COMING FALL 2026

conversations with daci

Your Personal Designer

When You Need Design or Sewing Expertise

One-on-one virtual sessions for your

creative project

You can find endless sewing tutorials online. What you will find here is someone who can look at your creative sewing project, guide you and answer your questions when you are unsure how to move forward. Someone to give you the confidence to start - or to keep going.

“I have considered creating videos to teach wedding dressmaking, but I realized that what is needed goes beyond another tutorial. It is the personal conversation—the ability to see what someone is actually working on, a designer’s eye, someone to help you problem-solve or troubleshoot your particular project.

You can find tutorials for almost anything online, but even after watching a video for an advanced technique, you may still be left wondering how it applies to your particular dress or project. That personal conversation is what I want to offer.”

who are those sessions for?

  • Brides who want to create their own wedding dress from scratch or restyle an heirloom dress, but don’t know where to start - or are not sure they can actually do it.

  • Seamstresses who want to start creating wedding gowns or they want take their sewing and construction skills at a higher level.

  • Aspiring Designers who need someone with experience to translate their sketch into a real garment or want to learn design techniques.

  • Anyone who wants to start a creative sewing project or is stuck somewhere in the middle and need someone to answer their questions.

Are you dreaming of creating your own wedding dress? Do you need guidance through a creative sewing project?

There are wonderful tutorials online, YouTube videos available, but sometimes what you really need is someone with design and sewing experience to answer your questions. Someone to look at your project and say:

  • “Here is how I would approach this.”

  • “These are the steps I would take.”

  • “After talking to you, I know you can absolutely do this”

“Creating your own gown is an incredible accomplishment. It is not just an easy sewing project. Maybe you are making it for yourself, or perhaps you’re a mom, sister, friend, or family member making a gown for someone you love. There will be things to figure out, moments when you question yourself, and probably a few things that don’t turn out exactly as planned. That’s part of creating something by hand.

The first wedding gown I created looked and fit perfectly but some of the stitches and finishes were not. I was the only one who noticed those imperfections. Everyone else saw a beautiful dress and beautiful bride.

My goal is to give you the guidance and confidence to start and enjoy the process, work through the challenges and see your own vision come to life.”

What can we work on?

  • Turning ideas into a workable design

  • Translating a sketch into a dress

  • Planning your project from start to finish

  • Choosing and sourcing fabrics, lace or trims, including trusting places to find them

  • Working with expensive fabrics

  • Pattern recommandations + modifications

  • Understanding construction

  • Fit and design questions

  • sewing techniques and finishing details

  • Problem-solving when you are unsure how to move forward

  • Reviewing progress + planning your next steps

  • Answering specific sewing questions about your project

No rigid curriculum. One of a kind projects.

PRICING

  • Designer Consultation - 60 minutes FaceTime - $195

    For working through a specific project, answering questions, making design decisions, or creating a clear plan for what to do next.

  • Creative Intensive - 90 minutes FaceTime - $275

    For bigger projects or when you need more time to develop a design, create a step-by-step plan, troubleshot several areas, or work through a project in depth.

  • Quick Help - 30 minutes FaceTime - $125

    For a few specific questions, a quick second opinion or help getting past one particular problem.

  • Quick Help - E-mail guidance - $100

    Have one or two specific questions about your project but don’t want a FaceTime session? This is a simple way to get personal guidance from me without scheduling a call.

    For returning customers who already booked a

    “Designer Consultation” or “Creative Intensive” sessions we offer:

  • Follow-Up session - 60 minutes - $165

    For continuing a project we have already discussed, reviewing your progress, answering new questions or the next steps.

  • “Just a Couple More Questions” - 30 minutes - $95

    For returning clients who only need a little guidance, reassurance or help with specific questions.


HOW IT WORKS

  • Start by clicking “Book Your Session.”
    You will fill out a short form telling me about your project, where you are in the process, and what you would like help with. This gives me a first look at what you’re creating and what you’re hoping to accomplish.

  • I’ll review your request and get back to you personally. We will talk about your project and determine which session will be the best fit for what you need. I will also let you know what information or photos I would like to see before we meet.

Once we’ve decided on the right session, you will receive the details to book and pay online. We will then arrange a time to connect one-on-one over FaceTime.

Why FaceTime?

Some things are simply easier to understand when we can look at them together in real time. During our FaceTime session, you can show me your dress, pattern, fabric, or construction as you’re working on it, and I can guide you through what I see and what I would do next. We can talk, look, adjust, and problem-solve together rather than going back and forth through a long series of photos and videos.

You may send a few photos or other information beforehand so I can understand your project, but the real value is being able to work through it together, virtually hands-on.

  • Just have a couple of simple questions?

If you have two specific questions that don’t require a more involved discussion or troubleshooting, you can choose “A Couple of Questions” and send them to me by email. I’ll personally review them and respond with guidance specific to your project.

Book your session

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

answered by Daci

  • Do I need to be an experienced seamstress?

You don’t have to be an experienced seamstress, but you need to know how to use your sewing machine, serger, sew a zipper, understand a pattern, be familiar with fabrics, have a designated area or place to sew, etc. When I designed and created my first wedding dress in 1996, I didn’t call myself an experienced seamstress. I knew the basics of sewing, patterns and I could visualize the proportions. Looking back I can say that I had some courage to start on a wedding dress without a mentor. The wedding dress looked and fit the bride perfectly. But the stitches and the “behind the seams” process was far from being perfect. Took me a few years to perfect that.

  • What if I don’t know which session I need?

Tell me about your project and what you’re hoping to accomplish in the contact form. I will help determine which session would be best for you.

  • What can I bring to our FaceTime session?

Bring whatever helps explain your project—sketches, inspiration photos, patterns, fabric, measurements, photos of your progress, or simply your questions. You don’t need to have everything figured out beforehand.

  • Can you help me with a plan to design a wedding dress from scratch?

Yes, I would love to do that! We can start with an idea, sketch, inspiration, or even just a feeling of what you want your dress to be. We can work through the design and create a plan for making it.

  • Can you help me alter or remake an existing or heirloom dress?

Yes! We can look at what you have, discuss what you’d like to change, talk through what is realistically possible and come up with a plan.

  • Can you help me find fabric and other materials?

Yes, I can help you determine what materials would work for your design and point you toward places to source fabrics, lace, trims, and other specialty materials.

  • What if I have only one or two questions?

That’s exactly why I offer the “Quick Help” FaceTime and E-mail sessions. You don’t need to have a big project or fill an entire hour. Sometimes one good answer is all you need to move forward.

  • What if I start my gown and realize I can’t finish it?

If you contacted me before starting your gown we will go over everything and we will discuss a plan B. There are times when for whatever reason you cannot complete your project and there is an important deadline coming up. Before you start your project I always recommend you get in touch with a local seamstress, or someone else who knows how to sew and could possibly take over your project if needed. If your project is something I can take over, you can send the partially completed gown to me. I will assess where things are, discuss what needs to be done, and let you know what I recommend before any work begins.

  • Can you help with fitting?

Yes. We can discuss fit concerns and, when possible, use photos, measurements, and video to work through adjustments and possible solutions.

  • Is this a sewing class?

No. There is no set curriculum or lesson plan. These are one-on-one conversations focused on your project, your questions and what you need at that moment.

  • Do you only help with wedding dresses?

For the most part yes! Wedding dresses are a natural part of what I do, but I’m happy to answer questions and work with other meaningful or creative garments as well—gowns, special occasion pieces, costumes, heirloom transformations and other creative sewing projects.

  • Do you only offer virtual sessions or in person sessions as well?

For the time being the sessions are completely virtual or over e-mail. You can work with me from wherever you are.