OREM — When upstate New York native Michaella Lawson returned from her mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, she became acutely aware that her passion for theater and dinner dates was diminished by her wardrobe.
She had nothing to wear. And nothing was available in the stores she patronized that met her standards of modesty and style, she said, echoing a common complaint. Even in conservative Utah County, where she came to attend Brigham Young University, and the more liberal Salt Lake County, clothing stores simply lacked an abundance of fancy — and modest — party dresses.
"The night I was to meet my (future) husband for dinner at a restaurant, the night he was going to propose to me, I looked all over Utah County and Salt Lake for a modest dress. I finally had to settle for a Sunday dress," she said.
For Lawson, a Sunday dress simply doesn't cut it as a party dress. Long T-shirts or cardigans are popular among women who want a fashionable look, she added, because they can wear them under an immodest dress to make it more to their liking. But Lawson wanted to get away from the need for such an accessory, she said.
The other alternative is to wear a skirt and top to get the desired amount of coverage.
"We wanted to fill a void by creating our own line of dresses that are already modest and elegant with no alterations required," she said.
So she and her husband, Brad, an electrical engineering student at BYU, took the next step: They founded MikaRose, a line of modest, stylish women's dresses sold primarily over the Internet. The Web site is: www.mikarose.com.
Neither one had experience in the fashion industry, but they didn't let that get in their way.
"He's a (happy) go-lucky kind of guy, so he said, 'Let's do it.' "
They launched the business in November after their research led them to a professional Utah seamstress and a technical dress designer who works in the Los Angeles fashion industry. The dress designer creates the patterns from the Lawson's rough drawings, then the seamstress takes over and creates the dresses.
They have three designs now in a variety of colors and a new series of five more spring dresses that will be available before Easter. Some of the designs come from suggestions from Lawson's customers.
Most of the hits to their Web site are from Utah, Idaho, Arizona and California. But the site also gets hits from women in Canada and Europe. Once in a while, they will get an inquiry from Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Once a dress is completed, she gets models to try them on to make sure the fit is right. It takes as many as eight try-ons before Lawson is satisfied. That's important because her Web site guarantees the dresses will fit properly, or she refunds the customer's money, including shipping. So far, she hasn't had any requests for a refund.
Lawson also keeps up on the latest trends. That requires traveling to trade shows where she also learns about the latest in fabrics.
"It's a lot harder than I imagined," she said. "It's so time-consuming."
After several customers wanted to see the dresses before purchasing them, Lawson approached manager Steve Tuttle at Urban Trends, a Provo Towne Centre clothing store. The store agreed to carry several of the dresses in every size — from small to extra large — and sold out most patterns within two weeks.
The store is known more for its modest skirts and tops. Dresses that meet that standard are harder to come by, Tuttle said.
Two of MikaRose's black numbers were the most popular, he said. One was gathered in the front while another featured a red panel along the bottom that runs part way up the side. Black dresses are easy to accessorize, Lawson said. Prices are generally under $80.
"We were excited about her because she's local. We liked her modest styles . . . it was a good match," Tuttle said.
"I'd love to be a leader in trendy, modest dresses," Lawson said. "I want to bring back the classy Audrey Hepburn idea. I want my dresses to always be considered such."
E-mail: rodger@desnews.com