COPYCAT DESIGNS & DRESSES #12: The Pink & Orange Maria B Bridal

It's been ages since I did one of these posts! It's been a while, mainly because I haven't been buying as many new outfits, and also because I was pretty preoccupied with wedding planning and bridal outfits. I thought I'd write about a Copycat (or inspired) outfit, seeing as one of the things I have found over the years which remains consistent over the years of my blogging - is that a lot of people finding inspiration on the catwalk and from higher-end designers when designing their own bridal outfits and party wear.

This was an outfit that I got made during my preperations for my wedding, and which was inspired by a Maria B bridal from her 2012 collection that I've had my eye on for a while. My dress was actually a quick, last minute buy but which I loved because it didn't cost much and didn't take up a lot of time to order. I also was happy enough with the way this outfit ended up looking that I secretly kept it as a back-up for a mehndi outfit in case I couldn't wear my actual mehndi outfit or there were any issues with it (thankfully there weren't).

I ended up wearing this outfit on one of my dholki nights, which I got a lot of compliments for (I also wore it again a few weeks after my wedding to a friend's wedding!). At the time I didn't dress the outfit up too much because of the amount of work on the kameez/top, which I thought was extravagant enough, and didn't need too much extra bling from jewellery as well.

This is the original Maria B bridal design, which I fell in love with when I first saw the collection, and which I thought had a really pretty colour combination of watermelon pink, light orange and sky blue.

This is my outfit, which I ordered online from Pakistan from a seller I found through the ever valuable GupShup website, which has a variety of designers that I've used before. I chose a new seller who I haven't used before, called Rifzah, and who I thought I'd give a try because I liked a few of her designs. I didn't make many changes to the outfit except to ask that the border was made less heavier and also that there was less work on the neckline, which would reduce the price of the outfit and also made it less weighty.

The outfit itself was well-stitched, but the work on it was quite simple and wasn't the best quality. I liked the simpler neckline and the added sequins all over the kameez which gave it a lot of sparkle, but the crystals, beading and stones weren't the most superior quality (although it's also the reason why I got the outfit for a cheaper price!)

This is me wearing it to a friend's wedding a few weeks after I wore it to my dholki nights, for some reason the main colour looks red (dodgy lighting, I know), but the colour is actually a pretty watermelon pink. The duppatta is also very simple with jamawar piping to match the sharara bottoms, which also had velvet piping.

THE GOOD: The outfit was very flattering on my figure, it wasn't too fitted and felt very comfortable on. My favourite part are the sleeves, I love funky colours which stand out. I also liked the sharara bottoms which were not too heavy and easy to walk around in, and also added a pop of blue which contrasted the rest of the outfit. I also loved the swirling design all over the kameez which I've seen in other similar outfits by designers like Nomi Ansari and Sana Safinaz, and it was nice to see a clear swirly design all over the dress which didn't look too much.

THE BAD: As I mentioned before the quality of the embroidery and work was not the best, and I didn't like the fact that it didn't look longlasting. Having said that, the dress had gota work all over it (strips of gold fabric) which added a pretty look to it.

THE UGLY: Tripping over my sharara a few times. Even with my heels on. Yikes.

OVERALL: Overall, I paid about £120 or roundabouts for this suit, so I wasn't expecting something of superior quality, and for what I paid, I received a pretty wearable outfit. The outfit order didn't take long to do, and I received my outfit within four weeks of placing my order. I also liked the fact that I still got a considerable amount of work on my outfit, and that it worked well with the outfit. While I don't think this will be one of my favourite outfits in my wardrobe, it's not one of the worst outfits I've ordered either! I can also see that now shorter hemlines are coming back into fashion, this design looks a little more traditional and formal, which may feel a little too much to wear, although I think I made the most of this outfit for now!