THE PRE-OWNED GOWN OPTION

Pre-owned Wedding Dresses.com

Want a top-of-the-line couture look on your wedding day but don't think you can shell out the bucks for a  designer label?  Well, check out these gowns from Pre-owned Wedding Dresses.com where you can actually order online.  You can also visit consignment a bridal shop. Now if the word 'consignment' conjours images of 1980s gowns full of the usual pouf and paste of sequins, perish that thought. Most dresses in consignment shops are actually cutting edge and you'll find it more like going to a high-end designer salon. With catchy names like One More Time, these places offer some elegant, gently worn gowns in better shape than your average designer sample. In fact, the proprietors can get real persnickety about what they take in—some only accepting top designer names like Vera Wang and Reem Acra in all natural fibers. In addition, once gowns are accepted they’re cleaned and pressed (Ask where though. More shops are specializing in environmentally safe cleaning)

Pre-owned Wedding Dresses

If you’re price conscious going for a pre-owned gown is the way to go. Gowns that retailed last season for $3000-4000 are typically half off but sometimes can go for as little as $500-600. More good news. You’re going to get very personalized assistance—the same as in a full service bridal salon. Though there will be re-altering involved, you won’t have to wait 4-6 months for your gown. Bear in mind once-worn gowns have already been pre-fit and altered to someone else’s body. Just make sure they’re once-worn; an over altered dress that’s been on more than one body could lose its original shape after a while. Ask how many and what kind of alterations the gown you want has had. Typically, if it’s gone through more than two brides, forget it. In addition to alterations your shop may offer customizing services (for a fee). Shops realize with previously-worn gowns, there’s a kind of possessive energy the new purchaser wants to create to make the gown her own. Therefore some shops focus on customizing.

FYI: Naturally bridal consignment shops don’t stock set sizes like salons do. Small and larger brides might have to work closely with staff and keep a lookout locating a gown in their size

BLUSHING BRIDE

Credits: Olivia Leigh, W. Scott Chester Photography, Marla Aufmuth, Orchard Cove Photography, Myrtle & Marjoram, Koelle Art via Poppytalk, Dollface Studio

Special thanks to Shana Wilson over at SMP Style Circle for putting together these delicate Spring inspirations for us.  Particularly love the gossamer feel of all the apparel shown here.  You can find all kinds of chic and cutting edge ideas on her blog, Baubles and Bubbles .

VINTAGE SUNSET

I hope this board inspires a vintage feeling in all of you looking toward a Gatsbyesque or Hollywood style wedding.  The pale salmons and beiges suggest sepia tones evocative of the start of the last century when lace and intricate embroidery applications were more commonly used.  If you can find just one vintage item or accessory to work into your wedding day it will make a real difference sentimentally (especially if the item is passed down from a loved one) as well as adding panache to your look . . .

ONCE UPON A TIME

One of the nicer aspects of aging would have to be 'remembering when' and actually seeing ads like these in daily papers back in the 1970s when  fashion illustrations were still the norm.  Thanks to Wendy Hartigan of Bridal Affairs in Philadelphia,we have these great fashion illustrations..  She sent me these clippings along with some editorials from Bride's from her mother's files. The above photo of the bride in a helmet-like headpiece and waterfall veil is from the late sixties; the bottom image late seventies when the gypsy-chic of Oscar de la Renta and YSL was all the rage; this is the era I cut my teeth in . . .

MEET ME IN THE PARK

CREDITS

Photography by: The Renegades:

Larry Placido; Danielo, Ivan Yudhi,  Jeff Hoang, Diane Villanueva Photography, Martha Blanchfield

Gowns and Veils:  Amy-Jo Tatum

Makeup: Aliya Qazi

PR: Martha Blanchfield

Venue: Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA

Models: Jen and Sujan

Golden Gate Park in San Francisco is home to a couple of the the city's museums, the De Young and California Academy of Sciences.  Next door is the Japanese Tea Garden, an outdoor botanical garden steeped in a serene and peaceful beauty.  After you've visited this 1000 plus acre landmark you'll find yourself asking, 'where else can you find year round greenery in so many fields of open space?'  Because Golden Gate Park has a unique landscape, there are scores of special places to get married indoors and out.  The most romantic of all would be Shakespeare's Garden the spot that pays tribute to all the the plants and flowers mentioned in the Bard's poems and plays. You'll find lady-smocks, hemlock, violets, and other florid representations of Shakespeare's works. 

Opting for spots in full bloom as well as architectural interest, we also improvised along the way and had a real day of it . .

Jeff Hoang

In front of the De Young Museum

Danielo

Martha Blanchfield

Special thanks to all the Renegades, a Bay Area group of photographers on the edge, finding the nuance in recording everything from daily life to the surealness of fashion  . . .

RAPSODY IN BLUE

While there are many shades of blue, these pewter and slightly aqua hues do inspire a light muted spring mood found in gardens and sea refuges. Adding light pastels and the texture of berries to your bouquet gives this floral piece real individuality . . .

MINIMALIST

 Bottega Veneta

Not every dress out there is about flounce and bounce this season.  Strip away the ruffles and layers and these simple styles reflect the women who knows less is sometimes more and feels best in a dress that shows her off to the best advantage

Calvin Klein

Emilio Pucci.

GianFranco Ferré.

Luisa Beccaria

Yves Saint Laurent.

Images courtesy iosposa.it

Chiffon Tee Tutorial

These bright tees are my latest project and take literally minutes to create. It all started with leftover the nylon chiffon strips that I had from creating these two can-can skirts below.

It occurred to me that these scraps might work well on a plain tee. Here is how it is done:

1. Take two long (about 4 times the length of the collar) strips of nylon chiffon and place one strip on the other strip. You can use the same color or different hues, as shown.

2. Adjust your sewing machine tension to a tighter level (I put mine on 7) and increase your stitch length to the longest setting. Now sew. The chiffon with automatically begin to gather and ruffle before your eyes.

(This is what your result will be)

3. Now take a plain tee and lay the ruffle (you may need to pull the threads and loosen it slightly) along the collar. Pin in place and sew. Make sure you adjust your tension and stitch length back to the normal settings first.

And that is it! Look at what that simple embellishment did to that plain tee. I love how the lighter chiffon peeks through the darker layer.

I also did it in yellow but with the same color of chiffon for more of a monochromatic look. The yellow actually is my favorite version. It just screams summer.

Here is my orange version. For this one, I twisted the chiffon,while sewing it to

rotate the light and darker chiffon, as shown.

There three are in my shop for sale if anyone is interested.

HEART OF GOLD

Kudos to Naomi Goodman of Enchanted Dream Weddings and Affairs for giving us this stunning set of inspirations.  Old and new are fused together here to create a sense of the classic always having belonged to us no matter where we are in the portals of time . . . .

PUTTING TOGETHER A VINTAGE LOOK

These stunning vintage inspired gowns by Atelier Aimée Montenapoleone offer handmade touches in exqusite fabrics. Every gown you see here is created and produced at Atelier Aimée’s own workshops in Italy.  Aimée designers blend highly honed skills to create these gowns. Says Designer Lucia Zanotti,‘Each gown is like a painting and a sculpture together. First it is designed and then it is sculpted...’

Images courtest isposa.it

Gowns by Atelier Aimée Montenapoleone

SPRING GLOVE GLAM

Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal/Photo by Stephanie Williams Photography

Whether crocheted shorties or long, opera length lending that aspect of drama—gloves are glamorous and really tie a bridal look together. Luckily there are no rules anymore about what sort of gloves you have to wear with your gown. You can go with the classic white and ivory or jazz up your look with any length, color, texture, even pattern as you can see below. Just as some brides are showing some pizazz wearing different color shoes with their gown, glove color is an option you have as well. Go ahead, be adventuresome!

StylehiveVintage kid gloves from Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal



Crocheted gloves by Shaneen Huham
Shorty cotton gloves Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal/Photo by Stephanie Williams Photography

Opera gloves by Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal/Photo by Henley Photography

Pink opera gloves by Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal/Photo by Henley Photography

Ivory opera gloves by Amy-Jo Tatum Bridal/Photo by S1 Studio