Lauren Yellen's photos from her September wedding at the Botanical Gardens in Ann Arbor. Her photographer Melissa Squires of "A Girl in Love Photography" captured the essence of Lauren's wedding perfectly. Melissa was kind enough to share her interpretation of the day with us. Melissa is one of the few photographers who focuses on the "fashion" as well as the "fun" aspects of a wedding. Melissa is an award winning member of agwpja photographing Southeastern Michigan and worldwide. You'll find her on www.agirlinlove.com

Lauren is a wonderfully creative person who incorporated a lot of her own ideas into the details of her wedding, from the dresses to the shoes, flowers and her own head piece. Adding the bolero was a finishing touch that made her fit right in with the garden setting. We especially liked the pink flamingos and green umbrellas; how fun!

While we were making Lauren's dress, every bride, bridesmaid and mother of the wedding commented on the originality and sweetness of the polka dot tulle and ruffles. One bride's sister said that this unique dress made her rethink what she would wear for her own upcoming ceremony. Thanks Lauren!

 
Professional photos from Rachel Walters' October 23 wedding at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial overlooking beautiful Lake St. Clair.

Her photographer, Duane Orris of Orris Photography captured the romantic aspects of the couple's wedding, showcasing her beautiful heirloom bridal veil.

Rachel's veil measured 4 yards long with Alencon lace trim around the entire edge. Rachel hopes to preserve her veil as a family keepsake.

Duane Orris maintains a studio in Royal Oak and is available for travel anywhere. You can view his website on

www.orrisphotography.com
www.orrisphotographyblog.com

Collette's story was a familiar one. After searching through bridal salons from Lansing to Toledo [and trying on at least least 70 dresses], she finally decided that going the "custom" route was her only alternative. She brought several photos of dresses she liked [parts of this and parts of that] for us to look at and to begin the process of designing the "dress of her dreams."

Collette knew that she did want an all-lace [ivory] dress over a deeper color silk under-fabric. She also knew that she didn't want it to be "strapless;" in fact she wanted some sort of a sleeve. She wanted a youthful look that might be difficult to achieve with a sleeve, so we went through many design ideas before finally coming up with the ultimate solution; a sleeveless lace gown with a matching bolero jacket. This way she would have the option of removing the jacket during her reception if she wanted to.

To keep the lace-over-lace design of the jacket from becoming too busy over the lace bodice of the dress, we underlined it with a pale peach organza. The color blended beautifully with the deep taupe underfabric of her gown. We added a beige satin ribbon just under the bust for accent.

Collette was married on October 10 [10-10-10] to the love of her life. It wasn't hard to see that her "Prince Charming" was enchanted with his "Princess."

We'll be posting her photographer's professional images as soon as they're ready.

When Rory McHugh came to us, she had just lost her mother. Continuing to plan her wedding was difficult, but she wanted to do something special in remembrance of her mom.

Rory couldn't wear her mother's dress because of the size, but having it, or parts of it, remade into a new dress was a viable option. Rory's tastes were simple, so she chose a silk taffeta for the major part of her gown, and asked us to remove some of the lace trim from her mom's dress and sew it onto the new one. We took lace from the sleeves and train of the original dress and appliqued it onto the underbust circling it around to the center back. The lace and silk taffeta colors [a deep ivory] were a perfect match. Rory also liked a dress she saw in our studio that had a cascade of ruffles from the back neckline down to the hem. We incorporated that feature into her design as well. It all went together beautifully; but the most dramatic part of Rory's wedding attire was her mom's beautiful heirloom lace-edged veil that flowed from a cap-style headpiece down to the train. The lace of the veil formed a halo around the entire dress.

Rory brought her dad to her last fitting. We don't get a lot of dads in our studio, but this one was happy when he saw how wonderful his daughter looked.

Rory married David Brandon on October 15 at the Dixboro United Methodist Church in Ann Arbor. Their reception was held at Plymouth Manor.

We especially liked Janee's red shoes and colorful flowers.

Thanks again, Serendipity Studios for the great photos.

Serendipity Studios have recently moved to Miami, but are available for wedding bookings around the world. They can be found at:

www.beyondordinary.net
www.beyondordinaryblog.net

Photos from Janee's wonderful country wedding in July of this year; courtesy of Serendipity Studios www.beyondordinary.net. Janee said her gown received "rave reviews!" We suspect that, based on the photos, her new hubby Alex had the same reaction.

We loved the barn [Community Barn], the country road and the entire feel of the wedding. The event was held in Hidden Springs in Eagle Idaho.

Janee's choice of a lace dress fit right in with the casual elegance of the day.

We were amazed that she had the time to finish her term in medical school and plan this wonderful wedding at the same time.

Our best wishes to the happy couple.

Rachel purchased her gown in Texas earlier in the year. It was simple, but suitable to her small frame. She thought that the lack of ornamentation on the gown would lend itself to a wonderful heirloom bridal veil. She chose a lace from our vast inventory to trim her 4 yard mantilla veil. The lace is probably the last of its kind. The results were beautiful.

We added a belt with a beautiful crystal clasp that Rachel wore for her reception.

Rachel was married at the Grosse Pointe War Memorial on October 23.

Her wedding planner, Ana Skidmore of Two-Foot Creative brought the two of us together. Thank you Ana.

Lauren Yellen and Eric Oppitz met at Arizona State University about ten years ago and became engaged in 2001.

Shortly after Lauren moved to Michigan in 2004 to attend grad school at U of M, Eric followed.

Lauren had an idea about a dream dress that would fit into her garden setting at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens in Ann Arbor. She knew that she wanted something informal and perky -- but not a long floor-length gown. When we sat down with her, she presented a photo of an Oscar de la Renta wedding dress that could be modified into her version of the "perfect little dress."

Lauren's dress was a combination of silk taffeta with yards of polka-dot tulle overlay. For a finishing touch, we added a perky bolero with ruffles at the neckline and sleeve area to give the dress just what it needed. During the construction process, every client and prospective client that visited our studio, fell in love with Lauren's wonderful dress. Here you can judge for yourself.

Lauren and Eric, who both work in the Ecology Lab at the University of Michigan, were married on September 11.

When Janee Mestrovich first came to us, it was on a Saturday afternoon in May, following a frantic search for the “right gown” with five of her closest friends in tow. She saw one gown that she loved, but wanted a few modifications. The price of the gown was affordable; however, getting it with the modifications she wanted [plus necessary alterations] would no doubt put it completely out of the ballpark pricewise.

She had only two months before her upcoming July wedding. Her Medical school studies were taking up huge amounts of her time, so getting the gown in a timely manner was critical. In between classes, exams and studying, Jenee traveled from Lansing to our studio in Plymouth for a few fittings, and before long she had the dress of her dreams.

In addition to style details, of paramount importance to Janee was the length of the gown. She wanted all lace, but didn’t want the hem of the dress to drag on the ground for her outside wedding. She wanted a style that was body-hugging, but with a trumpet skirt featuring a few dramatic pickups. We were able to accommodate her on all fronts.

Janee traveled to her wedding destination in Milwaukee with her dress on one arm and her kitten carrier in the other, as her carry-on luggage.

We're waiting to see how she made out with the airline attendants. We were confident that if anyone could do it, Janee could!

When Julie Hollyday came to see us from Cincinnati last year, her mom Susan was extremely enthusiastic to have her daughter come north to Michigan to have her wedding gown made. Susan, who lives in Toledo, knew that not only would this be a good bonding experience, but also a way for her to share in the wedding planning process.

Julie's idea for a wedding gown was a composite of many ideas that she saw in bridal magazines. Our impression was that it was yet another take of the formal "little back dress" that Princess Diana wore when she made her first public appearance as the future bride of Prince Charles.

Julie and Susan graced our studio several times in the process of bringing the dress from its simple beginnings to its elegant finish.

We suggested adding a few silk flowers to the ruffles, but Julie loved the simplicity of the dress as it was. Instead she opted for having us make up the wedding flowers from her bridal silk and a red silk shantung for her attendants and mothers' corsages. Instead of a veil, Julie wore three small silk roses in her hair.

Photography by Bonnie Daws

Photography courtesy of Mod4

Last year when Julie picked up her gown, we posted a picture of her on our website as she looked then. Our photo didn't do her justice.

Just this week, her photographer, Mod4 was kind enough to send us two great photos taken of the couple on their wedding day at The Henry Ford in Dearborn.

Chris is an illustrator for Star Wars and Julie is a creative director for a local ad agency. Together they put together the most amazing wedding with a STAR WARS theme. The photographer has captured this unique event on their blog. Take a look on http://www.mod4.com/blog

Wonderful photos of Janine Kenaan's wedding to Gary Greenberg. The photos shown here were furnished courtesy of the Princess Cruise Line.

What a romantic setting for a beautiful wedding that was shared by the couple's families and closest friends. We can see the sun setting on the happy couple as they share a kiss and spend a few private moments at sunset.




Janine was such a wonderful bride to work with. We loved creating all the details of her dress starting from only a photo of a gown and then adding the detail of pickups and crystal banding from the our inventory of silk and trims.



We hope that the Greenbergs enjoy many years of happiness.

When Rebecca O'Leary came to us in May of this year, it was after an exhaustive search for a dress that she could feel comfortable in for her July wedding.Rebecca wanted something with sleeves, yet something that wasn't like many of the ball gowns or strapless dresses she found in area bridal shops. She only knew she wanted something that floated, was light weight and easy to move in. We put her in this ivory charmeuse with a dress tulle overlay and a slight rouching at the bustline. For a touch of elegance, we added this dramatic crystal embroidery just above the skirt. It was perfect!

Rebeca brought her niece Gracie to her fittings. Gracie has agreed to model a flower girl dress for us in the future.

The wedding took place at the Tollgate Center in Novi on one of the hottest days of the summer. A surprise thunderstorm greeted the couple midway through the afternoon. Rebecca was happy that her dress was so light.

The couple received their guests at a family home in Highland, Michigan.

Rebecca, you were a joy to work with.


Photography by Bonnie Daws

Here's a dress to suit the most dramatic and sophisticated of brides.

We're noticing that mothers of the wedding are getting more dramatic, and won't settle for any of those matronly dresses that they're finding in most bridal salons.

We now have a large supply of beaded fabrics in the most beautiful colors. Pair one of them with a luxe chiffon or silk charmeuse and dance at your daughter's [or son's] wedding. You'll feel like a celebrity on the Red Carpet.

Give us a call and come in to see what we can do for you.

Just in - a wonderful photo courtesy of the Princess Cruise Line.

Janine Kenaan Greenberg send us her favorite portrait photo from her wedding last month on the Princess Cruise Line. We'll post more soon.

Her dress looked wonderful considering the flight from Michigan to Florida and then on to the cruise ship. It didn't need any steaming or pressing following the trip.

She was radiant, and the setting couldn't have been better.

This must be the season for Romance on the high seas. Janine Kenaan said "I Do" to Gary Greenberg [on leave from active duty in Iraq] aboard a luxury liner cruise in the Caribbean on May 18.

Janine's gown took twelve yards of ivory Duchesse Silk Satin to create the elaborate swirl of pickups and sweeps.

Her gown weathered the couple's plane trip to Florida [and then on to the cruise ship] surprisingly well after we packed it in tons of tissue.

Look for Janine's gown in an upcoming ad. We're set to do a photo shoot once she returns to Michigan.

Best of luck to them both. We're praying that Gary returns home from Iraq safe and sound.

Rana Berry of Dearborn wanted a variation of a vintage Hollywood gown for her May 1 wedding to Mike Safiedine. A successful search for an ornately beaded fabric ended at Haberman Fabrics in Royal Oak. It was teamed up with her choice of a silk charmeuse fabric to create this exquisite gown for their spring ceremony at the Hyatt Regency in Dearborn.

Following the ceremony the couple enjoyed a week-long cruise to the Virgin Islands.

Wedding day photo [above] courtesy of Action Productions.

AN HEIRLOOM CHRISTENING DRESS FROM A BRIDAL GOWN

KATE AND MARK NARDI DEI

A wonderful photo of our last beautiful bride of 2009. Kate Madigan became the bride of Mark Nardi Dei in a private ceremony in Washington D.C. on November 26, 2009. An informal reception with family and close friends followed. Kate's dress was created in the style of her favorite London designer Roland Mouret.

JUST IN --

When Kaitlin Williams and her mom, Karen, came to us to talk about a custom bridal gown in September of 2009, Kaitlin had dreamed of a designer gown she saw at a local bridal shop, but with a few modifications. Asking the designer to create a dress with these design changes would have taken it completely out of the realm of possibility.

We created the look that Kait wanted, and allowed her to actually redesign the gown herself throughout the fitting process. The final product was a confection of Chantilly lace over eggshell satin embellished with several dozen tone-on-tone flower petals and tiny pearl accents.

A week before her February 13 wedding at the Northridge Church in Plymouth Township, Kate picked up her dream gown.

“I got exactly what I wanted, which is something a store could never give me,” she said. I feel beautiful, not only because the dress was beautifully done, but also because I feel like myself in it.”

Kaitlin truly looked like a princess in her one-of-a-kind dress.