Kerianne Meehan New York

My name is Kerianne Meehan and I am the founder, owner, and designer behind my brand, KERIANNE MEEHAN NEW YORK. I am a custom evening wear and bridal designer specializing in custom one of a kind gowns for any of your very special occasions. Everything is handmade here in New York by yours truly. I am all about finding the love you have for yourself and accentuating your true spirit through dress.

Someone special once helped me see this in myself, and I hope to help you see this in you too:

For a woman who is beautiful
From the inside out
Straight down to her soul.
She is strong, powerful,
And fierce
Yet warm at heart.
She carries herself
With grace and glamour
Unaware of her classic charm
And sexy wits.
For a woman who is loved
By herself
And the world around her…

What a PRETTY lady
You are darling…

Getting involved in the wedding industry was always a no brainer for me. I always knew it was my direction but I didn’t fully understand why until I was going through some of my own challenging times of self discovery and in the midst of launching my brand. As a young girl, it was always about the gowns. I was always designing. My younger brother was my mannequin until I got one and my Barbie’s were strictly only allowed to wear gowns. Gowns were great, but it was the bridal gown that always drew me in. I grew up around a lot of divorce. Love and togetherness seemed far fetched. As I got older I made the decision to believe in everything opposite of what I thought to be true. I came to discover that when it comes down to it, only love is real. Why do we fight, why do we get angry? Not because of hate, but because of the absence of love. As people, we long for it. So I decided, why not be it? Why not be a part of celebrating love stories everyday. Everything I do is a labor of love and because I truly believe that love is greater than what we have been taught to believe. Everyone’s love story is unique, it's not all cookie cutter and so I pride myself in being able to create pieces that are as unique as each individual love and person who walks through my doors.

It is tough for me to pick a favorite wedding memory. I feel each one deeply for different reasons. However, I will share one that saw me through the start of it all.

I had a bride, her mom, mother-in-law to be, father-in-law to be, sister, brother, husband to be, and sister-in-law to be, all come for something customized for the wedding whether it was an alteration, a custom bow tie or a custom gown.
I have known them since childhood. Unfortunately, when we were in high school, my client lost her father to brain cancer. Her sister and brother lost him too, and her mom lost a loving husband. Only a few years after losing their father and husband, her mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. This family has fought and been through things most couldn’t endure.

The bride got engaged to her high school sweetheart and they came to me to help bring their visions to life for this very special celebration. They have been there from the start. When I was just starting out, I was taking consults at my kitchen table. They sat with me there as we started to sketch. The first to come to life was the mother of the bride’s gown. A true survivor and warrior sat in front of me as we designed an elegant gown together. The beading in silver and black swirled and weaved in the shapes of breast cancer ribbons. You wouldn’t know this looking at it, but if you knew her, you knew the symbolism. With custom you can personalize anything and everything. Their first series of fittings took place in my first and current studio. We got to build up the inside of the gown to accommodate for her single mastectomy. The customization didn’t stop here.

We discussed embroidering a breast cancer/brain cancer ribbon into the inside of each of their gowns over the heart. We did just that. We even placed it on the pocket square of her brother. In addition, after speaking about the possibilities with embroidery, I was able to lift her dad’s handwriting off of a previous sentiment, digitize it, and place it in each of their gowns. Knowing how much this meant, I decided to place it on a ribbon for the bride to wrap around her bouquet so dad would be there with her as she walked down the aisle saying “I love you more”.

For me this was an emotional project and one of my favorites to see how creating something was able to bring them together. It was able to bring the life of a loved one missed, present. Despite what they had been through, they celebrated the life they have and the love in and around them. Design became a unifying force with this project. I am forever grateful for their faith in me, and for showing me first hand why I do what I do. It’s more than just a dress.

I specialize in couture, high end, custom bridal and eveningwear gowns. I graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology with a degree focused in Special Occasion. I worked under many special occasion designers such as Marchesa, Dennis Basso, Burnett New York, and Karen Sabag before launching my own brand.

Within the company, we do also work with bespoke custom menswear. Anything tedious, detail oriented, and done by hand is our specialty.

I have gotten to where I am today with a lot of hard work, faith, and trust…and let's not forget many sleepless nights. Having gone through design school and working many jobs in all areas of the industry I was able to gain enough experience to launch my own business. I left fast fashion because I felt the individual person you are designing for got lost. When I was working endless hours for a designer who purely did just custom design, the fire was reignited and I knew what I had to do. I needed to be doing custom and if I were going to be putting in these endless hours I needed to do it for myself because on top of the desire to create beautiful things, I had a mission and a message in my heart I needed to share.

I pride myself in the uniqueness of my focus on custom design and I plan to expand my clientele in this area.

There is no “I” in team. Even though I do the bulk of the work and head all the operations, it isn’t just me behind it. I have a wonderful set of industry connections, friends, and family who have dedicated time and effort into making this dream work.

What is your price point for custom gowns?
Since we focus on one of a kind pieces and are building a vision from the ground up, our price points fall at the couture level for custom gowns. They are generally above your store bought price point, however, being that each project is as unique as the individual, it is fair to say it all truly depends. There are a great deal of variables that go into the breakdown of cost all of which is gone over during your consultation. I do work with my clients and offer payment plans.

How does pricing work for your alterations? Is there a cap?
Alterations have set pricing per job that needs to be completed (ie. hem, sides, cups, etc.) all of which is gone over during the first fitting after evaluating what needs to be done.

We do not have a cap. Since we are not a salon and focus on custom, the work we will do to achieve the perfect fit and look are not limited. It is my job to provide you with the same level of craftsmanship you would get if you were to come in for a custom piece. Fit and you feeling good on your very special day is my number one!

Do you alter outside gowns?
Yes.

When should I come in to start my fittings for alterations?
We typically schedule fittings 4-6 weeks out from the date of the event to insure you are as close to how you will be on that day. Alterations typically take 2-3 fittings.

Do you make custom pieces aside from gowns?
Yes, you name it we have probably done it. We have taken the mother of the bride’s wedding gowns and made them into bridal robes. I have custom painted veils, embroidered veils, monogrammed shirts, recreated headpieces, designed for pageants, and the list goes on and on.

We work by appointment only.

Other services we offer:

-Alterations on all evening wear and bridal pieces
-Tailoring/Suits
-Gown Cleaning and Preservation
-Steam Outs
-Bridal Attending
-Custom evening furs
-Bridal fur rentals
-Custom veils