The British couturier talks dresses, royalty and Miley Cyrus
My day normally starts with my bichon frisé Beau waking me up around 7am. After a cup of builder’s and a Rich Tea or two – courtesy of my husband, Rice – I leave home in Wandsworth, wearing Ralph Lauren or something equally clean and simple in cut, and head to the studio in Fulham. It’s about a 10-minute drive in my Mini and it gives me the chance to Shazam some songs to add to my playlist at work.
I love making lists, so that’s the first port of call once I get in, before meetings with my PA or production manager. Every other Tuesday, I hold a company meeting where we discuss what’s going on. Sometimes I play music to get everyone motivated – this week it was The Climb by Miley Cyrus. The rest of the morning is spent with the 15-strong design team at the studio or I’ll play around with ideas for future designs in the office. I’ll have a quick lunch of leaves and avocado off a piece of paper – it’s a rushed affair so I don’t have time to find a plate – and then head over to the shop in Chelsea.
If it’s a Monday, I’ll take in the flapjacks I made on Sunday, as a personal touch. Sometimes people ask why I’ve not expanded across the world, and I think it’s because of those little details. We’re all about being personal and maintaining the highest quality, so what we promise the bride is what she gets. Fittings usually last about an hour and a half, and the clients have around seven or eight of them. I’m not too hands-on once the bride has ordered, unless it’s what I like to call an ‘à la carte’ dress, in which case there needs to be a bit more involvement. If it’s off the shop floor, then I know I can trust my team – they’re all massively OCD like me and mainly fashion trained, so I know everything will be fine.
Having been in the business for over 25 years, I do try to stick to normal working hours, so the day ends at around 6.30pm, unless we’re working on a particularly demanding commission. Sometimes I cook, sometimes my husband comes home with a bag of goodies from M&S. Now and again, we head out, usually to our local Brinkley’s, which does really fresh, simple food – just the way I like it.
My two children Rouge, 12, and Bb, 16, are both at boarding school, so Rice and I spend the evenings relaxing and watching television. I like to watch real things about real people: we’ve got the BBC’s Reinventing the Royals on the must-watch list. I’m absolutely obsessed with Instagram too, so I have a scroll through that before bedtime at 10.30pm. If I do go out, I always wear dresses I’ve made myself. I’m at a 1920s ball this weekend, actually, and the gown is nearly finished. Nearly.
I’d still love to… design for a royal bride. I got a real insight into what it would be like when I was tipped to design Kate Middleton’s. We had the press rummaging in our bins for weeks on the off-chance they’d find the design. It was crazy.
Phillipa's Fitting Tips
Be yourself - turn up looking as you would on any normal day of the week.Hair is probably the biggest factor with this.
Be open minded - try not to goin with any preconceptions as you may be surprised how your opinion changes when you start trying things on.
Come by yourself - there's nothing worse than mothers and friends making all of the decisions for you.
This article was first published in Square Meal Weddings, 2015