6 Reasons to have a Dress created for you

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There are so many benefits to having a dress created for you however these top 6 are what I hear the most when working with my custom clients.

1. Taking pieces for different gowns you've tried on and making into one unique gown is such a great way to have everything you want and more. A sketch is done of the whole gown so you can see it all together and know you're going to love it.

2. Working 1 on 1 is such a beautiful experience. We get to know each other so well which really assists in creating your dream dress visions and them coming true.

3. You are the designer, really, we're just bringing it to life. You choose every aspect of your dress from start with fabrics and at each fitting, it's all yours.

4. I've had so many conversations with my brides that we should really do these luxury things for ourselves more often. I become everyone's prince charming (helping you put on your shoes) and #reallifefairygodmother

5. Your dress will never be the same as anyone else's. This is 100% custom created just for you.

6. Making an investment that will become timeless is truly priceless as you look back on your day years to come still knowing your made the best decision for your dress and yourself.

Your Designer,

Amanda Garrett

For all inquiries and booking for your custom designs or alterations clicking here. You can also purchase and browse our online selection on our site, Instagram, or click here for more custom accessories such as hand-crafted veils, crowns, and more!

Connect with us on our social media to stay updated on our latest creations, promotions, and posts”

Top 10 FAQS about custom dresses

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Commonly Asked questions

about having your

dress designed

  1. Do you have sample dresses?

    • Yes, we do have sample dresses that you can come and see however they’re all from photo shoots, as brides keep their dresses.

  2. Can I try dresses on?

    • Not here, we absolutely recommend finding a style that you 100% love and fits your body type before meeting with me. This will help to ensure that the finished dress will be exactly what you wanted.

  3. What is included in the quote provided?

    • Everything included for this dress quote; fabric(research and shipping), labour, minor alterations, fittings and taxes.

  4. How involved can I be in the process?

    • You can be as involved as you want, some brides want me to send updates and pictures as I find fabrics and get things done, others wait until there first fitting. Totally up to you, this is your investment so I will provide as much information as I can for you during the process. 

  5. What is the process?

  6. Is there a required deposit? Is it refundable?

    • Yes there are two deposits required; one is for booking the first meeting appointment which is $100 to hold your spot and will be taken off the final payment. The second is 50% of the final payment at the first meeting, this ensures completions and enables me to purchase fabrics for your custom dress. Neither of these deposits are refundable. We do have payment plans available, inquire within.

  7. Do you make dresses for the whole Bridal Party?

    • Yes, we make dresses for you, your ladies, the mother of the bride/groom and the flower girls.

  8. How many fittings will I have?

    • That is dependent on a few things; typically there are two fittings the first and the final pickup, however if weight is lost or something about the dress need to be drastically alter(does not happen often) then there may be 3-6. This is to ensure the perfect fit, when it is custom made it is truly made for you!

  9. What types of fabrics do you use?

    • We find quality fabrics within your budget that coincide with the month your wedding is in, ie; if your wedding is in the summer months we will find light weight satin’s, silks chiffon’s and laces that work well with the style of your dress but won’t make you swelter in the heat.

  10. How long does creating a dress take?

    • Currently we are booking meetings 8 to 12 months out from your wedding date, depending on if they are bulk orders or single dress orders. Everything depends on when fabrics are found, purchased and then scheduling fittings.

I hope these have answered any questions you may be having about making a custom dress your dream dress. If there’s anything else you’d love to know, I’d be happy to help, contact me (Amanda Garrett).

Fall Weddings

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Fall is definitely one of my very favourite times of year. With cool, crisp weather and gorgeous foliage, its the perfect setting for a seasonal wedding.

Autumn does so much more than set a pretty scene though, you can use the spices of the season for cocktails, muted, warm and earthy tones, dried and paper florals or fresh of course. The arrangements can include apples, pumpkins and gourds, OH MY! From sweet décor to delish spiced cocktails, you can’t go wrong choosing a wedding date in September, October or November.

When purchasing a dress from a boutique it is good to know that you can add colour, an over lay or something unique that makes the dress exactly what you are wanting for your fall wedding theme.

Going the custom dress root can be very exciting because you can truly do anything you want. From a two in one overskirt and cocktail dress (picture couple loving the rain) to a Black dress fit for any autumn themed wedding.

I really love those halloween weddings but the classic black, orange and white with silver skulls and candelabras. Very chic and super fun! Can you imagine being able to wear a costume to a wedding?

Plan in those cute umbrellas incase it rains and of course your favourite fall beverage. It is your day and you can have anything you’ d like. This bride added this sheer overlay with cuffed sleeves to her dress to incorporate her edginess and add as a layer incase it was chilly.

You never know the temperature you’re going to get so come prepared for your photos. This bride and groom lucked out and get a moderately warm day which made for some stunning pictures without covering her dream dress that we altered.

Have some fun with a fall themed wedding, it can be truly anything you want it to be!

Your Designer,

Amanda Garrett

For all inquiries and booking for your custom designs or alterations clicking here. You can also purchase and browse our online selection on our site, Instagram, or click here for more custom accessories such as hand-crafted veils, crowns, and more!

Fabrics, Colours and Bling Bling

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Hello, we're back. It's a wedding Wednesday, once again, and today we're talking about fabrics, colors, bling-bling all the things that make every single detail of your dress magical. I believe that details matter so much, the littlest things can matter to create your vision.

When it comes to custom, what happens is you get to choose your fabrics completely and totally 100% all you. So this is how this dress is uniquely yours, right? When we have our visionary call, we talk about all the things you love about certain fabrics, satin, lace, tulle, chiffon and the colour you would love.

I then go and I search for options for you, and then I send you those options. Typically I like to send four or five depending on what we're looking at and a lot of the time this is for lace and other things like trims.

This way it's not overwhelming and you get to choose what you want to have for your dress. A lot of the time, my brides they're very decisive. Some are not, but that's okay. We work through it and we find whatever we need.

This bride wanted to have an very light off-white wedding dress.

Now during the process of choosing fabrics we must find it in the colour you are wanting. Whether if be Bright white, off-white, ivory or even PINK! I've had brides ask me, will this color worked for me. When you try dresses on, you'll see what colors work for you, and you'll know that you either want white, white, or another variation. I also have samples of fabrics that you can place against your skin to see. Most of the dresses we create are off-white, however, we’ve even dyed fabric to get the exact colour that our Bride envisioned her dress to be.

Then we have the bling bling bling! Bling-bling, jewels and beading can be incorporated into many aspects of your dress. If you have lace on your dress, it can be incorporated into the applique, added to trim or the edge around your hem or train. Adding a belt is always a way to add a little something extra or it can be just in your hair.

With the addition of a glitter fabric under neath and a small sequin throughout the lace appliques gave this bride just the right amount of shine for her wedding day.

Every Bride is so different and have such a unique visions. They either want the entire dress covered in beading and crystals or very few sequins that give only a little shimmer when the light hits the fabric. It's going to be for your personality, that fits you best. So BLING it up or tone it down, with custom you can have all that your heart desires.

Those are some of the main topics during our visionary call your fabrics, colors and your bling bling. the fabric and the color that comes first after we do our measurements. Then you receive options , once you choose, the fabrics are ordered and we get started on creating your dream dress!




Contact us to book your visionary call today!




Head over to our Instagram as that is where we hang out the most and will find loads of information in our stories and posts.




Your Designer,




Amanda Garrett







Wedding Wednesday: Heirloom Dresses

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“Every design begins with an even better story.” - Lorinda Mamo

The best part of doing a deconstructed dress is that mom is involved. Typically the ones I've done, they've all been from mom. But I have done ones that are from a address that you purchased and you want a complete overhaul on it.

Then there's also, from grandma, from great-grandma heirloom dresses, they're so much fun to do and create a modern style from to bring your personality forward, but still being really sentimental because they're from your Mama. Right? So I love this topic. I love talking about deconstruct dresses.

I love creating from deconstructed dresses. I've had a few this year and the first one I did, I created it was a big ball gown dress with poof sleeves, the nineties, right? A lot of them are very similar and lots of intricate beading. I love the way the lace and the beading and everything is on these dresses from the nineties.

It was done really, really well so for this one, I took the bodice out and I removed the skirt and made a mermaid instead of the ballgown. But we reattached the ballgown as a removable back piece. And she looked like an absolute princess, as you can see.

What we did was we created the mermaid, but we used the top and we made the sleeves, small, like quite a bit smaller actually. An off the shoulder look, but they still had a little bit of poof because she wanted that princess look, that, almost Disney princess look and we were able to create that.

Then I just took pieces from the skirt that I had cut and I put them on the bottom parts where the fitted part of the mermaid went and, then it kind of trickled a little bit over, onto the flare of the mermaid, it was absolutely gorgeous. We also had to alter it quite a bit and she came from Ottawa.

We did quite a few fittings and she drove six hours to do this because she really, really believed in the investment of making this dress exactly how she wanted and she wanted it done by me. That was amazing. So, there was quite a few fittings and we altered the back completely. I added functional buttons that went all the way down the dress back. And we really worked together to create something really beautiful for her, her mom was so excited because she was wearing a piece of her on her wedding day.



The second one I did this year was another one from the nineties. A very big ballgown, really high neck line with gorgeous lace detailing and fringe beading. The bride specifically said, “I can't have that beading, uh, the fringe beading can not happen”, so we made sure that was used in a different way. However, this one, I just removed the pieces of lace appliques and put them all over the piece that I created.

Basically I created a dress for her, that was a very beautiful flowing dress she had tulle, on the top, like a tulle mesh that was see-through. Covered it with the appliques from her mom's dress and did a little bit more simpler on the back. She had her mom's buttons down the back as well, such a nice touch.

I also removed all the beading, all those fringe beaded pieces, I created a belt for her and it just made the dress.

Doing it this way you still get that sentimental value of mom's dress or whoever's dress, and be able to do it to the style you would love most. So wonderful.

I've also created pieces from these heirloom dresses, where I created a type dress. I used the bodice and then I created a bottom and I added the bottom lace to it and to the knee basically. It was just a reception dress and it was absolutely stunning.

You can do anything with a dress, either from either an heirloom dress or a dress that you see potential, and you see that there is something in it that you love, but you want to create it and make it your own exact uniquely to you. And that is what we do here.

That is why I do what I do to make things and create things to bring your vision to life so that it is uniquely yours. No one else is going to have these pieces ever. And, and that's the beauty. The whole point is that you feel beautiful and confident and, you know, looking back on these pictures from your wedding day, you're still going to be swooning over these pictures and you're going to be so happy that you made the investment and you did.

So wishing you a very happy Wednesday, and I hope that you have a fabulous rest of your week.

Your Designer,

Amanda Garrett


www.amegdesigns.com



A Real-Life Fairy God-Mother

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Once upon a time, in a cozy house, on a quiet street, in a village on the edge of a booming metropolis, a young seamstress discovered she could perform magic. It was a transformative sort of magic that could make every bride look and feel amazing…

We all love fairy tales and, when I complete a dress for a client, it makes me feel like a real-life Fairy God-Mother! The magic occurs when a bride’s vision comes to life, and fits all of their curves (or lack of them) perfectly. True to the genre, all good fairy tales begin at home. This one is no exception. You see, I struggled with body-image issues for a long time. For years, I suffered from never feeling happy in the clothes I was wearing — literally feeling uncomfortable in my own skin. Everything changed on the day I picked up my scissors, cut into some fabric, and sewed my first dress. I took the pattern and adjusted it to my measurements. There was a moment, just before I tried it on, when I felt hesitant, worried my work would let me down. But the moment I pulled that dress on, well, it was magic. It fit me perfectly and, as a result, for the first time in my life, I felt fabulous! That dress made me aware that having something tailored to my own personal shape made me not only feel more comfortable, but heightened my self-image. Inspired, I embarked on a journey which, with a lot of self-love care, has helped me see an even clearer image of myself. It also gave me a clear vision for my business, to share my joy with the world! I have experienced the thrill of that moment over and over again. My goal has been to elevate and accentuate the best parts of my clients, leaving the rest behind them. Every day, I use my weapons of dress construction to make visions come to life. The ultimate challenge is to listen to an idea that someone has in their mind and translate it, craft it, form it into what I hope resembles their dream dress. Over the years, I have created and altered hundreds, if not thousands, of gowns and there is one thing that makes everything I do worth it: witnessing the ecstatic joy on their faces as they slip into the dress for the final fitting. The transformation into a fairy tale princess is immediate as they turn and spin around in front of the mirror, feeling the perfect fit, beaming with happiness. Dare I say it again? It’s magic!

Each of my clients arrive with a vision, an idea that is pre-existing about how they wish to look. It’s the reason custom-made, tailored design is the perfect solution for most brides, especially after searching and trying on what feels like a thousand ready-made dresses. That’s where I come in! As a crafter, there is nothing more satisfying than starting a project, finishing it runs a close second. The process is stimulating. At the initial consultation we discuss fabric and style. I measure every inch of my client to ensure the gown will fit all those ‘perfect imperfections’ (with thanks to Ed Sheeran for such a great expression). Sketches and cups of tea, and more sketches and tea, until the gown starts to come to life in my mind. There is such delight in sourcing fabric – the satins, the silks, the lace – it’s like a smorgasbord of texture. Then crafting out the pattern, piecing the dress together like a jigsaw puzzle, to ensure a perfect fit. The moment of truth comes as I prepare to cut. Like a carpenter, I measure twice, double-checking pins are secure before I pick up one of the most critical tools in my toolkit – no, not a magic wand – a shining pair of scissors. For me, there is nothing more exciting than pinning freshly cut pieces of fabric together and sitting down at the sewing machine. And this is where I wish I did have a magic wand to wave, or perhaps some sparkles or a puff of smoke because, with a ‘Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo’, the perfect fitted dress has come to life! Exactly what was envisioned, or more frequently, the words are, “Amanda! This is better than I could have ever dreamed!” Yup, I feel like a Fairy God-Mother every time.

MarandaElyssePhoto-1.jpg

Over the last ten years I have been privileged to create some lovely dresses, but I believe the dress you see here reflects my best work yet. For some reason, I just feel creatively connected to this one. It highlights my skills. The style is based on a pattern that I have altered many times and followed once before, however I have never created one quite like this. My husband says it’s his favourite and he has seen more wedding dresses than any other man I know. Each piece of fabric that I cut, each layer upon layer that was sewn together felt effortless. It was almost magical, as if I was achieving the vision towards our first fitting on some sort of a creative energy high like no other. My client arrived for her fitting. She loved it! She was delighted to see her vision becoming a reality. Each lace appliqué was hand-sewn and took several days. With the kids and other obligations in my life, there were moments when I felt I would never finish the bodice! But as each day passed, I grew more excited to continue. The final result was such an achievement. It is an honour to provide a service that fulfills dreams. To say that I enjoy ‘crafting’ is a gross understatement. Each piece that I alter or create to fit the bride’s size, personality and style allows me to share my magic with the world. My goal is for everyone to feel beautiful and confident on the day of their wedding and beyond.

And so we draw to the end of the fairy tale. The little seamstress who discovered she could perform magic feels most days like a real life fairy godmother, making each clients dress visions come true. And, as she creates their dreams, she is living her own. Dreams that are so big and beautiful, there are times she has to pinch herself to believe they’re true. And somewhere, behind a pile of fabric, surrounded by needles and pins and scissors, she is grinning from ear to ear, because she is living ‘happily ever after’.

A dream come true

“I showed Amanda what I wanted in my wedding dress and she worked so hard to get every detail to perfection! She was lovely to work with and is so talented. She also made my garters and veil, my mom's Mother of the Bride dress, the dresses for my bridal party, and face masks for the bridal party and groomsmen. I highly recommend her if you want a custom bridal experience. She will make your dreams come true!”

Wedding and Bridesmaid Dresses created by Amanda Garrett from A.M.E.G. Designs

Photography by Maranda Elysse Photofraphy

Today's Bride Fall Photo Shoot

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I have been reminiscing of all the styled photo shoots I was a part of back in 2019 and most of them we’re featured. This one though still makes my heart sing a little louder because it was my first published in a Magazine. It definitely was a pinch me kind of moment when Beth from Beth Jacob Events messaged and gave me the news. We do these shoots to give you inspiration, to continue our creative work and to showcase what we have to offer. Working together, networking and making magic, oh my is it beautiful! So having one of these not just on an amazing blog like Today’s Bride but in their magazine is still like living a dream. I was gifted an entire box of them and have been giving them out to my brides ever since.

Boho is still a BIG deal on the wedding theme roster so this shoot will be completely inspiring for you. The fresh and bold colours can be spring, summer or fall and Willow Springs Winery is such a stunning place. The weeping willows are so whimsical and dreamy so what better place then here to have an incredible, unforgettable day. I am in love with every detail of this shoot, those peach place card holders are brilliant and that Pink Suit jacket is perfect!

When making your choices decide whether you want something fresh and new or simple and elegant. Taking looks from other decades and making them modern is a fun way to create something original for your wedding day. I also suggest having a planner throughout the process or just for day of, you can often find that they will offer a plan that works well for you to relieve some of the stress. Planning a wedding should be fun, let it be!


Balls Falls Making Wedding Dreams Come True

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Jenn & Jules

When I first met with Jenn we were both so excited to get started on this custom journey. One wedding dress, two bridesmaids and two flower girls. Working with Jenn was so lovely, she was super laid back and allowed me to design her dress vision with ease. I found the most perfect flowered lace which over layed the bodice and created the perfect key hole back. While the rest was the over lay of beautiful turquoise flower girl dresses. Everything came together perfectly, all the dresses fit well and each of the ladies had a gorgeous jeweled belt to give them that much needed something extra special. I spoke to Jenn a few months later when she had her photos sent to me and here is her story from meeting to happily ever after.

How did you two meet?

We first met in the summer of 2017.  His dad and him were doing roof work on a neighbours house when they noticed there was a hole in my roof.  One day, his dad knocks on my door to show me what they found and explained how it could easily be fixed.  I hired them to do the work, which they did - and then some.  While on the roof, they noticed that my fence gate didn't work well, so they fixed that as well and cleaned out some of the gutters.  We also got to talking about other possible work that needed to be done (isn't home ownership grand?!).  They figured my roof had another year or two before it would need replacing and I already knew my windows were in rough shape, so when the next summer rolled around, they stopped by and we discussed redoing the roof as well as the windows.  I shopped around, but they had impressed me so much with their past work, that I hired them to do the work.  Jules and I did end up talking a few times, while he was working.  It wasn't until they were closed to finishing up the windows that he asked me out for dinner.  I said "sure", after all, I had promised myself not to turn down an opportunity to a) make a new friend and to b) get out of the house.  You see, I had been married before, but my husband has passed away suddenly in the spring of 2017.  The dinner went really well.  He brought his son, who was 10 at the time, and we had a wonderful time.  Of course, at the end of the night, I had a feeling I would be seeing more of the two of them!

How did he/she propose?

We had been trying to get together with Jules' dad, step-mom and younger sister and brother for a while, but schedules being what they are, previous attempts at making plans never seemed to work out.  Jules had arranged for us to all go out to dinner together on a Tuesday evening, to the same restaurant where we had our first date.  I didn't have a clue, until he walks around the table and gets down on one knee.  He had his words planned out, but I think he might have been a tad bit nervous.  He at least got the words to say "Will you marry me?".  The few times when he mentioned marriage, I had always said that my response to that very question would be "Hmmm, let me think about it.", but I'm guessing I too was a little caught off guard, because I think I might have said yes before he could finish the question!

What did you envision your wedding being prior to planning?

Honestly, we first thought of eloping.  Nothing fancy, just Jules, Riley and myself.  Then he started realizing that never having been married before, he wanted his family there.  So if his family would attend, then mine would too, then cousins, aunts and uncles, good friends...and then we were talking a full-on wedding.  Once we came to that decision and a rough estimate on the number of people, we started talking details.  It soon became quite clear that both of us were envisioning the same thing.  Something relaxed and rustic.

What was your color palette and your style vision?

So many colours to chose from!  At first, my plan might have been more mardi gras...purple, turquoise/teal, lime green and silver.  That was quickly narrowed down to turquoise/teal and silver/grey.

What unique elements or DIY details did you include?

I Have always enjoyed crafting and my husband is extremely handy, so with the two of us working on a variety of projects, we accomplished a lot of DIY details for our wedding.  Started off with our save the date cards (a note card with a wooden pencil with a hand painted tag with our names and the date), our invitations, the seating chart, the ceremony programs, the table scapes, the flower girls floral balls, the jam used as the Thank You gifts for our guests, as well as the decorating of the jam jars. 

What was your favorite moment?

Our first look.  I had gotten a glimpse or two of him as I was walking from the car to the bridal suite, and I'm sure he caught a glimpse of me too.  But the first time you lay eyes on your betrothed a few moments before you say "I Do" is certainly special!

Everything was exactly how we wanted it.  The moment he asked me to marry him, I knew that I wasn't looking for your traditional wedding gown, but finding what I initially had in my head was proving difficult and frustrating.  When I happened to message A.M.E.G. Designs with my ideas,  Amanda quickly messaged me to say anything was possible.  She made the entire process of designing and creating a one of a kind dress..which I ABSOLUTELY LOVE...a blast.  Choosing my flowers was pretty easy.  The deep purple colour of the moon vista carnation was a must, then we combined it with some white peonies, white wax flowers, and greenery.  I think one of my husband's favourite things was the jam.  He lead the jam making crew, as he used his late grandmother's recipe to make the strawberry, cherries and blueberry jam.  This was a close second to the cake I surprised him with.  We had agreed to just have donuts, which we had, but this cake was an ode to his favourite pastime... fishing.  The cake was created using some of the pictures I had captured of a small family vacation where he caught two very nice sized large mouth bass.  The cake was a replica of a large mouth bass jumping.  Spectacular. 

We had gorgeous weather, which was one of my main worries leading up to the day.  But the sun was out, and so were our closest family and friends.  We had an absolutely fabulous time.  There isn’t a single thing I would change...everything was perfect.

What is one piece of advice that you could give brides-to-be?

Everyone says enjoy the day and don't sweat the small stuff.  Its soooooooo true.  Relax and enjoy because the day will FLY by otherwise.  Also....delegate, delegate,  delegate!   Yes,  it's  your day........but that doesn’t mean you have to do everything yourself.  Have a plan, and have people you can rely on to accomplish the tasks you need done of the day or the days leading up to your wedding.  This is crucial and will free up your time....to just enjoy what will be the happiest and most special days of your life. 

Click through and see their magical day unfold!


I love hearing the whole story right up to the reception! I, and a few other vendors never get to see the wedding day until the photos. Thank you Jenn this was a treat for sure :)