The Boston fashion designer got his start at an early age

By Kelley Walker Perry, Contributing writer

BOSTON –As a boy in upstate New York, Daniel Faucher had other neighborhood kids run on bikes to St. Mary’s Catholic Church when a wedding was scheduled. Everyone wanted to get a first glimpse of the bride as she emerged.

Nowadays, he is still the first to see the bride.

An early start with sewing

Her maternal grandmother lived two doors down and taught her to sew. First, he created childhood costumes; then he sewed ball gowns for the neighbors. But her first serious design job was for her older sister, Anne. It was a Bob Mackie inspired semi-formal dress, black, with an incredibly low pearl bottom necklace.

He began designing under his own label in 1985. Since then, Daniel Faucher Couture dresses have been worn around the world, from inaugural balls in the United States to events at Buckingham Palace. The late Linda Cole Petrosian, daughter of fashion icon Yolanda Cellucci and one of Boston’s top models, often modeled Faucher’s dresses. Her work was featured during Boston Fashion Week and featured in Brides Magazine, Women’s Wear Daily, and New England Bride.

“I love the bride,” he said.

Dresses start at $ 1,800; he asks customers for a budget before showing fabrics.

“We only work with the best fabrics possible. I love organza and taffeta, light, crisp and sheer fabrics. But there is a difference between the four-ply pancake and the six-ply pancake, ”he said.

The fully beaded and appliquéd fabric costs about $ 80 per yard; a muslin mockup reveals imperfections in the cut. Customers see renderings of the design and samples of handcrafted beads. It is only then that the construction of the final dress begins.

Customers must commit to at least three fittings.

“No one has ever suffered from an additional adjustment,” he said.

Its design philosophy

Some brides starve themselves before their wedding day; others stuff themselves with nervous tension; and only seven pounds of difference equals one dress size. Faucher believes that every woman is beautiful, regardless of size, and deserves a dress that makes her feel that way.

“We have gone way beyond men telling women what to wear,” he said. “I learned to listen and try to make a dress where people say, not ‘It’s a beautiful dress’, but ‘Wow, you look fantastic.’ “

Sometimes he uses a small piece of lace from the mother’s dress as an appliqué, reuses buttons, or adds old jewelry to honor the past and personalize the new dress or petticoat. In fact, the bridal petticoat itself is transformed into a special heirloom.

“A blue knot belongs under the heart and a piece of the grandmother’s lace,” he said.

The petticoat is intended to be reused as a bassinet cover for the couple’s first baby. Faucher, who has no children of his own, is touched by such sentimental details.

“I’m caught up in all of this,” he said.

Take a step back

Faucher suffered a brain aneurysm in 2004. No lasting effects remain, but he stopped participating in Fashion Week and producing works for sale in stores.

“The extra hubbub was just too much,” he said. “It facilitated the balance between work and private life. “

Much of the work done in her Waltham Street studio is on bridal wear, though Faucher doesn’t just “do weddings.” He is a senior instructor and co-director of education at the School of Fashion Design in Boston; creates personalized dresses; and occasionally does a “trunk show”, taking samples from high-end boutiques that have referred customers to her for years.

When the pandemic temporarily eliminated the need for wedding dresses and formal wear, Faucher used his needle and thread to make fashionable masks. Proceeds from those sales paid the bills and helped provide medical masks to healthcare workers and caregivers in the Boston area.

But his magic is back on the drawing board.

“People are planning large-scale formal events and weddings and they need dresses to match,” he said. “For us, the wedding season is Labor Day on Columbus Day. But this year we are busy until the beginning of January.

Faucher, who just turned 61, noted that more weddings were booked for March and April.

“Who’s getting married in March in New England?” He joked.

RELATED CONTENT:

Marking 35 years of creating signage for downtown Hudson (fiftyplusadvocate.com)

Famous artists started out as “look-alikes” (fiftyplusadvocate.com)

Westborough ice cream fan lands a cute gig (fiftyplusadvocate.com)