A MONMOUTH designer has just won a prestigious national competition with her stunning leather wedding dress.
Philippa Barter won the Alternative Venue section of the British Bridal Awards organised by Brides magazine.
Mrs Barter, who works under the name Philippa, designs special occasion wear, wedding dresses, ballgowns and evening wear from her home and studio in Osbaston.
She has been designing for the last 16 years and has built up a strong local following. A number of her outfits have also been sold in London and one of her ballgowns went to the Queen Mother's 100th birthday ball.
She was delighted to win this national competition at her first attempt. There was good news for her friend Jan Knibbs too from Whitchurch who won the appliqué section of the awards.
Philippa and Jan had collaborated on two outfits for the awards as well as their individual ensembles and it was their individual designs which won them their awards.
The white leather dress and jacket with which Philippa won was made from glove leather and cost around £2,500. However, her designs for special occasion wear start at around £150 with wedding dresses ranging from £750.
The winning design will be featured in Brides magazine in January, but local people will get a sneak preview because it will be in the window of Stone in Church Street, from Friday, September 22nd.
Philippa did not know she had won until she went to the awards' ceremony in Harrogate last week. The evening was hosted by Clothes Show presenter Tim Vincent and big names like Amanda Wakeley were competing.
Philippa said: "I was thrilled when my name was read out as a winner.
"I don't do mass produced wear. I specialise in one-off individual designs where you can get to know the client intimately.
"Clients come to me with their ideas - or with no idea at all - and we discuss their individual requirements, so everything is individually designed and made.
"People tend to know what they like and when they go away saying their outfit is really comfortable it makes me feel very satisfied."
Her husband worked in Oman for a time and she has been very influenced by the local fabrics she encountered there. She was making velvet and sari silk outfits years before the current trend.
She does a lot of work in exotic fabrics. "People have bought silk from China and India and asked me to make it up for them," she said.
Of all her work, wedding dresses are the most satisfying and gratifying to make. "It's lovely to see people going away feeling totally happy with what you've done," she said.
So when you see a Philippa design walking down the catwalk in one of the big fashion shows in the future, just remember it started life in Monmouth.
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