While it’s exhilarating to see big name designers like Monique Lhullier and Amsale present big production runway shows during the biannual Bridal Fashion Week, the smaller shows by other designers offer a more intimate experience.
For Spring 2014 Bridal Market, we attended two smaller shows by Theia and Watters, two great brands that offer popular bridal and bridesmaid dress designs.
I like the intimate view that the smaller shows offer of the dresses as you often get to sit very close to the models, letting you see the dress in detail.
The smaller bridal market shows also offer a greater opportunity to see the reaction of the press to a particular dress. While at bigger shows, everyone in attendance snaps photo of every dress that comes out on the runway, for smaller shows the attending editors stick to the highlights. Since everyone receives professional images of the runway shows for actual editorial placement in magazines and blogs within a couple of days of the show, the main point of taking photos at the events themselves is for social media. Editors tend to react to the design they like en masse, so you can literally feel the energy in the room spike when a particularly interesting design comes on the runway.
At the Spring 2014 Watters show, the highlight was definitely the bridal romper that took everyone by surprise and gave us all a nice break from the ubiquitous white dress. Check out this beauty and see the expressions of the editors it caused:
Such a reaction immediately translates into a storm of social media love. Just check Instagram or Twitter for ‘Watters romper’ and you’ll see what I mean.
The smaller shows also offer a greater opportunity for networking with the designers and members of the press as we all discuss their favorite looks and other designers whose collections they’re excited about.
New York Bridal Market is my favorite time of the year as it gives me a chance to take the pulse of the wedding industry and stay ahead of the curve.
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