We couldn’t bear to stop our Valentine’s love letters when February ended. Today, we’re sharing another love letter from Kristin to her summer sandals.
Image above by Martha Manning from Kristin + Kyle’s wedding.
Have you caught the love letter bug? Check out More Love Letters, an organization after our own hearts. Their goal? To turn your best love letter into a lamp to light the path of someone who needs to read it. Find out more here.
Can you believe we are only 20 days away from the arrival of V5? To help pass the time, join me for another look into Bridal Market 2012. I have lots of gorgeous gowns to share, plus an impromptu mini SW fashion show!! (PS: Don’t miss out on Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.)
We will start with the always amazing Badgley Mischka.
If I had to pick one word to describe this collection from Badgley Mischka, it would be glamour. The pleated tulle, delicate Chantilly lace and crystal embroidery (which was on almost EVERY gown – oh my stars) was soft and subtle and at the same time oh so glamorous. As a traditional ‘ballgown bride,’ I couldn’t help but wonder about trying on one of these lovely form-fitting beauties.
Our next step was a good ol’ squeal fest as we met and became fast friends with all the lovely LulaKate ladies. It was so fun to see these dresses in person, since they frequently make appearances on the blog in Real Wedding posts. Look for a few of these beauties in V5, too!
Somehow the LulaKate ladies convinced us to pull the frocks that we had been drooling over and have a mini SW fashion show. Marissa snagged a beautiful lace and striped dress with a detachable bow-belt, and I picked a lovely grey and white rugby stripe dress with pockets! After trying them on and prancing around, we decided we needed a place to wear these lovely dresses again.
Isn’t Katherine, the brilliant creator of LulaKate, just adorable? We were so grateful for her and her team and all their Southern hospitality.
Up next was Watters. During this show we were able to preview both the Watters and Wtoo collections, and boy oh boy were there a LOT of lovely dresses.
The camellia lacy overlay on the gown above added a layer of lovely texture to an already beautiful tulle ballgown. And of course, how can you not love the whisper pink beauty below with the hand-beaded detailing? We saw a lot of soft blush colors during Bridal Market this year, and this was definitely one of the prettiest.
The lovely C20 collection had some great LBD options that would be perfect for bridesmaids or maybe for a rehearsal dinner? This crewneck illusion lace dress was so chic, and I died over the hidden pockets in the sleeveless black satin number.
Finally, we stopped by the lovely Donna Morgan booth to take a peek at the fresh new styles and colors in their 2013 bridesmaid collection. We loved seeing the work of our friends Trent Bailey and Jackie of Merci New York on the walls of the Donna Morgan booth. The new campaign is gorgeous, y’all!
The coral dress, with its sassy texture, seemed like it would be the perfect thing to dance the night away in. And of course, we were all big fans of the stylish lace peplum in delicate pink.
We’ve got two more Bridal Market posts coming up, so stay tuned! BIG huge thanks to Kat Harris for photographing all these beauties for us!
P.S. Which is your favorite gown from this post? So hard to choose!
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I love the last Badgely cuz it’s just SO Badgely ya know? I had my girls wear LulaKate and I just think her gowns are the cream of the crop. Love that she is bringing in some lace textures! My favorite Watters gown is Row 3 left one. so girly!
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It’s so hard to pick a favorite with Badgley, because they’re all just so stunningly detailed, but I’m going to go with the one that looks like it has seashell embellishments. For Watters, I love the camellia lace overlay, and I adore all three of those bridesmaid looks! Love LulaKate and Donna Morgan as well!
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I love the last dress for my bridesmaids – the lace in delicate pink. Can you send me more details on that one? I MUST find it.
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Whitney! I am pretty sure the lovely pink peplum will be available in the spring 2013. I will reach out to our Donna Morgan contact to confirm and definitely pass along any info I can collect for you!!
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I love that LulaKate dress that Marissa tried on! I think it would work so beautifully for a rehearsal dinner dress or bridal shower dress.
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Oh Victoria! It was even better in person! I about died when I got to try it on! It’s inspired by Blake Lively – die again! : )
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As crazy as NYC was…all these posts are making me want to go right back this instant.
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Kat! I was thinking the exact same thing as I was crafting this blog post. We saw a LOT of gorgeous in 3 short days.
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OMG I’m obsessed with Marissa’s dress! It’s perfect for a shower dress. I looked on the LulaKate website and didn’t see it. Do you know the name of it? LOVE
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AHHH same! I need that LulaKate dress. I must wear it to my rehearsal dinner in December. How do I get my hands on it??!
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Yeehaw, y’all!
And the gorgeousness continues with Part 3. I couldn’t let Marissa have all the fun of sharing Bridal Market 2013 with y’all, now could I? Catch up on Part 1 and Part 2 before digging in to this next round of beauty, starting with Ines Di Santo.
Ines Di Santo captivated our attention with her beautiful collection, inspired by what Ines considers one of Europe’s most romantic cities, Venice. The beautiful lines and decadent fabrics of these trumpet style gowns were accented by lovely lace and bead-work adornments.
I loved all the layers of organza in this next sweetheart ballgown. This romantic off-the-shoulder beauty garnered gasps from both Marissa and me. And of course, I loved the delicate bow detail.
And we got the great pleasure of snapping a photo after the show with our friend Kristy Rice. A fun surprise? Kristy designed the beautiful Iphone cases seen here.
From the Ines Di Santo show we dashed straight to the coffee shop around the corner because I was begging for a little burst of caffeine. Thankfully, Marissa and Kat agreed. With coffee in hand, we headed to Pier94 for Anne Barge.
I love these preshow sneak peeks that Kat Harris snapped. Y’all, these shows are masterpieces, and the girls come out one after the other. I can only imagine how crazy it is backstage during the actual show.
Yes! This is the lovely Ms. Anne Barge. We managed to snag a picture with her after the show. And I have to say, her dresses reflect her sweet disposition. She couldn’t have been more sweet or gracious when we introduced ourselves.
Aren’t these lovely deep Vs breathtaking, and the birdcage veils so posh? During the show, one of these lovely hair accents fell off, and the model gracefully caught it without missing a beat and continued down the runway! Her feat was definitely worthy of applause and cheers from the audience.
One of my favorite ‘trends’ that we saw during our time in New York were all the amazing gown back details. Doesn’t this floral illusion back just make you swoon? This collection was packed with flowing silk organza, lace, and delicate bows – perfect for a romantic Southern fete.
On to the ballet studio for the ice crystal inspired collection from Rivini! Rita Vinieris is the brilliant mind behind this delicate collection, which was inspired by the softness of snowflakes and the Ice Hotel in Sweden.
Accordingly, this collection was filled with beading and delicate embellishment. This stunning crystallized blouse was unlike anything else we saw on the runway. I love how it seems to shimmer in the light and add a sense of elegance and barely-there warmth. The girls retraced their steps so we got to see each dress up close, twice, which was a real treat.
Stay tuned for more Bridal Market adventures tomorrow as we head to our next stop! BIG huge thanks to Kat Harris for photographing all these beauties for us!
P.S. Which is your favorite gown so far?
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Great coverage, ladies! I’m just loving the illusion details. Favorites include the cap sleeve, illusion neckline from Christos (first on the left) and the Deep-V illusion backs from Amsale (with a choice of embellishment or without? Lovely!) The Anne Barge collection has some beautiful illusion backs and even shoulders, too! Favorite gown so far? Illusion back from Amsale without embellishment. Clean, classic, so gorgeous. Enjoy the rest of your trip!
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Ms. Anne Barge has REALLY outdone herself! All of those dresses are stunning, but I especially love the 4th one down with the floral illusion back! Stunning!
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Madelynne! I couldn’t agree more. I loved every dress in the Anne Barge collection. And I agree that the detailed floral illusion back was stunning! It definitely took my breath away when she turned around, however, the second to last dress (blush with the deep V + ruffles + bow) was my favorite of the collection. Such gorgeous details and I loved the way it swooshed!!
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Kristin: What did the front of it look like? It really is stunning!
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Alrighty, here are my picks for today! From Ines, I am loving the one with the lace shoulder as well as the blush colored one with the lace bateau neckline. From Anne Barge, I adore the simple one-shoulder number near the bottom. And from Rivini, my pick is the top one!
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My three favorites all together in one post!!! Rivini is my fav but I’m just partial to them because they made my dress :)
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Ines di Santo always seems to steal my heart. Her of the shoulder silk organza gown is my favorite!
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Southern Weddings reserves the right to delete comments which contain profanity or personal attacks or seek to promote a business unrelated to the post. And remember: a good attitude is like kudzu – it spreads. We love hearing your kind thoughts!
Love this letter – and I’m SO with Kristin (great names think alike) about toes looking weird without polish. Looking forward to breaking out my Rodgers soon :)
Oh Kristin, I’m with you! My feet are so tired of being stuck in boots! I want to use my neon orange nail polish pronto.