10 things I wish people knew about my brand
1. "Wardrobe by Dulcinea" garments come with labels that say "Size: Yours" and that is the only size I believe in. We absolutely do not care whether someone would label you as a "plus size" or "petite", there is no such thing here as there are no extra charges for different shapes and figures, everything is made from scratch and to unique measurements of yours, whatever they may be, and in proportion to your height.
2. Some of our items even feature custom made, hand dyed colors, because I (the owner and the designer) hand certain fabrics to achieve just the shade for the specific bride. For those items, I make and mix my own dyes, therefore feel free to provide your own color references, as I can definitely create 50 shades of blush or dusty blue. If an item features a part that may hand dyed, it will have a custom color selection in the drop down menu.
3. We are not in any bridal boutique and we will never be. There is a fantastic reason for that - I would rather produce high quality items and sell them directly at the price that is fair for both my employees and the customer, instead of selling retail. In case you didn't know, retail dresses are purchased by the reseller at at least 50% off the price the customer is paying.
4. I take great care of my employees and make sure my studio is as far from a sweat shop as it gets. There is a video om Youtube where you can see how my studio and a day at work looks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p5PqS-iMwc If you a care about conditions your dress is made in (and you absolutely should), my brand is a wonderful choice for your occasion.
5. I don't charge extra for rush orders, because I see them as a matter of scheduling - it is either possible, or it isn't, nobody in my studio is staying overnight to work on anyone's dress. On top of that we already only ship with DHL Express Worldwide couriers, door to door delivery, tracked at every step of the way. We cannot imagine worrying about whether the bride got their dress on time.
6. I don't use professional models for my listing photos. It is either me (in the majority of the pictures), or my friends. While it is sometimes flattering to read that I am "a beautiful model", it is also a little sad to be asked things like "Can I see this on a real person?!"
7. Our photos are edited at a bare minimum - such as untimely pimple is removed from my face, horizon of the shot is made straight if wasn't so already, lighting is adjusted where necessary. That's it. Not a single garment wrinkle is ironed out by post productions, my legs are not elongated and colors are all very real and accurate. We have absolutely no intention of providing false expectations to the customer, the dresses are what they appear to be.
8. We have a Facebook page "Wardrobe by Dulcinea" where you can see a large customer gallery of our actual brides and another album that is incredibly helpful with color decisions: hand dyed work examples. I personally also have an Instagram account @allthingsdulcinea where you can also see lots of brides photos and a lot of behind the scenes of our studio.
9. We do not make custom designs. We can however customize or change some specific details about existing designs though, such as: different neckline, sleeve length, skirt length style (for example high low or tea length instead of floor length) where applicable. To inquire about that, please do not ask us "what sort of necklines are possible for this top?" (because we aren't able to provide a list of what's possible), but do ask specifically what you're after "can I have a V neck here?" and very likely it will be a yes!
10. I myself take care of all customer service. I will respond politely to every inquiry or question, usually in a matter of minutes (unless I am asleep, on vacation, or dyeing someones tulle) and I will personally oversee every detail of your garment production as well as take full responsibility for any error, should they occur. As suggested by our 600+ positive only reviews, errors are definitely not common. If you had read all of this, I know I will be thrilled to hear from you, you are already the customer of my dreams. Looking forward to chatting with you.
Sincerely, Inge - the owner, the designer, the colorist of the fabrics, the customer service representative, the model, the marketing manager, well, you get it, this is Etsy after all :)
2. Some of our items even feature custom made, hand dyed colors, because I (the owner and the designer) hand certain fabrics to achieve just the shade for the specific bride. For those items, I make and mix my own dyes, therefore feel free to provide your own color references, as I can definitely create 50 shades of blush or dusty blue. If an item features a part that may hand dyed, it will have a custom color selection in the drop down menu.
3. We are not in any bridal boutique and we will never be. There is a fantastic reason for that - I would rather produce high quality items and sell them directly at the price that is fair for both my employees and the customer, instead of selling retail. In case you didn't know, retail dresses are purchased by the reseller at at least 50% off the price the customer is paying.
4. I take great care of my employees and make sure my studio is as far from a sweat shop as it gets. There is a video om Youtube where you can see how my studio and a day at work looks: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8p5PqS-iMwc If you a care about conditions your dress is made in (and you absolutely should), my brand is a wonderful choice for your occasion.
5. I don't charge extra for rush orders, because I see them as a matter of scheduling - it is either possible, or it isn't, nobody in my studio is staying overnight to work on anyone's dress. On top of that we already only ship with DHL Express Worldwide couriers, door to door delivery, tracked at every step of the way. We cannot imagine worrying about whether the bride got their dress on time.
6. I don't use professional models for my listing photos. It is either me (in the majority of the pictures), or my friends. While it is sometimes flattering to read that I am "a beautiful model", it is also a little sad to be asked things like "Can I see this on a real person?!"
7. Our photos are edited at a bare minimum - such as untimely pimple is removed from my face, horizon of the shot is made straight if wasn't so already, lighting is adjusted where necessary. That's it. Not a single garment wrinkle is ironed out by post productions, my legs are not elongated and colors are all very real and accurate. We have absolutely no intention of providing false expectations to the customer, the dresses are what they appear to be.
8. We have a Facebook page "Wardrobe by Dulcinea" where you can see a large customer gallery of our actual brides and another album that is incredibly helpful with color decisions: hand dyed work examples. I personally also have an Instagram account @allthingsdulcinea where you can also see lots of brides photos and a lot of behind the scenes of our studio.
9. We do not make custom designs. We can however customize or change some specific details about existing designs though, such as: different neckline, sleeve length, skirt length style (for example high low or tea length instead of floor length) where applicable. To inquire about that, please do not ask us "what sort of necklines are possible for this top?" (because we aren't able to provide a list of what's possible), but do ask specifically what you're after "can I have a V neck here?" and very likely it will be a yes!
10. I myself take care of all customer service. I will respond politely to every inquiry or question, usually in a matter of minutes (unless I am asleep, on vacation, or dyeing someones tulle) and I will personally oversee every detail of your garment production as well as take full responsibility for any error, should they occur. As suggested by our 600+ positive only reviews, errors are definitely not common. If you had read all of this, I know I will be thrilled to hear from you, you are already the customer of my dreams. Looking forward to chatting with you.
Sincerely, Inge - the owner, the designer, the colorist of the fabrics, the customer service representative, the model, the marketing manager, well, you get it, this is Etsy after all :)