PHILIPPA LONG| FOUNDER & DESIGNER OF PHILIPPA LONG BRIDAL

How did it all begin for Philippa Long Bridal?

Philippa Long Bridal started in 2014 as a one off bridal commission. It was only meant to be one dress for a friend! My background is in luxury woman’s wear fashion and in 2012 I established a Ready To Wear collection. As most young fashion designers in London know, it was a tough market to crack. It’s heavily over saturated with designers doing similar things and I subsequently struggled to find that one thing that made me stand out from the crowd.

That first bridal commission came at the perfect time because I discovered my voice where I was struggling to find it before. I was able to bring my full fashion experience to bridal wear and re-shape what ‘bridal’ meant, both to myself and the industry which at that time was struggling to progress.

Through this process I discovered just how many woman felt overwhelmed as a bride and felt pressured to conform to certain traditions and ‘bridal style’. It was at this point in my journey that I was drawn to helping these brides to discover their own individual style that reflected their personality, and ultimately help them to embrace themselves and how they wanted to look and feel on their special day. This discovery was the starting point and my inspiration behind Philippa Long Bridal.

Who is the Philippa Long bride?

Philippa Long Bridal is fashion focused, modern bridal wear for brides who want to explore style-led, non-conventional, bridal wear. I would describe our modern bride, or couple, as unconstrained, adventurous and unique in their style and personality.

Tell us more about your brand AND YOUR PRODUCTION?

Our dresses are designed and made in London. I am a big advocate for sustainable and domestic production and craftsmanship. This has always been a passion of mine and something I have championed with the Philippa Long RTW line and carried across to our bridal wear. Some of our fabrics are developed and woven in Sudbury in Suffolk - one of the the last remaining silk weaving mills in the United Kingdom. We work very closely with them and this means we are able to develop custom fabric for brides who are looking for very exclusive, bespoke wedding dresses.

As our dresses are all made locally, we have complete control over our lead times. (This is only not possible when we have to wait for fabric to be woven but, this can still be achieved within a 10 week timeframe.) We want to accommodate every bride and work within their deadline. Our typical production timeframe is six months. We have done a number of dresses in less time than this though!!

WHAT IS YOUR VISION FOR THE DREAM WEDDING?

In my opinion a wedding is a really big celebration with your friends and family and it should feel that way for modern couples - without the pressures that have traditionally existed. It should reflect their choice of style, food and music as a couple and individuals. I suggest throwing the trends out with the bath water and create the wedding you want!! The coolest weddings that I have been to or seen are the ones that look least like a conventional wedding. So my vision would be first of all, personal, fuss-free and fun.

It would have been my absolute dream to have dressed Solange for her wedding day. Her wedding has stood out as the coolest wedding for me, because it was different, personal and....didn’t look like a conventional wedding.