Category: Wedding Dresses

During wedding season (like, now!) there are more opportunities than ever to meet with designers themselves or their skilled representatives for your personal wedding gown consultation. At a Trunk Show, designers bring their entire current collection to a salon…in trunks! During your private appointment, you’ll get valuable suggestions, and possibly even custom design changes to the wedding gowns. Salons often provide price incentives on wedding dresses purchased during the Trunk Show. Wedding accessories, veils and headpieces also have their own Trunk Shows, so even if you already have your wedding dress, there’s always room for a tiara or bracelet in your closet!

Some years the wedding fashion trends tell us to add colored ribbons to our white gowns, and other years big flowers or poufs are all the rage. The 2008 wedding dress runway buzz is all about the Return of the Sleeve. For years, strapless wedding gowns have ruled the wedding aisle. And why not? They’re sexy, chic and glam, and are the perfect excuse to accessorize with faux fur or wispy shawls

Hanna Hartnell, wedding dress and formal-wear fashion designer extraordinaire, has cooked up six red-hot gowns to fit the bill. Her special collection of attention-grabbing hues range from a deep rose to rich merlot. Hartnell, who is working with the Red Cross to help make the event a big success, is also donating a $3000 gown for their live auction.

The whole shopping experience really made me think that you don’t have to go to a bargain bridal shop to save money. In fact, you might not save money at all! Plus, I think every bride should have the experience of going to a high-end bridal salon and getting the star treatment. Having a consultant take the time to help you find the perfect dress—one that’s right for your bod y type and matches the style of your wedding—could actually save you lots of time and headache, and you’ll probably end up with a better dress for your big day.

This on-line retailer (with a showroom in Davis, CA) lets brides choose from a huge array of wedding dresses, bridesmaid’s dresses and mother-of-the-bride dresses inspired by the nostalgic styles of bygone eras. I confess to spending more time than was absolutely necessary scrolling through the pages and pages of photos on their website.

It must nice to be a fashion icon. As Sex and the City’s fictional wedding coordinator definitively told an engaged Charlotte: “I have just 2 words for you—Vera Wang.”

Walk into a California bridal salon and you expect a sea of white (or ivory, or cream). More and more, though, we’re seeing splashes of bright color on the typical white gown—and even more dramatic dresses that are far from pale.

It’s not every fashion designer whose collection, studio and name are featured in a successful TV show…but then, Hanna Hartnell has always been known for her star quality.