dear esb: i want to fake couture

Hi East Side Bride,

I am in love with this dress and am getting married in July 2014. I would love to fake it - but I don't know where to begin. Do you have any suggestions?

I found this dress but it's not quite the same in terms of the loose cut and fabric, so I wanted to investigate my cheaper options.

Thanks for this blog - it's definitely a resource for this Brooklyn Bride - to - be!

*****

Please don't try to fake Givenchy.

Buy something original + cool. 

Suggestions? Anyone?

A tale of two dresses.... The FOLLOW UP

Surprise! It's Paige Lowe -- our lady who took her own engagement photos. 

I told you she'd ROCK that ombre dress.

Paige says:

The day and the dress were perfect (minus not exactly fitting, big girl + little dress = keyhole open back cuz it wouldn't button...but I kinda dug it!) (also minus the photo booth company completely failing and not working at all --- OH WELL!)

Other side note - I had my 15 year old INTERN take these photos, it was a HUGE learning experience for her and I got to walk her through every step (and edit the photos myself, big plus). huge huge huge exposure and experience for her, and a HUGE budget cut for us!

#umhelloamazingphotos #radinteren

Tune in to 100 Layer Cake first thing tomorrow morning for tons more photos/dets.

I'll tell you a secret: The dress is gorg, of course, and the images are gorg, but THE WEDDING THE WEDDING THE WEDDING.

A tale of two dresses....

Dear ESB,

I have a tale of two dresses for you, followed by an opportunity for other ESB readers.

I fell in love with this orange ombre beauty [pictured above] via the wonderful (and extremely unhelpful) world of tumblr.  ... somehow I managed to track down the dress, and the artist who created it. I emailed her in hopes of being able to borrow it for my big day (we are on a budget and I was drastically trying to save some dough)... Months passed and I never heard back, so for fear of not having anything to wear, I went looking for something else... Enter Mara Hoffman: all seeing bridal gown...

This dress is stunning, it's to die for, and I'm tall and have small boobs so it actually worked on my body, problem solved, dress checked off the list. (1,200.00$ later).

A few weeks after I purchased the Mara beauty, I get an email from the lovely Martha Webb, expressing how much she'd love to loan me the gown, free of charge, for my big day... She sent it a few weeks later (from LONDON) and now I have the dress of my dreams, and I actually feel like this wedding is real.

This wedding is definitely real, as are all of the insane costs that are building up. So I would like to pass on the Mara Hoffman gown to another tall small boobed bride. It's a size 4 and has never been worn other than when I've tried it on a few times. Not sure if you've had anyone looking for this dress but I'm definitely ready to sell it, the sooner the better.

I will for sure be sending you lots of photos from the big day, which is 20 fucking days away.... (breeeeeath, keep breathing).

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

*****

It seems you weren't the first one to obsess over that ombre dress.... But I have a feeling you'll rock it harder than this no-boobed model.

WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE THE PHOTOS.



**Update: the Mara Hoffman is gone. Long gone.**

CARRIE DIP-DYE: Yay or Nay?

It's been too long since we had a vote around here.

So what do we think about this Wai-Ching that Anon so kindly linked to?

(See the results over here)

Tie-dye or not tie-dye?!?!

Dear ESB,

We are doing a simple outdoor ceremony with 50-ish guests, followed by killer food and vino at a favorite restaurant in NYC for our wedding this fall. We are lucky to have many talented friends who are assisting us with such things as invitations, flowers, photography which is great for our limited budget (and moral opposition to spending a bundle on this) and guarantees that there won't be any chance of ridiculous, predictable wedding crap.  

I am also utilizing an acquaintance of mine who is a designer to make my dress. She has sent me some beautiful sketches, but what I am really grappling with is color. I had initially thought that in order to avoid tradition and the horror of looking "bride-y" that I was absolutely NOT going to wear any kind of white dress. I had been considering a smokey blue, or after the recent Vera Wang collection, a hot deep shade of red. Now that it is getting close to the time to pull the trigger, I am having second thoughts. I am only getting married once (fingers crossed!) and maybe this is my white dress moment?!? 

I also thought of the idea of utilizing gradient color that moves from white into a color at the bottom (or vice versa)?

Thoughts? Insight? General criticisms?

*****

A tie-dyed or dip-dyed dress could potentially go really really bad. Remember April's ombre?

But if it's done well it can be gorgeous. (See: Ann Demeulemeester above)

If you are ABSOLUTELY CONFIDENT in your designer's dying abilities, I say go for it.

most beautiful wedding skirt EVAR

Ann Demeulemeester via dirtyflaws

Where can I find this $13K dress for, like, much cheaper??

Hello ESB,

I am totally in love with your blog and while scouring the "dresses" archive decided to just write to you myself. I recently got engaged and we're planning a spring 2013 wedding in Mexico. The "theme" (though I hate that word) is loosely Bohemian Glamour.... I have the venue, decor, and most everything else under control but the dress is starting to become my biggest worry... Because I already found my DREAM dress but its wayyyy out of my price range.

In a nutshell, I went to a bridal boutique and after telling the consultant my budget ($2000 - $3000) she pulled a bunch of dresses by this new designer, Tara LaTour. She told me they were within my price range or "a little bit more"... So I tried on this one first and LOVED it with all my heart.... (minus the blue - it would be custom made in ivory/champagne hues). This was MY dress.....

Then I tried on this one and it was a very close second.

Well, it turns out those dresses aren't even close to $3000. The first is over $13,000 (whaaaat) and the second is around $9,000 (better but still not happening). I totally get why they cost that much, they're gorgeous and handmade and custom dyed, etc etc etc. But as much as they are worth those prices, its just not a price I can pay. Anyways...

I would love any suggestions on designers who make dresses in a similar style (the rustic look, raw edges, ruffle/petal, varied colors, etc).... I'm in Washington DC now but am moving to Seattle next month. Maybe in Seattle or Portland??? I feel like a smaller boutique designer is my best bet but I'm not having any luck googling, blog searching, etc.

Also, I'm open to something not necessarily "bridal" and definitely doesn't need to be white - anything in the neutral ivory/champagne/taupe palette works.

Maybe you (or the ever-helpful readers) will be able to suggest something? Any thoughts would be helpful! Thank you so much!!

xoxo

*****

You are aware that I'm not actually a fairy godmother, right?

I mean. ICK on that a*hole for showing you dresses so far out of your price range, but I feel like you ought to just put em out of your mind and move on. If you try to replicate something like that (esp at your price point), you could end up with a real shit show.

p.s. Please, for fuck's sake, will you guys refrain from recommending Wai Ching. That hippie shit was all very well and good for our VENUS ON THE HALF SHELL, but not what we're looking for here.

Should I dye my wedding dress??

Hi

I have been married for just over two years, and it’s all good! I LOVE my dress still – it was perfect and not at all what I planned but it turned out it was me!! But I have been contemplating dyeing the dress and I want some feedback... actually I always planned to dye it but 2 years later still haven’t got the balls!

Leaving my dress in all its white perfect splendour, hanging in my wardrobe zipped up in its bag with a few mothballs –seems like a depressive end to a wedding dress. I dream of wearing this dress (morphed from white to gentle dove grey, or striking royal blue) on my (as yet unconceived (and not yet trying but...)) child’s welcoming shower, or at my 5th wedding anniversary, but dying the most significant, symbolic and expensive item of clothing I’ve ever own scares the bejesus out of me...

What if it goes go horribly wrong! What if I ruin the afore mentioned most important item of clothing I possess!

Would you do it?

Do your readers know of places in Melbourne who will do it for me? (cause a home job scares me more)?

(Ps just so you know I’m not completely insane this is the dress)

*****

First things first: Give it the chop.

(Our lady Artemis in her newly-hemmed wedding dress.)

And then I say GO FOR IT.

Melbourne-based Polka Dot Bride added:

I honestly think most people would do it in their own washing machine...

However, as your lovely bride is so worried about the outcome and so adamant on the colour she wants- I vote she goes professional...

Beaver Clothing & Denim Doctor, Carlton
Brown Gouge Drycleaners
Cullachange (Sydney but do postal service)
True Blue Sunhill Dyers

Cullachange seems to have the best recommendations!

For the bold, I found this dip-dye how-to. Pretty FABULOUS, am I right?

(Top image via Facehunter, Madrid)

Bridesmaids' Dresses for Spring.....

I've recently gotten a few rather specific requests for bridesmaids' dresses, but instead of giving you what you asked for, I figured I'd just show you a few things I like.

Listen, you might have this idea that you want them to wear a "really fun, tea-length skirt, maybe with a cream or white sleeveless top," or "THEY HAVE TO WEAR SAGE GREEN TO MATCH MY INVITATIONS," but you'd be much better off looking around to see what's actually in stores. (And what's, you know, cool. If you're into that.)

1. Mina Stone Hera Dress at Steven Alan

2. Wren Julia Dress at Refinery29 Shops

3. Kimono Dip Dye Dress at Calypso

the real LA: dire wolf skulls, petrichor antlers and the Kibitz Room

Cevd and I took Monday off to do some touristy/fabulous LA things. We packed an outdated copy of LA Bizarro, but I must say we did pretty well on our own.

After a trip to Pink's for lunch, we spent a good part of the afternoon at the La Brea Tar Pits and the Page Museum, where they have the most amazing collection of dire wolf skulls. We also quite enjoyed the display of eagle toe bones.

And then purely by accident, we parked in front of Cavern. (Yes, on our way to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, got a problem with that?) We went in, obv, and can attest that these antlery feathery items are even sexier in person. Srsly.

Petrichor antler*/wood/chain necklace handmade in Los Angeles by Molly Steele.

Cavern Collection handmade seed bead & dip-dyed feather necklace.

This piece is gone but I couldn't resist posting it. (Yes, partly because the model is rocking a mustache. We've gone too long without a good mustache.)

I've subscribed to the Cavern blog so I can obsess about new pieces as they come in. And I had a lovely chat with Adam, one of the store's proprietors. I think I freaked him out a little when I referenced Keith Richards and his bone earring circa Gimme Shelter (freaked him out as in, man this "blogger" lady is old). But anyhoo. ADAM WAS WEARING A BONE AROUND HIS NECK. Or an antler, or whatever. It seemed relevant.

There was dinner and blah blah blah. But obviously cevd, H-town and I closed the night at Canter's Kibitz Room. We may not have see Slash, but we did see some true Hollywood rockers. And man did I wish I was wearing an antler.

*I believe this means the antler has been shed. Ie. the beast was not killed to give us this necklace. But I don't have a lot to go on here.

Okay, I'm closing the comments on this one. For some reason the spammers won't leave it alone. (?!)