xmas xhopping!

no matter what you celebrate, the holidays are here and you suddenly feel the urge to SHOP! welcome to my world, grandma. shopping can be fun and easy and budget friendly. stop laughing. read on compadre, read on. i’ll give you plenty of amazeballs items to buy easily and inexpensively for your friends and foes…

starting us off is the website LEIF. they have totally rad gifts for the home and person such as the following i expect to see under my tree in a box for me this holiday!!

*NOTE all the items i had up are sold out, but please peruse the LEIF site for more great gift ideas!

next we go over to Etsy for some super adorbs handmade stocking stuffers. my oh my, is that TWStyle with their very own Etsy shop?? it is! spiked cell phone covers for all types of cell phones; including iPhone3, iPhone4, Android, HTC, Windows, etc! and to all a stylish night, indeed.  check these out!

TWStyle spiked cell phone cases $30

TWStyle spiked cell phone cases $30

also on Etsy, check our some of our fave shops! Soladex, Michelle Chang Jewelry, and BOONESTALA are at the top of our list this season. you can see why…

Soladex's Rectangle Black Diamond Necklace $10.99

Michelle Chang Jewelry 5 Nugget Necklace in Sterling Silver $116

BOONESTALA Brass Lions Tooth Pendant Earrings $116

ps BOONESTALA is from Chicago…

still not sure what to get your lurved one for the holidays? is their closet a nightmare? let TWStyle make it a dream with a 2 hour closet edit!

Closet Edit Gift Certificate for the friend who has everything, everything except an organized closet!

please email info@taylorwilsonstyle.com for more info and pricing options.

what else do we love this season? shoes. hello. we also love glitter. of course. guess what happens when you marry the two?? yes, the exact definition of amazeballs comes to life before your eyes… check out what we made ourselves!

TWStyle glitter booties

we went to Target and got some black Patty booties, then used some Jewel-It glue from the craft store and some Marth Stewart glitter, masking tape and BOOM- our new winter shoe! it’s like the 2011 holiday mullet upgraded to the fullest extent… business in the front, balls to the walls in the back.

now go make your own and make an extra pair for your fanciest friend!

happy holidays and merry shopping!

xo, TWStyle

halloween scary styling tips

This Halloween take your time being creative! think outside the box when you’re considering a costume. do you want to just hop online and buy a slutty or foamy costume? Try coming up with a fun costume from your childhood or teens. Pop culture icons make great costumes and aren’t that expensive either!

*You can get a group of girls to be The Spice Girls and I don’t know about you but the Salvation Army near my house has all you need, platform boots included to rock out to girl power!

*Wayne’s World is all the rage with some of my friends. Grab a wig, some tattered jeans, an old band t-shirt and some drumsticks or guitar and you’re going to be worthy.

my sweet friend Danielle. i dont have a shot of her Wayne, he was probs with Cassandra

*Zombies are always in, and all you have to do is get an outfit and destroy it, which is fun, and smear on some white, red and brown face paint to really look dead. add green and black if you’re really serious. (try to find a good zombie picture to emulate, but it’s not as hard as it looks!)

Miss Julia and Casey as zombies at a Chicago Spirit Brigade event

*Dressing up grey scale is my new fave costume. all you need is a grey wig, grey face paint, grey contacts(try getting a sample from your eye dr for free!) and black/white/grey clothes! you can pick your fave old hollywood actor or any character from a black and white film. or rock santa like this girl. the coolest part is that you will look like you were photo shopped in all your photos! grey scale is def the cool new costume for 2011.

desaturated Santa from WTFCostumes.com

No matter what you do remember to have fun and not be too evil! Or some ghosts might get you! or the cops. prob worse if the cops get you….

The Smoking Gun's mugshot of a dumb, dumb criminal

styling on a budget

i do a lot of personal shopping and many people ask me where to find certain things and since i’m out and about so often i can tell them where to find whatever they are looking for based on their price points. HOWEVER this can get tricky when a girl wants to buy say a new trench coat and i can either steer her to the Chicago Bloomingdales Burberry Specialist Ms. Christi Plume who can take care of all your glam trenchy needs, or do i sent the girl to Banana Republic for a $200 one, which i have and LOVE, or do i let her go to Old Navy? based on the item in question and price point of the client is how a good stylist determines who, what, and where.

it’s a challenge to look how you would like to in this economy and not waste your money. if you don’t know how to do this then please contact me for an appt and i will teach you. but turning to knock offs is NOT the way to go. there are tons of cute clothes at places like Old Navy, Target, etc. BTW did you know that Old Navy is under the same company as Gap and Banana? next time you go into those stores notice the similarities in styles and differences in construction and materials. you can get a viscose blend shirt at Old Navy and similar shirt at Banana in silk. so if you’d rather get something to last a bit longer and look a bit nicer go get it at Banana, if you’re in a bind go to Old Navy. they’re the same company, they just create less expensive pieces for their lower price point stores. THAT is proper shopping. NOT going to little boutiques full of $49 Birkin Bags. THOSE are knockoffs. and that is illegal.

i do feel it is my responsibility to make sure my clients and friends aren’t wearing knockoffs. you all know how i feel about knock offs. DEFINITELY a fashion DON’T. if you think it’s no big deal consider this.

think about your job. what do you do? you obviously do something important if you’re being paid  b/c let’s face it these days you have to work hard to keep a job.

think about if your company came to you and said “Milt, we’re gonna need to go ahead and move you downstairs into storage B. We have some new people coming in, and we need all the space we can get. So if you could just go ahead and pack up your stuff and move it down there, that would be terrific, OK?”

and then next thing you know you’ve been fired and your job is being done by the overnight shift, hired illegally at a rate 1/10th what they pay you and your ideas are being sold under the table to little shops around the globe. your creation is making more money than you ever dreamed of, all b/c someone stole your idea and is profitting like rabbits bang, and all you did was design one little ring. one little ring for YSL that costs $250. you spent a lot of time coming up with something new and creative and gorgeous. and then it got knocked off by the night shift and is selling on ebay for $2.99.

um. WTF. the one on the left is YSL and the other two can go jump in the lake i dont care who makes them either you like the ring or not, you don’t go out and buy a knockoff. it’s not a pair of jeans. it’s a piece of art. plus the one on the right just looks crappy. i bet it will turn your finger green too. was that worth the $2.99? a green finger? bonus! not.

i know. i went on a rant, it started with trenches then went to rings but i think you get that i’m passionate about not being a knockoffer. and i can’t afford to buy all the designer pieces i want. as a stylist it’s a challenge to look the part in less expensive items. a lot of my apparel comes from forever 21, yes-it’s true. but i guarantee you dont look at my looks and think ‘wow, designer vomit!’ no b/c my style is chic/avant garde/classic. you can see all the looks here on my pinterest board that i like, btw pinterest is a hoarders dream. you will get sucked in… what i buy from Forever looks really cool but it isn’t from someone’s runway. a black v-neck t shirt is a black v-neck t shirt. the ones for $4.50 from Forever will fall apart by the end of the season, but i can’t afford to invest in a James Perse one at this point in my life. one day… one day… wait probably no b/c i dont want to spend $50 on a black v-neck, i’d rather put that extra $45 towards this! but you understand that a black v-neck is a black v-neck no matter where it’s from. and those are the types of things i purchase from Forever.

for me it’s all about getting the basics, then getting the fluff. Visual Therapy calls it cake and icing. you find your cake, your basics-tops and bottoms. then you find your icing, your fluff- jewelry, scarves, bags, layers. in my case i like silk tanks and skinny jeans. i prefer boots and flats for everyday so if im wearing a tonal outfit i pair it with a colored flat or if i wear my black boots, black skinny jeans and a black silk tank, i cover my wrists in colorful bangles and wear some great earrings and a cardigan, blazer, or scarf and boom. simple just got funky. but my jeans were basic black skinny jeans from Forever($20), my silk tank was from the junior section at Nordstroms($40), my boots are from Target($50) and the jewelry i’ve been collecting since i could chew on it. so for $110 i have my basic look that i can intertwine with all my accessories and extra pieces. it sounds like a lot for one outfit but i’ll wear those boots until they fall apart and the jeans will prob be on two more times this week and the tank will reappear for the weekend. everything i buy works with everything i have. that way i find different versions of my basics, b/c i can’t wear the same thing every day, so i rotate my fave pieces for cleaning and give them a break, and then i change out the fluff. i’ll wear this scarf from H&M on tues and then wear that blazer from Xara on Weds then both on Thurs. see the pattern? i keep it simple and accessorize based on how im feeling that day and where i’m going. and that is how i do it. without knock offs. and without breaking the bank. so if i can do it, you can do it. and you don’t even need a Swingline.

ps. if you find you do have knock offs in your closet you can redeem yourself by calling the theaters in your neighborhood and see if they’d like donations to their costume collection.

CheekyChicago!

CheekyChicago.com has caught up with TaylorWilsonStyle and posted some pics of the last two weddings I did! check out the article HERE. they post all sorts of fun tidbits on whatever is fresh in town. you should add them to your blog roll, def a fun site for great Chicago insider info.

so check them out, they called us Glamourous and Detailed! wooo ric flair. (as the mooj would say)

glamour needed?

i’m doing an over night shoot for Lowes right now, def no silk or sequins for this job. we have a fun crew, but i need some glam right now. makeup artist Christina Culinski just saved they day with these shots, edited by Jamie Bayer, from our last project together. enjoy!

executive producer and hair and makeup artist: Christina Culinski 

producer: Katharine Rhee

still photographer: Patrick Xiong

wardrobe stylist: Taylor Wilson all clothes are from H&M and stylists’ collection.

starring: Liz Betzen

photo editing: Jamie Bayer

check out the videos of the shoot in the posts below!

shoot it!

what do you get when a hair and makeup artist wants to add to her reel?  a great shoot! Christina Culinski had an idea, she got a team together, produced a shoot and the results are amazing. she even had it filmed, the videos are pretty bitchin’. check out the video of the shoot. then please take a look at everyone’s website, some talented kids here. especially our photographer, Patrick. his gritty, sexy, raw images are beautiful and pure. love them.

the story is about a beautiful, powerful woman hiding her lonely and sad soul. she has noone to complete her, she never lets anyone get close enough to hurt her. she wastes herself on men, alcohol, waiting. always waiting… for nothing.

executive producer and hair and makeup artist: Christina Culinski 

producer: Katharine Rhee

video shot and edited: Rocky Russell/the russes

still photographer: Patrick Xiong

wardrobe stylist: Taylor Wilson all clothes are from H&M and stylists’ collection.

starring: Liz Betzen

music: Phoenix

behind the scenes

+1.5 for this wedding!

have you lots of sticky summer events that you and your bump are invited to? getting new dresses just to fit that little basketball of joy are a pain, but if you have to go to weddings it’s ever harder!! except think of all the cake. oh man i love cake. don’t get distracted by the desserts or discouraged, check out these easy looks that you can mix and match with things in your wardrobe for this summer.

#1 summer wedding. not too fancy, maybe a garden wedding or something else outdoors.

this dress from Old Navy will work great with this sequin jacket from Piperlime, pair it with a funky colorful sandal from DSW, add some accessories and voila! baby mama at the wedding. this whole look costs less than $200. this jacket is only $35!

#2, a formal wedding. let’s re-use the sequin jacket! see how we do that? now you will have to spend a little more on a formal dress, but if you have a few formal weddings you can re-wear this if possible. if you can do a heel, get a beautiful jeweled sandal (which you can wear with regular looks all summer long!), some dangle-y earrings and presto! this look costs about $200 if you already own the jacket. the earrings are less than $30!

#3 we will give you an in between look. you can dress it up or down, and def wear it again. in present to you, the wrap dress. you can wear it a million ways, so you have a fresh look at least 10 times! Victoria’s Secret has a whole multi-wear collection now, this one is their flirty, so if your bump is really big I might not do this, but early on you can for sure AND you can wear it once your bambino has arrived, until they puke on it. story if your life. did i mention it’s on sale? get a fun color too, if you must get a black fine, but wear it with your cool colorful sandals from look #1 and the earrings from look #2 and boom, whaddup? (that’s for Jamie) the dress is $80 and you already own the sandals for $55 and the earrings for $30, but if not this whole look would cost about $170.

ok baby mama’s, you’ve got three looks that you can mix and match and wear with things you already have, saving you money on things you can only wear for a few months! though the jersey dresses are more forgiving and can be worn during and after your pregnancy. good luck little mothers!

Chicago + the Machines

whoever doesn’t love the sweet, sweet crooning of Florence + the Machines can stop reading right now and head back to your people.com page of kardashian krap pictures and fashion. i won’t even capitalize the names. running to the beat of her own drum, Florence Welch and her team of soulful rockers have been slowly spreading their UK hippie fashion around the country, thanks to their debut album becoming one of the best-selling for 2009 and 2010. just listening to her makes me want to dye my hair red. looking at her affirms it simply won’t work on me but i can go after her clothing with a much better outcome.

Florence Welch

in the interest of emulating her sexy rocker chic look seen here, head over to Barneys. in their CO-OP section, which is their lower priced but terribly awesome selection of clothes, you can easily find pieces to mix and match to get this look. by mixing and matching pieces rather than purchasing a SILVER SUIT, you can get a lot more for you money b/c hopefully, the pieces you purchase proceed to properly pronounce your style. i just wanted to see if i could get a weird rhyme in there, but basically, if you get things that mix and match you can wear them with stuff you already have. so Barney’s CO-OP has a Diane von Furstenberg ‘Geo Blazer’ for $465.00. it’s a well tailored ivory jacket with a, wait it’s color is called CHALK. ok it’s a chalk colored blazer with a clean top-stitched mock-shawl collar lapel. it’s pretty gorg. if you don’t have the splurgability to get this little gem, i know H&M has a pretty ivory shawl collar tight armhole blazer for $70 right now just to the right of the front door at the Mich Ave store b/c i used it for a shoot the other day. it’s a very similar contender, and has a wide-leg trouser to match which is fun for this summer if you’re over 5’2″ which i am not.

DVF from Barneys

you’ve got the blazer, which btw you can wear over all your summer dresses with sandals or boots, with tanks and jeans and wedgies out on dates, etc… now lets find sexy blouses. Bloomingdales has some great tops right now. long or short sleeved and tanks galore. pick out a fancy one with a print to give some interest to this look. you can go monotone if your skin tone allows, but a sheer print works just fine and dilutes itself so you don’t look like a walking wallpaper ad.

Element Zooey Printed Chiffon Woven Shirt

this one is only $42 so that’s great news there, you can wear it over a tank or a lacy bra if you’re feeling schlutty. i like the schlutty approach personally. *Target sells great bras with lightly padded cups (opaque for the tata’s) and lacy sides-looks great under sheer tops and they’re like $13… get them in black, charcoal, maroon, plum, etc. they work great under sheer tops and also racer-back tanks.

Lacy side bra. schultty

now you need pants. i know, such a pain. the law requires it in most public spaces. so let’s go to Urban Outfitters and see what they have…

just kidding

HA these are available right now, for this season, at UO, for $190!! hahahaha. i just got my Sunday morning laugh in. ok for reals. these pants, also at Urban, are from House of Dagmar called the Lola Track Trouser. they’re pricey, $328, but they’re pretty cool as the girl who plays Miley Cyrus on SNL would say. you can justify this purchase if you are also taller than 5’2″. i like to live vicariously through my readers’ height. if you’re short and poor-like me, check out the other option, jeansssss!

House of Dagmar Lola Track Trouser

BDG Skinny Mid-Rise Jean

BDG Cigarette High-Rise Jean - Purple

once you’ve found your perf pant to go with your blazer and sheer rocker top lets get some shoesssss i heart shoes. lets gaze lovingly at all these…

Naia by Miista

um, they’re called Miista which makes me want them #1. #2 they’re only $199-pretty cheap for a great pair of shoes. #3 they’re navy.

Anthology Sandal by Seychelles

pretty flat sandal, $94, great for this look and probably all the rest of the outfits in your closet. ps. i refuse to wear flip flops to anywhere besides on the beach, i dont even like to wear them to the beach, only wear them on the beach. there is no excuse to see flip flops in public. it’s like wearing Juicy sweatsuits to Jewel. DON’T DO THAT.

Cutout Heel

for only $58, these are fashionably fun for this summer. i like to get inexpensive shoes i know i’ll only want for one season b/c i don’t have to spend a fortune on them, i’ll wear them ’till they’re dead, and throw them away once i’m finished and not feel bad. you can wear these with your Florence look, with jeans and pretty tops, with summer dresses, or with your bathing suit at the pool, if that’s your thang.

all of these shoes and jewelry pieces are available at NeedSupply.com, my new favorite store.

so now that you’re all Florenced out, and make sure you keep it Machine-y and not Henderson-y, enjoy your fun new look. and make sure you don’t wear any feather stuff b/c this is not Coachella people, this is Chicago.

musical jeanius!

what are you wearing? is it old? is there a hole in the armpit? is that a coffee stain on your shirt? are your boots scuffed and salt stained? if you answered yes to any of that, hopefully this post will get you motivated to go get yourself some new clothes for SPRING!!!! that’s right, Chicago, it’s going to happen one day. before you know it, you’ll walk out side in your brand new shearling coat and sweat your balls off. girls sweat their balls off too, it’s not just you guys. so since it’s almost ball sweating time, check out this sweaty sweet band, for some inspiration when updating your spring attire.

Passion Pit

ok, we’re going to start off easy. Passion Pit. I know you’ve heard their funky crooning, and liked it. they are a little goofy (purple pants and lavender shoes) but who doesn’t like a little quirk in their style. this is for the casual male creative/hipster/skater/geek chic.

lets start with the pants. a nice clean jean, colored or normal-your preference. try this fit- the Levi’s 501 original, on sale right now in fact. they really look good on most every guy. they’re not too tight and NOT too loose. get these and please throw away your carpenter jeans. PLEASE.

then get some new tshirts, if you wear tshirts everyday you should have at least 30. i mean really. if this is all you wear please tell me you have at LEAST 30. you wash and dry those puppies so often i bet you could hulk hogan one if you tried. to make sure they last longer dont dry them all the way, hang them to dry or just buy a ton more. the economy thanks you. some great plain t’s are the BDG PE V-Neck Tee from Urban Outfitters. i like v-neck tee’s, BDG also sell’s crewneck for formal mondays at Urban. they have an assortment of colors and stripes, everything your little hipster heart could long for. though i hear hipsters never long for anything. they will things. whatev. these t’s are soft and dont shrink that badly. at least the ones my husband has didn’t shrink.

then go get some button-down shirts. you can have plain, striped, plaid, whatever you like, just make sure the fit is right. nothing worse than an XM with a poor fit. that’s Extra Medium. you’re not quite a Large but you are too husky for a Medium. if this is you, make friends with your dry cleaner. or make friends with mine. hem those shirts, shorten those sleeves and add darts to that back, then your Large will fit your XM frame. xo xm’s, xo. check out these button-downs from REVOLVEclothing.com.

 

and finally shoessssss my fave. here are some hot boy shoes if i ever saw any, all from SUPRA.

 

suprafootwear.com

i really like this one too…

 

The Avenger in black suede, Erik Ellington's signature shoe.

ok you’re all set now. what? you want more? greedy little budding fashionistas. here. enjoy this stuff, all from Need Suppy Co.

 

iPad Portfolio by Kenton Sorenson

Psychometry sunglasses by Cheap Monday

Brass Tan Watch by Uniform Wares

you don’t need any of that but you should get it all. gluttony at it’s finest.

the cost of doing business…

no free lunches! i remember learning that in economics class. i guess, though, not all countries require that course in their college graduation specs. like China for instance.

let me back up.

i had a bride message back and forth with me the other day. she was inquiring about my prices and was intrigued with a dress i made for a Chicago bride last Labor Day. so, i thought i’d explain my process and corresponding price structure for potential clients! the dress she mentioned is one of my fave dresses, the bride and i went to college together and she always told me i would be making her dress, then she got engaged!!! and she came to me with magazine pictures of everything she liked, she even went to try on tons of dresses, and she still wanted me to make her dress. it was great b/c i felt like i had free reign to take the dress where i wanted and pulled from her inspiration, but really made it my own. i even devised a way to remove the skirt so she had a mini dress for her reception and travels, which is tres chic and so her.  i kept it a surprise until about a month before and i couldn’t keep it from her. i was so excited, and so was she!now, this dress took me a long time to make. first i had to create a corset that fit the bride to a t. she is a very athletic, fit lady and not to get into too much detail, but i gave her boobs. yes. i give all my brides boobs in one way or another. i either use cups or cut up a bra so that each girl looks proportionate and lovely. our boobs can severely screw up a dress. tiny or big, they’re a definite play-maker. the other thing about this bride is she has a very straight torso. so since she is slim and long enough, i added a waist line just above her true waist to give the appearance of a tiny tiny waist and a curvey lower half. as you can see for yourself, it did the trick.

then, after i made the corset out of cotton, i hand cut silk strips and sewed them all on. luckily we found two kinds of silk, sheer and textured, that were inexpensive so it was as luscious as it could be. i really stress using natural fibers. I will not use synthetic fibers to touch your body. really the only synthetics i use are netting, tulle, and things of that nature. they do make silk tulle, but it’s got a crunchy rough texture and hasn’t been applicable so far. but otherwise, it’s silks, cottons and wools all the way! i can’t wait to do a winter bride. mmm wool capelets and embellishments! so cozy! ooo, light grey! ok, who’se got a winter wedding? let’s do this!

then after i sewed each strip to the bust and pressed everything, i sewed on her belt ribbon and then began the skirt. it is a complete, true circle. that was a large undertaking, sewing each strip in different widths and ruffling and gathering each strip differently and i added tulle to that to give the puff and body the bride wanted. then i made a petticoat to keep the skirt from enveloping her feet and give it shape.

I also made this bride custom labels, that matched her invites. they had a very cool Chicago-style wedding with lots of Daniel Burnham references as you can see. the bride probably thought i was snatching up her crazy cool style b/c i was planning my own invites at the time and was asking her for her font files. lol. poor girl.

so as you can see, there was a lot of behind the scenes work for this dress, and it had a pretty decent price tag. if any of you have tried on a vera wang, this was in that range. lower part but in that range. it takes a long time to hand sew a gown and to custom build a dress and to use all natural fibers which is the best option i think. and to know that no-one will ever have the same dress as you, ever. EVER. it was an expensive dress, but invitations get thrown away…flowers wilt, blah blah blah…but your dress! you can keep that for your children OR you can actually wear your dress after your wedding. hello, RIT dye? yes, i’ll take some steel blue please. yes, enough to dye my wedding dress for the formal wedding i have to go to next year. yes, the designer who made it is shortening it for me! i know, it’s so cool that you can cut half of it off and have a whole new dress with some dye!!

so to further prove my point, about why dresses can cost so much, the corset for my first dress took over 36 hours total, just to hand bead the top with real pearls. so times that by $50/hr not even including the cost of the pearls and what have you got? thank God i can pay my mom in cuddles… then the hand sewn flowers i put on and the custom built and fit corset… it adds up doesn’t it. i really want brides to understand what they’re paying for when they spend a lot of money on a dress they wear for maybe 10 hours. don’t you want it to be the most amazing and comfortable thing you ever wear? i do.

which brings me back to CHINAAAAAA and other countries who sell dresses that look beautiful, but cost less than $1000. for instance, i was just looking for pictures of a beaded lace to send to my mom who is in NY right now and going to Mood Fabrics today with my aunt. i want her to look for some beaded lace for one of my brides i have for August. we have found some fabrics that she likes, but i feel like there is something out there that she’ll love, and i will too. i am happy to embellish a fabric to make it how we want it, but it’d be great to just find the right fabric. so i googled some bridal laces, dresses, etc and what do i find? THIS!

it’s a company that makes and sells knockoff dresses! i was shocked when i found this and annoyed, but not too surprised. i asked some friends how much their dresses were and their sisters, and they all gave me price tags of under $1200. most being at $600 to $800. those are crazy great prices. great deals for them and they all looked GORG, but they had no idea if their dresses might have come from China and might have been knockoffs of designer gowns! this web page even says it’s a Jim Hjelm/Lazaro dress. i mean, there is not a shred of secrecy, it flat out announces it’s a knock-off. but most brides don’t notice that it’s not an original or that it’s a knock-off to begin with.

too often we accept forgery in the form of apparel, most of the time without realizing it. there has been a lot of talk to pass laws to prevent the copying of fashion. since you cannot copy a Monet and pass it off as your own, why can you copy a Monique Lhuillier and pass that off as your own? mass retailers and chains are the most guilty of this growing trend. luckily the laws are catching up to them and many chop shops and stores are being raided for their fake Chanel and Prada bags. i.e. Canal Street… hopefully it’ll trickle into bridal soon. i mean i’d be so mad if someone knocked off my dresses. i’m no Vera Wang but i work really hard to make my brides look the best they could possibly look, better than they even imagined, and i’d be super peeved if some website from China was taking my stuff and selling it for less than the cost of the materials. i mean really, i don’t know how they can sell them that cheap. unless you buy a dress from a department store and it doesn’t say it’s a bridal dress but happens to be white, you cant find something really truly amazing for less than $1000. i’ve done alts on a few of those online and small boutique dresses. and they felt like plastic. because they’re made of plastic… don’t you want to breath? don’t you want to move? don’t you want your dress to turn with you when you turn? i know you’ve seen one or two of those in your life. the dress with a mind and bust of it’s own…

you looked beautiful at your wedding and you had a wonderful time. but if you paid a great price for a dress that is based on someone else’s design and mass-produced, it was not unique for you, and this was your special day! look at it this way-i’m sure you have something you like to make that is unique to you. and what if you made something so amazing, then your sneaky and uncreative neighbor made the exact same thing, a painting, a casserole, a dog accessory-all things not copyrightable(?) and they passed that off as their own? wouldn’t you be a tad upset that a martha stewart wanna-be stole your idea for goat cheese and asparagus quiche then told everyone it was her genius when you made it for her the week before? I think you might, just a bit.

so if you’re getting married or know someone who is, please send your friends and sisters to me, i’d really like to make them a custom, couture, hand crafted, one of a kind, natural fiber, breathable, movable gown for their incredible day. we can talk about my prices, and how important it is to spend a little more for a custom-designed and made gown that fits you perfectly! my prices are high(er than china), but it costs more to get a perfectly custom-designed and fit dress, which is such an important part of your wedding. you’re already spending exorbitant amounts of money on things like place settings and flowers. don’t you think it’s more important to spend that money on something you can hand down to your daughter? most brides have at least a budget of $10K for their weddings, and how important it is that you use the money wisely. for example, i did my own centerpieces and we made the chuppah ourselves. It was a shit-ton of work, but it was cheap as hell. i had great bridesmaids and family to help and we worked together and it kept the costs down. so you just have to choose where you want to spend that money, and the dress is the obvious most important part of everything. go to Oak Street and try on those dresses, then go to David’s Bridal and try on THOSE dresses, then give me a call. you’ll understand once you do… xo