I’m Not Just the Flying Dress Lady

Here’s the Story You Haven’t Heard Yet...

If you’ve found me through a viral reel, a satin dress moment, or a “can you do a flying dress photoshoot in Aruba?” google search, hi.

I’m Stacy, founder of Flying Dress Aruba, Manchester born and bred, now building a life, a business, and a legacy on One Happy Island.

Most people see the final photos, the flowing fabric, the confidence, the magic.

What you don’t see is the years of grit, the reinvention, the messy middle, and the very real life experiences that shaped the way I run my business today.

So this is a proper re-introduction, the human one. The “fun facts” version, but with the depth that actually matters. Because if you’re here for more than pretty pictures, if you’re building something of your own, or you’re in that season where you’re ready to rise, you’re going to want to know where I've come from and how I've got here.

Fun Fact 1: Manchester Made

I was born and raised in Manchester, UK, where the symbol of the city is the worker bee. Fitting, because hard work has always been in my DNA. I was that kid who had big dreams and a travel itch way before I even had the money or confidence to act on it.

I’ve lived in Greece, traveled Australia, explored Thailand and Italy and the Caribbean, and later lived in Canada for three years. Travel didn’t just entertain me, it shaped me. It taught me how to read people, how to adapt fast, how to stay calm when things go sideways, and how to create experiences that feel special, not generic.

Those skills matter a lot more in business than people realise.

Fun Fact 2: The “I’ve Done Every Job” Era

Before I built a luxury brand, I did what most entrepreneurs do, I worked. All sorts of jobs. The glamorous ones and the ones nobody posts about.

I’ve cleaned houses.

I’ve shovelled horse poo on a ranch, yes, actually.

I’ve been a tour guide.

I’ve been a holiday rep.

I've been a checkout chick in a supermarket.

I've designed and built websites.

And I was a flight attendant, which meant I used to fly to New York every single week.

I learned hustle, customer service, logistics, pressure, people skills, and how to keep smiling even when you’re tired. That last one becomes very useful when you’re running photoshoots in tropical heat while managing a team and a full schedule.

Fun Fact 3: Childhood Dreams

When I was younger I wanted to be either an Olympic horse show jumper or a backing dancer for Janet Jackson or a gypsy so I could roam free and travel the world.

Not “maybe a nice office job”.

Not “something sensible”.

Not "a steady 9-5".

I was always wired for big energy, big goals, and big dreams.

Fun Fact 4: I’m an Only Child, So Sisterhood Matters

I’m an only child, which means friendship has always mattered deeply to me. My friends aren’t “friends”, they’re my sisters. I believe in strong female circles, the kind where women actually support each other, not compete, not gossip, not tear down.

That belief is part of why Flying Dress Aruba became what it is. It’s not just a photoshoot. It’s a confidence ritual. It’s a reminder. It’s a moment where a woman feels celebrated, guided, seen, and safe.

I built it that way on purpose.

(The Not So) Fun Fact 5: The Parts of My Story That Made Me Unbreakable

I am also a survivor of domestic abuse.

And I’m going to be honest, that part of my life didn’t just “happen and end”. My abusive ex has continued to abuse me through the legal system for years. Five years of trying to move on while being dragged back into survival mode.

That experience taught me a different kind of strength, the kind you don’t post about until you’re ready, the kind that changes how you lead, how you protect your peace, how you build boundaries, and how you make decisions.

It also taught me this, you can build a business while rebuilding yourself. You can create beauty while living through chaos.

Fun Fact 6: The Miracle That Changed Everything

I became a Mum at 40.

For a long time I believed I couldn’t have children. I never got pregnant in my past 12.5 year long relationship with my abuser and I had just accepted that being a Mum was not part of my life plan.

And then, the universe surprised me.

My son is my miracle, and he completely changed the lens I see everything through. Every decision I make now has a quiet question behind it, "Will this build a better future for him?".

He is the reason I build with intention.

He is the reason I want systems, security, stability.

He is also the reason I don’t waste time playing small anymore.

Fun Fact 7: I Taught Myself Power Tools and Renovated My Home Like a Woman On a Mission

Here’s a fact that sounds like a joke but isn’t, during the pandemic, I taught myself how to use power tools and started renovating my home by myself.

Before that, I was basically camping in my home for years. No proper floor, no furniture, no windows, no electricity, no kitchen, no air conditioning. I used to lie in bed at night and bats would fly over me because the ring-beam between the walls and roof was open! It wasn’t pretty. It was survival. I did what I had to do to get through each day. This became my "normal".

But lockdown was the moment I decided I was done waiting for someone else to give me permission. I was now alone and could make my own decisions. I became the person who could build what I needed with my own hands.

It was hard. It was liberating. It was also the beginning of a mindset shift that later showed up in my business. When you’ve learned to drill, sand, measure, and problem-solve alone, you stop being scared of “big projects”. You learn to figure things out.

That’s an entrepreneur skill, whether you’re holding a drill or building a brand.

Fun Fact 8: How Flying Dress Aruba Was Born

Flying Dress Aruba started in 2021, but the idea sparked in 2020 when the world paused. During the lockdown pandemic I kept seeing images of the flying dress in Santorini, the original birthplace of the flying dress concept, and I said to my friend, "Why is no one doing this in Aruba?" and she replied, "Why are YOU not doing it in Aruba?"

And that was literally the lightbulb moment that made me start the business concept that has evolved in to what you now see today: Flying Dress Aruba.

I wanted to create something that gave women a moment just for themselves. A moment where they felt powerful, elegant and alive. Because trust me, in those early moments of the pandemic lockdown when I was dealing with my breakup, finding out my ex was having multiple affairs, the constant verbal abuse and threats, the stalking, the financial control...

It was a lot!

And in all honesty, when I look back now, I was probably having some kind of nervous breakdown but I just didn't know it.

I was a woman on the edge. My confidence was non-existent. I was trying to rediscover who I was because for over a decade my happiness was considered "not relevant" and I completely lost myself.

I couldn't buy the shampoo I wanted, I was not allowed to work a regular job, I could not have a phone, no social life, I couldn't even listen to the music I liked. Sounds crazy and totally unbelievable, right? But this is the truth, that was my reality that I lived and breathed for over 10 years.

I had to re-learn what Stacy liked and disliked, and on that journey I started to feel happy again, and I actually started to fall in love with life and myself. In fact, I can vividly remember belly laughing so hard that I had tears rolled down my cheeks, happy tears, and in that moment this thought pop in to my head, "WOW! It's been YEARS since I have laughed like that!". Years and years and years of misery that I endured at the hands of my abuser made me forgot what it felt like to enjoy one of life's simple pleasures: to laugh.

Without fully recognising it, Flying Dress Aruba was enabling me to empower other women, but in return those women were also empowering ME at the same time!

I created Flying Dress Aruba to always make sure the female experience is the most important part of the entire session and her confidence to be boosted by the end of the photoshoot. I know how it feels to not want to have your picture taken, to feel uncomfortable in front of the camera, to feel like you are not worth celebrating and I don't want another woman to feel that way.

I never wanted it to be about awkward posing, not “stand there and smile”, but a guided experience where a woman feels like a goddess, even if she doesn’t feel like one when she first arrives.

Over the last 5 years I’ve built a like-minded team that understand my mission. I’ve refined the customer journey. I’ve turned a concept into a premium service with a stellar reputation.

And recently, we photographed 54 women in one day. The biggest photoshoot day of my entire career so far. The kind of day that looks insane on paper but proves what’s possible when you understand operations, planning, team roles, flow, and experience design.

That didn’t happen by accident. It happened because I learned what works, what breaks, and how to build something sustainable.

Why I’m Sharing This Now

I’m sharing all of this because something new is coming and I want you to know that it's a real human behind Flying Dress Aruba on a mission to change her own life but also other lives too.

For a long time, people have asked me how I built this, how I turned an idea into a booked-out experience, how I created a premium brand in a competitive space, how I kept going through setbacks, how I built a team, how I marketed it, priced it, packaged it, and made it work. People assume I have this big team behind me but the reality is I have done a lot of this on my own and I am not going to lie, it's been a real struggle. I wish would've had some guidance or mentorship when I first started because it probably would have saved me from a lot of heartache and headaches.

I’ve made every mistake you can imagine, and I’ve learned the lessons the hard way.

And now I’m packaging what I know into something that can help other women build their own version of success, faster, smarter, and with fewer tears on the bathroom floor.

If you want first access when I announce it, make sure you’re on my email waitlist. That’s where I’ll share the behind-the-scenes details first, plus real tips you can use immediately.

And if you’re reading this thinking, “I’m ready to build something, I’m just scared”, good. That means you’re on the edge of your next level.

You don’t need to be fearless.

You just need to be willing.

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