How a Custom Dress Sparked Conversations on Women's Health: Emily's Story
- Kendra W. Houston
- Aug 12
- 4 min read
Updated: Aug 18
Written by Kendra W. Houston | Artist & Fashion Designer
Kendra specializes in creating one-of-a-kind clothing items by hand-painting custom designs on them. She works with clients looking for something truly unique to wear for their weddings, charity galas, and other special occasions.
Hi friends,
I'd love for you to meet Emily! She's a postpartum/antepartum nurse, and this is a picture of her attending her work's annual cruise, where she wanted to have something extraordinary to wear:
Creating Emily's custom hand-painted dress was SUCH a delight. I couldn't wait to share all the lovely details with you!
The backstory
Emily's passion for women's health and advocacy was the heart of this project. During our first appointment, we talked about how we might explore that theme in a beautiful yet totally unique way: something that would match her aesthetics and personal style, while being bold enough to encourage the conversations she wanted at the cruise and future work events.
The inspiration
In addition to women's health and reproductive system anatomy, Emily was dreaming of a dress inspired by her love of history, vintage style, and floral designs. She came to the table with a few things she said she would be excited to see incorporated into the piece:
Vintage illustrations--specifically, prints in a vintage anatomy textbook she owned
A list of plants historically used for different purposes related to women’s health. She also loves Lilacs.
Her favorite color lavender, along with similar colors like blue, white, purple, and green
The "canvas"
The dress we selected to paint had a silhouette that nodded to the vintage inspiration, while being comfortable, practical, and versatile.
Emily specifically requested black so that the iridescent colors we chose could really pop against their background.
Get a custom hand-painted dress of your own
If you’d like to elevate your own event with a custom piece, I can help! Let’s create something for you to wear that’s unique, creative, and 100% made for you.
The creation
Once the design plan was given the green light, I spent the winter and early spring making it a reality with brush and fabric paint. As always, I enjoyed keeping her updated with progress pictures. Emily agreed: "The process of seeing the piece slowly come together was so cool!"
The reveal
Emily's incredible one-of-a-kind dress made a huge splash at her work cruise! She told me it had exactly the effect she was going for:
"I felt like a walking conversation starter! ... Other nurses on my cruise saw my dress and immediately recognized the designs and were curious what the plants were and how they were related to the topic of the dress. It was really cool having a conversation about women’s health started by the artwork on my dress!"
In case you were wondering, too: here's a breakdown of the plants with their historical uses or symbolism:
On the skirt:
Goat’s Rue – Increased milk production
Blue Cohosh – Many labor and uterine-related uses
Lavender – Peace & Calm
Lilac – Love & Confidence in someone else
On the bodice:
Red Raspberry Leaves – Uterine tonic for menstrual cramps and labor
On the sleeves:
Queen Anne’s Lace – Herbal plan B
Pennyroyal – Herbal abortifacient
Emily's review?
"Kendra took my ideas and not only painted them in incredible detail on such a memorable artistic piece, but that you can feel the passion for art and need to capture what I was explaining to her. I would recommend Kendra for custom artwork to anyone who was looking for unique clothing, and I hope I’m able to purchase items in the future!"
Custom hand-painted clothing has amazing potential to help you make a statement about something you care about. It gives "wearing your heart on your sleeve" new meaning!
What important conversation do you want to spark? Get in touch if you want an outfit painted for yourself...because pieces like this one can't come off the shelf.
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About Kendra
Kendra W. Houston is a visual artist and fashion designer who specializes in customizing clothing items by painting one-of-a-kind designs on them by hand.
She is based out of Pawtucket, Rhode Island, and appreciates contributing to the slow fashion movement in one of the birthplaces of American industrial textile mills. She works out of a cozy home studio, assisted by her pet rabbit Tiverton.
Kendra's designs are detailed and immersive, often reflecting things that hold special significance to the wearer. The name of her brand, The Casual Reply, comes from a line in a John Denver song: “talk to God and listen to the casual reply.”
Each one of her items is a handcrafted work of fine art that is nonetheless intended to be used and worn as an entirely functional clothing item. Continuing and meaningfully adding to the story of a garment using unconventional, personal themes and designs is a source of true joy for Kendra in pursuing this calling.
She regularly participates as a featured designer in charity fashion shows as well as juried art events throughout New England.
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