I trusted the recommendation from my bridal shop (Gilded Bridal) in Raleigh to take my dress to Cordella Bridal, and I would not have had it any other way. My dress is stunning, and they ensured it was perfect for me on my special day. Even thinking about this is getting me emotional, of course! I worked with George a few times and Marie mostly, and absolutely loved them. Marie is something else and will guarantee you laughter. She is professional in her own way, while providing her kindness and expertise. She is outgoing, outspoken, loud and fun - just like me. Wink wink. She is real, and tells it how it should be told, something I appreciate so much in people. She is in this profession for a reason and knows exactly what she is doing. From the first fitting, everything was flawless. My dress was not simple - beads, plenty of lace, and more detail, and yet it was absolutely perfectly altered. The alterations were not cheap, but this was our wedding day, our special day, and working with Marie and George to perfect my beautiful dress, was the absolute best choice. This is a one time thing and I just had a feeling seeing Marie would be the best option, and so we went with it, and you should to! I highly recommend working with Marie and her team to ensure your wedding dress is as perfect as it could be, just like mine. Thank you so much for making my dress so beautiful, and just right for me! read more

Apparently I am the exception, because I had an indescribably terrible experience with my wedding dress alterations. At first, everything was great. The dress looked good, and it looked good for my wedding ceremony despite the issues we had. During my alteration process, I found a hole in my dress, after I had already paid. Luckily, it was underneath and couldn't be seen. Marie said she was going to partially refund my payment, and fired the person who cut the lining out of my dress, assuming they were at fault. She even told me the girl had been reprimanded for chatting too much and that she had not been properly focusing on her work. I never saw a refund. My dress was also a wrinkled mess in my portrait. She claimed to have been pressing my dress for hours when I arrived to pick it up, but it looked horrible. I've posted a photo of the dress when she pressed it, and when Traditions by Anna pressed it because I was so displeased, and there is a huge difference. Then, at the wedding my bustle broke (one loop she sewed completely fell out, and one hook is hanging by a thread) after less than 30 minutes being bustled. I had a very heavy fabric, and the workmanship was just inferior. It shouldn't have fallen apart- I didn't sit down and was never stepped on. It was not busted long enough to have a chance for anyone to step on it! I spent all night with safety pins in my 5,000 dollar wedding dress, and missed so many special moments because I was being repinned constantly. The loop was a thin thread, no wonder it didn't hold the thick satin fabric. After the honeymoon I called her to express my displeasure. After being promised a phone call back multiple times, and not hearing from her, we finally spoke. She set up a time to call, 4:00, and called. At 4:08 she started telling me she had an appointment. She didn't event set aside a time to speak with me, and rushed me off the phone. While on the phone, she offered me the cost of 1 bustle point as a refund, 30 dollars, and refused to take any responsibly or show any remorse. She was extremely defensive and said once the dress leaves she is not responsible for it. Although she isn't responsible for mishaps, she is responsible to do the job, and do it right. She should have the decency to be invested in her customers happiness, and if she isn't, and isn't willing to stand by her work, she does NOT need to be near anyone's wedding gown. She was outright rude and sarcastic, and began lying about events leading up to this. She said she gave me a refund, and that she had discounted my alterations, however I paid well before she promised me a refund, so she did nothing after the hole incident and claimed that her already discounted price was my refund. Then, she blamed the hole on the manufacturer. I inspected the dress before my portrait the first week in April, and it was fine, then the hole was found on Easter. She claimed it was sent to us that way, but she fired a girl over it? That doesn't make sense. She also claimed my alterations should have been 750, and she charged me 400. She quoted 500, and discounted to 400. I NEVER heard 750, until today when we spoke. Everything about this process was an ordeal. I am very displeased with Marie. She doesn't stand beind her work, so I highly advise NOT using her services. read more

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I am now a second time customer of Marie's and am still incredibly impressed by her! Most recently she altered a silk bridesmaid's dress for me. She took an okay-looking dress and made it into a stunning one! It was a very delicate material and so I was worried about how it would alter, but the end result was great! The seams that she re-sewed honestly look better than the original construction of the dress. I got many compliments on the dress at the wedding, and people that saw the before/after transformation were truly impressed. Marie is a true professional (with incredible talent!) and I will be going to her for all of my alteration / dress design needs from here on out. I think it is the fact that she is a real artist + talented seamstress, as opposed to someone that is just a seamstress. read more

Cordella Bridal - My perfectly tailored bridesmaid dress! - Bespoke Clothing Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

GURRRLLL LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT MARIE!! She is quick, professional, and knows her stuff! She was so easy to work with, and makes time for you and your family/guests. She was so sweet to answer any of my questions and was wonderful with her recommendations. I have two dresses being done by her.... and my first one was BANGIN!! I will be coming back to her for my second dress (elopement dress) and for any future alterations I may need. She and her team are the best of the best and make you feel the best about yourself. And I think that's what matters the most for your wedding day. Thank you ladies and see you soon!!!! read more

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Absolutely amazing experience! Marie, George, and Waverly provided incredible service and made me feel like my dress was in the safest hands possible. Marie's superior level of expertise is apparent in the way she works. She is truly talented and produced the most flattering dress I could imagine. I couldn't be any happier. I love them all! I will be recommending them to everyone I know. read more

I loved working with Marie from beginning to end! I contacted her initially to see if "she could make anything cool out of my moms wedding dress" and immediately she was up for the challenge! I looked forward to each session and she always respected my ideas while providing her own expertise! I ended up wearing the dress to my rehearsal dinner and got compliments all night long. Not to mention how special I felt, knowing my mom wore it over 30 years ago!! Thanks Marie! read more

Cordella Bridal - My moms wedding dress and now my rehearsal dinner dress! - Bespoke Clothing Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

I absolutely loved working with Marie! She took my dress and turned it into a million bucks! Her level of commitment to multiple fittings and attention to even the tiniest details really made it look like my dress had to been sewn to my body. She also made my birdcage veil which I could not have been more pleased with! I dragged my dress all over downtown Raleigh prior to the ceremony and it still looked great by the time I walked down the isle. read more

Very disappointed. Appointments are rushed, I did not feel listened to, and I was not able to try the dress on at pick up. My dress was literally falling off of me 2 days before my wedding. I had to have an emergency fitting with someone else, and they ended up fixing multiple different areas on the dress. They were honestly appalled with the work that was done/not done. They charged me a fraction of the price that I was charged by Marie, and they did significantly more work. When I tried to express my concern through emails, she was rude and condescending. She told me the dress did not fit due to significant weight loss...I did not lose weight or body mass between the week of picking up and trying it on. Her recommendation was to "put fashion tape literally all around the back and neckline" in order to keep my dress up. She has also posted false and hurtful things about me on her twitter and Facebook using my full name. This is my honest review and recommendation from one bride to another. read more

Marie and her assistants were AMAZING! I took her my dress and told her exactly what I wanted and she done that for me, I was so happy with my dress on my wedding day. It was absolutely perfect. I wanted a low cut back in my dress and she also added beautiful delicate lace straps to it as well. She made the dress fit me perfectly. I definitely will be sending more brides to her!! read more

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Marie completed my dress and it looked nice. The process was awful for me. From my experience, she is unprofessional, defensive, and unorganized. I dreaded each fitting, but I had already been overcharged and I had signed a contract. I tried to temper her moods and keep my mouth shut, so that she would not destroy my dress. read more

I have worked with Marie side by side for many years!! She is talented, passionate and dedicated to her work as well as her clients! Marie is a true visionary and can make any dream a reality...whether you're seeking a custom dress, a redesign or wanting your dress to fit you perfectly she can make it happen! Her lace work is impeccable-she pays close attention to all the details! Working with her has been inspiring and you definitely can count on Marie to deliver a piece of work that is of immeasurable quality. I highly recommend Marie Cordella! read more

I feel like I'm being generous with two stars, earned only because I liked Marie and Cali earlier on in the process of altering my wedding dress. They're both fun to work with and made my guests feel welcome. I would never, however, recommend them to others because of the unprofessionalism and lack of communication. 1. I had what I thought would be my final fitting scheduled for the Wednesday before the wedding at 6:30. I scheduled my hair/makeup trial around it, made sure I had my final jewelry choices ready, and had my sister with me so she could learn the bustle. I got a call at 5:45 and was asked to reschedule for the following morning because Marie wasn't back in town yet and she wanted to have the final ok before I left with my dress. I understood and appreciated the pride Marie took in her work, but I asked if I could still come in and try on the dress, since I had planned my day around it (and my sister/MOH was with me for the bustle). I was put on hold, only to be told that there would be no point in coming in because there hadn't been many changes to my dress since my last visit and the bustle was not done. I was totally shocked that they waited until 45 minutes before my appointment to let me know (on the Wed before the wedding), especially since the dress was not at all ready. 2. I came in for the fitting the following morning and to be completely fair, Marie had a family emergency and had to leave town for 2 days or so. They also offered a discount on the services, which I thought was completely appropriate. I was incredibly disappointed to see that the dress appeared to be in the same state as my last fitting, except maybe one or two things; the hem was still nowhere near finished (and they had definitely measured it at each fitting) and of course the bustle wasn't done. I was promised that it was very easy and "anyone can do it." I was SO disappointed that the dress was still so unfinished on the Thurs before my wedding, but I tried to be understanding of the situation. They promised it would be ready ANYTIME the next morning, so we agreed on a 10am pick-up time. 3. My fiance goes in on Friday morning, the morning before our wedding with tons of family/friends in town, only to find that the dress is still not finished. How in the world did no one think to pick up the phone to prevent this huge inconvenience?! He apparently agreed to come back later in the afternoon (despite the day's activities) but my bridesmaids were so angry that they called during my bridesmaids luncheon and asked the dress to be delivered to the venue during the rehearsal (which again, to be fair, they did)... so I did not have my wedding dress until Friday late afternoon before my wedding. 4. The bustle was not easy. I don't know if my dress was more complicated or what, but none of my VERY intelligent bridesmaids could figure out how to do it. It required a panicked / last minute phone call to their office to ask for guidance... this could've been avoided if it were actually done before one of my final fittings. I actually felt constantly disappointed at each fitting to see how little had been done on my dress since my last fitting. The lack of easy communication when it mattered most (at least twice in the final days leading up to the wedding) and lack of professionalism (dress not being anywhere near ready each time) were incredibly disappointing to me. My parents own a small business and I've learned the commitment it takes to "get the job done"- I did not see it here. I really try to give people and businesses the benefit of the doubt, but my experience with them was so stressful, I would never recommend them to other brides. read more

I searched high and low to find information on how I could transform my wedding gown into a cocktail dress. A lot of people told me it couldn't be done, it couldn't take the dye, etc etc. Then I found Marie Cordella, and she worked with me to make it possible. She helped me understand which colors it could take (with my fabric, it would never go black, but with painstaking effort and multiple dye jobs, it could go grey). She drew multiple sketches and gave me options, which were works of art on their own. She was thoughtful enough to save some of the bottom of the white gown in case I ever wanted it for a Christening Gown. She's more than just a Master of Alterations, she's a great Designer as well. She thought through what changes needed to be made to the design (removing some of the beading, replacing it with another kind, etc) in order to not make it look like a chopped up wedding gown. So many people told me it couldn't be done. Marie told me, it could be done, but only by someone like her who knew what they were doing. I absolutely recommend Marie Cordella Design. Even following her on instagram is fun to see the incredible lace she is hand crafting or the new set up of her studio. Here's a blog post about the transformation: http://www.unitedwithlove.com/2012/09/06/how-to-repurpose-your-wedding-dress/#/ read more

marie's super easy to work with and so open to my ideas when updating a wwll era trench coat. totally delivered. the fit is exceptional! read more

Cordella Bridal - marie is awesome! i have a WWll era trench coat and wanted to give it a fresh look. best coat ever. thanks marie!! - Bespoke Clothing Near Me - Raleigh, North Carolina

You would think a guy would not review a bridal design shop, but I had two coats that were customized by her in an incredible way. A formal dark jacket with an embossed lion head design on the back had lost its detail at the seam and she repaired the felt by hand, customized the fit, and adding the final touch to perfect its look by traveling twenty miles to find just the right buttons to make it unique and distinctive. The second coat was a imported European three quarter cut in a great fabric, but ugly as a sack. She completely cut the coat apart, custom redesigned the panels, assembled it to match my fit, and again did magic with some military style buttons in a pressed metal that finished the alteration to a perfect conclusion. I was very pleased with the result and ended up with two coats that create a sensation whenever I wear them and fit me to a "T". Very pleased with my experience and the results. Gregor O. read more

Marie took my relatively inexpensive dress to an entirely new level with my perfect alterations, little dress tweaks, and seameless bustle. I was searching for someone to do alterations on my dress--I figured a hem and maybe fitting the bodice a little more to my body. I thought I was going to hem it to remove the train but luckily, Marie and all of her dress magic exist, and instead my dress shaped into something even better than I could have imagined. Marie does a lot of custom dresses and designs. I think this gives her a huge edge in that she completely understands womens' bodies. After a consultation, we outlined what to change with the dress and discussed number of visits and price. My alternations price was a touch more than I was originally expecting before I came to Marie, but honestly was worth every penny I paid. We had four fittings and a dress pick up. Everything went perfectly. At each of my fittings, Marie went through the things she was going to tweak and gave me solid advice on what she thought would look best. She was always so gentle, saying that "this is what I recommend but I want you to be happy so if it's not right, we'll fix it." She was spot on about my train, which we ended up doing a practically invisible bustle with four hooks that allowed me to waltz and dance all night while still having a sweep train for my ceremony/photos. I bought a strapless dress and had anticipated that I would have to add straps on because I'm pretty "gifted" in the bust. Marie asked me to give her the chance to alter the dress while leaving it strapless, and if I wasn't happy she'd add on straps so I could wear a regular bra. What she ended up doing was a lot of little things to increase the support of the bodice and this was PERFECT when paired with $20 backless, strapless bra from amazon (Marie's suggestion). Never would I have dreamed I would have been so comfortable in a strapless as a DD. Though I'm pretty sure at this point, Marie can do anything. She is top-notch at what she does and was super accommodating to all of the changes I wanted. She pressed my dress for me and after sitting in a garment bag during the drive up to Boston, it came out *perfectly.* I cannot recommend Marie highly enough. She is so fun, so talented, and I will forever be grateful to her transformation of my wedding dress from beautiful to absolutely perfect! read more

I had a dress taken in for a wedding this month and Marie took it to another level! My dress is gorgeous and her studio was so clean and unique! Would definitely recommend:) read more

This lady...she's a gem! I can honestly call her a friend. I came to Marie over a YEAR ago with my mother's 1980's wedding dress asking if she could make my wedding dress out of hers. And boy did she deliver! I simply showed her some inspiration photos, and the year that we worked together the dress evolved into something even more than I could ever hope or dream. And anytime I had a midnight thought or change she was totally open to tweaks and changes. That's how the over-skirt was born in fact! And when Marie offered to come to the venue the day of my wedding and dress me - my heart just burst!! I'm sad actually that I'm not going to be headed to her studio to play dress up anymore :( I'll just have to find another dress for her to make!! She truly is a a talent and an artist. read more

Marie is nothing short of AMAZING, she made my wedding dress everything i wanted it to be and more--the amount of time and care she gave was just so wonderful and much appreciated! I had a certain look for the straps i wanted added to my dress but couldn't vocalize it well (and lets face it i CANNOT DRAW) but she found exactly what I wanted to make things perfect. I highly recommend her and so thrilled she's moved into downtown! She is so fun and very good at her job, I immediately trusted and respected her judgement a huge thank you!! read more

I had a wonderful experience working with Marie. When I bought my dress at traditions it looked very different than how it looked on my wedding day. I always envisioned an all lace dress with a low back, and my dress consultant assured me Marie could do it. Marie saw my vision from the start and was always honest about what would work and what wouldn't. She completely reworked all the lace on the top part of my dress to give me the low back and cap sleeves. It was a great experience and I absolutely loved the final product. I would highly recommend her, especially for lace work! read more

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A big thank you to Marie Cordella Design for sharing their amazing expertise and tailoring the wedding dress of my dreams! As purchased, my wedding dress was pretty, but Marie and Cali really made it come alive! The dress fit my every curve perfectly and was phenomenally comfortable. I really wore the heck out of it - from the formal bridal portraits, to a wedding ceremony on the beach, to literally climbing up a waterfall for photos the day after - the dress was absolutely perfect in every environment. Importantly, I also felt beautiful wearing it! The way that Marie and Cali packed the dress for travel was great too. It arrived at the resort unwrinkled and in great shape. The alterations process was enjoyable too! The shop is lovely and my mother and I looked forward to seeing how the dress evolved with each visit. I would definitely recommend Marie for wedding bridal alterations! read more

I came across Cordella Bridal's website while searching for local alterations services. I used the contact feature on the website and heard from Marie very quickly! Working with Cordella Bridal was such a smooth process and my bridesmaid dress looks amazing! Will definitely be going back for all of my wedding alteration needs! read more

There are truly not enough great things to say about Marie! After an awful process with my dress purchase, and it being ordered in the wrong size, I was so encouraged and fortunate to find Marie. She did an amazing job altering my gown. Along with altering my gown she turned my mothers wedding dress into the perfect cocktail dress for my rehearsal dinner. Marie was thoughtful and took great care of my moms dress to make sure it stayed true to it's character. I am beyond thankful for Marie and her work on making me fall in love with my dress all over again. Thank you Marie for being so precise and thoughtful it was such a pleasure to work with you! read more

I would not recommend Marie Cordella for the following reasons: 1. She is exceptionally unprofessional, discussing her own employees as well as those at Traditions by Anna inappropriately as well as other clients. Although this in itself wouldn't have warranted this one star review, I do feel it's relevant to the service provided. I could provide several stories but will refrain to protect the innocent. 2, She is incredibly inflexible and clearly feels she is the customer rather than the person being paid (exorbitantly) to do work. She won't work with different timelines which truly seemed to be based solely on stubbornness rather than increasing the quality of work as she claimed. 3. MOST IMPORTANTLY, she completely ruined my wedding dress by cutting the dress 6 inches too short (at least). After realizing this, she first tried to blame me by stating I wore different shoes to the fitting (I had photos disproving this). Then, apologetically said she wasn't trying to blame me, and blamed her assistant - back to the lack of professionalism. In attempt to fix her error, she lied and stated she got the exact same tulle from the manufacturer to "add on" invisibly to the bottom of the dress. I personally spoke with the manufacturer who stated that they would NEVER send tulle to anybody and did not which was very EASY to tell by looking at my dress which now had an extra VERY visible and UNEVEN layer sewed on to the bottom of the dress. The dress looked horrible and she tried to hurry my mother and I out without trying it on, likely for this reason.This last statement is clearly a matter of opinion but I am typically a fairly laid back person who is not all that particular about my clothing and I've never written a review on Yelp but felt this was necessary. After I told her how unacceptable the work was (less than three weeks before my wedding), she claimed she would call Traditions by Anna to work something out about finding a new dress in time. I gave her until the end of the business day to do so and she never bothered to call although she knew timing was of the essence so I called and spoke with Traditions myself the next day as she still hadn't contacted the store (which Maria then managed to be upset at me about and told me we should have worked it between us). Traditions by Anna was excellent and found me the same dress via several phone calls despite it being a prior year's style. I highly recommend the store - just not their choice in alterations. Maria also claimed that this has never happened before, etc. but clearly this isn't the case given other reviews I see here. I showed the dress to my new seamstress who was outraged by the scenario, thought the work was absolutely horrendous (along with the attempt to fix), and did a much better job in one day for 1/5 of the cost. Maria had insisted I drive into her store four times for fittings which is four hours away. Bottom line: unprofessional, believes you are serving her rather than the opposite, absolutely can't be trusted for your big day read more

Marie is an artist and realist. Her dedication to details is unparalleled. I highly recommend her opinion and creativity. She can make the common frock into to a compelling statement. She works with your budget and expectations in mind. In addition, she is your greatest advocate along the way. Her empathy and artistry are essential to making your day a success! read more

Would you like a little less stress when it comes to looking perfect on your wedding day? Then come to Cordella Bridal. With a gorgeous studio, a beyond professional staff and a personal dressmaker that ensures your gown is made to make you look phenomenal on your special day, Cordella Bridal makes the whole experience unforgettable. When I needed last minute alterations, they made room for me on a day they weren't even open. I'll never forget that. The work that this bridal team does is beyond compare. I felt like I was the only person in the world when they were taking care of me. I was so stressed about everything else, but this is the one aspect of my wedding planning that was completely easy (and fun)! I plan on going back to have alterations done on my dress so I can wear it for our first year anniversary! If you're a bride looking for a dress in North Carolina, look no more. Cordella Bridal is your place. And will forever be mine. read more