New Year's resolutions for the stylish bride

Designs by Reva Mivasaga

I love New year's day! There is something exciting about the beginning of every adventure, the hoping and dreaming, the wondering and pondering if things will go your way, but best of all the opportunity to start over with a blank canvas, no other feeling comes close to that at all. I am usually one to stay away from the ‘R’ word, it always seemed to me that resolutions were only made to be broken within the first week of the new year and thus were rather pointless. I must admit however, that resolutions are important, especially when it comes to fashion and style, they force us to look critically at the past year and work on the weak areas. My last few articles on Examiner focused on resolutions every stylish bride should think about making for the new year. So if you’re a bride-to-be and you're trying to give your wedding planning a stylish boost, you might want to repeat after me

I promise to love the old as much as the new…
The stunning gowns in the photo above by Reva Mivasaga combine stylish vintage elements with modern shapes and silhouettes. Every bridal gown needs a little romance and a twist of something old in addition to the modern trends we love. I adore Reva’s designs because he really gets the balance of old and new just right, overdoses of vintage elements in a gown can make the entire outfit look like a costume.

Reva Mivasaga

I promise to be kind when choosing bridesmaid gowns…
There is no rule that all the bridesmaids must wear the exact same dress. I wrote chapter 2 of the bridesmaid series to show that the maids can still look uniform and coordinated without wearing the exact same dress. They can even get away with wearing different colors, it all comes down to thoughtful execution of a stylish plan rather than the ‘one dress fits all policy' that most brides impose on their maids.

Striped chiffon gowns by Thread

I promise to consider stylish cover-ups…
Wraps and boleros were a big hit during the bridal fashion week, many of the 2010 collections featured chic cover-ups that can be worn all year round.They are multi-functional; giving the bride extra coverage, more warmth in cold months and an extra layer of sophistication.

St Pucchi silk cover-up, Monique Lhuillier opera coat, Romona Keveza ruffled bolero

Most importantly each bride should resolve to have a wedding that truly reflects her personality and style. I hope you all enjoyed 2009 as much as I did and hopefully 2010 will be an even better year for us all.

These are a few of my favorite things ♫...

Maria from the Sound of Music, might very well have been singing that song to me this week. I couldn’t seem to get the tune out of my head and all my bridal articles for the week were eventually inspired by it. The song might be slightly outdated but it doesn’t hurt to have a cheery tune in your head when winter comes too early and summer seems oh so far away.

"Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes.." I never quite understood why that was one of her favorite things, but it did make me ponder anew the countless number of flower girl dresses I’ve seen that should have been kept miles away from any wedding ceremony. People claim that it doesn’t really matter what the flower girls wear because they’re only children, and they’ll look cute no matter what. Not exactly the gospel truth. This is a wedding not any ordinary day and the flower girls are the leading ladies of the bridal party, (at least they lead the wedding march) surely they should look just as stunning as the bride and her maids? I think so.

Fabricated is a series dedicated to helping brides understand all the different bridal fabrics, which in turn helps them choose the perfect dress. This week the focus was on Satin, which in case you didn’t know, also goes by the name liquid gold. Okay so thats not strictly true but it should be. Certain types of silk satin are so luscious to look at and touch, its a wonder it wasn't named silky gold.

Are people still oblivious to the fact that there is more to bridal fashion than a strapless ball gown? The answer is a shocking yes. It might be blasphemy to some brides, but cowl neck bridal gowns do exist and are authentic.

I’ve always liked the simplicity of cowl neck dresses, they are effortlessly sexy, sophisticated and modest all at once, they have a 1950s elegance about them and still manage to look modern and fresh.

Well I'm thankful that its friday and I plan to love every minute of the weekend. Hope you all have a great weekend too.

A week in the life of a bridal writer...

A week in my life involves being immersed in a bubbling fountain of bridal information, as a bridal fashion writer my attention is always drawn to fashion concepts both new and old that impact upon the ever so important walk down the aisle. When I'm not drooling over deliciously unique fashion pieces, I'm liasing with my sources of inspiration; designers, photographers, fashion writers and ofcourse bridal retailers. A photo of me on Fashion Ave in my favorite city

This week my bridal pages on examiner were focused mainly on bridal accessories,the bridal party and wedding decor..

The bridesmaids dress is so often the focus of much hate and disgust, as the maids feel forced to wear frocks that dont flatter them in the slightest... thus i penned down chaper 1 of the 'choosing the perfect bridesmaid dress' series.

I came accross a darling collection of wedding cake toppers, and realised how boring and bland most of the ones I had seen in the past really were...

While browsing on theknot.com an excellent source of bridal resources, I realised that there is no longer any reason for chaotic seating at the wedding reception, with low priced DIY escort cards that guide people directly to their table. I also rediscovered my love for all things Swarovski.. their crystal products have won my heart all over again. The low priced sparkly gems should be every brides best friend. A crystal solitaire looks exactly like its diamond cousin but cost much less! Crystals can also be sprinkled over bridal gowns, and veils, even purses and shoes with fantastic results as long its just a sprinkle of crystals rather than a flood.

Focus on the back!

It seems to me that most brides search for their perfect gown by focusing mainly on the elements of the gown that can be seen from the front view; they worry about the neckline, the waist, the silhouette, the fabric...everything except the back of the gown! In fact the more I thought of it I realised that after looking at hundreds of completely different bridal gowns, somehow they all seemed to look identical from behind. Many wedding dresses share features at the back such as a standard lace up corset, hidden zips and neat rows of microscopic buttons. These thoughts led me to write the article Behind every great gown..

If the red carpet has taught us anything at all, we have learnt the importance of a dress that looks great from every angle and not just the front. This is because real photographs are not as forgiving as magazine shots of models and mannequins, they show all the different sides of the dress so it makes perfect sense to spread the glamour of the gown more evenly so that there are exquisite details on the front as well as the back. Of course this doesn't mean that there is anything wrong with a gown that has a simple back; it really comes down to the personal taste and choice of the bride. Just as long as it is an open minded choice rather than a blind following of the 'boring back' tradition.

The beauty of back detailing lies mainly in the element of surprise; people always expect the best of the gown to be apparent from the front view, it is not until the bride has walked past or maybe even taken her veil off for the reception that they get to see the extra touch of glamour at the back of the gown where it is least expected. The back detail could be anything ranging from criss-cross straps, to lace cut outs or even over sized bows.

Intricate detailing on the back is best for gowns that are ultra simple in the front, if the gown has too much detailing on both the front and the back it will look busy and overdone which is never the look to aim for. Brides who prefer to cover their upper arms and back can go for high necked gowns like the bateau neck and then compensate with a deliciously chic open back. Open back gowns often straddle the line between classy and trashy, if the opening in the back is too wide, too low, or poorly fitted, the gown will look cheap and tacky. Whenever in doubt about overdone embellishments and over revealing gowns, opt for less of both.

For more photos of exquisite back detail click here to visit my page