Modern Vintage

Today's feature covers fashion and beauty and you'll find some great bargain hunting tidbits I hope are useful!

I found my ceremony dress, a Fall 2005 Badgley Mishka originally retailing at $9,600, on the first day of Bergdorf Goodman's bridal sample sale for $2,500 (how did I find out about the sale? I subscribe to New York Magazine's Best Bets, Fashion Calendar and Wedding alerts). The dress, more than a few sizes too large and missing some Sawrovski crystals, was taken to Madame Paulette (you can cut your budget on a bunch of details, but tailoring is key, a beautiful gown can be disastrous if it doesn't fit well) and with a 15% discount given to me at the Bergdorf sale, my total alterations cost a little over $1000.

photos by David Willems

I wore a pair of diamond studs, borrowed from my Aunt and a Vintage Deco Bracelet from Carole Tanenbaum's Collection. For shoes, I bought a pair of cream slingbacks by Jimmy Choo at the Jimmy Choo sample sale saving about 60% from the original price (again, NY Mag!).

Because I bought my dress before I booked Per Se, I decided I would need a second, more forgiving dress, for my reception as we were treating ourselves and our guests to a 9 course meal. I ended up with a Lilac Notte by Marchesa gown purchased from Bergdorf as well. Though I loved my ceremony gown, I think the Marchesa was more my style and I felt extremely comfortable and beautiful in it. Marchesa's gorgeous lines: Notte and Marchesa are not only hot on the Red Carpet but gorgeous for the carefree bride that's less traditional. The entire Notte line carries dresses under $2000 and many come in Ivory or Cream. Check out Marchesa.com for some mouth watering gowns! Rumor has it, Marchesa might be coming out with a Bridal line soon. Before I ended up with my gown of choice, I loved checking out Stylebug.com for some great bargains on designer gowns.

photo by David Willems 

I wore a pair of strappy silver Jimmy Choos with my second gown. They were also from Bergdorf and I got them in June during their first markdown; I saved 40%! With evening shoes, I would always suggest waiting for sales, as unlike classic styles that sell out quickly, you will almost always fine a great selection of dressy styles on sale. Department stores typically start their Summer markdowns right after Memorial Day and Fall markdowns right around Thanksgiving.

photo by David Willems

My Bridesmaids wore Nicole Miller Gowns that I purchased from Nordstrom.com which always carries this particular style and a couple other gowns year round and will markdown older colors as the new season's colors come in. Funny enough, though I planned on dressing my ladies in chocolate brown, the mocha brown was on sale and I ended up with three mocha brown dresses for under $450 (each retail for $238 regularly). As they were floor-length gowns, I felt we could scrimp on the shoes and chose a pair of Massimo strappy heels from Taget ($19.99 per pair).

photos by David Willems

My very particular groom, wore a Zegna classic single button tux from Bergdorf and the groomsmen were sent to Jack Silver Formal Wear in Columbus Circle for their rentals. Jack Silver is great; they picked out a dashing style for my father - he's never looked so handsome. Because of their proximity to Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall and the Theater District, Jack Silver is the main formal wear rental vendor for performers and can accommodate last minute emergencies.

For my makeup, I tried out a few makeup artists at the counters of my favorite makeup brands at Bergdorf Goodman and Barneys New York. I ended up with Chris, a Bobbi Brown specialist at Bergdorf Goodman (if you are interested in contacting her, please send me an email). You've probably heard this before but, trying out makeup looks at counters in department stores is a great way to figure out what look you want at a fraction of the cost of booking a makeup trial at a salon. For my hair, my stylist who works at a major hair salon in the Upper East Side did an amazing job. For over 6 months, I went to see her for blowouts and updo's I would otherwise get for dinners, weddings, and parties and we tried out different looks, keeping in mind that one of them would inevitably be my wedding day hair style. This was a great way for me to cut back on spending trial-hairstyles that would have cost near $500 at most NYC salons. I worked out a fee with her and on my special day, there she was, knocking on my hotel room door at 8am (if you would like more info please email me).

Instead of wearing a veil, I opted for a crystal clip that I found at Henri Bendels. Check out their hair accessories section on the first floor, my clip was less than $50 (much cheaper than something you would find at a Bridal shops).

photos by David Willems 

Thanks for checking out my Wedding Special and stay tuned for tomorrow's feature on food and entertainment!