Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 12, 1995 TAG: 9502100023
SECTION: YOUR WEDDING PAGE: 2 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
And yet, the majority of gowns on display in the stores are made of shiny, white satin with chapel-length trains and full skirts, what most people usually think of when they think wedding gowns.
But that doesn't mean wedding fashions haven't changed or that other styles are not available. Wedding fashions tend to change slowly over a few years, Lewis said, rather than every season, as street clothes do.
Often, the differences between gowns are in the details, such as lace and beads, and a designer gown, although it can be more expensive, can offer a bride that one-of-a-kind look.
Overall, this year's preferences seem to be toward simplicity, Lewis said, with beads replacing flashy sequins on both dresses and headpieces. Newer fabrics have a matte finish, rather than a shiny one, said Angel Perrier of Patina Bridal and Formal. The detail along the hemlines also is becoming simpler, and designers are using more netting.
"It's simple elegance," said Perrier.
"It's something we've just now seen a lot of interest in," said Dean Dorathy of Bride's House and Formals. "It's a '60s look, very Jackie Kennedy. Things have come full circle."
One of the most important new trends, Lewis said, is that after 30 years, princess-style gowns are once more popular.
"This is a drastic change," she said.
The traditional style, the basque waist, has a bodice that is fitted tightly from the shoulder to the hip and comes to a point in front before flaring out into a full skirt. It has a slimming effect that is very popular. In the princess style, the waist is set just above the natural waist, and the skirt flows out from there.
In the past year, Perrier said, the two styles have become almost equally popular.
For the less tradition-minded, there are sheaths, trumpet skirts and dresses with net or lace overlays. Informal dresses, which don't have a train, street-style dresses and suits often fit the needs of second-time or older brides, or those on a tight budget, Perrier said.
The shorter dresses are very popular for outdoor weddings, Dorathy said.
Veils and headpieces haven't changed much, Perrier said, but her clients seem to be turning away from the short "blusher" veil that covers the face during most of the ceremony. Only one in 10 women want it, she said.
"It's a more traditional thing. It's a sign of purity. They don't go for it any more," she said.
But Dorathy said blushers are still very much in demand at her shop, the only difference being that the father often will put the veil back at the beginning of the ceremony, so the bride doesn't have to wait until the end to see what's going on.
Although the long chapel- and cathedral-length veils are popular, many brides want them to be detachable, so they can wear their headpieces comfortably at the reception, Dorathy said.
All of the stores sell hats, but almost no one wears them. Perrier said women sometimes choose to wear one in a wedding photo because the hat frames the face well, but Dorathy said they are mostly used in informal weddings.
There are many styles available in both long and short sleeves, and gloves are appearing on both brides and bridesmaids, Lewis said. Off-the-shoulder styles are also in demand, and especially popular are long-sleeved dresses that simulate the off-the-shoulder style with sheer sleeves and shoulders.
These styles seem to look especially good on video tape, Perrier said.
Styles from a few years ago that are "out" now, include the "mermaid" style, in which the dress is fitted tightly almost to the ankles and then flared out at the hemline in a mass of ruffles, Perrier said.
Sleeves are usually simple cap sleeves or tightly fitted. Huge "leg-of-mutton" sleeves sell, Dorathy said, but are not very popular.
Fabrics such as chiffon, silk and organza are gaining on the old standby, satin, Lewis said, and attendants' dresses in crepe are also becoming popular.
Perrier said many brides look for outfits their attendants can wear again, and more and more, dresses and two-piece suits are being designed with this in mind.
"They're getting away from the satin party dress" look, Dorathy said. The dresses also are being made in more sophisticated styles, she added. Many brides today are older when they marry and want a grown-up look.
Dressing the bridesmaids in black for an all black-and-white wedding is becoming popular, and some brides are opting for an all-white or all-ivory color scheme, Lewis said. "It's very elegant."
Although white and ivory are the colors most in demand for attendants at a formal wedding, Lewis said a light gold shade the manufacturer calls "sand" is selling well at her shop.
Several of the bridal gowns Perrier had on display have an outer skirt of thin ivory silk with an underskirt of another shade, creating an iridescent effect, with the color barely showing through.
Gowns also come in a variety of pastel shades, but they are not very popular, Perrier said, and only one bride-to-be has ever asked her for black.
Most stores also stock a selection of dresses for the mothers of the bride and bridegroom. Although occasionally, they may choose to wear the same color fabric, most of the time, the mothers settle for wearing different dresses in the same color family, Lewis said.
But in her experience, Perrier said, the mothers "don't usually consult each other."
One of the biggest changes in dresses for the mothers, she said is that it's now OK to wear ivory or black.
Stores also stock a few dresses in children's sizes, but most of the time, these must be ordered. For junior bridesmaids, design houses will often sell matching fabric, so a dress can be made up in a style suitable for a younger person, Dorathy said.
The bride-to-be can spend anywhere from $300 to $5,000 on a wedding gown, but the average most women spend is about $750 to $800.
Some stores, such as Lady L, keep dresses in stock mostly for try-ons, unless a woman really wants to buy one off the rack. But many of the dresses at Patina are sold off the rack, and Perrier said there are often good bargains to be found among the discontinued styles.
For a woman looking for a gown to pass on to her daughter or granddaughter, Lewis recommends buying a basque waist style with a full skirt and a sweetheart or other high neckline. It's a style that never looks dated, she said.
Although most stores only stock dresses in sizes 8, 10 and 12, they can be ordered up to size 42, Lewis said. Dorathy said she has found dresses up to size 46.
Thin women have a harder time of it, Perrier said, since the smallest size most dresses come in is size 6, and those must be altered to fit a smaller woman, especially if she is petite.
It can take as long as three months for a dress to arrive after it has been ordered, Lewis said, and alterations take time as well, so it's a good idea to choose a dress six to eight months before the wedding.
In mens' fashions, "nothing much changes," Dorathy said. Black is still the favored color for tuxedos.
Lewis said her customers are renting more vests, rather than cummerbunds, because they are more comfortable, and they are ordering them, along with matching ties, in any and all colors.
Bill Jones, owner of Mr. Formal Wear, said that in the past, white and gray tuxedos have been popular, but now, "95 to 99 percent" of his customers want basic black.
Whether a man is comfortable in a cummerbund "depends on his stomach," Jones said, but most men have no problem wearing them. There are hundreds of choices of colors for ties, vests and cummerbunds in his catalog, he said.
Actually, he said, the newest thing in formal wear are tuxedos designed for women. So far, most of the women who have rented them do so "just for something different" for a formal party, he said. One of his customers told him she liked having pockets and not having to worry about her shoulders getting cold.
So far, he has only rented them once to a wedding party, when a gay couple chose them for their attendants, he said.
The manufacturers are presenting the tuxedos, which come with slacks or a skirt, as an option for bridesmaids. At an average cost of $60 to $70 per person, they can be much less expensive than traditional dresses, he said.
by CNB