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Our Designer
About
Maison M'Elise is a Dutch bridalwear brand with a focus and reverence to heritage and sustainability, created by Maaike Elise Stofferis.
With our sights set as high as our creative standards, our strategy has been to build on the foundation of Maaike's rich cultural background, whilst innovating with care towards establishing our international iconic bridalwear brand. The house of M'Elise is laced with an equally passionate team helping to cultivate our label for those looking for quality with innovation.
Background Story
Having previously worked for bridal designer Prina Tornai, Maaike Elise has had experience with a wide international clientele, from celebrities, red carpet events and television. She also worked as a stage manager at London Fashion Week for designers such as Jenny Packham, Vivienne Westwood and Betty Jackson, where she developed qualities of leadership.
Previous to this highly valuable experience working with some of the best designers in the world, Maaike studied physical theatre in Paris, where I was for a year on a foundation course of Comedia dell Arte at the Académie International des Spectacle. During that time, she developed a deeper understanding of how clothes are part of the human body in space. In her own words ... “I believe to be an innovative designer one should observe the body in motion in order to create or discover a profound design.”
In the Netherlands, Maaike Elise worked for several Dutch bridal boutiques for four years and helped more than 3000 brides to find the perfect dress. This gave her enormous experience on all sides of the bridal industry. She knows perhaps better than anyone what is for sale on the bridal market and what a bride is looking for.
In 2019 Maaike Elise was invited by the well-known TED Talks franchise to do a presentation on sustainability called 'Dressed To Save The Planet'.
“If I work with a bride individually, I use their background and culture as a source of inspiration for me. I love people and their individual culture and traditions fascinate me, what norms they value, what their beliefs are, how they are as human beings and what makes them unique. I try to mirror the essence of a bride into a dress design that enhances her personality even more.