Life & Work with Sarah Gorski

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sarah Gorski. 

Sarah, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I started Bespoke Bridal in late 2016. I make handmade bridal accessories. In my previous life, I came to Los Angeles to work in sales and distribution for film and television. Burnt out and exhausted after nearly a decade of that — it just wasn’t for me — I decided to return to my lifelong interest in fashion and embrace the pure joy of making things with my hands. 

By the time I started Bespoke, I’d made a handful of pieces for my friends’ weddings (and my own), so I started an online shop, signed up for a few bridal shows, and got to work. I didn’t have the foresight to actually go to fashion school, so I spent the first couple years working on my technique, finding my personal style as a designer, and navigating the ins and outs of starting a small business. My business slowly grew online and through word of mouth. 

Today, I have my pieces in stores around the world and I ship thousands of handmade veils and accessories a year. While most pieces are my own design, I also make custom pieces and sometimes join brides at fittings, dress appointments, or at home to come up with their signature accessory. I really love it. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The pandemic hit hard. Being a bridal business, with so many wedding cancellations and postponements, orders slowed to just a handful every month. It was a financial challenge as well as a mental challenge. There were a few months in 2020 that I thought I’d have to throw in the towel. My husband (forever my cheerleader, bless him) encouraged me to stick with it, so I put my head down and spent the sudden extra free time working on new designs, improving my technique, and giving my marketing plan an overhaul. By the time weddings started up again in full force, I was ready with a whole new line of product and marketing. 

I joke that my main obstacle is that even with excellent customer service and total customer satisfaction, given the nature of my business, I don’t have many repeat customers. (Ideally!) I rely on SEO and great word of mouth from previous clients. 

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I make bridal accessories of all kinds including veils, belts, and jewelry, but I’m best known for my hair accessories. All are made by hand, and most are made with wire and an assortment of components like pearls, beads, rhinestones, and crystals. I love working with pearls. They’re beautiful and timeless. My most popular pieces all feature some sort of cluster of pearls. 

Recently I started working with polymer clay flowers and they are my current favorite component to work into styles. The finish is velvety soft and smooth, they look luxurious like a ceramic, but they’re also lightweight and easy to wear. I’ve been putting them on crowns, earrings, hair pins, hair slides… anywhere I can. I’m obsessed. 

I’m always most proud of the most recent thing I’ve made. That’s the best part about working in creative arts! There’s always space to grow. 

I started my business just a year after I got married, and when I was looking for accessories for myself, I felt like it was impossible to find something that felt like me. Now a big part of my business is offering custom pieces, and that’s my favorite work. A lot of brides have an image in their head of what they’ll look like when they get married, and it’s a joy to work with them to bring that vision to life. It makes me a better designer too. 

Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
Business aside, it was really beautiful to see so many couples get married in the past couple years. Plans changed, and couples rolled with it and were excited to just get married and start their lives together. Weddings started changing for the better as couples prioritized what meant the most to them. Ultimately it didn’t matter exactly how the wedding happened, it just mattered that they loved each other. 

Pricing:

• prices range from $10-$500
• custom pricing available upon request

Contact Info:

• Website: http://bespokebridalshop.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bespokebridalshop/
• Facebook: https://facebook.com/bespokebridalshop

Image Credits
Sarah Gorski