Pricing & FAQs

Inquiring Minds Delight

General Questions

Leila “Lei” Bretón (they/them) is a self-taught fashion designer who comes from a long line of tailors. Identifying as queer themself, Lei created The House of Bretón to specialize in creating custom wedding attire for the queer community. They also specialize in designing wedding wear for the plus-size community. Lei lives in the Indianapolis area with their wife, two teenagers, three pets, and copious houseplants. 

Read more about Lei Bretón & Our Values

Our studio is in Indianapolis, Indiana. We are a custom-made wedding atelier, so we do not have a store where you can purchase off the rack.
Most people assume that clothing is made by machines and robots, and therefore that the process is easy and relatively cheap. While that may be true of fabric cutting and button finishing, it is not the case when making custom garments that prioritize fit. We design each piece in house for your specific measurements and style so it’s the perfect wedding dress or suit for you. And while we do use sewing machines, much of our finishing work is done by hand. The process can be tedious, but very rewarding.
The House of Bretón is a safe space for anyone looking for custom wedding day attire, however, we specifically cater to the LGBTQ+ community. Being a queer-owned business, we know how hard it is to find clothes that celebrate our identity on our wedding day, and we love making our community feel confident and comfortable in their second skins.
Our small fashion house will be making your wedding outfit by hand. Owner and designer Lei Bretón leads our small team of stitchers. Learn more about us here.
Absolutely, we love to work with couples outside of the Indianapolis area. In that case, your alteration schedule will be altered slightly: we’ll start with a virtual fitting to discuss style and fabric, and provide you detailed instructions on how to take your own measurements. Next, you’ll need to fly in for your mock-up fitting, though accommodations can be made if this is not possible. Then, at the mid-way point, you’ll travel to Indianapolis for a mandatory weekend of fittings. We’ll do a fabric fitting as soon as you arrive, another fitting 24 hours later, and a final fitting another 24 hours after that. When your outfit is done, you can fly to pick it up, or we can ship it to you at your expense.
It’s essential for us to see the dress or suit on your body to make sure it fits, so while we can offer the first fitting virtually for couples who live outside of the Midwest, unfortunately all other fittings must be done in person.
Hand-made garments — especially those with speciality fabrics — are at risk for shrinking or tearing in the wash. That’s why, if you must wash your outfit, it should be dry cleaned only. If you store your outfit in the unbleached cotton muslin garment bag we provide to you (which is what museums use for archival purposes), it may not need to be preserved.

The Fit

Creating custom wedding attire generally requires five fittings. In the first fitting, we’ll take your measurements, discuss fabric and style, and get to know you and your preferences. One month later, you’ll come for a mock-up fitting to see your design created in cotton muslin. One month after that, you’ll come in for a fabric fitting, when the initial design is roughly completed in the fabric you chose. Next, we’ll do a hem fitting. And around one month before your wedding, we’ll do a final fitting. You can pick up your finished garment the week of your wedding.
No, fittings are included in the cost of a custom wedding suit or gown.
If your weight shifts, we’ll alter your dress or suit to fit your new weight. This is why we have fittings throughout your engagement.
Absolutely. The client and up to two guests are welcome at our studio any time throughout the process. We know that affirming family members and friends might enjoy watching the transformation of your garment as much as you do!
Getting the perfect fit in your garment is our specialty! It all comes down to measurements, fitting, and skill. During our first fitting, we’ll take detailed measurements and use those to make custom patterns for your dress or suit. Later, when you come in for a mock-up fitting, we’ll have you try on the garment in muslin, and make further adjustments to the fit. Communication is vital to getting the fit right: if something feels off, we need you to tell us. We’ve adjusted sleeves and hems as little as one centimeter in the past, and that small change has made a huge difference to the client.
Absolutely not. We love working with squishy bodies and embrace your curves.
Absolutely not. We can design your fit with any supportive undergarments you choose in mind.

Timeline

It takes a minimum of six months to make a wedding dress or suit from scratch. That time includes fabric sourcing, pattern making, mocking-up, fittings, and finishing.

Ideally, you’d contact us to make your custom wedding garment one year before your wedding, though we need six months minimum to construct your look. This allows us plenty of time to design, source, and construct your garment so that you can see it mostly finished three months after you first come in. This goes a long way to prevent unnecessary stress!

We need a minimum of six months to create a fully custom look for your wedding. Unfortunately, we cannot accept clients with less than that timeline, regardless of whether they’re willing to pay more or not.

The Process

We’ll help you choose the fabric and other materials for your outfit. It’s easy to narrow down choices based on the colors, season, and style you’re interested in. Some of the most popular wedding dress fabrics are satin, charmeuse, tulle, and lace. Some of the most popular suiting fabrics are wool, linen, tweed, and velvet.
Yes! We don’t believe in “shoulds” around here. Let us know what color you like, and we’ll source a fabric for you.
Absolutely, you may change your mind about a design. This is why we have fittings, so that you can see the sketches brought to life and get a better idea of what your wedding outfit will look like when it’s done. While we may be able to accommodate small changes within your original price quote, more significant changes may incur an additional fee. We’ll have you approve the new price before completing the work.

Totally! Please provide photos of the dress before your video call, and bring it to your first appointment. If there is any fabric left over after the new garment is constructed, we will return it to you. Learn more about our Heirloom Redesign service.

That’s alright, we can help you discover a design style you like. The design process starts with a call, when we can discuss likes/dislikes, inspiration, themes, fit, travel, and costs. Then at our first fitting, we’ll take your measurements and continue getting to know each other. We can show you popular styles based on your preferences, and do some sketching from there.
We’ll do our best to find the specific fabric that you want, but it may take longer, and in some cases may not be possible. There are no guarantees. If we cannot find your fabric, we’ll offer you a suitable alternative.

Pricing

The Cost

Custom wedding suits and dresses can cost anywhere from $2,000 – $5,000, depending on the complexity of the design, fabric costs, and other factors. You can view our current starting prices on our Services page, and get a more specific quote for your design by getting in touch with us.
Sometimes custom wedding attire can be cheaper than buying an off-the-rack dress or suit, and sometimes it isn’t. Make sure you account for the cost of the ready-made garment and alterations when you compare pricing.
Yes, we do offer payment plans. We require a $750 retainer to book with us. All final balances are due by the final fitting. Please ask about payment plans when you inquire with us.
Our initial retainer is non-refundable. Fabric costs are also non-refundable. However, if we get to the middle of your project and you’d like to cancel, you may do so and avoid paying the remaining balance. Projects that are completed, however, are completely non-refundable due to the custom nature of our work.