Autumn fittings now booking · Free first fitting for every made-to-measure order
Dressmaker & milliner

Cut to you, finished with a hat.

Modistlane is a modiste's atelier. We cut dresses from your own measurements and block hats by hand on wooden forms, so every piece fits and every brim sits just right.

Fittings2
Lead time4–6 wks
HatsHand-blocked
Woman in a white and red plaid dress wearing a black hat
The Gingham Day DressPaired with our Noir Cloche, blocked in wool felt.
Madeto
measure
The collection

Dresses & hats, made in pairs.

There's no cart or checkout. Pick a piece and send an enquiry. We'll ask for your measurements (or book a fitting) and reply with a quote within one business day.

Woman in a yellow and red floral dress and straw hat on a grass fieldBestseller

Meadow Tea Dress

$228
Floral cotton lawn · Made to measure
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Woman in a long black dress and a hatEvening

Nocturne Maxi

$296
Silk crepe · Floor length
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Woman in a white and black polka dot sleeveless dress

Pinspot Swing Dress

$214
Polka-dot viscose · Full skirt
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Woman in a red sleeveless dressNew

Rouge Column Dress

$248
Wool-blend crepe · Midi
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Woman in a floral dress wearing a red sun hat on a beachSummer

Coquelicot Sun Hat

$138
Hand-blocked straw · Wide brim
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Woman in a white dress and straw hat

Linden Straw Boater

$124
Natural straw · Grosgrain band
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Woman in a plaid coat holding a hat by a wooden railFelt

Heath Felt Fedora

$156
Rabbit-fur felt · Made to head size
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Woman in a white dress wearing a brown hat in a field

Harvest Wide-Brim

$148
Wool felt · Tobacco brown
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Made to measure

Three steps from tape to try-on.

Every dress starts as a paper pattern drafted from your measurements. Every hat is blocked to your head size. Here's how an order comes together.

Two designers reviewing a clothing pattern
Step one

Measure & draft

Send your measurements or visit for a fitting. We draft a paper pattern that's yours alone.

A dressmaker cutting white fabric in a studio
Step two

Cut & toile

We cut a calico toile first, then fit it on you before a single metre of your fabric is cut.

A dressmaker adjusting a white dress on a mannequin
Step three

Sew & finish

Final fitting, hand-finished hems, and a matching hat blocked to size if you'd like one.

What we'll ask you for

A soft tape and a friend are all you need. Not sure how? Book a fitting and we'll measure you at the atelier or over video.

  • Bust cm
  • Waist cm
  • Hip cm
  • Head cm
Lookbook

A dress, a brim, a day out.

Pairings from this season: cotton dresses for long afternoons, and hats that hold their shape in a sea breeze.

Woman in a dress and hat standing in tall grass
Look 01 · Tea dress & straw brim
Woman in a white sleeveless dress in a field
Look 02 · Summer white
Woman in a dress and hat walking away from the camera
Look 03 · The walk home
A red dress hanging on a rack beside spools of thread Mannequins in a clothing workshop with sewing supplies
The atelier

A modiste on a quiet lane.

A modiste is the old word for a dressmaker who also made hats: the person you went to for a whole outfit, fitted and finished. Modistlane brings that back. One small workroom, a wall of wooden hat blocks, and a cutting table where every pattern is drafted by hand.

We make a small number of pieces each season and fit every one, so what you receive is made for you, not a size chart.

"A dress should fit the way a good hat sits: without you having to think about it."

Fitted

Drafted from your own measurements.

Blocked

Hats shaped by hand on wooden forms.

Finished

Hand-sewn hems and linings.

Kind words

Fitted, and fond of it.

What clients say after their first made-to-measure piece.

Sample

Replace with a real client quote about the Meadow Tea Dress: the fit and the fitting process.

Client nameCity · Piece
Sample

Replace with a real client quote about a hand-blocked hat and how it was sized.

Client nameCity · Piece
Sample

Replace with a real client quote about wearing a Modistlane outfit to an occasion.

Client nameCity · Piece
Enquire & book

Let's take your measure.

Ask about any piece, book a fitting, or send your measurements for a quote. We reply personally within one business day.

  • hello@modistlane.com
  • First fitting free with every order
  • Made in 4–6 weeks
Silver dressmaking scissors beside a black box

Send an enquiry

Measurements (optional, in cm)

We only use your details and measurements to reply to this enquiry.