Bespoke Bridal Lehenga: Bespoke vs Made to Measure vs Ready-Made, Explained

Shopping for a bridal lehenga comes with a vocabulary: bespoke, couture, made to measure, customised, ready-made, semi-stitched. Different shops use the words differently, which makes it hard to compare. Here is what each one usually means, so you know what you're being offered and can choose the one that suits you.

The five terms

Ready-made (off the rack)

A finished lehenga in standard sizes. You try it on, and it may be altered to fit. Fastest; you see exactly what you're getting; least personal.

Semi-stitched

The embroidery is done, but the skirt and blouse are left open so a tailor can stitch them to your size. Common online. The fit depends on your tailor.

Made to measure

An existing design, cut and stitched to your own measurements instead of a standard size. You may be able to change small details like sleeves or neckline. Read our made-to-measure bridal lehenga guide.

Customised

An existing design changed for you: a different colour, more or less embroidery, a new blouse, a different dupatta, as well as being made to your measurements. See what you can change on a bridal lehenga.

Bespoke

Designed from a blank page, for you alone. You and a designer decide the silhouette, the fabric, the colour, the embroidery, the blouse and the dupatta together, and the piece is made to your measurements. The most personal, and the one that takes the longest.

What about couture?

Strictly, couture means handmade, made-to-order fashion of the highest craftsmanship. In Indian bridal wear, "couture" is used more loosely, often for any premium designer label. If a lehenga is described as couture, ask what it means in practice: who designs it, who embroiders it, and whether it is made to your measurements.

Side by side

• Your measurements? Ready-made: no, altered after. Made to measure, customised and bespoke: yes.

• Your design? Ready-made and made to measure: mostly not. Customised: partly. Bespoke: completely.

• Time? Ready-made: days. Customised and bespoke: weeks, depending on the handwork. At House of Daisy a customised piece takes about eight weeks from design approval.

• Price known when? Ready-made: on the tag. Customised and bespoke: once the design is agreed.

Which one is right for you?

• Choose ready-made if your wedding is soon, you've found a lehenga you love, or you want to see the finished piece before you pay.

• Choose made to measure or customised if you love a design but want it to fit perfectly, or want to change a few things.

• Choose bespoke if you have a clear vision, want something no one else has, or want to include something personal like your mother's saree or your names on the dupatta.

Questions to ask before you choose

1. Who designs it, and will I see a sketch?

2. Who makes it, and is the embroidery by hand?

3. How are my measurements taken and checked?

4. When will I know the price, and when do I pay?

5. Will I see the work in progress, and when is the fitting?

How it works at House of Daisy

We offer all of them. Our showroom on Golf Course Road has ready lehengas you can try today, and our designers make customised and bespoke pieces with you, made by our own karigars, in the same atelier as the designer label Bhumika Sehgal. You see the sketch and the price before anything is cut, your measurements are checked with you on a short video call, and you get photographs at every stage. Start with our guide to designing your own bridal lehenga.