Best Wedding Dress Trends for 2011: As we took our front row seats at bridal fashion week once again, there was an unmistakable feeling of excitement and electricity in the air.
We were certainly not disappointed as this season offered plenty of new collections, new directions and fresh new points of view. Designers reinvented the classic notions of romance and modernism with dynamic shapes and luscious fabrics.
FLOWER FANTASY
You might come to the conclusion that every bridal designer suddenly became an expert in botany, because each collection was resplendent in blooms, blossoms and buds. Dresses with skirts engulfed in giant cabbage roses, delicate silk petals that fluttered up and down entire length of gowns, and even dresses that were actually constructed like a giant flower were popping up on the runways.
True girlie-girl designers, Monique Lhuillier and Claire Pettibone showed off their green thumb with pretty dresses laden with flowers of all varieties. Riviniʼs show was artistically set in the theatre space at New Yorkʼs Alvin Ailey Dance Studios with models streaming up and down aisles and finally disappearing behind a giant flower-strewn skrim giving the viewer a multidimensional experience.
Kenneth Pool Wedding Dress 2011
THE NEW ROMANTICS
For those die-hard of romantics among us, this season will leave you with options, options and more options. There is an abundance of tulle, chiffon, organza, super-light taffeta and lace. Many dresses are mere layers upon layers of featherweight materials that will leave you feeling like you are floating down the aisle, with your feet never touching the ground. A good dress can do that to you. Just look at the dreamy gowns from Reem Acraʼs collection…a group of pretty tulle, lace and taffeta dresses that are wearable works of art with passionate touches of embroidery tucked here and there.
Watters & Watters turned out dress after dress that could make any non-believer weak in the knees and no one could deny that designer Elizabeth Fillmore is a true romantic at heart. Her tea-stained couture lace empire gown has a regal air of romance without the sugary aftertaste.
SUPERSIZE IT
For the first time in many seasons, we witnessed a return to big ball gowns. The news is that they are light and airy and crafted from sheer, delicate fabrics like tulle, organza and point dʼesprit. The big skirts are balanced with tiny, form-fitting bodices that highlight the shoulders, the bust and a feminine defined waist. Platinumʼs dramatic ball gown has a skirt fashioned from rows and rows of loops and is all wrapped up with a pretty amethyst silk taffeta sash and oversized bow in back.
