an independent sole trader internationally, whose clothes looked great online and worked through a reputable website couldn't go wrong!

I was let down.  She became increasingly difficult to contact and let me know she was unwell.  She said she would finish my dress and provide a full refund. 

The dress arrived, but was as if I'd never provided measurements (it was huge) and poorly constructed.  Obviously I was gutted! 

Step in Ali.  Wonderful Ali.  Ali is a 'can do' person.  I was so relieved.  Ali went about refashioning the dreaded dress into a beautiful wedding dress with minimal restrictions on style on account of having to refashion it, rather than being able to start from scratch.

I couldn't recommend working with Ali more highly.  She not only saved my bacon, but also managed to create a beautiful dress.  She is straight talking, down to earth, responsible and bright as a button (pun intended).  I wouldn't hesitate to come to Ali if I need something special made in the future!

I wanted to send the biggest thank you for the beautiful bridesmaid dresses you made for Bethany, Liz and Sophie. Not only did they look stunning on the day, but we had so much fun at all the various fittings, you were such a pleasure to deal with and completely got what I was after from the start! Our wedding day was utterly perfect and we had such an amazing time, here's a few pics of the dresses in action, they were perfect and we couldn't have been any happier with them! Thanks once again so much, you're such a talented dressmaker!

Oh you are SO clever! I loved every second wearing my beautiful dress :o) It was everything I wanted and more! I've had so many comments about what a beautiful dress it was and how it was made to such a high standard, your praises have been sung!

Ali thank you from the bottom of my heart for making the most perfect wedding dress for me.
I loved it so much and didn’t want to take it off! I knew that the traditional big wedding dress wasn’t for me. I also had searched what felt like everywhere for a dress with a vintage feel, but hadn’t found anything that was quite right.  When I came to you armed with just a picture of the kind of thing that I wanted I was half expecting you to tell me that it wasn’t possible. But you were so positive, gave such brilliant advice, were so generous with your time, and made the whole process so easy.  You really did get the design spot on, and made my hopes for the dress a reality- even making detachable sleeves and train so that I could boogie my heart out at the reception!! You're a very talented lady! I will be recommending you to all my friends and family and I really can’t thank you enough.  You made me feel like a million dollars on my wedding day and for that I will be eternally grateful.

Ali was amazing. I bought my dress 2nd hand and the place that I first took it to for alterations did a terrible job. They took it in very strangely and it was wonky! I e-mailed Ali and sent her some pictures of what it looked like – she managed to fit me in and I am so glad she did. She took apart what they had done in 5 minutes and started from scratch – she took the dress in properly, put in some extra boning, re-sewed the cups in and fixed a dodgy button. She basically did much more than the previous place, did it much better and charged less money. Ali is also really friendly and I knew from the first time I went around that she knew exactly what she was doing and would fix my dress. She made me feel OK about what could have been a very stressful time for me. I wasn’t able to pick up the dress at the time Ali wanted me to and then she was going on holiday. This would have meant that I would have had to pick the dress up a couple of days before the wedding. However, Ali was great and said she would do it sooner for me as she didn’t want me to worry so close to the wedding. When my bridesmaids came with me for the fitting they all commented on how lovely Ali was. She genuinely is a nice person who is great at her job and I couldn’t recommend her enough.

I wanted to say THANK YOU for creating the most gorgeous dress
ever for me. Everyone kept coming up to me asking me where I got it
and telling me how stunning it was, so your name was mentioned a lot
that day, so thank you thank you for all of your hard work and making my
wedding dress absolutely perfect!

I have never felt so special in my life. Wearing the beautiful dress Ali made really made my day absolutely perfect. I wish I could wear it all the time! The bridesmaids looked absolutely wonderful in their handmade dresses too. Ali's service was impeccable, always happy to slot in a fitting - even in heavy snow! And of course, the craftsmanship was second to none. Thank you very much Ali!

I honestly don’t know where to start. Thank you so much for my beautiful, stunning, amazing wedding dress.  I felt a million dollars on the day and had so many, many compliments, even from some of the men. You are so talented and an absolute pleasure to work with. Being a ‘mature’ bride I had no real idea what I wanted or what to expect when I first came to you but you made me feel so welcome and were so patient and caring.  I enjoyed every minute of the process from choosing the most amazing lace to the final fitting when I saw the dress completed for the very first time. When I put the dress on for my wedding day it literally took my breath away and bought a tear to m y daughters eyes, I can never thank you enough. Thank you also for my extra request by sewing in my mum and dad’s weddings to the hem of the dress, it made me feel like they were there with me all day. I am going to miss your cheery e-mails but I wish nothing but happiness and great success, you so deserve it. Sue x

I just wanted to write to thank you so much for the amazing job you did making my dress. I am thrilled with it. I felt like a million dollars in it on my wedding day and it fits me like a glove. It is everything i hoped for! Just how i envisioned it before it had come to being! And thanks for being so friendly and approachable.

Ali, thank you so much for making me feel so special on my wedding day. I absolutely looooooooooooooved my red dress and got so many compliments from everyone. It was exactly what I wanted, was perfect for the day and fitted so well with our Black and white theme! I really enjoyed all our fitting sessions: you really helped making it a stress free experience and I am very grateful for all your excellent advice. My daughter Morgane also looked gorgeous in her bridesmaid dress and felt very proud to give me away to Jon. I am now really looking forward to the next event where I can wear my red dress again. Maybe Christmas! Again a huge thank you! All the best for the rest of your successful career. Warm regards. Peggy and Morgane.

My daughter asked Ali to make a prom dress for her, based on a picture she found on the internet and some (fairly major) modifications to the design that she made herself. I honestly had quite a few doubts about anyone being able to pull it off!
Ali was a delight to work with – for her, nothing was impossible! She managed to incorporate all of my daughter’s ideas and produced a dress which was exactly what my daughter wanted. The whole process took just four meetings –  we didn’t even have to find the fabric. The cost was a lot less than I expected.
My daughter’s dress was perfect and one of a kind at the prom! It fitted like a glove. She looked fabulous and, though I am of course biased, I thought that none of the shop bought dresses came anywhere close.
I would thoroughly recommend Ali. She took all the stress out of the process and made a huge contribution to the prom being a wonderful and memorable experience.

Ali is an excellent dressmaker.  After spending a few months searching for a vintage-style wedding dress without any luck, I was beginning to worry that I would simply not find what I was looking for.   I arrived at Ali's studio armed with a few ideas and photographs and she quickly sketched out a dress which turned out to be exactly the dress I had in mind.  Ali produced my dress quickly and with the minimum of fuss.  She was a pleasure to work with and had lots of great ideas about finishing touches to the dress.  I felt like a million dollars on my wedding day, especially when someone told me that my dress was 'very Grace Kelly-esque'!  I would like to thank Ali for doing such a great job on my dress.  I would recommend her dressmaking services to anyone who is looking for a beautiful, unique wedding dress.

Dear Ally, thank you so much for making me the most beautiful dress in the world! I loved it, it was perfect, so thank you.

Thankyou for all your hard work and time you put into making my wedding dress. It was perfect and you are so easy to work with. My great aunt who also wore the dress was so impressed with what you had done. Thanks again

Thank you so much for the beautiful bridesmaids dresses. The whole process was such fun from start to finish and you were brilliant. Roisin, Emma and Megan all looked beautiful and were so thrilled.

I had an idea in my head, after searching and searching I found a picture of the closest thing to it. I then happened upon The Unique Dress website. I knew it was a long way from Mid Wales to Bristol for fittings but something told me to go with it.
Ali is amazing! A very talented dressmaker with a lovely warm, relaxed personality. She looked at the picture and instantly knew what I was after. I was so relieved, because I don't have a good idea of these things. When I asked for her opinion she was incredibly honest and I trusted her form the start.
Travelling down to Bristol for fittings and seeing my dress 'grow' and come to life' was all part of the experience, which I really looked forward to.
I absolutely love my dress! It is my 'unique dress' and I felt wonderful in it!
Thank you Ali, I can't put into words how important and special this dress is to me and what perfect memories it holds.

Ali thank you so much for the excellent alterations on my daughters prom dress. Several dressmakers turned down the dress due to the intricate detail on the bodice and all the layers to the hem. You are obviously very skilled. I would highly recommend you to anyone.

Ali did a fantastic job in a very short period of time, given that I found out I was pregnant after our two initial fittings! Ali managed to help me design a dress that was flattering, elegant and still very close to what I had originally wanted so I still felt great on the day despite being almost 6 months pregnant. My sister's bridesmaid dress was also gorgeous, based on a picture of a vintage evening dress and was also turned around with very little fuss in only a few fittings. Ali has an incredible ability to translate design ideas straight into something that is wearable, combining both technical expertise with design flair & a good ear for what clients want.

Thanks again for the gorgeous bridesmaids dresses and the professional, personalised dressmaking service you provided. The dresses all fit perfectly, the girls were chuffed to bits with them and received lots of compliments from our guests on their beautiful, individual designs. It was a pleasure working with you (though I imagine it took you a while to recover from our visits, particularly when we all invaded your studio en masse) and I will definitely be looking for an excuse to order a bespoke creation from you for myself in the future.

Ali was fantastic in helping to create and design my wedding dress.  She was extremely patient, pointing me in the right direction for ideas and inspiration.  I found a lovely vintage lace coat that Ali adapted and incorporated into the final dress design.  Once the dress design was finalised I was amazed at how quickly she made it up. I love my dress so much I am wearing it again at my second wedding celebration!

By the time I rang Ali’s mobile I had spent 2 months endlessly searching the internet and bridal fairs and stores for that special dress to make my wedding day complete. Ali’s knowledge of vintage clothing ended my fruitless search and turned my inspiration from a vintage Vogue pattern into my unique wedding dress – and all in four relaxed and friendly fittings. She listened to my ideas and offered sound advice when it was needed. The result was a wedding dress that made me feel like a Princess and a husband whose face lit up with adoration and pride when he first saw me. I could not have wished for more.

Thank you so much again, the colour was amazing, the fit was perfect and everyone told me how good I looked. The dress was fabulous and I loved working with you to create it.

I've known Ali for some time and when I got engaged I was excited to talk to her about making my wedding dress. I thought I knew how brilliant she was, but she totally surpassed my expectations and made me the most beautiful dress; a dress that was ultimately unique and exactly what I wanted in style, comfort and cost. This for me (and my mother) made the whole experience of wedding dress shopping an absolute delight. Along with so many fabulous comments from our wedding guests I had a very happy husband on the day who has also personally thanked her.
I can not recommend Ali highly enough for her friendly advice and expertise, done with limited fuss and fittings. High five!

I have nothing but praise, compliments and flattery to say about my wedding dress "experience" with Ali. She was immensley helpful and friendly even from my initial email asking if she could take a look at a dress pattern for a 1950's dress that I would like for my wedding and whether it was achievable and prices. The whole process was extremely enjoyable, stress free and quite honestly good fun!! Nothing was too much trouble and Ali was always available at the end of the telephone and email if I had any questions.....I forgot to say that another of her qualities is patience!

Thank you so much for my lovely dress - everyone LOVED it! And I felt great in it.  I would be and will be happy to recommend you to everyone. Thanks again. Caroline.

As a woman of a fuller figure the prospect of finding a dress for my civil partnership that suited my style was a daunting prospect. Ali was enthusiastic about my vision for the dress and offered great ideas and was really accommodating with fittings. My dress was stunning, timeless and perfect for the occasion!

Ali made my dream of wearing a unique wedding dress come true. From my sketch she helped me through choosing the right fabrics, and relaxed fittings. It was exactly what I wanted, and fitted perfectly - she did a brilliant job!

I would really recommend Ali. Not only do you get the beautiful dress you dreamed of, you get an original dress that no-one else has, designed and made just for you and which costs less than you would think. Not only is Ali a talented and brilliant dressmaker, she is creative, reassuringly professional and extremely reliable. It was great fun getting my dress made with Ali. And the result was stunning - everyone said so.

Ali made me feel relaxed from our first meeting and was such a pleasure to work with.  She found me some fantastic embroidered lace for my wedding dress which I thought I'd never find.  Ali was so friendly and made the process so easy and after three fittings my own unique wedding dress was complete and looked fabulous.  My husband, family and friends all loved the design, especially the lace.  Thanks very much Ali.

I can't thank Ali enough for the absolutely stunning dress that she made for my wedding day. I'm not a perfect size 10 but the dress fitted me exactly to every curve and was so flattering, it really made me feel beautiful. Starting with only the most basic idea, a few pictures in a scrapbook and a very modest budget she designed and made the dress from scratch and every detail was tried out and tailored exactly to how I decided - even down to the placement of individual folds on the rouching! She was also really helpful at guiding me when I wasn't sure what I wanted, and made the whole process really easy and enjoyable - THANK YOU!

I just wanted to drop you a line to say thank you again for all the amazing work you did on my wedding dress- it was absolutely amazing that you managed to bring the 60s old dress I brought in back to life so beautifully so and I loved EVERY second of wearing it. And it got loads of compliments on the day.

Ali is, quite simply, amazing. She turned my dream of a long, beautiful, delicate wedding veil into reality just when I'd given up hope of being able to afford what I wanted. My appointments were really relaxed and friendly and I felt I could really trust her. I had so many compliments on my wedding day and I now have an heirloom that I treasure. Thank-you Ali :)

I wanted to say a massive thank you for all you did to make my dress so wonderful, it was absolutely perfect and I felt  wonderful in it – you were so kind and patient and helped so much to firm up my somewhat vague plans. I had so many compliments and it was just perfect for the location and the day.
It was my first experience of having something made and it was a most enjoyable one all made so by you .
I hope some time in the future I will have the need to call on your services again.

Alison offered a wonderfully personal and very friendly service and did an amazing job on my dress. My dress is 60 years old and the armpits had pretty much dissolved; I was so pleased with the work she did, it looked like new again!

After struggling to find a dress, a friend recommended Ali Rouse and I can't thank Ali enough for the most beautiful dress. Alison was fantastic in listening to what I wanted and at our first meeting we had the dress designed and after getting my measurements, a pattern was whipped up really fast.

Ali made up a mock-up of the dress so we could ensure a perfect fit and also joined me at a gem of a fabric store to help choose the right fabric - both in texture to keep with the line of the dress and colour. My friends and family were stunned with what a gorgeous dress it was on my wedding day and I loved that my dress was unique, flattering and comfortable to wear. I highly recommend Ali for anyone who is after a special dress.

Ali, thank you so much for doing such an amazing and beautiful job on my wedding dress and our lovely bridesmaid dresses. My off the hanger wedding dress required a lot of quite complex ammendments, but all your hard work and patience paid off and as a result I felt a million dollars on the day. It has been a real pleasure working with you Ali, I hope to see you soon and will be highly recommending your services to friends and family in the future.

I found a beautiful wedding dress in a vintage shop in London. The dress was in good condition considering its age, but even so it was in need of some alterations to fit properly and to look like the dream dress I had in mind. Ali proved to be absolutely fantastic! She is very talented, has a great eye for what works and what doesn't and is very passionate about what she does. She turned my wedding dress into my dream dress and I could not have been more pleased with the end results. Thank you Ali for such a great job!!

Alison helped our wedding by her outstanding service not only her suggestion on the design but also her enthusiasm and patience (I actually asked her to change the design several times!). She was always friendly and provided us very professional advice. If I got married twice I would definitely go back to her!! Thank you.

I came to Ali with a few pictures and doodles, however didn't have a clear view of what I wanted. Ali couldn't have been more helpful and fun; sketching for me, flicking through books, coming up with fresh ideas that I loved.

We managed to come up with a design that suited me to the ground. Ali didn't even batter an eyelid when asked to do a head-to-toe hand embroidery design that was taken from my doodles.

I have never had and never will have a dress that is so unique, individual and 'me'. Thank you Ali, the process was so enjoyable and you will never know how much it meant to me on my big day! Mrs Emmi Avery.