Bride Couture Blog

Feb 22, 2012 | 0 comments

Amsale Gowns are Timeless

How wedding designer Amsale got started

How many of us can say we designed our own wedding dress? It’s definitely as hard as it looks as most of us would probably fail. Surprisingly, designer Amsale (pronounced Ahm-sah’-leh) Aberra designed her own wedding dress in 1985 admitting “It was the dumbest thing I ever did. It took me three months, and the inside wasn’t very pretty.” There are so many gowns out there to choose from however Aberra felt that most gowns then were way overdone and had too much going on. She had a feeling other brides-to-be would agree with her taste in gowns and wanted to do something about it. Her desire in fashion started when she was a child in Ethiopia however coming to America helped Aberra discover the beauty of wedding fashion.

Amsale Aberra’s beginnings in wedding fashion

Two years after she graduated from New York’s Fashion Institute Amsale had a great idea in which she placed a classified advertisement for custom made gowns for people who were on the same page as her. She was tired of seeing wedding gowns with too much ornamentation and not enough sophistication and so were the many other brides-to-be. She was able to get a few responses back, a sketchpad full of designs, and a small team of couture sewers to help start her business right out of her New York City Loft Apartment! Aberra’s goal was to redefine the perception of a timeless wedding gown. She wanted brides to be able to look at their wedding pictures 20 years later with no regret and still be in love with their gown. Amsale was able to create modern updates of the traditional bustle and tasteful color accents such as the popular “blue sash” gown from her Blue Label.

Amsale designs more than just wedding dresses!

Aberra’s collection is not only limited to brides as she extends her beautiful designs to bridesmaids as well. Not only that there is also an evening collection that will make your jaw drop as they take on the sophisticated and modern styles from her wedding dress collections. Aberra’s wedding designs, cocktail dresses, and evening suits are featured all over the top fashion magazines and even worn by many A list celebrities including Halle Berry, Selma Blair, Julia Roberts, Kim Basinger, Vanessa Williams, Heidi Klum and many others. Amsale gowns are among the top wedding designs and have even been featured on The Opera Winfrey Show!

Where can you find an Amsale gown?

In September 2001 Aberra opened a 5,000 square foot boutique on Madison Avenue. Her boutique has a beautiful gallery-like atmosphere that provides a sleek, sophisticated canvas for all of her elegant designs including “The Little White Dress,” Christos, and Kenneth Pool collections. If you don’t live in New York and don’t feel like flying out there Aberra’s bridal designs can be found nationwide at the finest boutiques and specialty retailers such as Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus. Even better, sample bridal salons such as Bride Couture in San Diego carry many Amsale wedding dresses at up to 80% off retail value and can ship to anywhere in the world!

Feb 15, 2012 | 0 comments

Celebrity Wedding Gowns

Why we love celebrity wedding gowns

Whether it’s on the red carpet, movies or in magazines most eyes are glued on celebrities daily because we admire their beauty, style and personalities. Every year however most women tend to focus more on the celebrity wedding events that allow us to view the location, invited guests, decorations, the cake, and most importantly, celebrity wedding gowns. Between royal weddings, model weddings and the Kardashian wedding extravaganza, we were able to see every single detail presented at these beautiful weddings, especially the current trends on beautifully designed wedding dresses! These wedding dresses can be some of the most complex wedding gowns ever designed because top wedding designers go all out knowing everyone will see their gown! Many prospective brides get a lot of their ideas from viewing celebrity weddings but how do you know which gown is right for you?

Which celebrity wedding gown is right for you?

Celebrity wedding gowns are a great choice if you want to make a bold fashion statement. In 2011 we saw many celebrities walk down the aisle in a variety of styles and designs. Whether you prefer conservative, long-sleeved looks like Kate Middleton or sexy sparkles like Kim Zolciak or even quirky surprises like Tara Reid, there was something for everyone! All you have to do is learn the trends of the many different celebrity dresses to see which style you want to wear for your wedding. Celebrity wedding gowns are not just a way for the media to get all the details on the dress but they allow you to steal ideas for your upcoming weddings! You can also get good ideas for decorations and favors and then find a cheaper substitute. When actress Hilary Duff married Mike Comrie they clearly did not have a budget as they gave Padron Anniversario cigars and a box of Hilary’s favorite chocolates from John Kelly. Another way to have something similar is to give out personalized M&M’s or generic cigars. You don’t have to empty out your pockets to get the look you want just get creative and do some research!

Celebrity wedding gowns can be affordable!

Many women idolize the style of celebrity wedding gowns and are dying to have one in their hands. The problem however is that most of us do not have the income to buy the dress of our dreams. Not to worry, there are many ways in getting a celebrity wedding dress without paying thousands of dollars. First, a few wedding retail shops will actually sell replicas of dresses that celebrities have worn for their wedding for amazing deals. Alfred Angelo made a replica of the Carolina Herrera gown Bella wore in Breaking Dawn. These gowns will still look like the real one and have all the beading and designs you hoped for. Dresses like these, cost around $5,000 or less, which is obviously much better than paying $30,000. If you want the actual designer dress such as a custom Vera Wang or Monique Lhuillier many sample bridal salons carry these top designer wedding dresses and mark them up to 80% off! So, if you’re sticking to a budget for your wedding dress and think you can’t afford a celebrity wedding gown think again! There are many ways to get the look you want without sacrificing both style and money!

Feb 10, 2012 | 0 comments

Bridesmaid Dresses - The Biggest Headache for the Bride-to-Be?

Choosing Bridesmaid Dresses for the Bride-to-be’s Wedding Party

We know that finding the perfect wedding dress can be a challenge for the bride-to-be however there are so many dresses, styles and different trends to choose from which makes it a little easier. But finding the perfect bridesmaid dress that will look great on everyone and not over power the bride can be tricky. The problem that many brides face when choosing a bridesmaid dress is that they want to make everyone happy. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard bridesmaids complain about the dress they have to wear because they hate the color, length or shape on their individual bodies. How does the bride-to-be make a fair decision so everyone is happy spending money on a dress they may never wear again?

Bridesmaid Dress Trend for the Bride-to- be: Mismatching

Today brides are saying goodbye to traditional matching bridesmaid dresses by simply mixing up the color or style of the dress. Mismatching allows each bridesmaid to wear a dress that is flattering to their bodies and allows each bridesmaid to express their personality and individual style. Not only that, bridesmaids will most likely wear their dress again since the bride-to-be is giving them the option to choose a dress they personally like! This way you won’t have to hear your bridesmaids complain about how much they had to spend on a dress that makes them look fat or they just don’t like. Some may say this mismatch trend will make the bridal party look sloppy as a whole in photos but if done the right way, it will leave your bridal party looking stylish and unique! Not only that, mismatching helps display the bride and her gown better by breaking up the monotony of all the dresses.

Important Mismatching Tips for the Bride-to-be

The bride-to-be must set specific guidelines for the colors she wants to use for her dresses. The most important guideline you must follow if you do decide to mismatch is to choose the color! If the dresses are all the same color it won’t matter if the styles are different. Next pick a theme or a concept you are trying to get across- i.e.. vintage, girly, retro, modern or simple. This will have a lot to do with the style of your dress so it is always important to pick out your wedding dress before starting to look for bridesmaid dresses. Now comes the fun part where you let your girls pick out the dress they like the most based on your guidelines. There are some great stores like JCrew that have numerous styles in the same color so you know the colors will match and they can just pick out the style they like. It should also be pretty easy to find a JCrew store in any major city that carries bridesmaid gowns so that no matter where they live they can go try them on. In the end, everyone is happy and the bridesmaids will probably wear their dress again. Not to mention the fact that since they picked the best dress for their figure, everyone will look great. For this reason mismatching is becoming more common and popular. Even celebrities such as Molly Sims have recently been seen following this trend. She followed this trend simply because she did not want her bridesmaids to look like typical bridesmaids, so she had the fabulous Elizabeth Kennedy design a collection of cohesive yet mismatched gowns. The great thing about mismatching is that the possibilities are endless! You can choose anything- strapless, one shoulder, lace, chiffon, silk, short length or floor length! Mismatching bridesmaid dresses and styles will definitely be around for awhile and maybe even forever as it brings not only color to the ceremony but personality and style as well!

Feb 03, 2012 | 0 comments

What Exactly Are Sample Designer Wedding Dresses?

Why buy a sample designer wedding dresses?

With how the economy has been recently most of us are not as quick to spend our money like we used to. Now brides are even more budget conscious when planning for their wedding and are looking for the best deals ever especially on their dress. Sample designer wedding dresses allow brides on a budget to purchase a designer gown at a much lower cost. When I say “much lower” I mean MUCH LOWER!!!! Big designer names like Vera Wang, Amsale, and Christos gowns can be purchased up to 80% off retail value! There is no need to spend thousands of dollars on designer dresses anymore because you can easily purchase an authentic designer gown with money left over!

What exactly are sample designer wedding dresses and where do I find one?

Every year bridal salons purchase wedding dresses from sizes 8-12 that show that designer's latest collection. These gowns are used as “samples” to show the bride- to -be the different kinds of dresses they can purhcase. If they like the dress they will then order it in the size closet to their measurements. When these bridal salons are ready to give up these sample designer wedding dresses Bride Couture is there to take them off their hands. Bridal salons sell these samples for many reasons like the gown may be discontinued by the designer, they need to make more room for new inventory, or the salon has stopped carrying a specific designer all together. And who benefits from this? THE BRIDE! There are bridal salons that only carry designer sample gowns such as Bride Couture in San Diego, CA where you can come in for a private appointment or shop online. You can even order up to 4 gowns to try at once! Just make sure that whoever you buy a sample gown from online has a return policy if the gown does not work out.

Is it hard to find sample designer wedding dresses that are in great condition and in my size?

There are many great reasons why sample designer wedding dresses are perfect. They have not been worn by a bride at her wedding so no alterations have been made and they are not second hand! These dresses have only been tried on in the store so you will still be the only bride to wear this gown on her wedding day. For those of you who may be skeptical with purchasing a sample gown online we would advise you make sure you ask the seller of the condition of the gown. For example, are there missing beads, straps, fabric tears, stains, does the zipper work, etc. And as I mentioned before, all the reputable online salons that sell sample gowns should have a return policy and typically have minor repairs like borken zippers and missing beads fixed before selling the gown. As far as size goes, typically sample gowns are a label size 8 to 12 which in “wedding world” means it is a street size 6 to 10 since they run 1 to 2 sizes small. So if these sizes are too big for you they can be sized down a few sizes and if they are too small they can be sized up one or two sizes by a professional wedding gown seamstress. Overall, if you a bride with exquisite taste and a smart head on her shoulders who wants to wear a desginer wedding dress on her big day without breaking the bank, then sample designer wedding dresses are meant for you!

Jan 28, 2012 | 0 comments

Mermaid Style Wedding Dresses Are For Everyone!

Mermaid style wedding dresses are for everyone!

A traditional wedding dress consists of a full-skirted white satin gown, having both a high neck and sleeves. Over time, wedding fashions have evolved tremendously and now we see a variety of styles of dresses such as ball gowns, lace, A-lines, trumpets, and mermaid style wedding dresses. A mermaid style gown looks exactly how it sounds, like a mermaid! This dress fits closely to the body from the chest to the knee then flares out to the hem just as a “mermaid” tail would look. More and more brides are choosing this look because it emphasizes their best assets perfectly unlike the traditional ball gown or A-line style. Many celebrities have chosen this trend such as Kim Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, Fergie and Christina Aguilera. However, because of how extremely tight fitting mermaid style wedding dresses appear brides would rather say no thanks!

You don’t have to be super thin and tall to pull off mermaid style wedding dresses

Despite what many brides believe you don’t need to be super thin and statuesque to rock a mermaid style gown. However, you must certainly be comfortable flaunting your assets in order to pull off this dramatic look as it will accentuate all those gorgeous curves. Although mermaid style wedding dresses are not for everyone you will never know until you try one on! These gowns definitely hug the body and show every single curve but typically they do so in a way that is va va voom by highlighting the smallest part of your waist and giving you a dramatic hour glass shape. Curvier celebrities such as Beyonce Knowles have made the mermaid style very popular on the red carpet. Not only that, shorter celebrities such as Kim Kardashian who is only 5ft looked stunning in her strapless mermaid dress at her wedding because they have the affect of making you look taller. Obvioulsy the length of her marriage has nothing to do with this style of gown ;-) So if you have beautiful curves and are proud of them choose mermaid style wedding dresses so show them off!

Afraid that mermaid style wedding dresses will be too sexy or non- traditional?

The mermaid style actually comes in all different styles and fabrics so if you are worried about them looking too non-traditional, informal or inappropriate, think again! The mermaid style comes in all different neck lengths and sleeve lengths giving you the option as to how much skin you want to cover or reveal. Choosing a mermaid style with a high neckline and sleeves will still show off those curves without showing too much skin. But sometimes less is more sexy! If you choose to show off your skin and give more of a seductive look you can opt for a halter strapless or a plunging neckline. For those of you who may feel this dress is too sexy, you can still wear a mermaid style wedding dress without it being skin tight. There are many mermaid style wedding dresses that lightly hug the curves of your body but may be made our of a more flowy silk crepe or lace material. The mermaid style can also give both an informal and formal look by the various skirt styles available. You can either have the skirt flare out above the knee, at the knee, or below the knee, in which each will give a different silhouette and style. To make it even more formal your skirt can have a chapel or cathedral train making the dress look very elegant and amazing! In the end, whether you are into mermaid style wedding dresses really depensd on your personal taste but don't think you can't pull one off until you try it. So whether you think this style is right for you or not give it a chance!

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