Alémais Beaded and Sequin Dresses: Twelve Pieces With Real Handwork, and How to Care for Them

The most heavily beaded Alémais dress right now is the Limelight Mini Dress, with all-over artisan beading and paillettes across the front. For a beaded dress you can wear in winter, it is the Earle Embellished Mini Dress in silk velvet, and for a long one, the Dillon Applique Halter Gown with a crystal-embellished bodice. Below are twelve Alémais pieces with real handwork, from beading and sequins to embroidery and appliqué, what each technique is, and how to look after it.

Handwork is what Alémais is known for, alongside the hand-drawn prints. The founder Lesleigh Jermanus built the label in Sydney in 2020 around colour and craft, and the brand’s impact report records more than 6,000 artisanal products made between 2021 and 2024. Not every Alémais dress is embellished, though, and the word covers several different crafts. The pieces below were all still being sold by Alémais when we checked in October 2026.

Twelve Alémais pieces with real handwork

1. The all-over beaded dress: Limelight Mini Dress

A fitted sleeveless mini with all-over artisan beading and paillettes across the front, a round tubular collar and an asymmetric racer cut-away, on a stretch base. The artwork is a collaboration with Karlee Mackie (MLAK). This is the most heavily beaded dress Alémais currently sells.

2. The beaded velvet dress: Earle Embellished Mini Dress

A relaxed mini in silk velvet with beaded and embroidered Western-inspired motifs, a round neckline, a low draped back and full bishop sleeves on self-covered button cuffs. Forest green, from Fall 2026, and the beaded piece for winter.

3. The crystal appliqué gown: Dillon Applique Halter Gown

A halter gown with a fitted bodice covered in crystal-embellished appliqué, a metal clasp at the neck, an open back and a gathered A-line skirt, in viscose and cotton. The handwork sits on the bodice, where it is seen.

4. The beaded cotton dress: Westwood Embellished Midi Dress

A halter midi in organic cotton poplin with rodeo-themed beaded motifs and contrast embroidery, a handkerchief neck tie, an open back and pockets. Beading on cotton is the daytime version of the craft, and this is the one to wear to a garden party.

5. The beaded fringe dress: Mokshini Beaded Fringe Midi Dress

A fitted sleeveless sheath in linen and viscose with an eyelet beaded fringe, a square neckline and an open back on adjustable straps. The fringe moves when you walk. The jungle print sits under it.

6. The short fringe dress: Mokshini Beaded Fringe Mini Dress

The same beaded fringe and jungle print on a fitted mini with a boat neckline. It is the cheaper way into beaded Alémais and the easier one to dance in.

7. The sequin gown: Ophira Sequin Gown

A relaxed sleeveless gown in viscose georgette with clustered sequins, a mock neck that buttons at the back, a cut-out scoop neckline and a racerback. Because the sequins are clustered rather than all-over, the cloth stays light and fluid.

8. The beaded linen gown: Scarlet Embellished Gown

A relaxed one-shoulder gown in linen and silk with a batwing sleeve and artisan bead and sequin embellishment over a Laurence Leenaert artwork. The relaxed cut means no fitting appointment.

9. The new sequin dress: Ellie Sequin Mini Dress

From Spring/Summer 2027. A relaxed mini covered in midnight navy sequins, with a round neck and full sleeves on shoulder pads. The all-over sequin fabrication makes it the simplest party dress in the range.

10. The embellished bow dress: Valentina Midi Dress

From Spring/Summer 2027. A straight slip dress in pink moiré with embellished bows in teal, burgundy and gold, adjustable straps and a side split. Here the decoration is applied as individual bows rather than worked across the cloth.

11. The embellished patch dress: Zuri Embellished Midi Dress

A relaxed long dress in cotton and silk with artisanal embellished motif patches, drawstring channels at the neck and waist and an open side bodice. The patches are the most casual form of Alémais handwork, and this is a holiday dress.

12. The embroidered dress: Giddy Embroidered Midi Dress

A relaxed one-shoulder scarf midi in cotton with red Western-inspired embroidery on a cream ground, self-ties, a layered handkerchief hem and pockets. Embroidery rather than beading, and a lighter thing to wear in heat.

Beading, sequins, embroidery and appliqué

The four words on Alémais product pages mean different things, and they change how a dress wears.

• Beading. Glass and crystal beads stitched onto the cloth, by hand on the pieces Alémais calls artisan-crafted. Heavy, formal and the most fragile. On the Limelight it covers the whole front; on the Westwood it forms rodeo motifs on cotton.
• Sequins and paillettes. Flat discs, either clustered over a light cloth, as on the Ophira gown, and covering the whole surface, as on the new Ellie Sequin Mini Dress. Paillettes are larger sequins.
• Embroidery. Thread worked into the cloth. Light, washable in principle and the most casual form, as on the Giddy dress.
• Appliqué. A shaped motif stitched on top of the dress. On the Dillon gown the appliqué is itself crystal-embellished, so it reads as beading from a distance.

How to wear a beaded dress

Let the handwork be the only decoration. A beaded dress wants a plain sandal, a small bags/clutch-bags/" class="cvx-al cvx-al--category">clutch and bare ears, and a single gold cuff at most, because necklaces and big earrings compete with the beading and can catch on it. Keep the shoe simple: a strappy sandal for the gowns and a tall boot for the velvet Earle mini in winter. The general rule, one print and one piece of decoration per outfit, is set out in how to style Alémais, and the gowns are compared in the best Alémais gowns.

Looking after it

Alémais does not publish care instructions on its product pages, so this is our advice. Have beaded, sequinned and appliquéd pieces cleaned by a specialist dry cleaner, and tell them the dress is beaded. Store heavy pieces flat in tissue, and lighter ones on a padded hanger, away from sunlight. Never hang a heavily beaded dress by thin straps. Dress last, after jewellery and perfume. Embroidered cotton pieces are more robust, but we would still dry clean them to keep the thread colour true.

Fit

Beading and sequins stiffen a cloth, so the fit matters more on an embellished dress than on a plain one. Alémais recommends your usual size and states the shape on every product page. The fitted styles here, the Limelight and both Mokshini dresses, need a measurement check against the centimetre table before you order. The relaxed styles, the Earle mini, the Ophira gown and the Scarlet gown, have more room. The Alémais size guide has the AU, UK and US conversion.

Read next

The new season, with the Ellie sequins and the Valentina bows, is reviewed in Alémais Spring/Summer 2027. For an occasion, see Alémais wedding guest dresses, and for what the craft is worth, is Alémais a luxury brand. Every embellished piece is authenticated before dispatch under Coveti’s authenticity policy, and the full range is on the Alémais brand page.

Frequently asked questions

Does Alémais make beaded dresses?

Yes. Beading, embroidery, appliqué and sequins are part of almost every Alémais collection. The most heavily beaded dress currently in the range is the Limelight Mini Dress, with all-over beading and paillettes across the front. The Earle Embellished Mini Dress, the Westwood Embellished Midi Dress and the Mokshini Beaded Fringe dresses are also beaded.

Is Alémais beading done by hand?

Alémais describes the beading on many pieces as artisan-crafted, including the Limelight, the Westwood and the Scarlet, and its impact report records more than 6,000 artisanal products made between 2021 and 2024. Each product page states the type of embellishment on that piece.

What is the difference between beaded, embroidered and appliqué on an Alémais dress?

Beading is glass and crystal beads stitched onto the cloth, and it is the heaviest and most formal. Embroidery is thread worked into the cloth, as on the Giddy Embroidered Midi Dress, and it is the lightest. Appliqué is a separate motif stitched onto the dress, as on the Dillon gown, and on Alémais it is often itself beaded and crystal-embellished. Sequins are flat discs, either clustered, as on the Ophira gown, and all-over, as on the Ellie mini.

How do you care for a beaded Alémais dress?

Our advice is specialist dry cleaning only. Store a beaded dress flat and on a padded hanger, away from direct sunlight, and never hang a heavily beaded dress by its straps, because the weight pulls the cloth. Sequins and beads can catch on jewellery, so put earrings and bracelets on before the dress, not after.

Is a beaded Alémais dress suitable for a wedding?

Yes, for an evening and cocktail wedding. The Dillon Applique Halter Gown, the Ophira Sequin Gown and the Scarlet Embellished Gown are long enough for a formal evening. The beaded minis suit a party and a rehearsal dinner better than the ceremony itself. Avoid the cream-ground Giddy dress at a wedding unless the couple has asked guests to wear white.

Do beaded Alémais dresses run true to size?

Yes. Alémais recommends your usual size. Beaded cloth has almost no give, so on the fitted styles, the Limelight and the Mokshini, check your bust and waist against the centimetre table on the product page before ordering. The relaxed styles, the Earle mini, the Ophira and the Scarlet, are more forgiving.