Day in the life of Designer Gemma Nicholson, owner of Soul Bride Sunderland
It’s not yes to the dress but down for the gown
I get up at 5:00am feed my animals, a Russian cat, she is a Karelian Bobtail, we got her when we lived on a farm, they are great for keeping the mice at bay and 2 Labrador dogs, Opal and Nelly which never leave my side. I wait a while then take the dogs out for their first walk, it’s usually just around the block. When I return, I wake up my son Gene who is 8 years old, and my daughter Lexi gets herself up around 7:30am, between this it is mum duties, I am usually ironing clothes.
“I am a carnivore, so my diet includes meat and eggs, it is not a diet, but a lifestyle and great for my mental focus and energy”.
Everything is timed, my daughter who is 18 in two weeks travels by taxi at 8:00am to get to college, she has a huge input in what I do as she is studying Fashion & Design at Newcastle college. I then make my sons breakfast and have a Will Powder brain powder shake, as I do not drink coffee on a morning, but maybe have one later in the day. I am a carnivore, so my diet includes meat and eggs, it is not a diet, but a lifestyle and great for my mental focus and energy.
Next we head out the door to take my son to school, during the journey we listen to music, I have a varied taste and come from a musical background as my dad played guitar and was a member in a band, but on a morning I like to listen to something to make my son relax and feel good, it drives me nuts, but it appeals to him, his music tastes as he is younger are a lot different to mine.
“I want to be known as a designer. I want shops to have a peg on their dress rails with Soul Bride on it”.
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15 or so minutes later, my son is at school, and I head to meet my friend who is a personal trainer for a session, or I go to another gym on my own. If I’ve got appointments that day I will finish my session, go home, grab a quick shower and get changed. My first appointment is 11:00am and I work 90 minutes per appointment with breaks in-between. I arrive at the studio and my day really begins, it is my second business birthday in September this year and I am super excited.
The prosecco is always in the fridge, I make sure the glasses are clean, turn them the right way, quick tidy round, and remove the covers from the dresses because if they are left in the light they will discolour. When the first bride comes in, I let them settle, they chose their music which creates the perfect environment, makes them happy and the bride always pops the prosecco cork and pours a drink.
“Here it is not yes to the dress, but we’re down for the gown”.
We chat about ideas, style and vibe that she is going for and here we have dress sizes from 6 to 22, lots of styles but I only stock 3 as they get discontinued very quickly in the industry. Twice a year I like to design a new collection. Usually the bride selects 3 dresses, I take them to the changing room and one by one the bride walks into the studio and stands on a prop to discuss any alterations that may need to be made.
The appointments are not timed, and I do not sit there with a stopwatch, but ultimately the bride will choose her dress that day, order it or if she wants to take it away with her. I steam the dress, package it up and then they leave, it is a very quick but important process and everything must be perfect. I then tidy up the studio, wash the glasses and wait for the next client, usually it is 3-4 clients a day.
“It is a full-time job keeping your socials up to date, when you are in business”.
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When my appointments have finished for that day I clean the studio, cover the dresses and head for the school to collect my son, sometimes if my appointments are running over, I have preset arrangements in place to make sure he is collected.
I juggle set tasks in my week, like social media (which is very difficult as no-one wants anyone to see who you are talking to in the wedding industry, it is highly secret) photography shoots and household work around my appointment at the studio. Usually Monday’s I get the opportunity to clean the house, get the shopping in, do the washing for the week and I am a full-time mum too so there is always something happening, school events both in and out of school happen regularly and I have to fit everything in.
Evenings after I make dinner is usually a mixture of tasks. Take the dogs for a walk usually to the forest or the river and then back home, bedtime for the kids is around 8-00pm, so I use this time to look at emails and messages and with a 2025 new collection to design, which is being released on my business birthday party, there is a lot to do.
“I say it’s a lie in, but the dogs get an extra hour on a Thursday morning, but if a child doesn’t need me, then the dogs will”.
Wednesday evenings are late ones, I call my international suppliers in Indonesia, Morocco. We also have manufacturers both in the UK and overseas so I have to respect everyone’s time zones, which takes a lot out of my day, I am still finding my feet where I have different people for different things, then I can finally call it a day and go to bed around 2am.
Other evenings I grab my sketch pad, sit in bed till the early hours and design. Sometimes I get stressed being a designer, people not understanding what I want to see. Where the designs start and end, it is a lot of work and at times it is a struggle. I could come up with something and draw it down on paper and as I’m looking across things, I could see something similar and have to begin again, but that is the business that I am in and if it was easy everyone would be doing it.
Want to learn more? Find Soul Bride at Mackies Corner, Sunderland, SR1 1TX or check out their website here.
