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Bespoke Womenswear

The Tailored Dress.

A structured dress made from your pattern — for occasions that call for elegance without complexity.

The tailored dress is one of the simplest and most effective formal garments. A well-made sheath dress or shift dress in a quality fabric — fitted properly to the body through the shoulder, bust, waist and hip — is appropriate across a wide range of formal and professional occasions. It requires less maintenance than a suit in the morning, photographs cleanly, and looks correct in contexts from a morning meeting to an evening event. At The Black Lapel, we make tailored dresses in a range of styles and cloths, from professional wool crepe to formal silk.

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Styles — sheath, shift and structured

The sheath dress is fitted — close to the body through the waist and hip, with a hem at or below the knee. It is the most formal of the tailored dress styles and the most demanding in terms of fit. A bespoke sheath dress, properly fitted, is one of the most elegant garments available for a professional woman at a formal occasion.

The shift dress is a straighter silhouette — less fitted through the body, falling cleanly from the shoulder without waist definition. It is cooler, more relaxed in feel, and appropriate for a broad range of occasions. In a good wool crepe or a fine cotton, a shift dress is a practical and elegant wardrobe piece.

In cloth, a mid-weight wool crepe is the most professional and versatile choice. Silk or a silk-wool blend lifts the occasion. For formal events, a structured faille or a duchess satin creates a garment that reads unmistakably as evening or occasion wear.

Commission your garment.

Visit us at 4 Sardar Patel Road, Adyar, Chennai — Mon–Sat, 11am–9pm. First consultation free.

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