UNKNOW

Vlasta Collu

Vlasta Collu is a bespoke designer from Slovakia. She took a course at London College of Fashion but she mainly learnt her talent from her family growing up. Vlasta is trained in photography and has degrees in other things like mathematics.

Vlasta is a bridal designer but also makes couture evening dresses, hats, bridal head wear and shoe clips.

Vlasta has been designing since 2003. She hasn’t been working for very long but she has become very popular in that short time. Vlasta has had a few different studios while designing. Her current studio is located at The Marlborough Centre, 96 George lane, South Woodford, London E18 1AD. She has been there for 5 years.
Vlasta rents out two suites in the Marlborough centre. One of these is her Boutique where she keeps her bridal dresses and where customers go and the other is her workshop where the magic happens.

When I first went in to Vlasta’s boutique I was struck by its beauty. All the stools, seats and curtains are the same fabric, which she made herself. Everything is the same colour, everything is clean and tidy and it is beautifully lit, so after seeing her beautiful boutique, I thought her workshop would be a mess. I couldn’t’ve been more wrong. It was clean and everything was in its place and very organized. What I really loved about her workshop was the inspirational sayings over her walls which was a nice touch.
I also noted all her furniture was from Ikea!

I think one of the best things I learnt about Vlasta is that she believes in psychic readings and has one every other day. She plays very close attention to the reading, which I find fascinating.

I learnt she has a partner called Corrine that helps run one part of her business. After she has finished at this other job she goes to the workshop and helps Vlasta create dresses. This is amazing considering that Vlasta only taught Corrine how to make dresses a year go.
I think Vlasta must be an amazing teacher she is got Corrine up and running in only a year.

Vlasta is completely her own boss and even through she does have a business partner, Vlasta pretty much runs everything herself.

As part of her business is designing bridal wear, she does made to measure orders where a customer picks out a dress from her samples and edits it to fit the bride perfectly. She also does bespoke wedding dresses and evening dresses where after talking to the customer and getting some ideas, she designs them something beautiful to wear. She also makes bridal head pieces and shoes clips. She makes bridesmaid’s dresses as well as mother of the bride dresses. Vlasta has several stockists in European countries such as Denmark and is now expanding into America. She does all this from her one shop in London.

Her latest project is for ‘WOW’ or World of Wearable Art, which takes place in Wellington, New Zealand. From what she has told me, she is making a beautiful 50’s dress which will be made out of silk with a net overlay with hundreds of handmade flowers that will spiral outwards from the dress’ heart. When I asked her about other features of the dress, she grew secretive and only mentioned that colour-changing technology will be involved.

Finally, I wish her the best of luck and I’m sure we will be seeing her all over the magazines one day.