About Us
Kara Minotti Becker is the designer and owner of As You Like It Bridal. Kara has over 17 years of experience designing and constructing custom bridal and formal wear. She attended Massachusetts College of Art for fashion design, and has extensive professional training in patternmaking, couture construction techniques, and designing for the average, petite and fuller figures.
The Inspiration for As You Like It Bridal
From the desk of Kara Minotti Becker…
One day many years ago I was a visiting a very exclusive bridal salon with a friend. While we were waiting, I noticed a young bride-to-be looking at herself in the mirror, wearing an exquisite and very expensive gown. The bride was a tiny thing, a size two at best. I commented to her that she looked beautiful.
The bride turned around and immediately began crying – but these were not tears of joy. She confided that this was her actual gown – it had just been delivered to the store – but it didn’t fit her. At the time she’d placed her order, the store had told her that because the gown had very elaborate embroidery and beading, it could not be altered, and that she had to be an exact size two if she wanted to order it. The salesperson had assured her that she was, but the gown that had arrived was so tight on her that she couldn’t lift her arms. The girl’s mother, distressed as she was, remarked that perhaps her daughter had gained a little weight during the intervening months. The poor bride dissolved into tears again.
I became incensed on the girl’s behalf. If this petite young woman could be made to feel she was “too fat”, something was very wrong with the bridal gown industry, not to mention the fashion industry as a whole. With my family background in design and fitting, I knew well that there is no such thing as an “exact” size two (every designer uses their own peculiar set of sizing measurements, and every garment is sewn by different hands so even finished garments vary in size a little). Furthermore, I knew that the idea that the gown could not be altered was nonsense – any garment can be altered!
I spoke with the salon’s seamstress and pointed out how the dress could be altered to fit properly (and gave the bride my home phone number just in case). But that very day the fire was lit. I knew there must be a different way to help brides find their gown, with no tears, no frustration, and none of the distress of sizes and the labels they force us to give ourselves. I’d had enough of seeing women made to feel embarrassed about their figures – no matter what their size!
Over the next couple of years I observed experiences like this again and again, and was particularly appalled at how poorly brides with fuller figures are treated in dress salons. I attended design school, and also pursued training in design for petite and full figures. In my spare time I concentrated on finding a way to combine custom design, which I knew to be the answer to the size dilemma (there are no sizes in custom design), with traditional bridal dress shopping, where brides can see, touch and try on dresses and pick the one they like. Finally, I hit on the idea of As You Like It Bridal and I knew I’d found the answer. A short time later I quit my job and opened As You Like It. Now, every day I have the pleasure of showing women how many beautiful designs there are for every figure, and that a perfect custom fit, even more than a great design, is what makes you look glorious – no matter what your size.
I hope you’ll come in and see for yourself! Whether you purchase a gown or not, I promise you’ll leave feeling happy and confident about yourself.
Education & Background
Fashion design runs in Kara’s family. Her grandmother, Nina Alessandrini, owned a design house at Boston’s Temple Place, called The Alessandrini Shop. Trained as a women’s formalwear designer, Nina designed custom women’s formalwear for Boston’s most exclusive residents during the 1950s, 60s and 70s. Kara grew up in the shop and, absorbing her grandmother’s love for design, had a very early start at designing, creating and fitting clothing.
Nina passed away before Kara was ready to take over the business, but Kara’s fashion education continued under her mother Madeleine, who is an excellent designer and dressmaker, and a talented studio artist.
Kara attended Georgetown University and graduated magna cum laude with a degree in Political Science and History. After completing graduate work in computer science, she spent some years working in the computer industry. But she soon realized that her first love was still her strongest calling, and began making plans to start her own bridalwear line.
Kara attended the Massachusetts College of Art in Boston to update and expand her design skills. She also sought out specific training in designing for fuller figures and in advanced couture techniques (she also found that the skills she’d learned from the designers in her family were among the most valuable). Kara had a love for the custom design tradition, but also realized that the modern bride needs more than a sketch of her dress to feel confident in her choice. She founded As You Like It to combine the advantages of a bridal shop (you get to see what each style looks like on you before you buy), and the benefits of traditional custom design (you not only get exactly what you want, but you look immeasurably better in it because of the custom fit). And she’d been loving it ever since!